Lord British's Lost Lunar Rover Found, After 37 Years 193
Lanxon writes "The guy behind Ultima Online once bought an old Russian rover, despite it being lost on the moon somewhere. And now, using images released by NASA, it has been located on the moon's surface after nearly four decades of being MIA, reports Wired. Richard Garriott, who created the Ultima Online multiplayer game, bought the Lunokhod 2 in a Sotheby's auction in New York in 1998. And so new was the discovery of his lost possession, he hadn't even heard that the craft had been discovered when Wired spoke to him."
(Richard Garriott is also well known as Lord British.)
Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Informative)
At one point, Richard Garriott declared himself to be ruler of the moon, based on him being the only non-government entity to own anything physically on the moon.
It's a shame he doesn't make that claim more public.
Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Insightful)
Wouldn't that then make him a government hence annulling his claim?
Which would then mean he isn't a government and then can validly make such a claim? /rinse and repeat /divide by zero
Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Funny)
Dude, he's Lord British.
Lord British.
I think he can do whatever he wants.
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And Rainz. [gmtristan.com]
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Norman Coordinate!
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Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Funny)
I will suffer no claims to my throne.
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I will suffer no claims to my throne.
Don't worry. Since he's not actually on the Moon, the Larkin decision nullifies his claim...
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Your Highness, I have to ask, and please forgive my impertinence, but is the Moon really made of cheese? If so what kind?
Re:Was that worth it? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Informative)
At one point, Richard Garriott declared himself to be ruler of the moon, based on him being the only non-government entity to own anything physically on the moon.
Oooooook.
http://www.lunarembassy.com/ [lunarembassy.com]
http://www.lunarregistry.com/ [lunarregistry.com]
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/TECH/space/11/20/lunar.land/ [cnn.com]
One thing's clear: he's about to owe someone, somewhere, for parking.
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I see you're interested in property. Well have I got a deal for you! I've got the Brooklyn Bridge, recently being sold by NYC in the wake of the recession. Mind you, the WHOLE bridge isn't for sale (who could afford that!), but what I'm selling is a percentage of ownership of the bridge! Act fast! They aren't building another one!
Bridges not your style? How about some excellent prime real-estate in Florida?
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What are you - a sponsored link on Google?
If this bridge or that Florida of which you speak is not listed on eBay, then I'm not taken in by your scam!
http://cgi.ebay.com/Acre-of-land-on-the-Moon-the-perfect-gift-say-the-BBC_W0QQitemZ230443051912QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_WeirdStuff_RL?hash=item35a779eb88#ht_4253wt_1080 [ebay.com]
Those are scams (Score:2)
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At best this can only be considered a JOKE gift.
Uh huh. Well, I don't know a lot about getting laughed out of court. I didn't even get any laughs for the whole idea of owing someone for unpaid parking on the moon.
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One ity bitty tiny detail about owning real estate:
You have to take possession of it and physically use it at some point in order to "prove" that you own it. Or on a more practical matter you must have a bigger gun to scare away those that might try to challenge your claim.
Of the so-called lunar real-estate companies, not a single one of them can maintain that claim through such action. Yes, you can have governments that can take such kind of possession and then in turn grant title to that land under the
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I, too, live on land once owned by the Spanish - my children trace then themselves back to one of the Conquistadors (name listed at a national monument, yadda yadda).
Actually, it's land that was once either owned by no one or more accurately, was the sovereign territory of one of what we call a pueblo tribe until raiding expeditions in search of The Seven Cities of Gold raped, murdered and pillaged these native peoples. Naturally, upon defeat, these people were converted to Christianity.
And that's when the
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I'm sorry you have such a huge chip on your shoulder and are annoyed at however the land that I live on got into the hands of my countrymen.
Big whoop. If you want it, come get it. Just carry a big gun and be willing to die in the attempt. And don't be surprised if you do die. I'd prefer that you not kill anybody, my family in particular, but if you are that big of an ass I can't stop you anyway.
All land is "stolen land" after a fashion if you really get down to it. The question is really over who can e
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PS -
Somebody with a bigger gun might challenge his claim, but he now has something that is his that is there to occupy that land.
As an American taxpayer, there's NASA hardware on the moon that I helped to foot the bill for - so part of it is mine, just as any part of any federal property is mine.
Therefore - my claim to the moon - just as valid as Garriott's. I've got property there, I've paid real money for that property, my government has denounced all claim to land ownership there, and it's as far as my eye can see.
Sounds like legal precedent is completely on my side to me.
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You've missed some memos....
http://www.thesixtyone.com/bootstothemoon/ [thesixtyone.com]
http://www.moon-boots.com/ [moon-boots.com]
With all the bluster, I say it's mine until you get boots on the ground to displace my claim - kinda like Iraq or Afghanistan.
I, for one, speaking for many, certainly hope you're not advocating a surge to La Luna Grande!
Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Funny)
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Bravo! Bravo! :-D
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Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:5, Funny)
As of 10/06/03, I hate COBOL developers
As of the 10th of June 1903 you hate COBOL developers?
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As of the 10th of June 1903 you hate COBOL developers?
It is a bit late for a Y2k joke, iddn't it.
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No, he actually meant the year 00000000003, right after the big bang. ;)
It’s never too early to hate an universe that comes up with COBOL...
Re:Proof he owns the moon. (Score:4, Interesting)
Well, a Grumman employee snuck a picture if his daughter onto Eagle's descent stage, and one of the astronauts lefts a bible on a rover seat, and another left a memorial [to fallen astronauts] statute... And that's just the ones we know about.
So Garriot's claim is tenuous at best.
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When I was a kid, I threw a rock so high it didn't come down. I'm pretty sure it landed on the moon.
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When I was a kid, I threw a rock so high it didn't come down. I'm pretty sure it landed on the moon.
You owe me a window since 1977.
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He should be careful not being deported then...
Just goes to show... (Score:4, Funny)
Look Closer (Score:2)
Re:Look Closer (Score:5, Funny)
Further observation reveals a parking ticket and booted wheel. With time elapsed, the fine comes to 100 million quatloos.
Here are your messages:
'You have thirty minutes to move your lunar rover.'
'You have ten minutes to move your rover.'
'Your rover has been impounded.'
'Your rover has been crushed into a cube.'
'You have thirty minutes to move your cube.'
Dude, where's my car? (Score:2)
When he tries to pick it up, he'll be bugged by two gay Scandinavian dudes.
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I believe it's a Big Lebowski reference.
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Actually, no. It's a Dude, Where's My Car? [imdb.com] reference.
Super Saver Shipping (Score:2)
Silly man, if he had added just one moon rock to his shopping cart he would have qualified for free shipping.
creator of Ultima Online? (Score:2, Insightful)
amusing that that's his byline these days. didn't anyone play Ultima or Ultima ][, three or four on their ][+?
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not everyone here is an old fogey -_-
It is important to maintain a healthy balance, otherwise whose lawns will you stand on?
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Get off my lawn!
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Russians are smart people (Score:4, Funny)
Not only do they get rid of their junk by sending it off world, they also find someone dumb enough to pay for it.
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Now if only they could repeat it with Putin...
A little off-topic... (Score:5, Insightful)
But this guy is largely famous for creating the Ultima franchise, which is basically all but dead, because EA sank their fangs into Origin Systems and killed the company.
EA owns the Ultima IP. They also own Bioware, perhaps the number 1 Computer RPG shop on the planet.
Richard Garriott isn't doing anything these days, and I imagine most gamers have never played a single player Ultima these days.
The original Ultima games are barely playable today. The original trilogy is a little too straight forward, full of continuity holes, etc. He wasn't planning a lengthy franchise at that point.
They need to remake the Ultima franchise from the beginning. Arguably they could just use the Dragon Age engine and toolset that Bioware just developed, though I would hope a proper Ultima game would have one seamless world as opposed to maps like Dragon Age. Someone needs to make this happen, like yesterday.
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Have you tried the U5 remake based on dungeon siege? It was a ton of fun....
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Yes, and it is very much worth linking to.
http://www.u5lazarus.com/ [u5lazarus.com]
Many of the same people have been working on an Ultima VI remake, and a generic platform for Ultima remakes continuing the U5-Lazarus code.
http://u6project.com/ [u6project.com]
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And people wonder why Hollywood, the record industry, and the publishing industry keep pumping out sequels, remakes, re-imaginings, and more, more, more of the same.
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John Carpenter's The Thing is a much beloved film. And yet it is a remake. Shakespeare borrowed most if not all of his plots from others. Musicians have covered other musicians throughout the entirety of written history.
Not all remakes/revisions/reboots/etc. are inherently terrible. Hollywood has had a string lately of unnecessary and piss-poor remakes.
But what I'm proposing is that Richard Garriott update his own work, better presenting his own vision with hindsight and better technology at his disposal.
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But this guy is largely famous for creating the Ultima franchise, which is basically all but dead, because EA sank their fangs into Origin Systems and killed the company.
Sadly, if you replace “Ultima” with “System Shock”, the whole sentence still is true.
If there is one thing on this world that you can legitimately hate and be prejudiced about... it’s EA. :/
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Richard Garriott isn't doing anything these days, and I imagine most gamers have never played a single player Ultima these days.
It is inaccurate to suggest that "Richard Garriott isn't doing anything these days". He has moved on in his life and is doing other things besides playing and making video games.
His latest venture, since he has been to the International Space Station, is to get into the pharmaceutical industry and working with processing of chemicals that are easier to do in a low-gravity environment. What is really cool, he can get that to work at a profit and justify a return trip to the ISS as a legitimate business exp
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The original Ultima is quaint, and not what most people expect from an RPG, but still plenty entertaining.
conspiracy theories (Score:4, Interesting)
you gotta love conspiracy theories surrounding the US moon landings.
For those, still not sure, check out these pics from the Harsh Mistress herself [nasa.gov], look for example at Apollo 14 photos, there are footstep trails visible. Ain't it cool?
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Looks photoshopped. [xkcd.com] ;)
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Yeah, the shadows are all wrong. Definitely photoshopped. [xkcd.com]
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You don’t get conspiracy theorists, do you?
The Man Who Bought The Moon? (Score:2)
This reminds me of Heinlein's The Man Who Sold The Moon [wikipedia.org]. Maybe if he moves into the probe, he can also claim ownership of the Moon.
Who has salvage rights on the Moon? (Score:2)
Never lost (Score:5, Informative)
Lunokhod 2 has been returning Lunar Laser Ranging (LLR) pulses since the early 1970's. Not only is it not lost, its position is known to a centimeter or better.
Finding Lunokhod 1, which has been missing since 1971, would be a real coup, especially if LLR returns could be obtained from it.
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NASA (via the Register [theregister.co.uk] says you're wrong. Well, not anymore, obviously, but the final position wasn't known and certainly not to a centimeter or better because (page 2 of the linked article):
"Britishing" hehe... (Score:4, Informative)
What the hell are you talking about? The only reason I play UO is for all the "Britishing": paying real world dollars to people for cyber-sex, then player killing them as I climax. That's the only reason anyone plays UO - all the violent sex. Jesus, man, where have you been?
Remember Old Man Murray reviews? Coined the term "Britishing":
http://www.oldmanmurray.com/shortreviews/sr5.html [oldmanmurray.com]
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LOL, good to know there's someone else out there that gets my Britishing references. :)
BTW, damn you for linking OMM and making me -- yes making me! -- re-read all those old reviews.
Also just noticed they predicted Stephen Colbert getting his own show!
Loved UO (Score:4, Funny)
You notice your lunar rover is missing.
GUARDS!!
*whack*
Ultima 4 (Score:2)
Did anyone ever figure out if cheating the blind herb salesman caused you to loose the game in the end?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_IV:_Quest_of_the_Avatar
Sheesh... (Score:3, Insightful)
Sheesh.
He owns a vehicle on the moon, yet STILL hasn't put out a decent successor to Ultima Online!
Talk about fucked up priorities.
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Shut up, you ignorant loud idiot.
EA has eaten Origin Systems, and with it Ultima and System Shock.
So you can than EA, as always, for something in the gaming industry being fucked up.
Or do you really think something as great as those both franchises would rot like that, without EA having anything to do with it?
(But watch out for Ultima in disguise. Just like BioShock is System Shock in disguise.)
Comment removed (Score:3, Insightful)
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he probably could sell it on eBay anyway without physically getting it. wouldn't be first such sale
Re:Ebay Oportunity Awaits (Score:5, Funny)
As he is someone who has made his fortune from people paying for virtual possessions, I doubt that physical possession of the item is really that important for the sale :)
He should create an inventory of the parts of the rover and rent out custody of individual pieces on monthly subscription to those who want bragging rights to "having" something on the moon.
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He should create an inventory of the parts of the rover and rent out custody of individual pieces on monthly subscription to those who want bragging rights to "having" something on the moon.
I'd buy THAT for a dollar!
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"He should create an inventory of the constituent atoms of the rover and rent out custody of individual atoms on monthly subscription to those who want bragging rights to "having" something on the moon."
TFIFY.
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Wait. Who am I kidding...? eBay... you always need to check the fine print on the shipping...
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What a deal. All he has to do is go up there and get it and he can sell it for 10X what he paid for it on Ebay!! Oh, wait a minute...
No he doesn't. He could just sell it for $5.00 + shipping.
Re:And the photos of the moon landing site are... (Score:5, Informative)
Here [nasa.gov].
C'mon NASA.... (Score:2)
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Okay, we get it, you love GIMP.
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Re:...what? (Score:5, Insightful)
"Lord British"? Seriously? I thought Yahtzee [escapistmagazine.com] was joking.
And now we have people who just know Lord British as "a guy that Yahtzee has once mentioned". *sigh* Where is this world going to?
Re:...what? (Score:5, Informative)
http://www.gamestooge.com/2009/01/02/feature-the-day-lord-british-died/ [gamestooge.com]
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To be precise, he got killed after forgetting to turn god-mode on in the game he created.
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Youngling.
Seriously.
Re:...what? (Score:4, Informative)
I don't know who "Yahtzee" is, other than a Hasbro trademark, but Richard Garriot has been making video games since the late 70s as Lord British. If you haven't heard of him before 2010, it's not because he's been quiet.
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In all fairness, NCSoft was responsible for the failure of Tabula Rasa, not Garriott. The same could be said about EA's involvement in Ultima 9.
Re:...what? (Score:5, Insightful)
He also hasn't made a noteable game since 1997 (or 1999 if you consider Ultima IX noteable), at best 11 years ago. While I instantly know who Lord British is, he is far from a household name to someone who was 3 when Ultima Online launched.
That's right, it's happened to you: you got old.
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When was the last time Paul McCartney made a notable album? It was before I was alive at least. Yet every music enthusiast knows who he is. Similarly, every video game enthusiast should know who Lord British is.
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Video games aren't like other forms of entertainment. Paul McCartney's old albums are regularly updated for new mediums (tapes, CDs, etc.) and are fundamentally comparable to new albums made today minus some audible differences in production.
A video game made in 1988 may still be great, but there are much higher barriers to it finding a modern audience:
1. It may be difficult to run on modern systems (or at least require a level of knowledge -- e.g. what is ScummVM -- that makes it harder to access than a mo
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And we travel in packs.
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Yahtzee is a video game reviewer who needs to calm down and take a breath once in a while. Punctuation exists for a reason. I'm much more of a CGRHD guy myself. Visit YouTube to watch Classic Game Room HD in HD on YouTube.
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I did not know that. His work is much more pleasant when you don't hear him speaking.
Re:...what? (Score:4, Insightful)
"I thought Yahtzee was joking."
Dude you need to turn in your geek card and walk right out the door. You're too ignorant of our world to be here. And if you don't know of Lord British, you're likely too young to boot!
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you're likely too young to boot!
That never stopped Lord British.
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Maybe some of us played different sorts of games?
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You do realize you were most likely being trolled, right?
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ULTIMA ONLINE!? One of the greatest video game designers to ever live, and the summary only gives him credit for a lame, abandoned MMORPG?
If you're going to mention only one Richard Garriott game, shouldn't it be Ultima VII?
Ultima Online isn't ababdibed it's still going strong and even though it's been corrupted by EA it's still one of the best.