Massively Multiplayer Online Games - Wizards and Warriors: Massively Multiplayer Online Game Creation - page 4

is ruled by Lord British. The game mixes fantasy creatures and a medieval-based
world with magic and chivalry using 2D graphics.

Ultima also contained some very exciting game play mechanics that ensured that
it would become the first MMO to gain large subscriber numbers. The game
contained game play mechanics and concepts such as:

n Horse travel: As well as allowing players to walk and run over the
landscape, players could also obtain mounts such as horses that meant
travelling time was substantially reduced. This also allowed players to
out-run any potential dangers.
n Teleports: Travelling across the world could still take a while on
horseback so to allow players to get from one area to another there was
a selection of teleports. Each teleport could send a player to various
locations, which the player could identify by clicking on the teleport.
Some teleports would transport the user to a city location, whereas others
would transport the player to the middle of a forest.
n Quick travel: There was a third method for quickly moving to a
particular location. By using runes and magic, players could inscribe a
particular location into memory and then recall it to automatically go
back to that location. This was the preferred method for moving quickly
between locations players had been to previously.
n Buying a house: Sometimes players wanted a place to rest or a place to
store their in-game loot. Ultima Online allowed the players to buy a
house, a shop, and even a castle to use as a base of operations.
n Owning a ship: In Ultima Online there were a number of locations
including islands. Though the players could get to them using a portal,
they could also purchase a ship to sail across the seas.

In-game chat: When chatting to other players in the world the typed-in
text would appear in a speech bubble above the player

n

s character.
n Good and evil: One of the key selling points was the ability to play a
character however you wanted to. This could involve creating a small
band of evil characters, hiding and waiting for people to walk by alone
and then attacking them so players could steal their equipment. Players

'