Ultima X Odyssey: Twenty Years Later

In an alternate timeline where Ultima X: Odyssey was not cancelled but actually released, I might be writing an article today of how the plucky little MMO, released in competition against the juggernaut that World of Warcraft became, held on with a loyal fanbase and was still chugging along to this very day. I might discuss the expansions that came later and added player housing and new lands, how the designers made good and bad decisions, and members of the community that came and went over the years.

Here in the financially-prudent-for-Electronic-Arts timeline where the game was cancelled less than a year after it was announced, there is not that much to say that I haven't already blathered on about for most of the rest of the 2000s. Twenty years ago today, on August 21, 2003, Ultima X Odyssey was unveiled at an amazing event in San Francisco which I had the honor to attend.

Of course, I was there for a second reason - the design lead for Ultima Online itself was going to bring me in to consult on the development of the unannounced High Seas expansion, as me and my little website on ships and sailing in UO was the definitive advocate for such an expansion for a few years at that point.

After souring on Everquest and the empty shallow model of an MMO that it brought to the table, I was not truly excited about a similar MMO with the Ultima name on it. However, the differences between what I saw in UXO and its competition were enough to make it stand out. There were some innovative player races to try, there were instanced dungeons, and most importantly there were classic Ultima gameplay elements such as following the virtues that all showed promise.

Of course, the game was cancelled, and the High Seas expansion was dropped as well until a decade or so later, long after I left Ultima Online. Still, I think about that day - which for me was a personal turning point - all the time. Something I wrote on the internet about a videogame got the game's developer to notice enough to invite me to that huge press event. Ever since, I feel that there is not a single stupid thing I do out of love and enthusiasm for gaming that is over the top. 

I commemorate that day to myself by picking up Ultima X Odyssey swag on Ebay whenever it shows up, which is rare. Over the last decade I won a t-shirt, the only magazine ad for the game, and a fine crystal paperweight, numbered and packed with a certificate of authenticity. I have that on display in my little Ultima X Odyssey shrine in my guest room:

If you want to know more about Ultima X Odyssey, scroll way back to some of the articles I wrote in 2006-2007, including a post-mortem with some of the people involved in the game.

And for the real never-give-up enthusiasts out there, who may hope that someone, somewhere, will revive this game, here is something to give you hope:

The game is still listed on Amazon.

If I'm still around in 2028, I'll do a nice 25 year retrospective on the whole story. Tonight, I'll toast all the good people who worked so hard to make an amazing game and who came so close.