Kotaku: Lord British

Next Year, You'll Be Able to Watch A Movie About Ultima Creator Richard Garriott Blasting Off into Orbit

Evan Narcisse — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:40:00 EST

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What does one do after inventing one of the first virtual worlds ever to exist online? If you're Richard Garriott, you try to leave Earth behind altogether, for a little while anyway. Lots of gamers know about Garriott's quest to escape the bounds of Earth's gravity via private space travel. What some may not know is the reason the man known as Lord British wants to do it so badly. Turns out his dad was an astronaut and the younger Garriott sees following in his dad's footsteps—and becoming the first second-generation astronaut—as his destiny. You'll get to see exactly how he accomplishes that when Man on a Mission, a documentary that chronicles the training and eventual journey that takes Garriott beyond the stratosphere. The film comes out in theaters and on on-demand services on January 13th of next year. Among others things, audiences will get to see the inside of the International Space Station and watch Garriott's dramatic re-entry back to our fair planet's atmosphere. More »

Ultima Creator Transforms Into a Robot to Work From Home

Mike Fahey — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:20:00 EDT

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With his new wife living and working in New York and his company and home base in Austin, Texas, how does legendary game developer Richard Garriott split his time between the two? He doesn't, that's what his robot is for. More »

Ultima Creator's House for Sale for a Cool $4 Mil

Owen Good — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 23:30:00 EDT

Richard Garriott, the Ultima creator and space tourist believed to be the only private citizen to own property on an extraterrestrial body, is selling real estate here on Earth. For about $4 mil you may claim the stately Texas manor owned by Lord British. More »

Watch Lord British Officiate Zero-G Wedding

AJ Glasser — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:40:00 EDT

Earlier this month, we heard that Richard Garriot — son of an astronaut and granddaddy of science fiction/fantasy games like the Ultima series — would officiate a wedding in zero gravity. More »

Lord British To Officiate Zero-G Wedding

AJ Glasser — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 04:30:00 EDT

Richard Garriott, son of an astronaut and science fiction/fantasy video game icon, will join two self-proclaimed sci-fi addicts in holy matrimony 36,000 feet in the air. More »

Richard Garriott Suing NCsoft For $24,000,000

Luke Plunkett — Wed, 06 May 2009 01:00:00 EDT

Late last year, Ultima creator Richard Garriott split from NCsoft, the developers and publishers behind his latest game, Tabula Rasa. Sounds like the split wasn't exactly amicable. More »

Garriott Will Get Back To Gaming One Day

Mike Fahey — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 16:20:00 EST

Sure his head is up in the clouds at the moment, but Ultima creator Richard Garriott hasn't forgotten where he's from. In an interview with GameDaily, Garriott discusses an eventual return to gaming. More »

See Space Garriott Live In Austin

Mike Fahey — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 13:40:00 EST

Gaming legend Richard "Lord British" Garriott's trip into space has come and gone, leaving the Ultima creator nothing but fond memories and stories, which he'll share live on stage in Austin Texas later this month. More »

Richard Garriott Bids Farewell To NCsoft

Mike Fahey — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:10:00 EST

Man, a guy fulfills his lifelong dream of going into space and suddenly has more important things to do than work on his video game? Richard "Lord British" Garriott announced today that he will be leaving NCsoft, the company behind his recent MMORPG Tabula Rasa, to pursue other interests. More »

Lord British Has Landed

Mike Fahey — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 13:40:00 EDT

Lord "Richard Garriott" British has landed, back safe from his mission to deliver Crecente's seed into space, and while there is a lengthy press release talking about the mission, the landing, and indeed the entire process of sending the legendary developer into space, we much prefer this clip from The Today Show. It's short, to the point, and shows his father, retired NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, carrying his son in a basket for the first time in 45 years. You go, Space Garriott. More »

Richard Garriott Sends Cryptic Message From Space

Stuart Houghton — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:20:00 EDT

You know, they say sometimes people go CRAZY on these long trips. They get the, eh... SPACE MADNESS. Not plucky Lord British, though. No, the good lord is safe in his heaven and has found the time to transmit a coded message of hope to us earth-bound types. The multisquillionaire held up a card containing the message shortly after reaching orbit - the message is encoded in Logos Elements - the fictional runic system used in Garriott's game Tabula Rasa. Fans of the game have now decoded the runes and found it to be a quote - hit the jump to see what Lord British thinks we ought to know. More »

Colbert Enlists Lord British To Save Universe From His Balls

Mike Fahey — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:40:00 EDT

Well damn. First the Harmonix folks don't actually make it onto their promised appearance on The Colbert Report, and now Lord "Richard Garriott" British's appearance is actually just a phone call from Russia, where he is preparing a knapsack full of DNA to bring with him on his historic journey into space. More »

Lord British Visits The Colbert Report

Mike Fahey — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 14:00:00 EDT

There certainly is a large amount of gaming news relating to Comedy Central's cartoon character Stephen Colbert floating about these days, isn't there? While we eagerly await the announcement of the world's first video game based on a fake news personality, Stephen himself will be hobbing knobs with none other than game industry legend and Keeper of the Sacred Rattails Lord "Richard Garriott" British. British will be appearing on The Colbert Report this evening to discuss Operation Immortality, his DNA in space project that will eventually result in an evil Crecente clone army taking over the known universe. Luckily for us the question of "How do you really get to know a universe?" is still very much up in the air. Way up. More »

Gary Gygax's Video Gaming Legacy

Mike Fahey — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 20:00:16 EST

In the fall of 1972, Dave Arneson gathered a group of friends around a table in Gary Gygax's Lake Geneva Wisconsin home and changed the gaming world forever. After that fateful weekend gaming session, Gygax took Arneson's notes, and using rules form his own fantasy miniatures game Chainmail, created the game that would go on to sell millions of copies around the world - Dungeons & Dragons. A huge accomplishment for a couple of gaming geeks, but it was only the beginning. Dungeons & Dragons spread beyond the tabletop into the hearts and minds of some of the earliest pioneers of gaming. Now one of the fathers of role-playing has passed on, but Gary Gygax's legacy lives on in the video games we play. In honor of this great man, let's take a look at the influence his work has had on our favorite pastime. More »

Be Garriott's Backup Space Wingman

Mike Fahey — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:20:23 EST

Richard Garriott is busy preparing for his journey to the International ~~House of Pancakes~~ Space Station, and Space Adventures wants you to join him - kind of. The company is now offering a chance to undergo training as a back-up crew member on Garriott's mission. The individual selected will undergo rigorous training at Space Adventures' facility, at the end of which they will be certified as a fully-trained cosmonaut. Now the press release doesn't say that you will actually be joining Richard on his mission, but you will be an 'active participant' as well as being featured in a documentary TV series about the endeavor. The price tag? $3,000,000. Don't worry though, the fee can be credited towards the price of a future space flight mission. Thank goodness. More »

Lord British Heading For Outer Space

Mike Fahey — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 17:00:32 EDT

While it's been talked about for quite some time, industry legend and slightly eccentric rich guy Richard "Lord British" Garriott is heading into space. Through space experiences company Space Adventures, Garriott is scheduled to take off on the world's first private spaceflight to the International Space Station in October of 2008.

"I am dedicating my spaceflight to science," said Mr. Garriott. "It is my goal to devote a significant amount of my time aboard the space station to science, engineering and educational projects. I understand the necessity for conducting research in extreme environments whether it is collecting microorganisms from deep sea hydrothermal vents to carrying out experiments in the continuous micro-gravity of Earth orbit."

Whatever dude, you're going into outer space! Rock! Garriott's father Owen is a former NASA astronaut himself, and is understandably proud of his offspring. "I am so pleased that he is able to embrace this himself and that he is dedicating his flight to research. I am very proud of him." More »

10 Years Of Ultima Online

Mike Fahey — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 17:00:07 EDT

Ten years ago yesterday the age of the MMO was ushered in with the release of Ultima Online. While not technically the first MMORPG, it was the first one that gained a widespread audience, paving the way for games like Everquest and World of Warcraft. In celebration of this 10 year anniversary, Electronic Arts is inviting players from the entirety of the games 10 years to return to the game for free from now until October 9th using their old username and password to experience the recent changes that came with the Kingdom Reborn makeover. The in-game celebration includes special events like a monster hunt where players can win prizes like maps of Britannia, an ahnk pendant, commemorative sculpture, or a virtue armor set. All players will also receive a wand of fireworks and 10 decor tokens, whatever those might be. Happy 10th Ultima Online! May you last another 10 years with the tiny player base you have left over! More »

Garriott's New Playhouse

Mike Fahey — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 21:10:59 EDT

While the majority of last night's Tabula Rasa event took place at Britannia Manor MK II, the festivities came to an end at the site of Britainnia Manor MK III, Richard Garriott's new Texas castle, 10 years in the making. During a gap in the presentation, Garriott took some time to explain why his new house is going to be an 8 year-old's wet dream. First off is the tower, which is pictured here. Excuse the darkness of the shot, but it was taken at nearly 1AM by a large sweaty man wearing a hard hat. The five story tower will form the central point in the sprawling manor, and will consist of an observatory at the top, planetarium underneath it, and a giant room-sized elevator that travels the bottom three floors. More »

Heading Down Garriott's House

Mike Fahey — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 18:00:49 EDT

As you read this I am on my way to Richard "Lord British" Garriot's stately Britannia Manor to participate in a special event involving his new sci-fi MMO, Tabula Rasa. I really have no idea what to expect, other than the fact that the instructions suggest wearing shoes I don't mind getting dirty. The lazy part of me is slightly frightened about that prospect, while the dorky fanboy inside me is off in the corner doing things I'd rather not repeat in mixed company. Look for more on the mysterious event tomorrow, should I live to tell the tale. For more on Garriott's digs, check out N. Evan Van Zelfden's feature from back in June. It's LARParific! More »

Ultima Online Is Reborn

Mike Fahey — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 11:20:56 EDT

Nearly a full ten years since the original game was launched in September of 1997, Ultima Online is reborn as Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn launches in North America. Much lumber will be gathered this day in celebration of the massive graphical overhaul the game has undergone to keep up with UO's tendency to look 5-7 years old at any given time. On top of the graphics, the game has received an enhanced UI, and an updated new character experience to help ease players into the world. The update is completely free for all, with new players able to try the game four 14 days to see what they've been missing these past ten years. Part of me is tempted to give the game a try, but the other part of me that has gone back to try to find enjoyment in the game multiple times over the past decade took that part out to the woods behind my apartment and beat the shit out of it. For those not as conflicted, hit the jump for download locations. More »

Lord British Burgled By Idiots

Mike Fahey — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 13:20:17 EDT

You have to be pretty crafty to pull a crime on the likes of gaming legend Lord British. At least crafty enough not to leave pictures of yourselves at the scene of the crime, which exactly what a group of teens did after breaking into a property owned by Richard Garriott last month. After partying on the site, which consists of some cabins and buildings Garriott uses for special events, stealing and/or drinking over $5,000 worth of alcohol, and generally making asses of themselves, the young men and women escaped into the night, never to be seen again. More »

GDC 07: Tabula Rasa and Richard Garriott

Mike Fahey — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 19:20:30 EST

Tabula Rasa sure has come a long way from its early days, and while the current version might lack the beautiful see-through unicorns, but it is shaping up to be in incredibly compelling space RPG that takes several RPG conventions and tosses them out the window. More »