[MUD-Dev] MUD timeline

[Koster]

In response to Amy's request, here's my best assembled timeline. Apologies
for namedropping towards the end, but I was trying to figure out where
things went and tracking people was the easiest way to do it.

1960		
1961		
1962		
1963		Modem patented. Concept of network defined.
1964		
1965		
1966		
1967		Advent: single-player text adventure, aka "Colossal Cave"
1968		
1969		Rick Blomme writes Two-player Spacewar on Plato
1970		
1971		
1972		Peter Langston's Empire: multiplayer Star Trek game on Plato
		Plato reaches capacity for 1000 users
1973		
1974		Somewhere in here, Mines of Moria on Plato
1975		Somewhere in here, Airfight (flight sim) on Plato
1976		Somewhere in here, Oubliette and dnd on Plato
		Woods & Crowther put ADVENT on the PDP-10
1977		
1978		MUD1
		Alan Klietz' writes Sceptre of Goth
		AD&D Rules published
		Walter Bright's Empire makes it to DEC-10
1979		Zork released as a standalone game
1980		Empire introduces annual tournaments
		Final version of MUD1 completed
		Avatar on Plato. Possibly earlier?
1981		
1982		Kesmai is founded by Kelton Flinn & John Taylor
1983		Kesmai launches MegaWars I on Compuserve
1984		The first commercial version of MUD1 opens on Compunet in UK
		Islands of Kesmai launches ($12 an hour!)
		Predecessor company to Mythic formed & launches Aradath for
$40 a month.
1985		Habitat
		Islands of Kesmai on Compuserve
		GEnie launches at $6 an hour.
		QuantumLink, predecessor to AOL, launches in Nov
1986		xtrek, the predecessor to Netrek
		Stellar Warrior (rewrite of MegaWars) launches on Genie
		Mulligan does first play by email gam on commercial online
server: Rim Worlds War
		Air Warrior hits pre-alpha
1987		Air Warrior is released on Genie
		Simutronics is founded; Gemstone goes alpha late in year
		MUD2 is launched as British Legends on Compuserve
		AberMUDs
1988		Gemstone launches as Gemstone II on Genie
		IRC is invented
		Mark Baldwin does a GUI version of Bright's Empire for the
PC
		QuantumLink launches AppleLink, soon to be AOL. Turns down
Aradath and Galaxy II
1989		TinyMUD is developed
		Galaxy II launches on Genie
		A-Maze-ing, 3-d online shooter, on Genie
		Lars Penjske's LPMuds exist (possibly earlier)
1990		TinyMUD shuts down.
		MOO is developed by Stephen White
		Diplomacy on Genie, done by AUSI and Eric Raymond
		Federation II on Genie
		Negotiation for Ultima Online begin with Kesmai and Genie
		100 Years War launches on Genie
		Gemstone II converted into chat space called ImagiNation
		TinyMUCK is written
		Islandia opens using TinyMUD code
		TinyTIM opens
		TinyMUSH is written
		FurryMUCK opens.
		PernMUSh is founded
1991		BSX muds
		LambdaMOO opens
		Dragon's Gate (revised Aradath) launches on GEnie
1992		"LambdaMOO takes a new direction"
		Genocide, first PK muds
		MPG-Net founded, launches Kingdom of Drakkar (top view,
graphical)
		Simutronics launches Cyberstrike (grpahical)
		QuamtumLink renames itself AOL
		Sierra network launches
		Valhalla, an LPMud, supports itself by charging money
		First instances of intermud networks created using LP
		Worlds of Carnage, first Diku with embedded scripting
1993		Mosaic makes the Internet graphical
		Shadow of Yserbius launches on Sierra network
		Doom comes out in December.
		Nightmare mudlib released
		Discworld mudlib released
		DGD Lpmuds released
		Worlds of Carnage closes; Damion Schubert & Co. release
scripting publicly after an abortive other mud
1994		WOO and then ChibaMOO
		Dragonspires is opened by ex-Originite Dr Cat
		News Corp buys Kesmai
		Netscape makes the graphical browser accessible.
		AT&T buys INN
		LegendMUD opens with Carnage refugees Koster & Delashmit;
first classless mud?
		Merc 2.2 releases with modified Mobprogs from Carnage
		Imperium Gothique releases with programmable Dikus
1995		Meridian 59 released with Damion Schubert & Mike Sellers at
helm.
		id starts testing Quake
		Gemstone III goes live on AOL
		Air Warrior goes live on AOL
		LIMA mudlib offers Infocom-style parsing
		Koster & Delashmit hired by Origin for Ultima Online
1996		"LambdaMOO takes Another New Direction"
		The Realm enters beta
		Dark Sun Online enters beta
		AmigaMUD, a grpahical free mud system.
		Neverwinter Nights closes as a for pay game
		Aol takes on Gemstone III and Dragon's Gate
		Quake is Released
		Origin demos Ultima Online at E3; team includes Koster &
Delashmit
		AOL buys INN
1997		Ultima Online launches commercially
		Hamlet on the Holodeck published
1998		EverQuest opens
		Asheron's Call	
		Rubies of Eventide	
1999		Asheron's Call	
		VR-1's Ultracorps closes on MS Zone	
		TEN ditches gaming to become pogo.com	
		DWANGO dies in the US	
		EA buys Kesmai (& playNation)	
		MPGNet bought twice over, now iEN.	
		Lyra's Underlight launches	
		Verant's Sovereign announced	
2000		UO2 announced with Schubert & Gaffney (of AC)	
		Activision & Verant announce Star Trek Online projects	
			
	Questions:		When was The Palace?
			When was WorldsChat?
			When did Habitat become WorldsAway?
			When was TinyFugue?
			When was Tintin?
			When was Pueblo? 1995?
			Anyone got better dates for the Plato Stuff?
			When was Diku? When was Merc?
Sources used:			
Chris Gray			
Amy Bruckman			
Jonathan Baron			
Jessica Mulligan			
Damion Schubert			
Jessica Mulligan			
Dr Cat			
Martin Keegan			
Raph Koster			
Lauren Burka		

-Raph		



_______________________________________________
MUD-Dev maillist  -  MUD-Dev at kanga.nu
http://www.kanga.nu/lists/listinfo/mud-dev