Zajen

Ze History

If there are any inaccuracies regarding the MORPG section, please notify me via e-mail: zajenmail AT gmail DOT com

For a more detailed, albeit slightly bias, account of our humble beginnings, please view this thread at the Online Game Core.

Update: The Online Game Core has been shut down.  I will contact James and see if he can send me the file.

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The following is an excerpt from The Videogame Style Guide and Reference Manual. Although this short list pertains to MMOs, it was during this time that MORPGs sprung to life as well.

The Rise of the MMO

[*] 1996 Meridian 59 is released as the first graphical massively-multiplayer online game.
[*] 1997 Ultima Online successfully expands the audience for MMOs.
[*] 1999 EverQuest and Asherons’ Call released. MMO role-playing games reach new level of popularity and relevance. The slang term “Evercrack” enters the cultural vocabulary to represent the genre’s addictive qualities.
[*] 2002 Microsoft launches Xbox Live; millions of gamers pay a fee for the premium online service.
[*] 2002 The Sims Online ships.
[*] 2003 Star Wars Galaxies, an MMO set in the Star Wars universe, ships.
[*] 2004 World of Warcraft ships, goes on to dominate the MMO market with over 8 million subscribers.

Birth of the MORPG
Note: This section will not have exact dates except for the release of Microsoft’s programming language.

[*] 1998 Visual Basic 6 is released.
[*] Consty creates Mirage Online (MO). Version 1.0 is released.
[*] Source code of MO is sold to Unformed Realities. Version 3.0.3 at time of transaction.
[*] Playerworlds (PW) is created from the source code.
[*] MO is sold to JB Computers (Acer, forum member) while PW is purchased by Kaelian Software (Kael).
[*] Version 3.1.0 programmed by Solace (Acer member) features a new GUI and two separate servers, Old World and New World (Adonai).
[*] MO goes offline then resurfaces under Unformed Realities control.
[*] Due to agreement violations between Shannara and Consty, xPC, a hacker, is given the MO code from Consty.
[*] The source code of MO is made public and becomes open source software.

Notable Names
Consty
Shannara
Kael
xPC

Notable Games and Engines

Odyssey Online Classic
Odyssey’s origins
Mirage Online
Uber RPG

Quick Fun Fact(s)!
[*] Mirage Online used ripped Final Fantasy graphics for its tile sets. After the source became open, pixel artists created a plethora of resources for public and private use.

9 Comments

9 responses so far ↓

  • smchronos // November 1, 2009 at 5:46 pm | Reply

    I think this should be expanded if you’re going to include engines like Playerworlds. There is obviously more history than that, and it should be developed (most only know of playerworlds and the Mirage source code). Try and branch out to other engines developed off of it. Go into detail on those engines. Mention other MORPG engines that came about.

    I think some things to mention would be:
    Elysium (everyone hates it, but it did have a big pull on developers racing to add unique features)
    Eclipse (maybe or maybe not)
    X-Realms (it had a good following for its time)
    RealFeel Engine (I ran it and I’ve been told quite a lot of people downloaded it and liked it)
    Genesis 2D (not sure about this one)

    If Zajen had a good history section, more people might flock to learn about what was, is, and might soon be available.

  • smchronos // November 1, 2009 at 8:29 pm | Reply

    Oh yeah, one more thing. I’m pretty sure Consty created Mirage Online using VB5 and it was later converted to VB6.

  • N.P. Brandt // November 3, 2009 at 4:04 am | Reply

    The trouble is, there is no documentation detailing the rise and fall of every engine. If information is available, it is scattered and difficult to find.

    There is much more to our story but I only concern myself with the beginning. As for the other engines, I don’t know where to start.

  • Smchronos // November 3, 2009 at 5:52 pm | Reply

    That’s when you go around and ask the creators and current owners about their histories. You would definitely be the first to have it documented because, like you said, there isn’t much out there to grab directly.

  • Unknown // March 3, 2010 at 6:34 pm | Reply

    Hey, great website I read it all the time. I started playing the odyssey online classic so I can give you some history on that.

    Odyssey was started in 1997 by Bugaboo making it the earliest mmo engine of it’s kind. Here’s the original site: http://tinyurl.com/ycu3vmq clicking on info gives a nice wrap up of the beginning. Consty played odyssey online & developed mirage.

    Bugaboo quit after repeatedly being hacked by BattleBob. BattleBob now runs http://www.odysseyonline.com under the alias Remote.

    • N.P. Brandt // March 5, 2010 at 5:04 am | Reply

      Awesome.

      The past is always ripe with interesting tidbits. 1997 was a good year. Remember Tamagotchi?

      Thanks for the info. I’ll have to revise and update.

  • TheZeus // June 6, 2010 at 4:41 pm | Reply

    Feel free to contact me for some additional details. I actually was a member of the Odyssey Alpha original players and was Art Director / Head Mapper of the original Mirage Online w/ Consty. I also worked with Shannara for 8 months before ending. There are tons of small details that only I, Consty, Shannara or a few others would know. Feel free to e-mail me and we can chat over aol/aim/vent/skype.

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