<s>
Avatar	B-Application
is	O
an	O
early	O
graphics-based	O
multi-user	O
highly	O
interactive	O
Role-playing	O
video	O
game	O
,	O
created	O
on	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Illinois	O
 '	O
PLATO	B-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
in	O
the	O
late	O
1970s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
has	O
graphics	O
for	O
navigating	O
through	O
a	O
dungeon	B-Application
and	O
chat-style	O
text	O
for	O
player	O
status	O
and	O
communication	O
with	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
What	O
makes	O
Avatar	B-Application
popular	O
is	O
the	O
high	O
level	O
of	O
interactivity	O
with	O
other	O
players	O
and	O
the	O
sense	O
of	O
community	O
that	O
develops	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Development	O
on	O
Avatar	B-Application
began	O
on	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Illinois	O
PLATO	B-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
around	O
1976	O
by	O
Bruce	O
Maggs	O
and	O
Andrew	O
Shapira	O
,	O
who	O
were	O
junior	O
high	O
school	O
students	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Avatar	B-Application
was	O
a	O
successor	O
to	O
several	O
innovative	O
and	O
highly	O
successful	O
role-playing	O
games	O
on	O
the	O
PLATO	B-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
,	O
most	O
notably	O
Oubliette	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Oubliette	O
was	O
written	O
by	O
Jim	O
Schwaiger	O
and	O
published	O
on	O
the	O
PLATO	B-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
in	O
1977	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
Oubliette	O
,	O
also	O
on	O
PLATO	B-Operating_System
,	O
was	O
a	O
game	O
called	O
Moria	B-Application
written	O
in	O
1977	O
,	O
copyright	O
1978	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Classic	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
modified	O
versions	O
of	O
Avatar	B-Application
84	O
are	O
operating	O
on	O
Cyber1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
the	O
NovaNET	O
system	O
existed	O
,	O
it	O
hosted	O
original	O
versions	O
of	O
both	O
Avatar	B-Application
95	O
and	O
Avatar	B-Application
90	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
also	O
possible	O
to	O
play	O
versions	O
of	O
Avatar	B-Application
84	O
and	O
Man	O
60	O
Avatar	B-Application
on	O
Novanet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
last	O
two	O
games	O
operated	O
with	O
the	O
old	O
game	O
data	O
on	O
the	O
Avatar	B-Application
95	O
engine	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
not	O
quite	O
the	O
same	O
as	O
playing	O
through	O
the	O
original	O
engine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Avatar	B-Application
is	O
inherently	O
a	O
MMO	O
multi-player	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
