So what can this game and its players tell us about creating the virtual worlds of the future? It’s a medieval fantasy kingdom created for the online role-playing game Ultima Online-and it has already endured a quarter-century of market competition, economic turmoil, and political strife. Today’s headlines treat the metaverse as a hazy dream yet to be built, but if it’s defined as a network of virtual worlds we can inhabit, its oldest extant corner has been already running for 25 years.
