RICHARD GARRIOTT

'Richard Allen Garriott' (born July 4, 1961), also known as 'Lord British' in ''Ultima Online'' and 'General British' in ''Tabula Rasa'', is a significant figure in the video game industry. He was originally a game designer and programmer, but now engages in various aspects of computer game development.

Contents

Biography

Video game works

References

External links

Biography

Garriott was born in Cambridge, England and raised in Nassau Bay Texas, a son of Skylab and Spacelab astronaut Owen K. Garriott. At Clear Creek High School, he took an interest in computers and began self-directed courses in programming in which he created fantasy computer games. He also gained his "Lord British" nickname from older students at his school who thought he spoke with a British accent.
Richard continued programming many games, often offering them to friends for free. He produced his first published game, ''Akalabeth'', in the summer of 1980 while working at a ComputerLand retail store. Garriott earned more than enough money from ''Akalabeth'' to pay to continue his education. In the fall, he entered the University of Texas at Austin, joined the school's fencing team and later joined the Society for Creative Anachronism.
In the early 1980s, Garriott developed the ''Ultima'' computer game series (sequels after the first were numbered, such as ''Ultima II'', ''Ultima III'' and so on). Originally programmed for the Apple II, the first was published by California Pacific Computers, and sold in ziploc plastic bags to interested parties. The second part was published by Sierra On-Line. By the time he developed his third installment, the games had such a large following that Garriott (along with his brother, Robert, and father and others) established Origin Systems, their own video game publisher, to handle the publishing and distribution of his title, now available on several platforms. Origin went on to become one of the most influential game developers in the history of video games.
Garriott sold Origin to Electronic Arts in September 1992. For the most part, this did not directly impact development from a gamer's standpoint. But in 1999 and 2000, turmoil became apparent when EA cancelled all of Origin's new development projects, including ''Ultima Online 2'', ''Privateer Online'', and ''Harry Potter Online''^[1].^[2] In the midst of these events, Garriott resigned from the company he had created. He returned to the industry by forming Destination Games in April 2000 with his brother and Starr Long (the producer of ''Ultima Online''). Once Garriott's non-compete agreement with EA expired a year later, Destination partnered with NCsoft where he currently acts as a producer and designer of MMORPGs.
Garriott is also an avid boxing fan. He is friends with pro boxer, Jesús Chávez, even acting as a corner man for Chávez in his first title defense against Erik Morales in 2004.
Garriott built a "haunted house"/museum at his residence called Britannia Manor in Austin, Texas. He also promotes private space flight as vice-chairman of the board of directors for Space Adventures and as a trustee of the X-Prize.
Garriott became the ninth inductee into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame in 2006.
On February 1, 2007, nine individuals broke into Garriott's West Travis County estate to party and stole $5,000 worth of alcohol. Unfortunately for them, they left behind a digital camera containing pictures of them in the act. When two of them returned for the camera, they found that Garriott had printed their photos and posted them around the estate. Investigators were also using the picture to try to identify the individuals. (It has also become quite the sport among NCSoft employees to try to find the individual on MySpace or Facebook.) ^[3]

Video game works

Game Name	First Released	System Name(s)	Garriott's Role(s)
Akalabeth: World of Doom	1979	Apple II & DOS	Game Designer, Coder & Programmer
Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness	1981	Apple II, Commodore 64, DOS, FM Towns & MSX	Original Conceptor, Programmer & Graphic Artist
Ultima II: The Revenge of the Enchantress	1982	Apple II, Atari 8 bit systems, Commodore 64, DOS & FM Towns	Programmer
Ultima III: Exodus	1983	Apple II, Amiga, Atari 8 bit systems, Commodore 64, DOS, FM Towns, Mac OS & NES	Project Director
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar	1985	Apple II, Amiga, Atari 8 bit systems, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, FM Towns, MSX, NES, Sega Master System	Project Director
Autoduel	1985	Apple II, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64 & DOS	Programmer & Designer
Ultima V: Warriors of Destiny	1988	Apple II, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, FM Towns & NES	Designer, Writer & Programmer
Omega	1989	Apple II, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64 & DOS	Designer
Ultima VI: The False Prophet	1990	DOS, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, FM Towns, SNES	Designer, Producer, Sound Effect Worker, Writer & Voice Actor
Worlds of Ultima: The Savage Empire	1990	DOS & SNES	Executive Producer
Ultima: Worlds of Adventure 2: Martian Dreams	1991	DOS	Creative Director
Ultima: Runes of Virtue	1991	Game Boy	Creative Director
Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss	1992	DOS, FM Towns & PlayStation	Director & Voice Actor
Ultima VII: The Black Gate	1992	DOS & SNES	Director & Producer
Ultima VII: The Forge of Virtue	1993	DOS	Creative Assistance & Producer
Ultima VII Part Two: Serpent Isle	1993	DOS	Creative Director & Audio Team Member
Ultima VII Part Two: The Silver Seed	1993	DOS	Director & Voice Actor
Ultima VIII: Pagan	1994	DOS	Producer
Ultima: Runes of Virtue II	1994	Game Boy	Creative Director & Additional Design
Ultima VIII: The Lost Vale Expansion Pack	Cancelled	DOS	Producer
Bioforge	1995	DOS	Executive Producer
Ultima Online	1997	Windows	Producer
	1998	Windows	Executive Designer
Lineage	1998	Windows & Mac OS X	Executive Producer
Ultima IX: Ascension	1999	Windows	Director
Lineage II: The Chaotic Chronicle	2003	Windows	Executive Producer
City of Heroes	2004	Windows	Executive Producer
City of Villains	2005	Windows	Executive Management
Tabula Rasa	Closed Beta 2007	Windows	Executive Producer

References

1. IGN: Harry Potter LEGO Redux Linder, Brian
2. When Kings Fall: Part II of II Matonis, Misty
3. Nine who left pics at crime scene identified Claire Osborn

External links

★

★

★ Biography of Garriott from DragonCon.org

★ Video Interview with Garriott from KLRU TV Station (2005)

★ Interview with Garriott in Austin Chronicle from 2000

★ Munchkin Village mayor tries to go to space: Computer programmer touts commercial space tourism (The Daily Texan, 7/19/2005)

★ Interview with Richard Garriott on space tourism (The Space Review, 8/8/2005)

★ The Dot Eaters article featuring a history of Gariott/Lord British, his games, and Origin.

★ PvP Online comic portrayal of Gariott

★ Richard Garriott's political donations