Ultima™ 8 Gold Edition

I am not taking stars off for old grudges, first of all. So its action spin-off with Ultima theme. Story once developed was pretty good and I absolutely loved magic schools and way spells needed to be cast. There were few fun easter eggs in game (hasta la vista?), some scary moments and despite what many say, and what I thought once, its worthy if bastard successor to ultima series. Try play Origin Crusader games after this one.. (or before), you might have deja vu moments!

I know, I know... this game is broken, unfinished and buggy as hell. this was one of the first games on my own PC back in the days, and every time I hear the voice of the Guardian, the MIDI music of the intro or Tenebrae, I'm instantly back in 1994... I love the walking-running around the wilderness, finding the paths in the caves, chopping down the zombies, and learning the different ways of the magic schools. this game holds great sentimental value for me, and I can give it a go once in a while.

Ultima is one of the greatest game series of all time. It really is. I say this so you know I'm not just biased against it. Ultima VII may be one of the greatest RPGs ever made. The game that followed it set up the rest of the series. By that, I mean it sets you up to realize how much of a failure the rest of the series will be. Ultima online and IX are terrible. I can understand some of the changes like there are no companions. That makes sense, no one knows who or what the avatar is on Pagan. But there are so many other things. There is platforming. I don't know why but there is, and the isometric perspective makes it impossible to judge distances so you'll be falling into a lot of instant death pits. Every level in the game is grey. Not joking. Even the beach you start out on. Every. Freaking. Level. There's no real combat, you only get one handed weapons in one repetitive overhead swing type attack. It's not really an RPG anymore and your character's appearance never changes. Not like that matters since there's no character creation at all. The game is bugged up the butt. The magic system is so amazingly overcomplicated I'm amazed I figured it out. The game is also broken. Within half an hour of starting it, you can max out your strength. No joke. And even then, it still takes 7-10 hits to put down the main enemies in the game. Zombies and ghosts. Those are what you will be fighting. The story looked like it could have some potential, but most story lines were cut. And I do mean most. The ones that stay in never go anywhere because they were cut too. Even if you do stay this game all the way through to the end, it looks like a promising set up to the final Ultima game. But it's not. Because Ultima IX contradicts almost everything VIII. And all the ones before that. To sum it all up: Avoid unless you are a die hard Ultima fan.

I grew up with Ultima 8 and I really loved it. I never played the Ultima title before so I can understand every other post here. But for me Ultima 8 is a part of my life. I bought the double pack with Ultima 9 and Ultima Online right after that. Ultima 9 wasnt that good at all but Ultima Online was like a dream. We played it for 4-5 years till AoS hits.

To call this a RPG or an action game would be wrong; it is a puzzle game, and super Avatar Brothers is very apt.... the solution of the game exists by jumping, dodging and running away. Zombies will kill you at the beginning, and they will kill you at the end. Interrupting the Queen's lunch, repose, or just looking at her wrong will kill you. Falling in the water will kill you. Attacking the domestic animals of any form will kill you. Axe wielding skeletons will corner you and triple hit you to death like an old-school arcade game. You summon a demon, the enemy you were trying to kill wanders off screen, it wonders why the hell you summoned it, then it kills you. All ghosts will kill you and are essentially unkillable. The little green lizards are fair game, as are the tiny spiders, but you can't hit them with your weapon. Mimicks can be killed and efficiently, so kill them with absolute impunity. This game would have been more efficient as a fantasy novel and actually inspired MANY short stories of my own since my childhood. I loved it when it came out, I read and reread the clue book and swag that came with the box. I spent many frustrating hours casting various spells, and making your own True silver Stratos idol is a memorable moment. BUT.... on the coat-tails of the highly successful and one might say legendary Ultima 7 part 2, it just doesn't hit home. Dialogue issues, story issues, that as a kid I let pass but as an adult I'm like WTF. You literally saved Morgrim in Ultima 7 part 2, who had fled Pagan, and yet.... returns to Pagan, is elderly, and can't remember you. Arcadion, your pet demon from the black sword, has no idea who you are. The theme of the game is isolation, nobody knows or cares who the Avatar is....and yet they put story choices in there that make no sense and might have been hastily written to hit a deadline. It's great in its concept, yet is a gasping sucking wound of a failure compared to Ultima 7 part 2.