[ The following is an edited transcript of The Gamers' Forum's online conference with Lord British, author of ULTIMA V. Thanks to Serena, Scot, Andy, and Stargazer for assistance in capturing and editing. The CO was held on April 13, 1988. This file is copyright (c) 1988 by The Gamers' Forum on CompuServe. All rights reserved. ] PART ONE: FORMAL CONFERENCE (Nightie/HOST) This evening, our very special guest is the author of... (Nightie/HOST) the ULTIMA series of computer fantasy role-playing games... (Nightie/HOST) for Origin Systems: Richard Garriott (aka Lord British).... (Nightie/HOST) Our main topic of conversation will be ULTIMA V,... (Nightie/HOST) but I'm sure Lord B. will be willing to field... (Nightie/HOST) questions about his earlier (and future?) games.... (Nightie/HOST) We also have on hand Steve Meuse from the Origin staff in... (Nightie/HOST) New Hampshire, and several other Origin folks... (Nightie/HOST) from Austin, Texas.... (Nightie/HOST) Welcome again to The Gamers' Forum, Lord B.!... (Nightie/HOST) Would you like to say anything by way of an intro? GA (Lord British) Thank you, yes. (Lord British) Good evening, everyone, and thanks for letting me... (Lord British) come by for a chat... (Lord British) Glad you all could make it. I'm sure you all know... (Lord British) that Ultima V for the Apple series has just been released... (Lord British) a few weeks ago. If I could briefly mention a few of its... (Lord British) major new features and enhancements... (Lord British) Ultima V, as usual, is a total rewrite from its predecessors... (Lord British) The reason I do this is to allow as large as possible... (Lord British) improvements over the previous version... (Lord British) This, I feel, is largely responsible for... (Lord British) the continued success... (Lord British) of the Ultima series. Whereas all of my (to remain unnamed)... (Lord British) competitors' sequels tend to sell fewer than the originals... (Lord British) every Ultima has outsold its predecessor... (Lord British) by a substantial margin... (Lord British) largely due to the fact (I believe) that each Ultima makes... (Lord British) significant strides beyond its predecessor... (Lord British) A quick recap of Ultima V's features are:... (Lord British) Yet again a larger world... (Lord British) Twice the number of "tiles" used to represent the world... (Lord British) which allows for far greater detail and richness... (Lord British) Substantial improvement in NPC conversation and interaction... (Lord British) including the fact that each and every NPC lives out... (Lord British) a unique and individual life day and night... (Lord British) Combat... (Lord British) (the one area that my competition may have excelled in...) (Lord British) the past) has been radically improved in both strategy and... (Lord British) realism, including many new animated effects... (Lord British) A greatly superior magic system has been devised which... (Lord British) includes a large number of truly unique spells, unlike most... (Lord British) FRP's which have tons of spells which are really replicates of (Lord British) each other. ... (Lord British) The dungeons are now fully detailed bit-mapped images,... (Lord British) including... (Lord British) animated monsters and three dungeon formats, such as... (Lord British) "dungeons," "caverns," and "mineshafts."... (Lord British) Well, enough said. Why don't we move on to some questions? (Lord British) GA Nightie. (Nightie/HOST) Thanks much, Lord B. [A list of questioners was taken at this point.] (Nightie/HOST) Okay, we'll start with Phoenix. (The Phoenix) Great! Thanks.. Let me start off by trying to excuse myself... (The Phoenix) I may sound out of breath, because I ran in here after seeing... (The Phoenix) that marvelous ending you created, Lord British... (The Phoenix) and I'd like to congratulate you on the best rpg computer (The Phoenix) game I have yet to see... (The Phoenix) Anyway, you must want me to get on, so I will... (The Phoenix) My FIRST question starts like this... (The Phoenix) (could I have bouncy C please?)... (The Phoenix) At Dragon Con Ultima V looked incredibly close... (The Phoenix) to what it looks like now... (The Phoenix) Why, with all due respect to the time and effort you had to place in writing it,... (The Phoenix) why was it so late (other than to build national tension)? (The Phoenix) ga (Lord British) First, thank you very much for your kind words... (Lord British) Many people don't understand the reasons behind what you ask... (Lord British) In fact, over a year ago, I demo'd Ultima V to the... (Lord British) Washington Apple Pi, even then, the game outwardly looked... (Lord British) very much as it does now.... (Lord British) What people don't realize sometimes is, that... (Lord British) what makes an Ultima an Ultima is the detail and diversity... (Lord British) which is put in long after the main game routines... (Lord British) are functional... (Lord British) When I play a competitor's game, I play it only as long... (Lord British) as I find new and interesting things, which usually means... (Lord British) that I look at their graphics and main concepts... (Lord British) but soon find... (Lord British) that I resort to repeatedly "fighting"... (Lord British) and finding few new things... (Lord British) So well over half the time that I put into an Ultima... (Lord British) is "fleshing" it out. GA, Phoenix (The Phoenix) Hmm. As I do recall you (or one of your associates... (The Phoenix) mentioned that you still had to "stock" the game... (The Phoenix) There are a few things I personally might have done better... (The Phoenix) but it's an opinion, and everyone has an opinion... (The Phoenix) I'd also like to thank your company for offering the game... (The Phoenix) at such an affordable price.... (The Phoenix) (About 5$ a side compared to a regular 30$ a side for... (The Phoenix) some games)... But that's about it... (The Phoenix) I've got another questions (concerning... (The Phoenix) some recent problems, like a disk eating itself)... (The Phoenix) but that's another story... (The Phoenix) And yes, I promised to commend Kurt Boutin... (The Phoenix) (I think that's his name)... (The Phoenix) for his excellent help. If it weren't for him, I would not... (The Phoenix) have the satisfaction of having saved "YOU" tonight... (The Phoenix) Thanks a lot for such a great game... GA (Lord British) Thanks, GA Nightie. (Lord British) Oh, and congrats Phoenix, if you just finished the game! GA (Nightie/HOST) Okay, GA Nightrider. (Nightrider) ok first I would like to say that so far this IS the best... (Nightrider) Ultima yet, and I have a TON of questions... (Nightrider) First about the underworld... (Nightrider) How do you find clues for this? SO far I have found only one... (Nightrider) clue about it. I have gotten Capt. John, but that is it! (Nightrider) Please offer some insight here! ga (Lord British) I have actually received many questions about the Underworld... (Lord British) The Underworld is a very, very large place... (Lord British) If one were to just go down and aimlessly wander,... (Lord British) it would be suicide, not to mention tedious for most. The correct way is to only enter... (Lord British) the Underworld with a specific task in mind... (Lord British) The Underworld is split up into nine major regions... (Lord British) The "scroll" in your game package is a major clue to one of your trips into the Underworld... (Lord British) The clue you found about Captain Johne is another... (Lord British) You have yet to find about 5 other "reasons" to venture... (Lord British) into the Underworld. Beware, it is is a very hostile place! But, if you... (Lord British) are clever (think Moongates!) you can find an easy way in and out. GA, Nightrider (Nightrider) ok second, the game documentation says that the Abyss still exisits, but I can't (Nightrider) find the exit on the Isle of the codex. IS it still really in the game... Oh by the way, I can't find the word of entry either... GA (Lord British) What the documentation tried to describe... (Lord British) is that the Great Council of Wizards raised the Codex from the Abyss and enshrined it upon the new mountain formed over the Abyss... (Lord British) The Abyss itself does not exist as it did... (Lord British) You can, by entering Hythloth, reach the roots of the Abyss and in fact, you will want to... (Lord British) What word of entry are you referring to? GA (Nightrider) the word for the abyss I guess, I am missing one and can't find it anywhere! ga (Lord British) You will need... (Lord British) to find an additional "word of power" for the new place that exists as surely as the Abyss does not. GA (Nightrider) oh I see, ok thanks. (Nightie/HOST) Just a reminder: A second -question- is not permitted, but... (Nightie/HOST) a brief followup after Lord B. replies is okay... (Nightie/HOST) GA, H&S. (Hack & Slash) thanks, nightie.... (Hack & Slash) I own an Atari ST and I'm sure you're going to hear this (Hack & Slash) question until you're ready to gag---but how soon will we ST users have U 5? ga (Lord British) Let me just tell you all a little about... (Lord British) all future conversions... (Lord British) Prior to our completion of the Apple version, we began... (Lord British) converting the game into C, which is the language... (Lord British) that the IBM, Mac, ST, and Amiga versions will use... (Lord British) The IBM version, thanks to our great in-house staff up North... (Lord British) is already in beta test. The C-64 version will be next... (Lord British) The Mac, ST, and Amiga versions will all three be done... (Lord British) approximately simultaneously after the IBM is released... (Lord British) and so all versions, we hope to get out this year. GA (Hack & Slash) Is there a reason why Atari is always the last... (Lord British) How's that for vague? GA (Lord British) Yes... (Hack & Slash) conversion? And is there a date we can look forward to? Congrats on the vague. (Lord British) The computers we support and the order... (Lord British) we do our conversions in must be chosen... (Lord British) for economic reasons. As the ST picks up market... (Lord British) share, it will move up in the queue. GA (Hack & Slash) that's all. thanks. (Nightie/HOST) Scot's up next. GA, Scot. (Scot/RPG SL) This pertains to both U4 and U5... (Scot/RPG SL) When I finished playing U4, I had the feeling that I had spent time not only playing a game... (Scot/RPG SL) but in examining myself and my own sense of right and... (Scot/RPG SL) wrong. I actually had the feeling that I wass a better person for having played the game... (Scot/RPG SL) Did you intend this or was it just serendipitous? GA (Lord British) I am pleased that you found Ultima IV such an enjoyable, perhaps enlightening experience... (Lord British) Indeed, the philosophical overtone of Ultimas IV and V was quite purposeful... (Lord British) whereas in Ultima IV I talked about "the good side of... (Lord British) the Force," Ultima V deals with the "Dark side of the Force"... (Lord British) In Ultima V, you as an Avatar must stick to your virtues, but without Lord British... (Lord British) you live in a world of Inquisition as a... (Lord British) Robin-Hood-ish style outlaw... (Lord British) The philosophy put forth in the recent Ultimas is really a whole discussion in itself,... (Lord British) so I will save that for interested... (Lord British) parties at a later date or time. But again, thank you... (Lord British) and I am truly pleased that you enjoyed it. GA (Scot/RPG SL) Well, Thanks to you too, LB, it make the game stand out... (Scot/RPG SL) even more in my mind as different and excellent. And I like U II and U III a lot too. GA (Nightie/HOST) Next up: Palladin. GA (Young Palladin) what conversion do you like best and why? Will you support VGA and EGA graphics? ga (Lord British) Good question... (Lord British) It is difficult to say which conversion I "like" best... (Lord British) but the IIGS super-res, IBM EGA, ST, and Amiga graphic capabilities all offer very strong contention... (Lord British) It is not likely that we will support VGA at this time, for... (Lord British) economic reasons. I like mouse-based interfaces... (Lord British) such as the Mac's... (Lord British) but prefer the color available on some of the others. Did that answer your question, GA? (Young Palladin) Why not use a mouse with the IBM implementation, also? (Lord British) Once again, economics enter the picture... (Lord British) Even though a mouse is available for the IBM,... (Lord British) few people yet own... (Lord British) them. Further, to suppport a mouse... (Lord British) would require a significant... (Lord British) reorientation of the product's user interface... (Lord British) The nice thing about a Mac is that the mouse interface was... (Lord British) strictly standardized from the beginning.... (Lord British) All other computers... (Lord British) which use mice currently have a far less standardized interface... (Lord British) Even the Apple ][GS will not use a mouse as fluently as the Mac. GA (Nightie/HOST) Let's go to Stargazer now. GA (Stargazer) First, let me compliment you... (Stargazer) on the ONLY series of computer games... (Stargazer) that consistantly improves with every release... (Stargazer) and now for the Question... (Stargazer) previously, you mentioned something about a... (Stargazer) multi-player Ultima. Can you tell us anything about this? (Stargazer) GA (Lord British) I did?... (Lord British) Oops, well, as long as the cat's out of the bag... (Lord British) in fact, we recently began serious work on such a project... (Lord British) The details are still not finalized... (Lord British) but I can tell you a little... (Lord British) It in fact will be a multi-player Ultima game with the intent... (Lord British) of being playable solo, over modem, or through some forms of... (Lord British) networking. The basic premise of the game will likely be... (Lord British) more of a game of conquest, rather than a solvable "plot"... (Lord British) where each of the players is like a feudal warlord trying to... (Lord British) rule and control through oppression or benevolence as much... (Lord British) territory as possible. Again, this project is still in its... (Lord British) formative stage and thus should be out this summer. GA (Nightie/HOST) Okay, let's go to Polgara. (Polgara) well, since my question has already been answered. I would just (Polgara) like to commend Lord British on yet another game well done. ga (Lord British) Thank you very much, I hope you have enjoyed Ultima V. GA (Nightie/HOST) Moving along to Jeff. GA (JEFF) Thanks. I find the graphics to be quite superior, but there seem to... (JEFF) be a few glitches, namely: I leave a horse in towne,... (JEFF) exit and come back... (JEFF) and it's gone. Or I blow away the door to LB's private chambers, (JEFF) enter and explore and then when I go to leave,... (JEFF) the door is right back there... (JEFF) Such (minor) glitches detract from the realism of the game. Sorry... (JEFF) to nitpick but take it as a compliment...ga (Lord British) Yes, I'm glad to see that your biggest problems are of something I consider minor as well... (Lord British) but to explain the reason this is the case: ... (Lord British) the data structures in an Ultima, for instance,... (Lord British) "save" the horse or door when you leave a map... (Lord British) and come back to it would require... (Lord British) that the map be saved back out to the disk which... (Lord British) would have many unpleasant ramifications... (Lord British) such as to restart a game, one would have to... (Lord British) copy all 7 game disk sides... (Lord British) and it would be impossible to restore a game to its original... (Lord British) conditions without re-copying them.... (Lord British) Several games do this, and I find... (Lord British) it more annoying than practical. GA (JEFF) Thanks. Oh well, I'll just remember to take my horse with me. Done. (Nightie/HOST) Andy's turn. GA (Andy Hatchell) Thanks. At the end of Ultima IV, we were told... (Andy Hatchell) we should write and tell you. .. (Andy Hatchell) I never did, but what would I get if I did? ga (Lord British) If you were to write back to us,... (Lord British) a couple of things would happen... (Lord British) First, I would get to hear what nice or horrible things... (Lord British) you had to say about the game,... (Lord British) and secondly, you would have received a certificate... (Lord British) "suitable for framing" commemorating your accomplishment... (Lord British) and, of course, signed by myself (for what that's worth). (Lord British) Really, though, I enjoy getting letters. GA (Andy Hatchell) Well, except for giving me nightmares,... (Andy Hatchell) Ultima IV was a great game, and I'm... (Andy Hatchell) looking forward to Ultima V for the C128. ga (Lord British) It gave me nightmares, too.... (Nightie/HOST) Starkiller is up. GA (Starkiller) Thank you ... (Starkiller) Some questions is answewred but I am not sure if there will be conversion for Atari Bit-8? Ga (Lord British) Well, as a matter of fact, someone is under contract to... (Lord British) develop the Atari 8-bit version.... (Lord British) It is not clear what hardware config will be required,... (Lord British) but it is likely to require at least 64K RAM... (Lord British) and perhaps hi-density drives. GA (Starkiller) Yes, I have hi-density (two drives.) I heard there is Ultima I for Nintendo System. Is it true? GA (Lord British) Close... (Lord British) The Ultima that is available for the Nintendo is really... (Lord British) Ultima III... (Lord British) It is currently shipping in Japan... (Lord British) (and, by the way, was the #1... (Lord British) Nintendo game over the Christmas season). The US version has... (Lord British) yet to be released, but should be before too long. GA (Starkiller) Okay. That is all. GA (Nightie/HOST) Okay, GA Phoenix. (The Phoenix) Okey doke.. Well I'm torn between asking questions... (The Phoenix) But here goes... (The Phoenix) [if this question has already been asked, I've got plenty more, just say so]... (The Phoenix) Anyway, I have seen many notes about Ultima VI, like the fact that you are already working on it... (The Phoenix) Is there any information you can leak towards it?... GA (Lord British) Well, yes, in fact there will be an Ultima VI... (Lord British) and yes, we have already begun to work on it... (Lord British) Again, as usual, we are re-writing it from scratch... (Lord British) to maximize the amount of improvements we can make... (Lord British) It should also be noted that the first four Ultimas... (Lord British) were completed mostly on my own,... (Lord British) as were the first parts of Ultima V. But it wasn't long... (Lord British) before it became apparent that if Ultima V was EVER... (Lord British) going to get out, I needed help. At the peak,... (Lord British) we had a team of 5 people working on... (Lord British) Ultima V. Ultima VI has a team of 3 already, and the point... (Lord British) of all this is that we feel 2 1/2 years is too long between... (Lord British) Ultima releases, I'm sure you'll agree. So we are doing all... (Lord British) we can to get it out more expediently... (Lord British) Some of my technical goals for U6 are: 1,024 "tiles", shaded... (Lord British) lighting, more NPC realism, even better-looking dungeons... (Lord British) This will likely require 128K minimum on the initial Apple ][ release. GA (The Phoenix) I definitely agree that 2 1/2 years is too long, but I think... (The Phoenix) I have somewhat of a realization... (The Phoenix) of what you have to go through... (The Phoenix) [gads! I had to pull out the sector editor to fix my britannia disk! Ultima V WAS GIGANTIC!]... (The Phoenix) But when I started getting into the Underworld,... (The Phoenix) I truly understood your plight... (The Phoenix) It's even harder to imagine that you can improve... (The Phoenix) over something like Ultima V... (The Phoenix) Again, it's hard not to say, that you have indeed created a... (The Phoenix) masterpiece...GA (Lord British) Thank you VERY much. I appreciate it when someone... (Lord British) understands the work and long hours that go into an Ultima... (Lord British) Truly, I work on Ultimas for the personal enjoyment... (Lord British) even more than for the profit, so I really appreciate it... (Lord British) when people recognize my efforts. GA (The Phoenix) You have a position I truly admire.. Hopefully I can discern your secret to success sometime. GA (Nightie/HOST) Okay, time for Nightrider. GA (Nightrider) ok, first I almost want to ask Phoenix.. (Nightrider) how he finished so fast.... but anyways can you... (Nightrider) let out of the hat any story line at all of Ult VI?...ga (Lord British) Well, first a disclaimer: ... (Lord British) all plot ideas or concepts are subject to radical change... (Lord British) or complete revision and I think we are jumping the gun... (Lord British) by a fair time since many people have not yet even seen... (Lord British) Ultima V. But some of the... (Lord British) concepts I'm considering go like this: When you finish... (Lord British) Ultima V, if you finish Ultima V, the Underworld... (Lord British) (a place filled with and supported by Evil) shall collapse... (Lord British) This will cause a number of things to happen... (Lord British) First, much of the surface world of Britannia will be (Lord British) disrupted (allowing me to modify the map... (Lord British) to a greater extent than before)... (Lord British) further, I may introduce a "flip side" of the world... (Lord British) as if the world were flat.... (Lord British) And, the residents of this "flip side" will also be... (Lord British) disturbed by the Underworld's collapse, and of course, they... (Lord British) blame YOU. This will bring about a major "invasion"... (Lord British) for which you, the Avatar, shall be called back to deal with. (Lord British) GA (Nightrider) Back to Ult 5, do you have a help line... (Nightrider) that I can call for clues or nudges? Also, how much playing time should the average player take to finish? GA (Lord British) Yes, help is available at the following number: 603-644-3360... (Lord British) Also, we do have a clue book which will be finalized soon... (Lord British) Playing time, we guessed to be 100-200 hours, but have very... (Lord British) little research to support such figures. How long did it take... (Lord British) Phoenix? GA (The Phoenix) Hours? I have little conception of hours.. Days wise.. (The Phoenix) Now since... (The Phoenix) you released it.. Say maybe 2 hours a night, or a little less.. (The Phoenix) this week, being spring break, has allowed me almost 24 hours. (Nightie/HOST) Let's go to Stargazer. GA (Stargazer) Ok...before I forget... (Stargazer) I want to thank you, Steve, and the rest of Origin... (Stargazer) for supporting us here on Gamers...we REALLY appreciate it... (Stargazer) There's something that's been bothering me... (Stargazer) since I completed U IV... (Stargazer) No one has been able to answer it...there was... (Stargazer) a clue to ask for the white stone at the tap in Trinsic... (Stargazer) however, as far as I could tell no one in Trinsic... (Stargazer) knew anything. Was this an oversight, or a red herring? GA (Lord British) Hmm... (Lord British) It is hard to be sure, but I believe it was originally... (Lord British) an oversight that was corrected... (Lord British) because at first there were questions about the... (Lord British) Black Stone and the White Stone, (key word = "Stone") and... (Lord British) the game trapped "Stone" before reaching "White". This was... (Lord British) corrected in a later release. Sorry 'bout that! GA (Stargazer) It's what I get for being to eager to get it. (Nightie/HOST) Okay, Andy's up. GA (Andy Hatchell) What were the wonderful musical compositions... (Andy Hatchell) in the C64 version of UIV? I know I recognized... (Andy Hatchell) the one when speaking to Lord British, but I can't place... (Andy Hatchell) it. ga (Lord British) Ha... ha... The selection you are referring to... (Lord British) when in Lord British's castle is called... (Lord British) "Rule Britannia," commonly associated with the British... (Lord British) Empire. Therefore, I adopted it for the game.... (Lord British) I hope British royalty doesn't mind... (Lord British) The other selections were all original compositions... (Lord British) by Sir Kenneth... (Lord British) a personality you shall meet in Ultima V... (Lord British) and who will teach many... (Lord British) of you to play the harpsichord... (Lord British) A note to C64 owners:... (Lord British) Ultima V will require 64K to run, but needs... (Lord British) 128K to hear the music.... (Lord British) Also, in Ultima V, the music has once again been composed... (Lord British) by Sir Kenneth with one additional tune by Iolo... (Lord British) the Bard himself. GA (Lord British) And, one by Steve Meuse, in fact. (Andy Hatchell) Wow! The music in UIV was the best... (Andy Hatchell) I've ever heard out of my '64. So, I... (Andy Hatchell) take it Ultima V will run in the 128 mode on the C128?... (Andy Hatchell) Will it support... (Andy Hatchell) the Commodore 1750 512K RAM Expander? ga (Lord British) Thinking... (Lord British) Ultima V, both on the Apple and Commodore,... (Lord British) will take advantage of only 128K,... (Lord British) but since I am not personally doing the conversion... (Lord British) I cannot say myself. GA (Nightie/HOST) Let's go to Scot now. GA (Scot/RPG SL) One of the complaints that I have heard about the Ultimas... (Scot/RPG SL) is the amount of combat that you must go through... (Scot/RPG SL) over and over again. This doesn't particularly... (Scot/RPG SL) bother me, but I wounder if you have thought... (Scot/RPG SL) about putting in an optional... (Scot/RPG SL) computer controled combat phase such as is found in... (Scot/RPG SL) Wizard's Crown? GA (Lord British) This is a comment which I have heard before but find strange... (Lord British) Combat, particulary in Ultima V, is not nearly so necessary... (Lord British) and repetitive as it is in most of my competition's games,... (Lord British) which are essentially nothing but "combat."... (Lord British) In Ultima V, there is nothing compelling you to fight... (Lord British) out each and every combat as may have been felt in... (Lord British) Ultima IV. Also, the sophistication and subtlety in the new... (Lord British) system makes it far more diverse and interesting than before... (Lord British) The "automatic style" of combat is something... (Lord British) we are toying with for Ultima VI,... (Lord British) since your party size may grow substantially. GA (Scot/RPG SL) I didn't realize that you don't lose karma for running... (Scot/RPG SL) from a fight in U5, thanks!... (Scot/RPG SL) Another quickie for a friend, will you be converting ... (Scot/RPG SL) U4 for the Mac? GA (Lord British) Yes. Very soon, in fact... GA (Nightie/HOST) Let's go to Starkiller. GA (Starkiller) I can't wait Ultima V for Atari 8Bit. So I bought it for Apple IIc.... (Starkiller) I noticed that you used PRODOS system.. (Starkiller) I tried to copy all program/data into 800K disk drive execpt... (Starkiller) main program,. I tried to use it off from 800K. It do not working. Why not you would put options for it? GA (Lord British) First of all, it is not really running under ProDOS... (Lord British) It is running a proprietary OS called "Dinky DOS"... (Lord British) Which has many of the features of ProDOS,... (Lord British) but is substantially smaller... (Lord British) The feature required to put it on an 800K drive... (Lord British) would require much more sophistication... (Lord British) than we could fit in RAM with 64K. But... (Lord British) we will be releasing a GS-specific version on 3.5" disks. GA (Nightie/HOST) Followup, Star? (Starkiller) You know how I feel is HATE "flip-over" or change disk. GA (Lord British) If I may... (Lord British) Something to note about the constant improvements to Ultimas... (Lord British) is that along with other enhancements,... (Lord British) the disk space required... (Lord British) increases. But 3.5" disks are becoming the standard and this... (Lord British) problem will soon go away. GA Nightie (Andy Hatchell) Will you be supporting 3.5" disks for the Commodore? (Lord British) Andy, that's an unknown at this point. (Nightie/HOST) I'm going to close the capture buffer and end... (Nightie/HOST) the formal portion of this CO. Thanks again to Lord B.... (Nightie/HOST) and the Origin staffers for... (Nightie/HOST) being our special guests tonight! (Nightie/HOST) So, thanks again, Lord B.! We hope you'll visit again soon. (Stargazer) (Starkiller) I enjoy to chat you, Lord British. (The Phoenix) clap clap clap clap clap clap.. (Lord British) My pleasure! (Starkiller) (Bravo!!! Bravo!!!) (Scot/RPG SL) yea!!! (Serena) Three cheers for His Majesty and the Origin crew! (Nightie/HOST) Hip hip! (Nightrider) HIP HIP HORRAY! hIP hIP HORRAY! (Lord British) Thanks again. (Magic Man) Hip Hip...Hooray!!! (Space Ace) I think he gets the general Idea. (Nightie/HOST) Hehe...okay, let chaos reign. (Lord British) I will be staying around for a while if any of you have... (Lord British) anything else to discuss. [ End formal portion of CO. ]