Happy birthday - Ultima Online turns 29 years old today (released on September 27, 1997). It is widely regarded as the first true MMORPG and a foundational title that helped define and establish the genre. It brought Lord British's epic single-player Ultima series into a multiplayer world set in Britannia. One of the coolest features was the Sandbox-style gameplay, which meant no traditional levels or classes. You developed skills organically by doing things (e.g., swinging a sword to raise swordsmanship, or crafting items to improve tailoring or blacksmithing). You could be virtually anything you wanted. It had a fully player-driven economy. Players gathered resources, crafted gear and goods, and traded among each other. Player housing was persistent and customizable, meaning you could own and decorate actual houses that stayed in the world. It influenced EverQuest, World of Warcraft (which refined many ideas while adding accessibility), EVE Online, and many others. In a way UO was the ultimate "what if my D&D campaign never ended?" experience for RPG fans all around the world.