Ultima The Ultima Underworld I & II Thread

[Jaesun]

Have you asked about this on the GOG forums?

 

[Tigranes]

I've explored all of Level 1 I think, but there's a door in the southeast I can't get through. I suspect it's the shrine, since NPC told me about it and I haven't found it. I have red key, stone key, lockpick but no lockpick skill, some gems, stew recipe...hint?

 

[Tigranes]

Figured it out. Teaches me to use candles and save on torches. Now to Level 2. Very fun and pretty easy to get into, it's a pity the combat seems a bit dull.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

You got the seed?
Smash the door with your fists so as not to damage your weapon.

EDIT Ah! Did you throw something at the button?

Did you swim all the rivers and discover any secrets?

 

[Tigranes]

Yeah, I got the seed. I never even saw the button because of the candle LOS. I swam the rivers, the longest stretch has a nice cache of things. I also found the grave.

I died about 20 times from jumping on an incline (I'd jump forward, immediately get pushed back and take damage) before realising keyboard forward + jump = maximum jump. No more falling down now I do it with the mouse.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Well enjoy, level 2 is a great one.

 

[CyberP]

I still need to give UU2 a shot. So many games, so little time.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

I've explored all of Level 1 I think, but there's a door in the southeast I can't get through. I suspect it's the shrine, since NPC told me about it and I haven't found it. I have red key, stone key, lockpick but no lockpick skill, some gems, stew recipe...hint?

Getting through that door is a pain, I don't think there's any other door in the game that's so bothersome to get through.

It DOES serve as a great practice model for jumping and such, which is probably why it was set up like it is.

I don't think you need a lockpick skill to use the lockpicks, but you don't get any bonuses to your chance of success, and failure can lead to broken picks.

As for Level 2 - don't underestimate the green worms, they're tougher than they look.

 

[someone else]

Is there a button you need to hit with a missile? I think the manual teaches you how to access the shrine.

 

[octavius]

No, I don't have a joystick/pad connected, I'm not a console fag.

Yeah, that console virus is nasty. It can infect a computer with consolitis if you connect a joystic or gamepad.

 

[Tigranes]

Explored most of Level 2. Found the blueprints. I'm Level 7 and I spent most of my level ups on Attack, with a few on Mana and Axe (have not yet seen that many uses for the 'thieving' skills). Still can't really land a hit on that big monster, so I may come back for it later.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

You're gonna need a bigger boat better weapon.

 

[Tigranes]

Yeah, the whole item system is pretty clunky. I even pilfered the treasury then flew away, so I have things like an 'unblemished amulet' and various gems, but I don't know if any of them do anything, and I'm getting to a point where I can't keep everything. I have spikes, threads, stew recipes, poles... and I certainly haven't found any magical weapons, although I think I'm supposed to be enchanting them anyway?

 

[Malignant Manor]

Only the second game allows you to enchant items. You get an unbreakable long sword and shield that are required to finish the game. Another handy required item is a candle that never burns out. There are plenty of enchanted items around but you may have issues identifying them if your (forget the) skill is too low.

I don't remember ever using spikes. I think you only need one thread. A second can make a fishing pole. I found trading to be mostly useless. I think there are a few places where you can bribe people. Money is basically used to repair items most/all of your money when you find that guy.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Are you on holidays or something? Two whole levels in under a day?

 

[Unkillable Cat]

IIRC, the treasury has no magical items, only valuables. Use them to trade, though there's not much of an economy in UUW1 to speak of.

You may have found some magical items/weapons, but it'll take your Lore skill to spot them, when using the Look command adds the "magical" word into the description. There's a guy who can identify stuff later on, so there are at least two reasons to hoard some gold.

Spikes are only useful for spiking doors, which prevents monsters from using them, IIRC, or causes damage on them for doing so. May come in handy in a pinch, but they were something I never used.
You'll need the thread, as well as the stew recipe. The pole is just a very useful all-purpose tool.

 

[Tigranes]

Are you on holidays or something? Two whole levels in under a day?

Two days. I play fast. I take breaks when I want (PhD). But it doesn't seem that big each level...?

I spent some time identifying everything with the mountainman smith dude, only for him to tell me everything's pretty much junk. At least I could trade metal armour from head to toe.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

But it doesn't seem that big each level...?

Look at the automap. Each level is the space on the automap FILLED, except for the spot in the center.

 

[Tigranes]

Uh, yeah. I just checked the walkthrough maps online for Levels 1 & 2, and I got all or most of it filled out. It's certainly more complicated than most modern games and filled with lots of interesting nooks and crannies, I'm just saying it's not huge. Which I actually prefer - it's just enough not to get really lost before moving onto the next level.

 

[Tigranes]

Right. So I'm done with UU1 and onto 2.

So far my opinion is that UUs aren't much of an RPG, but it's a pretty cool game. The tedium of slash slash combat (which, ironically, persists even today in Skyrim in some way, and certainly up to Morrowind), the uselessness of many noncombat skills, and the lack of many real choices in equipment, etc. all mean that there's not a huge amount of pleasure for me in finding loot or levelling up or getting through combat encounters or whatnot.

The real pleasure seems to be in the excellent level design, which then receives a top-up from some environmental interaction (using spells, etc) and the basic faction mechanism (though at least in UU1 I don't think much is done with that?).

I'm actually enjoying UU2 a bit less because with UU1's levelled design there was a real incentive to map out a place and to treat each level as a self-contained world of various puzzles. With this more open design (which in most cases would be a plus) it gets alittle more sloggy. But then, I'm still only in the castle sewers, so we'll see.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Yeah, the maps in UU2 aren't filled out like in UU1. In fact, some maps are stupidly small, as you'll quickly realize.

Also, backtracking will be needed as the keys to certain places won't become available until later.

 

[octavius]

UU2 is also more unlinear in that there are places you can go at lvl 1, but where you will be slaughtered quickly. But there are in-game hints to these places.
Having played Ultima 7 (or read a Let's Play like I did) before playing UU2 is also a good idea, so that you "know" all the NPCs.

BTW, post your winning screen, so that we can compare stats.

 

[Tigranes]

Well, UU1 for me also involved a lot of backtracking by the final 2 levels, as I had missed a few of the plot items. At least moving around is pretty quick on dosbox. U7 is the only Ultima I finished so yeah, it helps.

UU1. Nearly maxxed casting & mana too, and a bit on lore. I found that after level 4 or 5 it didn't really matter, and just hacking with sword + heal spell was often sufficient. Otherwise I made use of levitation, gate, and a few other spells too. It woudl have been interesting to have melee-resistant enemies or enemies you want to stay away from, though I think golems are more susceptibel to spells? I did need to use a lot of my wands and some spell scrolls at the wizard.

I don't know if I missed anything huge, but I did explore 90+% of every map and did almost all 'quests' I found.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

dem filters

 

[Infinitron]

version of UW1: http://www.pixsoriginadventures.co.uk/ultima-underworld-ps1/

Ultima Underworld – PS1

As I write this, the Underworld Ascendant kickstarter is about to go into its last 3 days and hopefully a late rush towards some more of those stretch goals. I’m obviously excited to a see a sequel to a game that I’ve frequently described as my favourite of all time and it really deserves a bit more cash than it’s brought in so far. If you agree, please head over and pledge a few dollars towards the cause.

I thought I should do something Underworldy and decided to have a look at the PS1 port of the game that was released back in 1997.



Despite being critically acclaimed, Underworld wasn’t a game that received many ports and the only one released outside of Asia was a Windows Mobile release for Pocket PC’s of all things. A Sega CD version was announced at one point but it never made it to release. This means I’m stuck playing in a foreign language on the PS1 which is why I’ve never played it prior to this.



The introduction is now in FMV with newly drawn art and voicing. This is a shot for shot reproduction of the original and I really quite liked it. The acting sounds far more convincing in Japanese than it ever did in English but I’m hardly the person to judge when I don’t understand a word of it. I really like the way this has been handled but I may have been less impressed if I was coming to this as a new player – you could do a whole lot more with FMV after all.



I struggle my way through character generation with Google translate not having an easy time picking up characters off the screen. All the usual options are there including an easy mode which I select under the circumstances. There are some new portraits for the Avatar, many of which look a little effeminate if you ask me. My first thought was that I’d chosen the wrong gender until I spotted a moustache on one of them.



Having struggled through character generation, I immediately set out to save my game so I don’t have to go through it all again. There appears to be only one slot available which could be a handicap if so. My main concern would be the speed of saving which must clock in at 30 seconds plus. You definitely wouldn’t want to overuse this feature and I expect saving and loading would be potentially tiresome later in the game.

The abyss is instantly familiar at least and most importantly full screen. The PC original had an extremely small viewing window due to the hardware limitations of the time. Flash forward 5 years and the PS1 has basic 3D acceleration to take advantage of and it certainly improves things. I’d be lying if I said that the most has been made of the hardware. The same textures have been used as far as I can see and it’s not a whole lot better looking. The PS1 wasn’t exactly a 3D powerhouse but it could do more than this – this may be a prime reason why this port never made it out of Japan.



The interface is reasonably straightforward, especially considering I’m working without a manual I can understand. There are no analog controls so instead the d-pad is used with buttons to run and jump. The inventory is node based and I found it quick enough to move items around once I got the hang of it. Whilst in first person mode, holding down one of the shoulder buttons brings up a pointer allowing items to be examined or picked up. A big time saver introduced in the PS1 port is automatic key use which should save players from a lot of fumbling around in their inventory.

Considering how much the original was designed for mouse use, UW’s controls made quite a smooth transition to console. I expect the average modern gamer would have less grief on the PS1 than trying to cope with the odd mouse control system used on the PC.



The biggest difference to the environment is that all the sprite models of the original game have been replaced by all-new 3D ones. Some of the original UW sprites were pretty appalling (e.g. the bat that looked to be about a dozen pixels) but these were much improved in the sequel. Time hasn’t been entirely kind to most 3D modelling of the mid 90’s and these new models do look basic and cartoonish. They don’t move around the world smoothly either and give the impression of being pre-rendered in which case I’d far rather they had skipped the 3D modelling part and just redrawn everything the old-fashioned way. Most of them don’t look too bad – the giant rats are kind of cute, looking more like giant mice. The rotworm is possibly the worst and looks more like something left behind by one of the giant rats.



The conversation system isn’t something I explored at any length for obvious reasons. The character portraits are tweaked but other than that I would guess that the conversations have been faithfully reproduced as there didn’t appear to be any reduction in options.



I set out to explore the first level in full and have to say that I liked what I saw of the game. It moves fluidly and everything is exactly as I would expect it to be. In fact I didn’t spot any aspect of the game that played differently to the PC. The audio has been redone sympathetically on more modern synths with some digitized samples added in. With the full screen graphics, it arguably enhances the atmosphere of the original.

Combat still has the three varieties of swing except these are each mapped to different buttons when the weapon is drawn. I soon found myself using the familiar hit and run tactics and the different control scheme was proving no handicap. In fact, I think it was an improvement over mouse and keyboard.



I got as far as half way through the second level where I succumbed to a headless while trying to figure out how to fly up and down. I never did figure this out but assume it must be possible. This did mean I got to see an all new FMV where the player regenerates thanks to the silver sapling back on level 1.

I had a great time re-exploring the familiar locations in this new format. I’d heard quite negative opinions on this port prior to trying it but what I’ve seen played fine as far as I’m concerned. I’d be surprised if there was a better first person RPG on the system – this is still every inch Ultima Underworld after all. It’s so faithful a port, you could argue it’s more one for fans of the original game – while the graphics and audio have been given a gentle facelift it may have been technically underwhelming at the time. The open gameplay and foreboding atmosphere is still there though and I would dearly like to have seen an English language release of this.