Richard Garriott
Richard Garriott | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nationality | American |
| Space career | |
| Spaceflight Participant | |
Current occupation | Game designer |
| Missions | None |
Richard Allen Garriott (born July 4, 1961), 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. He is scheduled to fly as spaceflight participant to the International Space Station in October 2008.[1]
Early life
Garriott, an American citizen by blood, was born in Cambridge, England, and raised in Nassau Bay, Texas. He is the son of scientist Owen K. Garriott, who became an astronaut and flew with Skylab 3 and Space Shuttle mission STS-9. 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 the nickname Lord British from older students at his school who thought he spoke with a British accent.[2]
Programming career
Richard continued programming many games, often offering them to friends for free. He produced his first published game, Akalabeth (DND28b[3]), 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[4].[5] 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.
Awards
Garriott became the ninth inductee into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame in 2006.
Other accomplishments and interests
Garriott acted as corner man for professional boxer and friend Jesús Chávez in his first title defense against Erik Morales in 2004.
He is also an avid magician and magic collector, and appeared on the cover of the January 2008 MUM, the magazine of the Society of American Magicians.
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.
On February 1, 2007, nine individuals broke into Garriott's West Travis County estate to party and stole $5,000 worth of alcohol. Investigators are using photos to try to identify the individuals.
Spaceflight
On September 28, 2007, Space Adventures announced that Garriott would fly to the International Space Station in October 2008 as the sixth space tourist. He will launch onboard Soyuz TMA-13, and will land with Soyuz TMA-12. [1] He will become the second offspring of a past space explorer to go into space himself, after cosmonaut Sergey Volkov. Soyuz TMA-12 will carry both of them on its return trip.
Video game works
| Game Name | First Released | System Name(s) | Garriott's Role(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Akalabeth: World of Doom | 1980 | Apple II & DOS | Game Designer, Coder & Programmer |
| Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness | 1980 | 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 Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds | 1993 | DOS, FM Towns & NEC PC-9801 | 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 |
| Ultima Online: The Second Age | 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 | Nov. 2 2007 | Windows | Executive Producer |
References
- ^ "Former Astronaut's Son Signs on as Next Space Tourist". SPACE.com. Retrieved October 9.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "Inside Ultima IV", Computer Gaming World, pp. 18–21, March 1986
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Ackerman, Kyle (2002-03-17). "Interview with Richard Garriott at Frictionless Insight". Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ Linder, Brian (2001-05-10). "IGN: Harry Potter LEGO Redux". Retrieved 2007-04-28.
- ^ Matonis, Misty (2002-01-05). "When Kings Fall: Part II of II". Retrieved 2007-04-28.
External links
- Blog and details about Garriott's spaceflight
- Spacefacts biography of Richard Garriott
- Richard Garriott at MobyGames
- Richard Garriott at IMDb
- Richard Garriott interview on Next-Gen
- Biography of Garriott from DragonCon.org
- 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.