New Ultima Online, Please. I miss games like UO.

In modern day gaming, no game comes close to the depth, complexity and raw playability of Ultima Online. This old school game was the precursor to many of the new MMORPG's like World of Warcraft. What made this game so amazing, and why I miss UO so much, is that it was truly an open world sandbox MMO where you could kill anyone outside of town and take all of there gear. Player skill was more important than gear and you did not have to play the game for 8 hours a day to be good.

EA games bought Ultima Online and ruined everything that made the game unique. Suddenly it became item based like all the other games that have better graphics than it, the economy in the game was ruined and everything special about the game was destroyed. Everything became colorful, you could insure your items and not lose them upon death and the once great grandfather of online role playing games was turned into a carebear land like every other MMORPG only with dated, worse graphics.

Ultima Online did not need good graphics to be good, it had a real thriving economy, danger all the time outside of town and a seriously exciting PVP where you really lost everything to try to gain everything from your opponent. There were naked characters riding around trying to kill you and armor was only a marginal benefit. Items were to be used and discarded not prized and sought after. When you killed another player and took his loot, you generally just got functional items that kept you stocked to fight the next player. A skilled player would dominate a non skilled player with better gear, and maxing out your character didn't take a lifetime like in modern games.

The game started to go downhill when Trammel was added, a safe haven where players couldn't be attacked and could play in an exact replica of the original world Felucca. They had the opportunity to go to Felucca to pvp when they wanted, and most of the original players just stayed in Felucca where there was still an economy and a large player base. The game continued on for quite sometime in this relatively unchanged fashion, still very addictive and playable, before drastic game play changes started to make items important.

One of the most fascinating aspects of Ultima Online was the fact you could place a house literally anywhere that it would fit, so houses of all shapes and sizes littered the landscape in an ugly ununiformed mess that added character to the game. You could own your own boat and ships and travel the seas killing any one else you saw to steal their boat if they forgot to lock it. It was truly exciting and unique. Games like World of Warcraft have ruined the younger generation by making a gaming culture that revolves around the amount of time they play and putting the focus on obtaining gear rather than having fun and testing skills.

The Economy in UO was real, all items could be crafted and craftsmen could completely survive without ever venturing out into combat. Vendors could be placed at houses enabling people to shop while they travelled through the woods at every house they encountered. Murders names appeared red and they were forbidden from entering towns so they lurked the outskirts of towns looking for innocent players to kill and rob. Thieves patrolled the banks and anything in your backpack was fair game for a thief who would routinely be seen failing in an attempt to steal and being killed by town guards.

Above all, people talked to each other and new each other in the game. There was no auction house, you had to stand at the bank and spam the items you were selling and someone passing by had to engage you and negotiate a trade. Skilled PVPers were well known and people became friends and enemies with one another in a way that I have never encountered in another game. Customization was extremely high and people wore original outfits they made to distinguish themselves and it was very easy to tell each other apart.

I miss UO. Nothing comes close to it. The Ultima Online of today is a tattered shell of what the game once was and nothing else on the gaming market comes close.

Any of you have any ideas for games similar to UO in the modern age? I would love to hear some suggestions!

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