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Gemstone IV
Developer(s)	Simutronics
Publisher(s)	GEnie, AOL, independent
Platform(s)	Windows, Macintosh
Release	1988
Genre(s)	Fantasy MUD
Mode(s)	Multiplayer

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GemStone IV is a multiplayer text-based online role-playing game (often known as a MUD) produced by Simutronics. Players control characters in a High Fantasy game world named "Elanthia". The first playable version of the game was known as GemStone II and was launched in April 1988 on GEnie. It was one of the first MMORPGs and is one of the longest running online games still active. Access to the game is subscription-based (monthly fee) through its website, with two additional subscriptions levels available, "Premium" and "Platinum".

Technical Information

GemStone IV is a text-based game built on Simutronics' proprietary engine, the IFE (Interactive Fiction Engine). This engine is capable of changing nearly any aspect of the game on the fly which allows updates without the necessity for downtime, a problem of many graphical RPGs. Due to the use of the IFE, GemStone is rarely taken offline, giving a 24-hour uptime cycle aside from the occasional game crash.

The GemStone interface is simply a text stream, and the game can be played with a Telnet interface after authentication. There are several official interfaces to the game, as well as several unofficial ones. The oldest interface for Windows is called the "Wizard Front End" and offers several useful features such as status readouts, macros, and limited scripting abilities. The Wizard has since been superseded with the "StormFront" Front End introduced in 2003. StormFront offers several additional extensions to the game, including a "point and click" interface that allows one to click on text within the game and bring up action menus applicable to that portion of text. The Java FE and a browser-based version named "eScape" are less popular alternatives. A Wizard (similar to the Windows version) also exists for Macintosh Classic, while a Front End named "Avalon" is available for Mac OS X. No official Linux client exists.

History

GemStone was first demonstrated to GEnie in 1987 before Simutronics was officially incorporated. It was only used as a demonstration model and was never available to the general subscribers. GemStone II was released in April 1988 to GEnie customers. However, GemStone II was very short-lived, and GemStone III went into open beta testing in December 1989, officially launching on February 1, 1990. The transition from "II" to "III" maintained significant portions of the environment, but not all, and character records were not maintained over the transition, requiring all players to begin anew. GemStone III evolved into GemStone IV in November 2003, but the game world and character records were maintained over the transition. Gemstone III was promoted on GEnie by promising players the opportunity to receive real-life versions of gems found in-game, something that persisted for many years.

GemStone originally operated with a license to use the Rolemaster game mechanics and Shadow World environment from Iron Crown Enterprises (ICE). In 1995, Simutronics and ICE agreed to let the business relationship expire, necessitating the removal of all ICE intellectual property from GemStone. Many of the game changes were simply renaming ICE names, such as changing the world name from Kulthea to Elanthia, and renaming the deities while keeping their previous characteristics.

Game mechanics were greatly changed with the de-ICEing (as the period is colloquially named), which required every game character to undergo significant changes. Character racial and class choices were also changed, making any direct translation between the two systems difficult. The end result was that every character was required to "re-roll" their character with the option to change race and skills, but maintaining their old experience level, class, and equipment.

GemStone became available on AOL in September, 1995, just after the de-ICEing process. Shortly thereafter, it became available on CompuServe and Prodigy as well. When AOL switched to flat-rate pricing, GemStone did over 1.4 million customer-hours in a single month and was attracting 2,000-2,500 simultaneous players. Simutronics launched a web portal in 1997, and started phasing customers off of the online services and onto the web interface, although it would take several years before the last of the online service portals were closed.

The number of subscribers has slowly been declining since the move to the web. However, GemStone still maintains a healthy playerbase, with a large group of players remaining active for years. There is at least one remaining player from GemStone II and many others who have been playing for more than ten years.

Awards and achievements

• 1998 Finalist, Online Game of the Year, Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences
• December 1996, AOL Members' Choice Award

References

1. Bartle, Richard (2003). Designing Virtual Worlds. New Riders. p. 14. ISBN 0-1310-1816-7. GEnie was the launch point for many classic online games, including two very important virtual worlds: Gemstone II in 1988 and Dragon's Gate in 1990
2. Gignews.com May 2002 Interview: Elonka Dunin
3. Online Gaming Firm Attracts Fans
4. Bartle, Richard (2003). Designing Virtual Worlds. New Riders. p. 15. ISBN 0-1310-1816-7. AOL went for the throat and signed up Gemstone III, Dragon's Gate, and Federation II (it already had Neverwinter Nights).
5. NPNEWS archives - 1997/02/06
6. Bartle, Richard (2003). Designing Virtual Worlds. New Riders. p. 17. ISBN 0-1310-1816-7. At its peak, Gemstone III on AOL was attracting 2,000-2,500 players simultaneously.
7. AIAS awards
8. Washington Technology 1998-03-05

External links

• GemStone IV website
• Krakiipedia, the Unofficial Free GemStone IV Encyclopedia
• GemStone IV Connected User Statistics

• MUD games
• Virtual communities