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Richard Garriott
Origin Systems

Even by Hollywood standards, eight sequels is a lot - and Richard "Lord British" Garriott didn't even cheat like Bill Cosby did with Leonard: Part Six. Today, the Ultima series has defined a generation of gaming, taking players across the vast vista that is Britannia, a world that has successfully transitioned from the restrictions of primitive graphics to the full-color landscapes of Ultima IX: Ascension. As Origin moves into the new century with a renewed focus on online play, the legacy Richard Garriott has left on gaming in the late 1900s is uncontested.

1. If there were one moment from gaming you'd put in a time capsule to represent the 20th century of interactive entertainment, what moment would it be and why?

Richard: Ultima I - in a zip lock bag. It's amazing that in only 20 years, we have gone from games written in BASIC, shipped on cassette tape, that use only 48K of memory - less than most hi-resolution icons - to machines running 1,000MHz, and so on. How quickly we forget our roots!

Ultima IX: Ascension

2. Do you think the gaming industry is underestimating one aspect of interactive entertainment that will take us all by surprise in the early 21st century?

Richard: Artificial intelligence will come of age. When it does, watch out! It will impact more aspects of our lives than we can imagine, not the least of which is gaming!

3. If there's one thing wrong with the gaming industry you'd want to change in the new millennium, what would it be and why?

Richard: All the "me too" games. Our industry is losing too much of its originality too quickly - a risk in any maturing market. Our market is growing up fast.

Next: Richard Garriott (cont.)