Richard Garriott Files Lawsuit Against NCsoft

If you’d been reading the news and the official messages coming out of NCsoft and Richard Garriott’s camps at the end of his employment there, then you would believed that when Richard Garriott left the company the parting was sweet, sweet sorrow with hugs and kisses all around. But just under the surface there were a number of problems if you believe Richard Garriott’s recollection - now part of a multi-million dollar lawsuit. That recollection of the events leading up to and shortly after he left the company to “peruse other interest” are now in the public record courtesy of a lawsuit filed by the creator of ultima, Ultima Online and Tabula Rasa that alleges fraud and misrepresentation on the part of NCsoft.

The lawsuit alleges that NCsoft deliberately represented that Richard Garriott had left the company, when he had in fact be fired. This is the crux of his lawsuit because if he were to leave of his own free will it would give him a 90 day window to sell the NCsoft holdings he obtained when the company bought his game studio in . If he had been “let go” officially Garriott would have had a ten year window in which to sell those shares. Instead he was forced to sell his holdings in what he alleges was the worst time in history to sell.” The result was a tax liability incurred and a reduced return for his shares. Garriott is seeking some $27, 000,000 in damages from NCsoft. Garriott’s lawsuit alleges that NCsoft engaged in a breach of contract, fraud and negligent misrepresentation.

Read the rest of this entry »

Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss This Summer

The longest-running MMORPG in history will be getting its eighth expansion this summer, according to EA and its development studio Mythic Entertainment. Slated for release this summer, Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss will introduce new content based on the Gargoyle regions of the Ultima role-playing game series first introduced in Ultima VI: The False Prophet.

The main focus of the expansion is to introduce the Gargoyle race as a playable character in the game. Since taking center stage in the original Ultima series, Gargoyles will have a variety of unique skills, including Throwing, Imbuing and Mysticism.

In addition to the new race, players will have access to new areas including Ter Mur (the Gargoyle homeland), and the Stygian Abyss dungeon itself - which is being billed as the largest dungeon area ever introduced to Ultima Online. The dungeon will contain new boss monsters like the Medusa, Primeval Lich and the Stygian Dragon, as well as Player vs. Player zones.

The expansion requires the original Ultima Online game to play and will be available in the Summer of 2009 via digital distribution only.More information can be found at  www.uoherald.com/stygianabyss.

Richard Garriott Exits NCsoft

Richard Garriott announced today that he is leaving NCsoft to pursue other interests. In a post on the official Tabula Rasa community site, Garriott directly addressed fans of the troubled sci-fi themed MMORPG, thanking them for sticking with the game despite some pretty difficult times. What started out as a pep talk to TR fans quickly turned sad for fans of Tabula Rasa and other games Richard has worked on over the years, because it at least sounds like he will be taking a serious break from game development. He is, at the very least, done with NCsoft. The full statement, after the break.

Read the rest of this entry »

Operation Immortality Rocks Global Warming

Planet Make-Over’s Musical Director Stephen Bruton selects Eric Johnson and Patrice Pike to join him in NCsoft’s Operation Immortality to make a statement about global warming. Operation Immortality, a project by NCsoft to create a digital time capsule of the human race, has joined forces with Planet Make-Over, an entertainment driven social network designed to reverse the effects of Global Warming.

This alliance aims to mobilize the worldwide gaming community with Planet Make-Over’s mission by sending the digitized DNA of rock stars Eric Johnson, Patrice Pike and Planet Make-Over’s Musical Director, Stephen Bruton into space with Richard Garriott as he travels to the International Space Station (ISS) on Oct. 12, 2008.

You can learn more about how you can get involved in this unique project by visiting www.OperationImmortality.com.