Origin announced that Ultima Online has recently hit a new record of 150,000 paying subscribers for Ultima Online, its popular multiplayer online role-playing game. In spite of mixed reviews and fierce competition, Ultima Online has continued to thrive since its release in September of 1997. Origin claims that the average Ultima Online user logs 21 hours of game time per week and that more than 50 percent of its users log on every single day.

　　Origin will publish a new retail version of the game, called Ultima Online: Renaissance, this coming April. Renaissance will double the landmass of the in-game world of Britannia and introduce new areas in which player-versus-player combat cannot occur without mutual consent. The game will also feature an upgraded party system that will better accommodate cooperative play, as well as house areas and a tutorial for new players.

　　All the additions in Renaissance will be available free of charge to current Ultima Online subscribers, who will be able to download the update. Renaissance will retail for around US$20, which doesn't include the subsequent monthly charges.

　　Although Origin has recently divulged information regarding the development of an all-new Ultima Online 2, it has also made clear that it will continue to support the original Ultima Online indefinitely.