Editing Richard Garriott (section)

===Origin Systems===
Garriott continued to develop the [[Ultima (series)|''Ultima'' series]] of [[video game]]s in the early 1980s, eventually leaving UT to work on them full time.{{r|garriott198807}} Originally programmed for the [[Apple II]], the ''Ultima'' series later became available on several platforms. ''[[Ultima II]]'' was published by [[Sierra On-Line]], as they were the only company that would agree to publish it in a box together with a printed cloth map. By the time he developed ''[[Ultima III]]'', Garriott, together with his brother [[Robert Garriott|Robert]], their father [[Owen K. Garriott|Owen]] and [[Chuck Bueche]] established their own [[video game publisher]], [[Origin Systems]], to handle publishing and distribution, in part due to controversy with Sierra over royalties for the PC [[porting|port]] of ''Ultima II''.<ref>''The Official Book of Ultima'' (second edition), page 25.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2008/03/04/warren-spector-interviews-every-bloody-one/|title=Warren Spector Interviews Every-Bloody-One|last=Gillen|first=Kieron|date=2008-03-04|website=Rock, Paper, Shotgun|language=en-US|access-date=2018-01-08}}</ref><ref name="durkee19831112">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1983&pub=6&id=14 | title=Profiles in Programming / Lord British | work=Softline | date=Nov–Dec 1983 | access-date=29 July 2014 | author=Durkee, David | page=26}}</ref>

The use of the term ''avatar'' for the on-screen representation of the user was coined in 1985 by Richard Garriott for the computer game ''[[Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar]]''. In this game, Garriott desired the player's character to be their Earth self manifested into the virtual world. Due to the ethical content of his story, Garriott wanted the real player to be responsible for their character; he thought only someone playing "themselves" could be properly judged based on their in-game actions. Because of its ethically nuanced narrative approach, he took the Hindu word associated with a deity's manifestation on earth in physical form, and applied it to a player in the game world.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.criticalpathproject.com/video/coining-term-avatar/|title=Coining Term "Avatar"|website=insights from the greatest minds in video games.|language=en|access-date=2017-12-15}}</ref>

[[File:Richard garriott gdc 2018 cropped.jpg|thumb|right|Garriott, dressed as his "Lord British" persona, at the 2018 [[Game Developers Conference]]]]
Garriott sold Origin Systems to [[Electronic Arts]] (EA)  in September 1992 for $30 million.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2001/05/28/pimps-and-dragons |title=Pimps and Dragons |magazine=The New Yorker |date=2001-05-28 |access-date=2014-07-29}}</ref>  In 1997, he coined the term [[massively multiplayer online role-playing game]] (MMORPG), giving a new identity to the nascent genre previously known as [[graphical MUD]]s.<ref>{{cite book
 | last1 = Safko
 | first1 = Ron
 | last2 = Brake
 | first2 = David
 | title = The Social Media Bible: Tactics, Tools, and Strategies for Business Success
 | publisher = Wiley
 | year = 2009
 | isbn = 978-0-470-41155-1
 | quote = Richard Garriott first coined the term ''MMORPG'' in 1997.
 | url-access = registration
 | url = https://archive.org/details/socialmediabible00safk
 }}</ref> In 1999 and 2000, EA canceled all of Origin's new development projects, including ''[[Privateer (video game)|Privateer]] Online'', and ''[[Harry Potter]] Online''.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://movies.ign.com/articles/200/200049p1.html | title = IGN: Harry Potter LEGO Redux | author = Linder, Brian | date = 2001-05-10 | access-date = 2007-04-28}}</ref><ref name="kings fall 2">{{cite web | url = http://archive.gamespy.com/mmog/stratics/january02/stratics25/index2.shtm| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071217225517/http://archive.gamespy.com/mmog/stratics/january02/stratics25/index2.shtm | url-status = dead | archive-date = 2007-12-17  | title = When Kings Fall: Part II of II | author = Matonis, Misty | date = 2002-01-05 | access-date = 2007-04-28}}</ref> Garriott resigned from the company and formed [[Destination Games]] in April 2000 with his brother and [[Starr Long]] (the producer of ''[[Ultima Online]]'').