Raph Koster: Difference between revisions

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{{Infobox Biography

[[Image:Raph Coster, Web 2.0 Conference.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Raph Koster at the Web 2.0 Conference, 2005]]

| subject_name = Raph Koster

| image_name = Raph Coster, Web 2.0 Conference.jpg

'''Raphael "Raph" Koster''' (b. [[September 7]], [[1971]]) is an [[United States|American]] [[entrepreneur]], [[computer game designer|game designer]], and [[author]] of ''[[A Theory of Fun for Game Design]]''. Koster is widely recognized for his work as the lead designer of ''[[Ultima Online]]'' and the [[creative director]] behind ''[[Star Wars Galaxies]]''. Since July 2006, he has been working as the founder and president of [[Areae]] on an unannounced product.

| image_caption = Raph Koster at the Web 2.0 Conference in 2005

| date_of_birth = {{birth date and age|1971|1|7}}

| place_of_birth = [[Long Island, New York|Long Island]], [[New York]]

| date_of_death =

| place_of_death =

| occupation = [[Game designer]]

| spouse = Kristen Koster ([[1992]]—)

| children = Elena Koster, David Koster

}}

'''Raphael "Raph" Koster''' (b. [[7 September 7]], [[1971]]—) is an [[United States|American]] [[entrepreneur]], [[computer game designer|game designer]], and [[author]] of ''[[A Theory of Fun for Game Design]]''. Koster is widely recognized for his work as the lead designer of ''[[Ultima Online]]'' and the [[creative director]] behind ''[[Star Wars Galaxies]]''. Since July 2006, he has been working as the founder and president of [[Areae]] on an unannounced product.

'''Ralph''' is a common misspelling of his abbreviated name <em>Raph</em>.

==Biography==

Raph attended [[Washington College]] in [[Chestertown, Maryland]], receiving a Bachelor's degree in [[English language|English]] ([[Creative Writing]]) and [[Spanish language|Spanish]] in [[1992]]. The same year he became involved with [[Multi-User Dungeon|MUD]]s as an [[implementor]] in ''[[LegendMUD]]'', where he was known as '''Ptah'''. On [[10 May]] 1992, he married [[Kristen Koster]] who would later work alongside him at [[Origin Systems]] as a game designer.

In [[1995]], he received a [[Master of Fine Arts]] in [[Poetry]] from the [[University of Alabama]] in [[Tuscaloosa, Alabama]], and joined Origin Systems as the lead designer of Ultima Online. Raph was also the lead designer of [[Ultima Online: The Second Age]], [[Ultima Online Live]], and an unannounced and cancelled title until [[2000]], when he joined [[Verant Interactive]] in [[Austin, Texas|Austin]] as the [[creative director]] of Star Wars Galaxies.