Ultima Online "remix" a possibility?

PenNPaper

Hi all. What are the chances of a Ultima Online remix - not quite a Ultima Online Remastered.

 I was thinking it might be interesting to modern version of Ultima Online. I am thinking it might be possible to bump up the game requirements up to say a 10 year old computer to allow the addition of a larger map area. As for the world map it might be interesting to make a new world map that is 3 to 5 times larger than the current world map. Also I am thinking of player longevity to push the end game up so it takes longer to get to end game. One possibility is to bump up the max skills by 50% but it would take you 50% longer to achieve 100% = " just throwing that in there for a general idea" Also the map size will also apply to the oceans and that would allow for more islands that can be accessed by boats. Not sure if the current game engine can work with this but if its not that complicated it might be financially viable and as a side affect will bring back a lot of old players.

Can this be done?
 What do you guys think of this? 

Aspetra

There have already been two attempts made already at modernizing and updating UO.

However each time they were met with a brick wall from the veteran players. EA having no back bone pulled the plug both times instead of working to address the issues and continue making the game user friendly.

As it stands now, yeah UO is going free to play, but even the Enhanced Client is not going to keep people around, it is too built around the old players that were accustomed to the old way of playing UO. 

Really EA shot themselves in the foot by not pushing forward and the old players did the same being stuck with what they were accustomed to instead of embracing the change to allow the game to grow and secure a longer future. (This is coming from someone who has been around since '98)

Aside from the client piece of it, I doubt there is even a big enough team in place to be able to do big changes like that.
Not only but between all the maps that currently exist, due to the low population of servers, making maps bigger is the last thing that should be considered. It already feels too empty in many places, if anything, consolidation should be considered.

Dean478

Part of the problem too is that each attempt to push forward was misguided.

Third Dawn had terrible 3d Models, but it was a nice touch... until they replaced the terrain textures with the 2D artwork. And then other features were replaced to the point where it was so ugly and inconsistent you might as well just use 2D.... then it was canned.

The exact same thing happened with Kingdom Reborn. EC has horrific terrain art right now. Even though the rest might be an improvement.

We also lost immersive UI elements. For example reading books, we no longer have the book style GUI. Item containers lost their GUI (although this was later rectified with the legacy option).

Aspetra

Dean478 said:

Part of the problem too is that each attempt to push forward was misguided.

Third Dawn had terrible 3d Models, but it was a nice touch... until they replaced the terrain textures with the 2D artwork. And then other features were replaced to the point where it was so ugly and inconsistent you might as well just use 2D.... then it was canned.

The exact same thing happened with Kingdom Reborn. EC has horrific terrain art right now. Even though the rest might be an improvement.

We also lost immersive UI elements. For example reading books, we no longer have the book style GUI. Item containers lost their GUI (although this was later rectified with the legacy option).

Kingdom Reborn in my opinion was the right direction for attracting new crowds, the art style was good and the UI helped newer people get in to the game. 

Your comments only help prove my point that it's hard to update a game that has been out for so long and many of the older players are accustomed to a certain setup.
Because of not being open minded to the changes that were attempted in KR, and it was a vast majority of the players at the time.
I as someone who has played many many MMOs thought the KR client was a great step in the right direction and was sad when they went back on the art and the UI.
I think that with some time and minor adjustments with further modernization of the KR client it would of helped bring in a new crowd. However as far as I can see the game is slowly dying, and not even EJ is going to save it, in it's current state.

The game is just simply too confusing for someone new, too many mashed together UIs over the years, too many things added without being made to be fluid and cohesive.
The game really needed to be redone with all new UI that matched, made sense and easier to navigate menus that are more practical.
Unfortunately it is too late, and I do not see this game ever getting the funding needed to do everything correctly, it really needs a ground up re-imagining which is exactly what KR was.

Dean478

Your comments only help prove my point that it's hard to update a game that has been out for so long and many of the older players are accustomed to a certain setup.

No it doesn't, you misunderstand me. I preferred 3D and KR... Infact I stopped playing after KR went pear shaped because I was sick of the constant changes.

My point was that it had no cohesion and consistent direction. Hence my comments on the change in terrain art. Someone decided to change direction and revert back to the old style. What for??

PenNPaper

Interesting. Could keep Ultima Online as a Legacy game and make a new 2d Ultima Online game version Ultima Online XX! Rebirth  with High quality cartoon like graphics, sort of like Marvel comic quality with item animations such as a cape blowing in the wind. Muscle Men etc. Also 2d is not dead problem is that it is dated. There are a few 2d games that are modern and do rather well they tend to be anime like and kind of cartoon like, but they tend to be free to play with in game monthly vip and micro transactions for things like outfits wings etc. I think Ultima Online line name has a lot of weight to it and used to be extreemly high value. I wonder if a developing studio would love to jump on board a remake?   And of course the new game version would be pay to play. They would have to find someone that can through the weight of the Ultima Online franchise around to get things done.

 So in a nutshell, a cartoon with a touch of anime line, comic like 2d game with rich animations. 2d should allow for huge maps, build in end game longevity.

 I do not think this will happen but can't blame me for dreaming lol

SwordofExcalibur

Mesanna has talked about a Legacy option and that it is not ideal.  

From what I’ve read, most of the old programming is no longer available due to moves of office and the data being lost.

I stopped playing in 2003 because other MMO’s were superior to UO.

I came back in Summer 2017 because of the Taming changes and the KR client.  Those two things have kept me enthralled.

I play on a 4K TV and my game is so fluid and sharp, it is really enjoyable.

I tried classic and it is just completely inferior and un-fun to playing in 4K.

My only issue is that the UI/GUI has text and window resize problems on some windows.  There is an option to resize hot bars, paperdoll, map, journal, etc., but window texts like Animal Lore, Vendor Search, Quests, character names, and such are not scaling and make reading atrocious.

I had to physically move my 4kTV to 5 feet in front of me to play.

1900x1200 however fixes all the text problems but my game is no where near as pretty as 4K.  Nor is it fluid.  Graphics glide across the screen like liquid mercury it’s so pristine.

V-sync is your friend.  It solves screen tearing, something classic has issues with.

Well, classic has its, shall we say, perks.  

PenNPaper

 Would it be possible to add more Islands and a larger ocean for a larger world area? It might be possible to add 3 or 4 continents around a central ocean without major rewriting.

PenNPaper

 Hi I have been thinking of a remix lately and thought it might be a good Idea to look into Unltima Online ancient heritage related to Mud games. Mud games are interesting as they are based on rooms and modules. So am thinking it would be worth looking into looking at how mud games work and see how the fundamental principals can be applied to a graphical game. Now you probably would not use a room of tiles but it might be interesting to have tiles relate to zones with code so set up areas such as where a monster respons etc. And modulus pertaining to mobile and items ect. Not 100% sure but muds seem to have the ability to quickly modify areas and zones as well as modules. A Mud based 2d graphical game engine might prove interesting. Also the client could work similar to say the Mud Tin-TIn client with scripting.

 Not that it will be built but rather interesting.

Feigr

The only reason I haven't tried the new ones is because they are crowd funded and I don't play games where other people have paid for advantageous.

Kirthag

I could see something similar to Diablo III for a re-hashed UO. I personally like the fixed point of view with zooming in and out - but the current EC land art makes me sick, really. I get vertigo after about 10 minutes of looking at the EC, then nausea if I attempt to run across the landscape on my horse. I don't recall everywhere all the time, so yeah... that's a killer for me and many others.

Now a client with artwork like Diablo's and the custom housing would be awesome. I do believe it is feasible with "tiles" or maybe even hex-spaces, and mapping the items for placement would be similar to how it is in the current UO (x,y,z). It would be like doing an entire new game though, and that would be costly.

The question to ask is, would players be willing to pay out $30 to $60 for a new, totally revamped Ulitma (Reincarnation) Online? That is about what it will take - for it would be a totally new game with an option to port over our existing characters/items/homes. I haven't thought of the logistics of it all, but that is exactly what it will take for EA to give the go-ahead to totally rebuild the world. And once players are ported over, there is no going back. And the current client(s) would be marked for sunset - no more updates to them, etc. That's what it will take... 

And do note, no game developer can make all players happy, so someone (or several someones) will never like anything that is done. Just saying.

PenNPaper

 Is it possible to add a few new continents that are divided by what can be called the great expanse. So the continents would be actual map areas but the expanse would be virtual. So the continents would be like normal map areas but the expanse would be virtual x and y and only exist as virtual x and y and only generating a standard water graphic. As for running into other ships or items again that would be virtual generating a standard graphic set. Basically the expanse would just be a virtual divisor for other continents. Kind of trying to think how this could be coded with very little computer and server load. More continents would allow for more play areas, resource areas etc.