Richard Bartle - Part 1 - MUD (Multi User Dungeon)

Richard Bartle - Part 1 - MUD (Multi User Dungeon)

Author: Karl Kuras August 3, 2025 Duration: 2:12:51

While there are many founders of the video game industry writ large, the dawn of multiplayer gaming is a much more select group of luminaries and our guest today, Richard Bartle is most definitely one of them.  He cocreated MUD1, the first Multi User Dungeon game as a college student and has gone on to help shape the academic view of gaming ever since.

Recorded: January 2025

Video version:  

https://www.patreon.com/posts/135579198


Get us on your mobile device:
Android: https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly92aWRlb2dhbWVuZXdzcm9vbXRpbWVtYWNoaW5lLmxpYnN5bi5jb20vcnNz
iOS: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/video-game-newsroom-time-machine

And if you like what we are doing here at the podcast, don't forget to like us on your podcasting app of choice, YouTube, and/or support us on patreon!
https://www.patreon.com/VGNRTM


Send comments on 
Mastodon @videogamenewsroomtimemachine@oldbytes.space
Or
twitter @videogamenewsr2
Or
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/vgnrtm
Or
https://bsky.app/profile/vgnrtm.bsky.social
Or
videogamenewsroomtimemachine@gmail.com

 

Links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Bartle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MUD1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paracosm
https://www.mobygames.com/game/124837/multi-user-dungeon-mud1/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eve_Online
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_Online
https://mud.co.uk/richard/mpublish.htm
https://mud.co.uk/richard/pcwaug84.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_of_Kesmai
https://mud.co.uk/richard/pcpsep87.htm
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessmulligan/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/historical-bits-mobile-gaming-part-2-wap-games-anu-halme/
Books by Richard:
How to Be a God 
  http://www.howtobeagod.com/                                                     https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0955649498
  https://www.amazon.com/dp/0955649498/
  https://mud.co.uk/richard/How%20to%20Be%20a%20God.pdf
Dheghōm                                                                            http://www.Dheghōm.com/ (http://www.xn--dheghm-fgb.com/)
   https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1915964008/
   https://www.amazon.com/dp/1915964008/
   https://mud.co.uk/richard/Dhegh%C5%8Dm.pdf
Erwā     
   https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1915964040
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1915964040

Bhéwonom                                                                       
   https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1915964067
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1915964067

Copyright 2025 Karl Kuras


Ever wonder what gamers were actually talking about decades ago, before online forums and endless hot takes? Each month, Video Game Newsroom Time Machine hosted by Karl Kuras does exactly that, dusting off the headlines and magazine pages from the past. This isn't just a nostalgia trip; it's a grounded look at the industry's turning points as they happened. You'll hear about the surprising announcements, the forgotten controversies, and the hardware launches that had everyone buzzing-from arcade trends in Japan to home computer wars in Europe and North America. The podcast specifically revisits news from exactly 30, 40, and 50 years prior, creating a unique layered perspective on how video game culture evolved. It’s like sitting in a newsroom from a different era, piecing together the stories that shaped the games we remember today. Tune in for a monthly dose of context, where the past conversations about pixels and processors feel surprisingly fresh and directly connected to the present.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Video Game Newsroom Time Machine
Podcast Episodes
Roger Hector - Atari, Disney, Sega, Namco [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:51:25
Atari, Bally, Sega, Namco and so many more... our guest today, Roger Hector, has seen the industry from every perspective during a career that has spanned more than three decades. He shares with us insights into his pass…
The Video Game Crash 40th Anniversary - Part 2: Everyone Else [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:05:46
While Warner was crashing due to lower than expected holiday sales from their Atari unit, the rest of the market, competing consoles like Colecovision and Intellivision, as well as game makers like Activision, Imagic, an…
November 1982 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 4:05:24
Coinop income plummets Wall Street short sellers smell blood Vic20 sales hit a million These stories and many more on this episode of the VGNRTM This episode we will look back at the biggest stories in and around the vid…
The Video Game Crash 40th Anniversary - Part 1: Atari - Fixed Audio [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:44:45
ATTENTION: This is a re-upped version of the episode with corrected audio. We apologize for the previous entry. On December 8th, 1982, Warner Communications, parent company of Atari, announced that their guidance to inve…
October 1992 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:51:29
Arcades take on theme parks Amstrad and Sega team up EA buys Origin These stories and many more on this episode of the VGNRTM This episode we will look back at the biggest stories in and around the video game industry in…
Leonard Tramiel - Part 2 - Atari [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:28:58
No family name is more associated with the early popularization of computers than Tramiel. We speak with Leonard Tramiel, son of Commodore co-founder Jack Tramiel about his life growing up around tech, his role in Commod…
Leonard Tramiel - Part 1 - Commodore [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:18:19
No family name is more associated with the early popularization of computers than Tramiel. We speak with Leonard Tramiel, son of Commodore co-founder Jack Tramiel about his life growing up around tech, his role in Commod…
October 1982 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:16:50
Distributors give conversion boards the cold shoulder Atari looks down on the competition The computer price war heats up These stories and many more on this episode of the VGNRTM This episode we will look back at the bi…
September 2002 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:05:59
Xbox sales figures soar 3D gaming is coming to your cellphone Cryo is no more These stories and many more on this episode of the VGNRTM This episode we will look back at the biggest stories in and around the video game i…
Don Greenbaum Interview - Commodore [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:41
No company did more to make computers household items than Commodore. Many great names are associated with that success, Chuck Peddle, Jack Tramiel, Irving Gould, and many more, but maybe more important than any of them…