Ultima™ 8 Gold Edition

Ultima 8: Pagan is one of the most controversial and polarizing games in the Ultima series. As somebody who first played the game without any previous exposure to the Ultima series, I have to say I enjoyed it and was surprised when I first got on the internet to find all the negativity surrounding this game. Not to say that it is perfect- far from it. The combat system is lackluster, the controls can be difficult, and the platforming is some of the most frustrating ive ever seen (fortunately this was later patched but can still be tricky). In spite of these flaws I have a lot of fond memories of exploring the town of Tenebrae and its surroundings. I feel the game is best approached as an action/adventure hybrid with some RPG trappings. There is a large world to explore and many interesting characters to meet. The graphics are very impressive for the era and still hold up quite well I feel. Overall the game is pretty unique and I cant think of many others to compare it to, for better or worse. If you can overlook the rough and simplistic combat systems there is a very interesting world to explore here.

The most important notice: this game is unfinished. My friend, alas, this game is a testament of the greed in our own world where we live in. A place where a great vision is not precious to what could be a pile of gold or anything that glimmers in one's eye. Many reviews say this game is atrocious. Many reviews say this game is an unblemished gem. Yet they both are right, if unblemished stands for something that was not yet to be revealed for us, what was not yet in it's glory, but still great potential was sought within, and if atrocious corresponds the feelings of utter disappointment and sorrow. Ultima VIII could have been the most astonishing work of digital art, but a simple matter of time threw this much loved child by many talents to the wild harsh world of corporate grayness, as this much we know. Believe me, my friend, that this game drips passion to make us amazed by the world where the Guardian itself rests his throne, and this passion and sense of wonder you will feel every now and then. To my own widely shared agony and bitterness, work was never completed, and what remains is a glimpse of what could have been. So, my beloved Ultima loving chap, or a mere gamer who's interest happens to dwell upon this work, do not touch it. Do not play this game, unless you are seeking for a piece of shared agony, that this game will never fill.

I'm surprised at how many people are dismissing this as a good game simply because of it being part of the Ultima series and that it's an old game, I remember going through the Ultima collection and Ultima 8 seemed absolutely terrible, not to mention the horrible platforming levels, bland environments and shallow combat. The worst is that you don't feel like the Avatar playing this game, if you are up for an engrossing RPG experience DO NOT get this game.

This game gets an unfairly bad rap, partly because it has so much squandered potential, and partly because it was a drop in quality for a series that had up to then prided itself on excellence. Add to that the fact that it was a significant departure in design from the last several games in the series (though if you look at Ultima overall, the series had always been about reinventing itself) and you have a game that tends to be hated by a highly vocal group of people. The fact is the game does have a lot going for it, so much so, that the real heart-break comes from seeing just how good this game could have been with just a few more months of development. The music and atmosphere are great, and the the world wonderfully intriguing. The magic systems in particular had enormous potential: the game attempted to create no less than 5 different types of magic, each of which worked in different ways. Necromancy for instance, had you creating complicated rituals to prepare your spells, rather than just simply clicking to fire it off. Unfortunately this too failed to execute as well as it might have, but the ideas are present enough to enjoy. Overall the game is frustrating. The jumping is a bit annoying, but with the patch, not even close to as bad as some would say. It is flawed but also unique, and well-worth checking out if you're a fairly patient rpg fan looking for something different.

I got this game by chance in a gift pack along with other games including 3 older Ultima games. I didn't know of the setting and the series at the time, but U8 captivated me still because of its beautiful graphics, story, elemental magic, music and ambiance. It's still one of my favorite old games. I recommend it.