Origin of Ultima Online at GDC Online 2012

Gamasutra has word that Ultima Online will be prominently featured at GDC Online 2012 this October, in Austin, Texas.

Over in the Design track, attendees will get a behind the scenes look at the creation of Ultima Online, which was not only one of the first graphical MMOs, it also helped set the standard for player versus player combat and sandbox gameplay for years after its launch. Even today, it’s remembered as one of the greatest online games of all time.

And at this October’s GDC Online, three of the game’s creators — Raph Koster (Playdom), Rich Vogel (ex-BioWare), and Starr Long (Disney) — will reflect on the ambition, struggles, and “idealistic cluelessness” that fueled the development of this influential title.

While I would like to attend, and while I love UO, I’m not going to spend $800+ just to hear about the history of UO, however hopefully it will be streamed online.

Here is the description of the presentation:

At first, it was mostly a team of newbies. For a while, the office space was a few rooms on a floor that was gutted for construction — you could literally walk off the 5th floor of building and plunge to your death if you weren’t careful. The artists sat in the hallway. And the team was out to change everything. Ultima Online was not only one of the first graphical MMORPGs, it also set the standard for player vs player combat and sandbox/emergent gameplay in online titles for many years to come. Three of the UO team’s chief members — Raph Koster, Rich Vogel, and Starr Long (all of whom went on to shape the online gaming landscape) — will deliver a postmortem on the landmark title, reflecting on the challenges they faced from early development to maintaining the game well after its launch. Come learn how a combination of insane ambition and idealistic cluelessness can sometimes result in creating something that changes people’s lives and the course of an industry.