Habitat was an early and technologically influentual online role-playing game developed by Lucasfilm Games and made available as a beta test in 1987 by Quantum Link, an online service for the Commodore 64 computer and the corporate progenitor to America Online. A sized-down incarnation but with vastly improved graphics (avatars became equipped with facial expressions, for example) was launched for general release as Club Caribe on Quantum Link in January 1988.

LucasFilm licensed the technology underlying Habitat and Club Caribe to Fujitsu in 1989, and an elaborated and evolved version launched in Japan as Fujitsu Habitat in 1990. Fujitsu later bought the technology outright, and an even more sophisticated system was relaunched on CompuServe in 1995 as WorldsAway.

As CompuServe morphed into AOL's "value brand," Worldsaway was cancelled but has survived independently as Vzones.com.

Habitat was initially created in 1985 by Randy Farmer and Chip Morningstar , who were given a "First Penguin Award" at the 2001 Game Developers Choice Awards for this innovative work.

External links

• Habitat Chronicles
• Club Caribe fan page
• Current incarnation as "Vzones"