Richard Garriott, AKA Lord British, is a man that has achieved nearly everything in life. He’s an esteemed game developer with multiple successful series behind his belt. He’s a talented magician, has a great haircut, a cool beard, and he’s literally been to space. He’s been to space in a spaceship. A Real One. He once lost half a million dollars and didn’t even notice. He lives in a castle. He owns an Uzi. Nothing in this paragraph is a lie.
What he still hasn’t achieved, however, is releasing a crowdfunded game financed through Kickstarter. He’s giving that a shot with “Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues”, and he’s looking for $1,000,000 to do it.
What’s this game? The Kickstarter page suggests that it’s a persistent world along the lines of the Ultima series that initially brought him his fame and fortume. It’s a multiplayer RPG with questing and fighting and dragons and all that jazz.
It’s a game with player housing that has in-wolrd value. It’s got a massive crafting system. It’s got an overworld as well as 3rd person action sections. It’s still too early to tell how all of this will come together.
The kickstarter itself is interesting as it has some smart attempts to raise money in quick ways. The first tier gives users a chance to repent if they’ve ever illegally downloaded any of British's previous work. The second tier is limited and offers users an immediate way to ensure that they’ll get a game for a cheap price. After 5,000 are sold they go away forever and the next price for a copy lies at $40.
There’s really not enough information to gauge the potential quality of the game and it’s largely being sold on Garriott's industry clout. Be wary, but if this seems like your bag, go for it.
