I’m Richard Garriott, Aka Lord British, and This Is How I Work
Richard Garriott is a robot. The creator of the Ultima series (including Ultima Online , one of the first massively multiplayer online games) runs his Austin-based Portalarium company from his New York home. He works remotely via Beam, a segway-like robot with a video screen that allows him to interact directly with the rest of the team than static video conferencing. This is a suitable working style for a person who has come up with the use of the Sanskrit word ” avatar” to refer to a virtual digital representation of a person.
Garriott is a high-tech godfather from Silicon Valley . His former home in Austin, Britannia Manor, is essentially a castle; it has been featured on MTV Cribs and has its own Wikipedia page . He has been on the International Space Station and is a member of the board of directors for the X Prize for private space travel. He designed the card for Magic: The Gathering . He bought two Soviet spacecraft that are still on the moon and likes to jokingly claim that the land they have explored belongs to him . He is popularly known as the Ultima Online character, Lord British.
We spoke with Garriott about his long career (he released his first game in 1979 at the age of 18), including the long and difficult development of his latest game Shroud of the Avatar , as well as his advice for people who are now joining to the gaming industry.
Location: New York and Austin, Texas. Current position: Video game developer, Portalarium. Current mobile device: iPhone X Current computer: ORIGIN PC. One word that best describes how you work: Present.
First of all, tell us a little about your past and how you got where you are now.
I am one of the first computer game developers to still make games. I created the Ultima series that set many standards in fantasy games, including the word ” avatar” . Ultima Online was the first MMORPG. Today my team and I continue to race to give players an even deeper experience. However, while I was living and my team is staying in Austin, 7 years ago I married a New Yorker and we live in New York as a home for our family. Thus, I had an urgent need to solve the problem of long-distance travel, which prompted me to become one of the first adherents of telepresence robotics.
Tell us about a recent work day.
When I wake up in New York, I’m an hour ahead of my Austin staff. This allows me to help the children go to school without haste. I then enter my Beam and teleport to Austin from my home office in New York. I then start my work day by leaving my robot body in my Austin office as if I were physically in Austin. This allows me to greet employees as they arrive and participate in the natural flow and rhythm of the office.
I go to morning poster reports every day (both human and robot). When people want to talk to me, they usually visit me, I chat in the hallway and even wander around the kitchen, wanting to share a snack when I’m a robot.
The key for me is to spend all day and not just participate in fixed-line video conferencing. I am present all day, every day, just like any other employee. Sometimes I’m just in the flesh, and more often in the body of my robot, on my Beam.
What apps, gadgets or tools can’t you live without?
After regular iPhones, desktops and laptops, my most essential tool is undeniably my Beam! I’m in Austin, Texas right now, and I’m writing this for you here in New York! I have to be one of the leading telepresence robotics users on Earth. But if many of you try it, you will love it too!
How is your workplace arranged?
My computer is a powerful gaming system with 3 large monitors, and there are research and technology memorabilia around me, from my still working Apple] [to the seat of the Soyuz spacecraft as I rode into space. The top center of the center screen is reserved for my viewport through the Beam, which is constantly open during my workday.
What’s your best shortcut or life hack?
Travel light! I NEVER check the bag. I am the king of light travel. Of course, nothing beats virtual travel. I can “shine” even when I’m on the road with my iPhone, and often from remote areas or even in a taxi!
Your latest game, Shroud of the Avatar , has had a long and sometimes controversial journey to launch, including multiple rounds of crowdfunding. How did you deal with criticism, what lessons did you learn and what are you proud of in this process?
We are one of the first games to choose the crowdfunding path and therefore we have learned a lot along the way. Now that we’ve launched the game and sent out the physical boxes in September, we’ve also become the largest crowdfunding game to meet its original commitments. We are rightfully proud of this!
One of the main lessons of this journey is how to manage the expectations of people who join the middle of the stream. Those who come early start to see the most primitive game and get a vastly improved game every month. Proponents who come later see the game mostly working at first, which is not yet fun or polished to perfection. The players who come at the end see the finished game and they like it. The hardest part is staying happy in the middle group.
What do you want more people to know about the process of creating and launching a game?
80% of the quality of the game becomes visible in the last 20% of the development process.
What advice do you have for people trying to break into the gaming industry?
Please try again and again. Nothing worthwhile is easy. The chances of sending your resume to the exact company you want at a time when they just need YOU are very low. So contact every month. Keep building your skills and demos to make a stronger impression with each cycle. Take on whatever role they allow you to, and then get what you really want the moment you’re inside.
Who are the people who help you achieve results, and how do you rely on them?
ALL on my team are rock stars! Let’s start with Starr Long, executive producer and project director. But many of us on this team have worked together for decades. We all know each other’s skills (and weaknesses) and therefore can rely and support each other as needed!
How do you keep track of what you need to do?
I am a slave to my Outlook calendar. If it’s not on my calendar, I WON’T be there. If so, I will. Period.
How to recharge or relax?
Study! Hundreds of countries and territories remained to be explored, but I have already visited all seven continents, the depths of the sea from submarines, the poles and outer space!
What’s your favorite side project?
Haunted houses! I still love to create interactive real-world events similar to the virtual games we make.
What are you reading now or what do you recommend?
I am reading for research. It can be historical, philosophical, fantastic or real science. I am currently reading a text about graphene, as I think it may turn out to be the next generation “plastic”!
What problem are you still trying to solve?
Urban transport. I believe in Personal Rapid Transit, but deploying a civilian project of this magnitude remains a challenge for me.