Portalarium

Portalarium was established in September 2009 in Austin, Texas, by a trio of video game industry veterans: Richard Garriott, Dallas Snell, and Fred Schmidt. This venture marked Garriott's return to the industry following his 2007 title, Tabula Rasa. The founders' shared history includes significant tenures at Origin Systems within Electronic Arts during the 1980s and 90s, and later at Destination Games/NCsoft in the 2000s. Garriott, known for creating the influential "Ultima" series and coining the term MMORPG, brought a legacy of world-building to the new company. The firm's name and motto, "We take you there," were intentionally chosen to echo the legacy of Garriott's previous companies, Origin Systems ("We Create Worlds") and Destination Games ("We have arrived").

The company initially focused on the social and mobile gaming market, securing funding from investors like London-based m8 Capital and Founders Fund. Its first titles, "Port Casino" and "Ultimate Collector: Garage Sale," were released in partnership with Zynga on Facebook. However, these games were shut down after the Facebook gaming market experienced a downturn. Portalarium then pivoted its focus to what it called the "Ultimate RPG," a project that would become "Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues." Conceived as a spiritual successor to the "Ultima" series, the project launched a Kickstarter campaign in March 2013, successfully raising over $1.9 million against a $1 million goal. Total crowdfunding for the title eventually exceeded $12.8 million by March 2018.

"Shroud of the Avatar" was designed to merge single-player narrative depth with multiplayer sandbox elements. The business model was initially buy-to-play, supported by an in-game cash shop for items like housing and cosmetics, and supplemented by fundraising telethons. The game offered players a "selective multiplayer" experience, allowing them to play entirely offline, online solo, or with others. After a period in early access, the game officially launched in March 2018. Despite the launch, the company faced financial challenges, including layoffs in 2018 and a shift to a remote work model in March 2019. In October 2019, the operating assets for "Shroud of the Avatar" were acquired by Catnip Games, a new company established by Portalarium's then-CEO, Chris Spears. Following the asset sale, Portalarium became dormant and was later marked as defunct, having its right to transact business forfeited by the Texas Comptroller.

Keywords: Richard Garriott, Shroud of the Avatar, Portalarium, MMORPG, Ultima successor, Catnip Games, Dallas Snell, Fred Schmidt, Starr Long, crowdfunding, Kickstarter, social gaming, online role-playing games, virtual worlds, PC gaming, fantasy RPG, Origin Systems, Destination Games, video game developer, Austin startup, Lord British