Electronic Arts provides the standard clients with which players are allowed to connect to the Ultima Online servers, though some third-party clients have also been made.
Original client
The original Ultima Online client is 2D and, while it was state of the art when released, it is intended to be used on low-end machines that cannot support the more taxing 3D client. It also presents a crisper, simpler artistic flavor that some people find more attractive than the 3D client. Many of the graphics used are high-resolution versions of graphics used in Ultima VIII.
Ultima Online: Third Dawn client
The 3D client was originally released as a part of the Ultima Online: Third Dawn expansion, but has received poor reviews from both veteran and new players alike due to a large number of performance issues (especially memory leaks early on) and what many see as sub-par graphics. An update to the 3D client was made on January 30, 2006 when characters and creatures from the game were scaled down to smaller sizes.
As of early May/Late April 2007, the Third Dawn client is no longer supported by Electronic Arts, and focus has been shifted to the Kingdom Reborn client. Electronic Arts Ultima Online servers will no longer allow the Third Dawn client to connect.
Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn client
Screenshot from Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn.
Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn was announced in August 2006 and was released August 27, 2007.[15] The new client, according to the Ultima Online team at Electronic Arts, is being created for the purpose of modernizing the game's look, making it easy to add new content without backsliding through outdated and outmoded art, while maintaining the niche market as an MMORPG that can be run on lower-end computers. Electronic Arts has referred to the Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn client as "2.5d," meaning that it was written in 3d and then effectively backslid into 2d to make it, in theory, easier for lower-end computers to run. The client is available as a free download for current players of the game.
Statements made by Electronic Arts originally stated that the Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn client would replace the long-standing Ultima Online client. However, at the first of several Electronic Arts-sponsored players' conventions referred to as "UO Town Meetings," in Atlanta, Electronic Arts representatives suggested that the two clients would exist side-by-side until about 80% of the players had switched over to the new client.
Enhanced Client
A modified version of the Kingdom Reborn client, renamed the "Enhanced Client," is being introduced as part of the Stygian Abyss expansion. Changes include enhanced macro abilities, a more configurable interface, changes to the mapping system, and graphical changes. The enhanced graphics of the Kingdom Reborn client have been retired in favor of lower resolution "legacy" graphics that more closely resemble the legacy 2D client. This graphic set is based on the Third Dawn client and was previously available in the Kingdom Reborn client as optional "legacy" graphics.
Original client
The original Ultima Online client is 2D and, while it was state of the art when released, it is intended to be used on low-end machines that cannot support the more taxing 3D client. It also presents a crisper, simpler artistic flavor that some people find more attractive than the 3D client. Many of the graphics used are high-resolution versions of graphics used in Ultima VIII.
Ultima Online: Third Dawn client
The 3D client was originally released as a part of the Ultima Online: Third Dawn expansion, but has received poor reviews from both veteran and new players alike due to a large number of performance issues (especially memory leaks early on) and what many see as sub-par graphics. An update to the 3D client was made on January 30, 2006 when characters and creatures from the game were scaled down to smaller sizes.
As of early May/Late April 2007, the Third Dawn client is no longer supported by Electronic Arts, and focus has been shifted to the Kingdom Reborn client. Electronic Arts Ultima Online servers will no longer allow the Third Dawn client to connect.
Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn client
Screenshot from Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn.
Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn was announced in August 2006 and was released August 27, 2007.[15] The new client, according to the Ultima Online team at Electronic Arts, is being created for the purpose of modernizing the game's look, making it easy to add new content without backsliding through outdated and outmoded art, while maintaining the niche market as an MMORPG that can be run on lower-end computers. Electronic Arts has referred to the Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn client as "2.5d," meaning that it was written in 3d and then effectively backslid into 2d to make it, in theory, easier for lower-end computers to run. The client is available as a free download for current players of the game.
Statements made by Electronic Arts originally stated that the Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn client would replace the long-standing Ultima Online client. However, at the first of several Electronic Arts-sponsored players' conventions referred to as "UO Town Meetings," in Atlanta, Electronic Arts representatives suggested that the two clients would exist side-by-side until about 80% of the players had switched over to the new client.
Enhanced Client
A modified version of the Kingdom Reborn client, renamed the "Enhanced Client," is being introduced as part of the Stygian Abyss expansion. Changes include enhanced macro abilities, a more configurable interface, changes to the mapping system, and graphical changes. The enhanced graphics of the Kingdom Reborn client have been retired in favor of lower resolution "legacy" graphics that more closely resemble the legacy 2D client. This graphic set is based on the Third Dawn client and was previously available in the Kingdom Reborn client as optional "legacy" graphics.
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