Comment by mancerayder
4 years ago
Anyone interested in some nostalgia?
Long ago there was an MMO called Ultima Online. At one point gold on there reached the point that it was more expensive than the Italian lira. This was in a kooky time in 1999 when everything was at a peak. Here's the old article.
The NYT just wasn't having it.
THE WAY WE LIVE NOW THE NEW ECONOMY Money for Nothing A new breed of Internet profiteers is spinning virtual gold into hard currency. By JOHN COOK
Fixer-upper w/moat: The real market for imaginary property in Ultima is booming. enjamin Schriefer and Michael Gmeinwieser make money the new-fashioned way: they sell stuff that doesn't exist. And their customers, who pay them in cold, hard cash, don't mind one bit.
https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/magazine...
I remember castles in Ultima Online going for thousands of dollars around then on eBay. I think an 800pt Grandmaster build character went for a couple hundred dollars to $1k depending on the skill set.
I knew someone at the time who bought a brand new sports car with all the money they made off Ultima Online.
I honestly miss the game, had a blast playing it back in the day.