Mythic Announces Eighth Ultima Online Expansion

In a press release today, Mythic Entertainment has announced an eighth expansion to their venerable MMO franchise, Ultima Online. The expansion, scheduled for release via digital distribution this summer, will be titled Stygian Abyss.

As with most MMO expansions, Stygian Abyss will bring a raft of new content for UO players. Most of this content will be based around the introduction of a playable Gargoyle race. The Gargoyle race will have a number of skills, including Throwing, Imbuing, Mysticism.

Stygian Abyss will also bring a number of new areas to the game. Obviously, there will be a Gargoyle homeland, but there will also be a new dungeon with the same name as the expansion: The Stygian Abyss. According to the press release, Stygian Abyss will be the largest dungeon area that has yet been introduced in UO, and will contain some new bosses including the Medusa and the Primeval Lich. There will also be a brand new Player vs. Player zone where players can turn their weapons on one another.

UO has been a stalwart member of the MMO genre for years, and with the release of Stygian Abyss, it doesn’t show any signs of going anywhere. If you’d like more information on Stygian Abyss, you can find it at their official website.

You’ll find some screenshots and the full text of today’s press release after the break.

  

PRESS RELEASE:

FAIRFAX, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Mythic Entertainment, an Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS – News) studio, today officially announced Ultima Online™: Stygian Abyss™ the upcoming expansion to legendary MMORPG Ultima Online™. Slated for release this summer, Stygian Abyss will be the eighth expansion to one of the longest-running MMORPGs in the genre’s history. The expansion will introduce a flood of new content for the citizens of Britannia to explore and conquer.

Stygian Abyss revolves around the introduction of the playable Gargoyle race. Since taking center stage in the original Ultima series, Gargoyles have been a fascinating part of the Ultima story – now, Ultima Online players can enjoy Gargoyles firsthand, with a variety of unique skills, including Throwing, Imbuing and Mysticism.

“Ultima Online has a unique place in the history of online games – it was the first truly successful MMORPG and it showed that there was a real market for these types of games,” said Mark Jacobs, vice president and general manager of Mythic Entertainment. “UO is still going strong and we can’t wait to throw open the gates to the Stygian Abyss.”
Players will find expansive new areas to explore, including Ter Mur, the Gargoyle homeland, and the Stygian Abyss dungeon itself – the largest dungeon area ever introduced to Ultima Online. The dungeon will contain new boss monsters of unparalleled difficulty including the Medusa, Primeval Lich and the Stygian Dragon, as well as Player vs. Player zones where adventurers will be turned against each other.

Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss expansion requires the original Ultima Online game to play and will be available in the Summer of 2009 via digital distribution only. To find out more information about the Gargoyle race, skills and lands, please visit the Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss website: http://www.uoherald.com/stygianabyss