Mythic Entertainment
Encyclopedia
BioWare Mythic is a computer game developer
in Fairfax, Virginia
which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game
Dark Age of Camelot
. Mythic has been a prolific creator of multiplayer online games since its formation in the mid 1990s.
Electronic Arts
purchased Mythic Entertainment and renamed the company EA Mythic on June 20, 2006. EA Mythic renamed themselves back to Mythic Entertainment on July 10, 2008. On June 24, 2009, it was announced that as part of EA's restructuring plan Mythic Entertainment and BioWare
would come together under a new RPG/MMO division headed by BioWare General Manager Dr. Ray Muzyka
. It was also revealed that current General Manager of Mythic Mark Jacobs had left EA on June 23, 2009 and would be replaced by Rob Denton. According to General Manager Dr. Ray Muzyka
the company is now called BioWare Mythic.
, although it has developed many other smaller titles as well. Mythic Entertainment released Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
on September 18, 2008.
Mythic originally evolved from two early Washington, DC (USA) area online game development companies. The first was Adventures Unlimited Software Inc. (AUSI), was founded in 1984 By Mark Jacobs when it launched Aradath, a commercial online RPG which charged US$40 per month. AUSI later developed games for GEnie
, creating an online version of Diplomacy
with Eric Raymond in 1990, and Dragon's Gate
in 1985, originally inspired by Aradath. Mark Jacobs
was the president of AUSI and other developers there would later work for Mythic.
The other half of Mythic Entertainment was Interesting Systems, Inc., founded by Rob Denton, Matt Firor
, Don Cambpell, and Roger Shropshire in Fairfax, VA, in 1990. Prior to the founding of Mythic Entertainment, ISI had developed one multi-user BBS text-based roleplaying game called "Tempest", which was later renamed Darkness Falls. Darkness Falls would later provide the codebase for Dark Age of Camelot
.
Mythic Entertainment was officially formed in 1995 when AUSI (Mark Jacobs) and ISI (Rob Denton) joined together. Its original name was Interworld Productions, and in November 1997 the name was changed to Mythic Entertainment.
Mythic made numerous online games in the mid and late 1990s, ranging from online action first-person shooter
s to online RPGs. Some titles include Silent Death Online
, Magestorm Millennium
, Darkness Falls: The Crusade
, ID4 Online
, Spellbinder: The Nexus Conflict
, and Splatterball.
On 24 June 2009, it was announced that longtime Mythic boss Mark Jacobs
had left the company and that EA intends to merge Mythic with fellow RPG developer BioWare
.
On November 9, 2009 EA Mythic was part of a broader reduction in force throughout Electronic Arts. The number of employees released was not made public.
In early 2010, EA Mythic was moved completely into the BioWare RPG group within EA.
development in late 1999. The company invested $3.2 million developing the game, an amount more than double the sum used for all its previous games. Dark Age of Camelot was also the company's first massively multiplayer online role-playing game.
Dark Age of Camelot development was led by Rob Denton, as lead programmer, and by Matt Firor
as Producer.
Dark Age of Camelot support and development continues, in parallel with other EA Mythic projects, such as the 2005-announced Warhammer Online
.
where the Roman Republic
never fell, and advanced to be a space-traveling multi-planet Empire. This project was cancelled in 2005.
IP and was starting to work on a new MMO, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
. This title was released on September 18, 2008.
in December 2003 for trademark infringement and unfair competition regarding the name of Microsoft
's Mythica
MMORPG, which was in development at that time. On May 25, 2004, three months after the game was cancelled, Mythic announced that the case was settled and that Microsoft agreed to not use the Mythica name on new online computer games and to not register it as a trademark. Also as part of the deal, Microsoft
gave all Mythica-related trademarks and domain names to Mythic.
list of fastest growing (by revenue) technology companies in North America
since 2002. In 2004 it ranked 106th with a 2,226% increase in revenue over the past five years.
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
in Fairfax, Virginia
Fairfax, Virginia
The City of Fairfax is an independent city forming an enclave within the confines of Fairfax County, in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Although politically independent of the surrounding county, the City is nevertheless the county seat....
which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
Dark Age of Camelot
Dark Age of Camelot
Dark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, released on October 10 2001 in North America and in Europe shortly after through it's partner GOA. It is still running today recently celebrating its 10th anniversary....
. Mythic has been a prolific creator of multiplayer online games since its formation in the mid 1990s.
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
purchased Mythic Entertainment and renamed the company EA Mythic on June 20, 2006. EA Mythic renamed themselves back to Mythic Entertainment on July 10, 2008. On June 24, 2009, it was announced that as part of EA's restructuring plan Mythic Entertainment and BioWare
BioWare
BioWare is a Canadian video game developer founded in February 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip. BioWare is currently owned by American company Electronic Arts...
would come together under a new RPG/MMO division headed by BioWare General Manager Dr. Ray Muzyka
Ray Muzyka
Dr. Ray Muzyka is a Canadian entrepreneur. He is the CEO at BioWare Corp as well as a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts at BioWare's parent company Electronic Arts.-Career:Muzyka co-founded BioWare in...
. It was also revealed that current General Manager of Mythic Mark Jacobs had left EA on June 23, 2009 and would be replaced by Rob Denton. According to General Manager Dr. Ray Muzyka
Ray Muzyka
Dr. Ray Muzyka is a Canadian entrepreneur. He is the CEO at BioWare Corp as well as a Senior Vice President and Group General Manager of the BioWare RPG/MMO Group of Electronic Arts at BioWare's parent company Electronic Arts.-Career:Muzyka co-founded BioWare in...
the company is now called BioWare Mythic.
History
Mythic Entertainment (August 2006 - July 2008, EA Mythic) is best known for its 2001 MMORPG, Dark Age of CamelotDark Age of Camelot
Dark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, released on October 10 2001 in North America and in Europe shortly after through it's partner GOA. It is still running today recently celebrating its 10th anniversary....
, although it has developed many other smaller titles as well. Mythic Entertainment released Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy setting. It was developed by Mythic Entertainment and simultaneously released in North and South Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand on September 18, 2008...
on September 18, 2008.
Mythic originally evolved from two early Washington, DC (USA) area online game development companies. The first was Adventures Unlimited Software Inc. (AUSI), was founded in 1984 By Mark Jacobs when it launched Aradath, a commercial online RPG which charged US$40 per month. AUSI later developed games for GEnie
GEnie
GEnie was an online service created by a General Electric business - GEIS that ran from 1985 through the end of 1999. In 1994, GEnie claimed around 350,000 users. Peak simultaneous usage was around 10,000 users...
, creating an online version of Diplomacy
Diplomacy (game)
Diplomacy is a strategic board game created by Allan B. Calhamer in 1954 and released commercially in 1959. Its main distinctions from most board wargames are its negotiation phases and the absence of dice or other game elements that produce random effects...
with Eric Raymond in 1990, and Dragon's Gate
Dragon's Gate
Dragon's Gate was an interactive, real time, text-based multi user online fantasy role-playing game, sometimes referred to as a MUD. It was one of the longest running pay-for-play online games in the world, it opened to the public in the spring of 1990 on GEnie. In the summer of 1996 the game was...
in 1985, originally inspired by Aradath. Mark Jacobs
Mark Jacobs (video game designer)
Mark Jacobs is the former GM/VP/CEO of Mythic Entertainment, Inc. He is one of the pioneers in the massively multiplayer online role-playing game industry, having created two early MUDs, Aradath and Dragon's Gate serving as both the designer and programmer in addition to his duties as...
was the president of AUSI and other developers there would later work for Mythic.
The other half of Mythic Entertainment was Interesting Systems, Inc., founded by Rob Denton, Matt Firor
Matt Firor
Matt Firor is a well known game producer/designer of Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games . Matt is best known for his involvement in the critically acclaimed game Dark Age of Camelot for Mythic Entertainment.-Biography:...
, Don Cambpell, and Roger Shropshire in Fairfax, VA, in 1990. Prior to the founding of Mythic Entertainment, ISI had developed one multi-user BBS text-based roleplaying game called "Tempest", which was later renamed Darkness Falls. Darkness Falls would later provide the codebase for Dark Age of Camelot
Dark Age of Camelot
Dark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, released on October 10 2001 in North America and in Europe shortly after through it's partner GOA. It is still running today recently celebrating its 10th anniversary....
.
Mythic Entertainment was officially formed in 1995 when AUSI (Mark Jacobs) and ISI (Rob Denton) joined together. Its original name was Interworld Productions, and in November 1997 the name was changed to Mythic Entertainment.
Mythic made numerous online games in the mid and late 1990s, ranging from online action first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
s to online RPGs. Some titles include Silent Death Online
Silent Death Online
Silent Death: Online, often abbreviated to 'SDO' or 'SD', was a top-view spaceship fighter game created by Mythic Entertainment who originally licensed the rights from Iron Crown Enterprises, before purchasing them upon its bankruptcy....
, Magestorm Millennium
Magestorm
Rolemaster: Magestorm was an online-only first-person shooter using magical spells as weapons. It was developed in 1996 by Interworld Productions . It centered on team-based gameplay and included some role-playing elements, notably the character class and level-based systems...
, Darkness Falls: The Crusade
Darkness Falls: The Crusade
Darkness Falls: The Crusade , known informally as DFC and DF2, was an internet fantasy MUD-style game developed by Mythic Entertainment, and which has been hosted by America Online, GameStorm, and Centropolis Entertainment...
, ID4 Online
ID4 Online
ID4 Online , known more formally as Independence Day Online, was an arena-based action game developed by Mythic Entertainment, and which has been published by Centropolis Entertainment...
, Spellbinder: The Nexus Conflict
Spellbinder: The Nexus Conflict
Spellbinder: The Nexus Conflict was a 3D action game developed by Mythic Entertainment, developed as a follow-up to Magestorm, and which has been hosted by Centropolis Entertainment and Mightygames....
, and Splatterball.
On 24 June 2009, it was announced that longtime Mythic boss Mark Jacobs
Mark Jacobs (video game designer)
Mark Jacobs is the former GM/VP/CEO of Mythic Entertainment, Inc. He is one of the pioneers in the massively multiplayer online role-playing game industry, having created two early MUDs, Aradath and Dragon's Gate serving as both the designer and programmer in addition to his duties as...
had left the company and that EA intends to merge Mythic with fellow RPG developer BioWare
BioWare
BioWare is a Canadian video game developer founded in February 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip. BioWare is currently owned by American company Electronic Arts...
.
On November 9, 2009 EA Mythic was part of a broader reduction in force throughout Electronic Arts. The number of employees released was not made public.
In early 2010, EA Mythic was moved completely into the BioWare RPG group within EA.
Dark Age of Camelot
Mythic started Dark Age of CamelotDark Age of Camelot
Dark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, released on October 10 2001 in North America and in Europe shortly after through it's partner GOA. It is still running today recently celebrating its 10th anniversary....
development in late 1999. The company invested $3.2 million developing the game, an amount more than double the sum used for all its previous games. Dark Age of Camelot was also the company's first massively multiplayer online role-playing game.
Dark Age of Camelot development was led by Rob Denton, as lead programmer, and by Matt Firor
Matt Firor
Matt Firor is a well known game producer/designer of Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games . Matt is best known for his involvement in the critically acclaimed game Dark Age of Camelot for Mythic Entertainment.-Biography:...
as Producer.
Dark Age of Camelot support and development continues, in parallel with other EA Mythic projects, such as the 2005-announced Warhammer Online
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy setting. It was developed by Mythic Entertainment and simultaneously released in North and South Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand on September 18, 2008...
.
Imperator Online
In 2002, Mythic announced it was working on a new title, a science-fiction themed MMO called Imperator Online. This MMORPG based on an alternate historyAlternate history (fiction)
Alternate history or alternative history is a genre of fiction consisting of stories that are set in worlds in which history has diverged from the actual history of the world. It can be variously seen as a sub-genre of literary fiction, science fiction, and historical fiction; different alternate...
where the Roman Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
never fell, and advanced to be a space-traveling multi-planet Empire. This project was cancelled in 2005.
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
During the E3 trade show, on May 18, 2005, Mythic announced that it had licensed the WarhammerWarhammer Fantasy (setting)
Warhammer Fantasy is a fantasy setting, created by Games Workshop, which is used by many of the company's games. Some of the best-known games set in this world are: the table top wargame Warhammer Fantasy Battle, the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay pen-and-paper role-playing game, and the MMORPG...
IP and was starting to work on a new MMO, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy setting. It was developed by Mythic Entertainment and simultaneously released in North and South Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand on September 18, 2008...
. This title was released on September 18, 2008.
Mythic / Microsoft Lawsuit
Mythic sued MicrosoftMicrosoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
in December 2003 for trademark infringement and unfair competition regarding the name of Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's Mythica
Mythica
Mythica was a never-released massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on Norse mythology. It was under development by Microsoft Game Studios for Windows-running PCs until it was cancelled in early 2004...
MMORPG, which was in development at that time. On May 25, 2004, three months after the game was cancelled, Mythic announced that the case was settled and that Microsoft agreed to not use the Mythica name on new online computer games and to not register it as a trademark. Also as part of the deal, Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
gave all Mythica-related trademarks and domain names to Mythic.
Corporate Honors
It has been listed on the Deloitte Technology 500Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited , commonly referred to as Deloitte, is one of the Big Four accountancy firms along with PricewaterhouseCoopers , Ernst & Young, and KPMG....
list of fastest growing (by revenue) technology companies in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
since 2002. In 2004 it ranked 106th with a 2,226% increase in revenue over the past five years.
List of games
- Dragon's GateDragon's GateDragon's Gate was an interactive, real time, text-based multi user online fantasy role-playing game, sometimes referred to as a MUD. It was one of the longest running pay-for-play online games in the world, it opened to the public in the spring of 1990 on GEnie. In the summer of 1996 the game was...
(19851985 in video gaming-Notable releases:* Brøderbund releases Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, the first game of the prolific Carmen Sandiego series* Nintendo releases Super Mario Bros. on September 13, 1985, which eventually sells 40 million copies making it the best-selling video game of all time until 2008.*...
) - Tempest (19911991 in video gaming-Notable releases:*Microprose creates Civilization, Sid Meier's most successful game .*Electronic Arts releases James Pond 2 and Road Rash for Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, starting a series of games that were popular in the 1990s....
) - Castles II Online (19961996 in video gaming-Notable releases:*January 29 — Duke Nukem 3D, successor to the simple side-scrolling originals, and a genre-redefining title for first person shooters....
) - Rolemaster: MagestormMagestormRolemaster: Magestorm was an online-only first-person shooter using magical spells as weapons. It was developed in 1996 by Interworld Productions . It centered on team-based gameplay and included some role-playing elements, notably the character class and level-based systems...
(1996) - Splatterball (1996)
- Invasion Earth (19971997 in video gaming-Events:*October 4 — Gunpei Yokoi dies after a double car accident.*November – Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association launched.*3rd annual E3...
, unreleased) - Darkness Falls (1997)
- Rolemaster: Bladelands (1997)
- Aliens Online (19981998 in video gaming-Events:*Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts 1st Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo to the AIAS Hall of Fame*British Academy of Film and Television Arts hosts the 1st annual BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Awards...
) - Starship Troopers: Battlespace (1998)
- Godzilla Online (1998)
- Silent Death: OnlineSilent Death OnlineSilent Death: Online, often abbreviated to 'SDO' or 'SD', was a top-view spaceship fighter game created by Mythic Entertainment who originally licensed the rights from Iron Crown Enterprises, before purchasing them upon its bankruptcy....
(19991999 in video gaming-Events:*British Academy of Film and Television Arts hosts the 2nd annual BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Awards*March – Game Over republished as “Game Over: Press Start to Continue”...
) - Darkness Falls: The CrusadeDarkness Falls: The CrusadeDarkness Falls: The Crusade , known informally as DFC and DF2, was an internet fantasy MUD-style game developed by Mythic Entertainment, and which has been hosted by America Online, GameStorm, and Centropolis Entertainment...
(1999) - Darkstorm: The Well of Souls (1999, unreleased)
- Spellbinder: The Nexus ConflictSpellbinder: The Nexus ConflictSpellbinder: The Nexus Conflict was a 3D action game developed by Mythic Entertainment, developed as a follow-up to Magestorm, and which has been hosted by Centropolis Entertainment and Mightygames....
(1999) - Independence Day OnlineID4 OnlineID4 Online , known more formally as Independence Day Online, was an arena-based action game developed by Mythic Entertainment, and which has been published by Centropolis Entertainment...
(20002000 in video gaming-Events:* May 11–13 — 6th annual Electronic Entertainment Expo ; the 3rd annual Game Critics Awards for the Best of E³* June 26 — International Game Developers Association renamed from Computer Game Developers Association...
) - Dark Age of CamelotDark Age of CamelotDark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, released on October 10 2001 in North America and in Europe shortly after through it's partner GOA. It is still running today recently celebrating its 10th anniversary....
(20012001 in video gaming-Events:* Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts the 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts John Carmack of id Software to the AIAS Hall of Fame...
) - Imperator Online (Canceled 2005)
- Warhammer Online: Age of ReckoningWarhammer Online: Age of ReckoningWarhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy setting. It was developed by Mythic Entertainment and simultaneously released in North and South Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand on September 18, 2008...
(20082008 in video gamingNotable events of 2008 in video gaming. See also history of video games. The release dates listed in this article are the games' original release dates.-Events:...
) - Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes (2011)
External links
- BioWare Mythic official website
- Centropolis Games, information archive of Mythic's older games
- Inc. 500 (2003), profile for Mythic Entertainment