Ultima™ 9: Ascension

Good to play it again. Heh, heh, first time I see a minimal to write a review. xD

I loved this game when it was first released, it was slightly buggy, and had issues that most new games of the time had, but the story and graphics were just gripping. Tried to get my CDROM version working recently, but poor graphics compatibility made it impossible to play, so hoping the GOG release will fix these issues.

I originally purchased U9 back when it first came out. I grew up with the series, so I was very much looking forward to this addition. I must echo the sentiments of those before me that the game is a complete mess. It completely ignores(and in some instances, negates) the prior installations and their stories. This was supposed to be an epic finale to not just The Age of Armageddon Trilogy, but to the Ultima series as a whole. Instead, U9 plays like that annoying friend who shows up as you're watching a good movie, only to ruin it by asking redundant questions about the plot because he's never actually taken the time to watch it himself. Story, plot holes, and complete disregard to the previous installments aside, the game is just atrocious. The storyline is cliche and one dimensional. The dungeons have no character. The bugs and crashes just make the game unplayable. So much so, that I got the furthest I ever have in the game( right before the final battle,) when the game crashed. Upon every reload, the game would sit and fail to start the in-game cinematic to advance me on my quest. I was left with either restarting from an earlier save, restarting all together, or uninstalling. I obtained every armor, every magical weapon, just about every thing there is to obtain in the game, for it to be stuck in limbo due to a crash. If you feel the need to purchase the game(whether you're a fan of the series and wish to play it, or if you just want to see exactly how bad it is,) I advise you to SAVE OFTEN! No, really. Pick up a pile of gold? Save the game. Entering a dungeon? Save before you enter. Then make ANOTHER save as soon as you enter. Save again before completing the dungeon, then make another separate save after... seriously, trust me. I also advise you to download some fan-made patches which correct the dialogue. It removes stupid questions(What's a paladin?) and loosely tries to tie U9 with the other installments. Ultima: A Forever Incomplete Saga :(

Do I even have to say anything? Go watch Spoony's review of this game. The game is unfinished, broken, glitchy, screws up the entire series basically. I don't know who would want this game besides someone with a curiosity on how bad they screwed up really, or a sadist.

Ultima 9, changed me forever. It introduced me to RPG, deep, games. Although, the game at the time was buggy and had some technical issues, i pushed on through and kept playing hour after hour. Ultima 9 + Neverwinter nights (1) = made me an RPG gamer.