The World's Most Anticipated Online Game Hits the Market as Electronic Arts Delivers Ultima Online; Groundbreaking PC Title Supports Thousands Playing Simultaneously in the Same Persistent World Over the Internet

Business Wire, Sept 24, 1997

SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 24, 1997--Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS), a leading global interactive entertainment software company, made history today by shipping its record-setting title, Ultima(TM) Online.

The most ambitious and widely anticipated online game ever developed, Ultima Online brings to life the fantasy land of Britannia(TM) as a living, persistent, virtual world that exists only on the Internet.

Ultima Online, the groundbreaking fantasy role playing game, was developed during the past two years at ORIGIN Systems, Electronic Arts' (EA) subsidiary in Austin, Texas. More than 25,000 people from around the world paid to participate in a four-month beta test, which began in June and concluded yesterday. Unlike most other online or multiplayer offerings that support groups ranging from two to eight players per game, Ultima Online was designed from the ground up to provide a "massively multiplayer" experience supporting thousands of gamers simultaneously over the Internet -- in the same game.

Complete with a virtual ecology, economic system, limited natural resources, day/night cycles and an underlying ethical code of behavior, players from around the world create their own unique characters, called "avatars," who live, work and play in Britannia. Ongoing interaction among players and with the world of Britannia at large drives the story line and delivers a new and different experience each time players visit Britannia.

Additionally, thousands of computer-generated characters and creatures enhance the player experience by inhabiting this living world 24 hours a day.

The total game geography covers more than 189 million square feet of stunning 3-D terrain that depicts a variety of climates and regions -- arid deserts, tropical islands, forests, swamps, mountains, underworld regions and more. Showing the entire game surface area at once would require 38,000 17-inch monitors -- nearly enough to occupy a football field. It can take up to eight full hours for players to travel from one end of the main continent to the other and hundreds of hours more to explore the entire virtual world.

"Ultima Online is a revolutionary game, truly unique in its scope and vision," said David Cole, president of DFC Intelligence, a leading market research firm that covers computer and online gaming. "Electronic Arts is stepping forward to become a leading creative force in online gaming."

Ultima Online, widely described as a watershed title most likely to represent the future of online gaming, was produced by Richard Garriott, the creative genius behind the Ultima series, and an internationally acclaimed gaming industry legend. "Ultima Online has been a dream of the Ultima development team for many years -- to create a living, organic world where the story is ever changing. For the first time in gaming history, thousands of players can inhabit the same virtual world, cooperating and competing just like in real life," said Garriott.

Ultima Online requires software from the game CD-ROM, but the game is played entirely on the Internet. For the protection of gameplayers, information about each player's avatars -- such as skills learned, items purchased, made or acquired, property owned, and a history of good and evil deeds -- is maintained on ORIGIN's servers.

To begin exploring the game world, players will get free access to Ultima Online for an introductory period. At the conclusion of the complementary period, players will receive unlimited gameplay for a monthly flat-fee of $9.95.

"We chose flat-rate pricing because we wanted to provide an immersive game experience that didn't require players to keep one eye on the computer monitor and the other on the clock," said Chris Yates, ORIGIN's vice president and chief technology officer. He continued, "Internet gaming of this magnitude is new to most players. We wanted to offer a compelling price point to encourage players to get online and into the game."

As with any online specific product, players will need an Internet Service Provider. Each Ultima Online package will include 30 days of AT&T WorldNet(sm) Internet service and a copy of Netscape Navigator(TM).

Ultima Online Facts and Figures

During the unprecedented Ultima Online beta test, ORIGIN staff logged some notable statistics, including:

-- Approximately 20 percent of the beta players were from outside

the U.S., with gamers participating from such countries as

Japan, Germany, Denmark, Slovenia and the Portuguese territory

of Macau.

-- The age of players ranged from 12 to 60 years old.

-- The highest number of simultaneous players during the test

period was 2,850, which established a world record for gaming

in the same virtual world.

-- The daily average number of players simultaneously visiting Britannia

was approximately 2,000.

-- Peak daily playing periods were from 8:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. (CST) on

weekdays, and from 6:30 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. (CST) on weekends.

More information on Ultima Online can be found on the Internet at http://www.ultimaonline.com . The Web site, which features a complete background of the game's online fantasy world, averages 150,000 user sessions per day and approximately eight million hits per week.