Ultima I

Ultima: a fantasy role-playing game

Ultima I: The Original

The Ultima Collection

The worlds of Ultima await you in this special collection of 10 games designed by Richard Garriott, also known as Lord British, the creator of the Ultimate series.

The Ultima Collection Includes:

Utima I: The First Age of Darkness
Ultima II: The Revenge of the Enchantress
Utima III: Exodus
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar
Utima V: Warriors of Destiny
Ultima VI: The False Prophet
Ultima VII: The Black Gate
Ultima VII Part 2: Serpent Isle
Ultima VIII: Pagan
Akalabeth

* Bonus Software: Akalabeth.
The first game Richard Garriott ever designed.
Akalabeth became the catalyst that spawned 17 years of Ultima fantasy Role-Playing tradition.
* Ultima Atlas
This 16 page atlas is a complete compilation of the navigational maps originally packaged with each Ultima game.
* Exclusive Interviews.
These revealing never-before-seen interviews with Lord British, Richard Garriott's alter ego, offer a perspective on the Ultima series and a first look into the next game, Ultima: Ascension.

Ultima 1+2+3

Akalabeth: World of Doom

In the game, the player character visits Lord British and is instructed by him to kill certain monsters. The final mission is to kill a balrog, and after this has been accomplished, Lord British proclaims that "thou hast proven thyself worthy of knighthood".

Ultima VIII: Pagan

The Ultima VIII Pagan starts exactly where Ultima VII ended. Avatar is cast to the world of Pagan by the Guardian. In the meantime, the Guardian is taking control over Britannia and Avatar has to find the way to leave Pagan and save Britannia from the Guardian. The world of Pagan is ruled by four titans that prevent any interworld travel. To open a portal to Britannia, Avatar has to destroy all four titans ad claim their power.

Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds

In an attempt to conquer the world, The Guardian encases Castle Britannia and its occupants--including the Avatar--in a giant blackrock gem.

The game takes place one year after the events of Ultima 7: The Black Gate. To celebrate the defeat of the Guardian, Lord British invites the Avatar and his companions to his castle. However, in the night of the feast the Guardian attacks again, encasing the castle in a giant gem of blackrock. Deep in the sewers of the castle, another blackrock gem resides, being a teleporter to other worlds controlled by the Guardian. Now you, the Avatar, must travel to these worlds in order to free the castle from the Guardian's spell. This sequel to Ultima Underworld plays exactly as the original, except for a larger game world, a richer storyline and better graphics and sound.

Ultima III: Exodus

Eons ago Lord British came unto the lands of Sosaria. Since that time it has been united under his rule as the Kingdom of Britannia and has gone through two major crises. A few years ago there were political upheavals among the city states of the kingdom. The ringleader of this political instability was Mondain, the Magician. Under his horrible rule, the people's lives were devastated. A valiant warrior was called forth from another world by Lord British. This warrior overthrew Mondain.

Britania survived the first crisis. But peace in the Kingdom of Britannia did not last long. Minax, the Witch, a disciple of Mondain, became very powerful and ruled the world of darkness. Minax had power to sway the time axis of the universe. However, a legendary hero again came to the rescue, overthrew Minax, and brought peace back to the kingdom.

Now, the Kingdom is about to face its third crisis. Rumours abound about a fiery island which has emerged in the southwestern seas. Little is known of the evil that dwells there. It is known only as Exodus.

Ultima II: The Revenge of the Enchantress

After obtaining aid from the lords of the realm in Ultima I, your character travels back in time, locates the mad wizard Mondain, slays him, and ends his reign of terror. In Ultima II: Revenge of the Enchantress, Mondain's protégé, Minax, who studied the mad wizard's teachings and writings, returns to wreak vengeance on the person who slew her teacher and lover -- you. And, instead of waiting for you to return to her native land of Sosaria, she wreaks havoc on your own Earth.

Throughout Ultima II: Revenge of the Enchantress, your quest is quite different in scope from its predecessor. Earth is turned into a half-modern, half-fantasy world by the forces of magic and, as a result, things are much stranger than one might expect. As explained in the introduction, your tasks in the game are to "Battle strange creatures across the face of the Earth, search for clues in careless words spoken at the local pub, traverse deep, dark, deadly dungeons and tall, terrifying towers...and conquer Time itself to battle Minax the Enchantress."

Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar

Following the defeat of the evil triad in the previous three Ultima games, the world of Sosaria changed beyond recognition: continents rose and sank, and new cities were built, heralding the advent of a different civilization. Unified by the reign of the benevolent monarch Lord British, the new world was renamed Britannia. Lord British wished to base people's well-being on the ethical principles of Truth, Love, and Courage, proclaiming the Eight Virtues (Honesty, Compassion, Valor, Justice, Sacrifice, Honor, Spirituality, and Humility) as the ideal everyone should strive for. The person who could accomplish full understanding and realization of these virtues would serve as a spiritual leader and a moral example for the inhabitants of Britannia; he alone would be able to obtain holy artifacts, descend into the Stygian Abyss, and access the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom. This person is the Avatar.

The fourth game in the Ultima series features an improved game engine, with color graphics and enhanced character interaction: the player can have conversations with non-playable characters by typing names of various topics. However, the main difference between Ultima IV and its predecessors in the series (as well as other role-playing games) lies in the game's objectives and the ways to fulfill them.

Instead of building up a character by any means possible in order to face a villain in the end of the game, in Ultima IV the player is trying to become the Avatar, a role model for people. This means upholding the Eight Virtues, basically trying to become a better person. Making morally conscious decisions and helping other people is not done expecting a material reward, but because it is the actual goal of the game and the main focus of its gameplay. The game frowns on behavior typical of most other RPGs, such as backstabbing fleeing enemies or picking up everything that isn't nailed down even if it does not belong to the protagonist. This different approach established the game's reputation as the first "true" Ultima, influencing the design philosophy of later installments and the overall spirit of the series.

Character creation is done by choosing responses to morally ambiguous questions. Each of the Eight Virtues corresponds to a character class; by determining the player's personal priorities in the virtues, the game assigns a class and a starting location for the Avatar. After emerging in Britannia, the player is free to explore it in various ways (on foot, moongate teleportation, on horseback, by ship, etc.). Certain items must be collected in any order to enter the Stygian Abyss and complete the game. The Avatar also has to reach the highest level in all virtues. This is achieved by various means: donating blood increases Sacrifice, not fleeing from combat increases Valor, etc. The process, however, is not irreversible: should the Avatar overpay a blind seller, he gains Compassion points; should he, on the other hand, cheat the seller by underpaying, his level in several virtues would decrease.

These unorthodox features of the game co-exist with plenty of traditional RPG elements, such as dungeons to explore and hostile monsters to kill. Enemies are encountered on the world map as well as in dungeons; combat takes place on separate top-down screens, allowing player-controlled and enemy parties freely move on them. Characters accumulate experience points and level up, gaining higher amount of hit points and access to stronger magic spells. Like in the previous installments of the series, world map, town exploration and combat are presented from a top-down view, while the dungeons are pseudo-3D and are explored from first-person perspective.

Ultima IV also introduces several new gameplay features to the series and role-playing games in general. A number of initially non-playable characters living in various areas of the game world are able to to join the party and fight alongside the hero, replacing traditional player-generated characters or mercenaries and adventurers available only in special locations. Additional new elements include buying and combining reagents in order to cast spells, puzzle rooms in dungeons, and others.

The FM Towns version, while identical to the others in gameplay, introduces upgraded graphics similar to those used in next installment of the series.

Ultima Online

Ultima Online is the product of Richard Garriott's idea for a fantasy game involving several thousand people who can all play in a shared fantasy world. It is responsible for grandfathering the genre of the MMO, and showing the industry that MMO's were the next era of gaming.

Ultima

Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues

Journey to the world of Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues, a computer role playing game created by Lord British (aka Richard Garriott), creator of the genre defining Ultima series of computer games, Starr Long, director of Ultima Online, and Tracy Hickman, author of the Dragonlance series. It combines rich story, like those of the single player Ultimas, with deep and varied multiplayer experiences, like Ultima Online.

Ultima VII: The Black Gate

It has been two centuries since the Avatar last appeared in our good kingdom. Some have written that at last it is possible to interpret the tales of the Avatar as they should be, with the proper historical perspective. Some argue that as time moves on, the truth of what actually occurred will fade even further away and that we have a responsibility to preserve the legends as we now know them. However, most agree when it comes to a number of basic theories.

While there are those who maintain that the stories of the Avatar are only myths, practically all credible scholars say that at least some elements of the Avatar’s tales are historical fact. In reality, one need look no further than the Isle of the Avatar to see very persuasive evidence that the Avatar did indeed exist - at least as a person if not as a spiritual being!
It is most likely that there has been more than one Avatar. All of the writings insist that the Avatar who negotiated the peace between Britannia and the gargoyles is the one and same person who first appeared to vanquish the sorcerer Mondain those many years ago. While saying it is most unlikely, historians do not firmly deny the possibility of there having been only on Avatar. After all, our good sovereign monarch, wise Lord British, has himself displayed an amazing longevity!

Whatever interpretation of history proves to be most accurate, it seems undeniable that the Avatar will not return to our fair kingdom. By all indications the age of magic is coming to an end. With the decline on reliability of mages, and with the kingdom turning away from the magical arts, it is doubtful that extreme danger - that which would require an Avatar’s aid to defeat it - will ever return to Britannia. And thankfully so.

Upon us is the age of The Fellowship, in which one does not simply wait in anticipation for a heroic savior when a crisis occurs. In this less spectacular but more practical day, we are left to solve our problems with our own minds and our own will.

Ultima IX: Ascension

Prepare to embark on an adventure beyond imagination with the return of the best selling role-playing series of all time. In the 9th and final chapter in the 20-year legacy you return to Britannia for your last epic quest. As the heroic Avatar, only you can save Lord British and his people from the evil Guardian who has devastated the landscape and tainted the 8 sacred virtues. Valiant combat, magical prowess and knowledge of the 8 virtues are your weapons against evil in Ultima IX: Ascension, the most epic role-playing game ever created for the PC.

Ultima (later titled, Ultima: The First Age of Darkness) is the first game in the Ultima series of role-playing video games created by Richard Garriott. The game was one of the first definitive commercial computer RPGs, and is considered an important and influential turning point for the development of the genre throughout years to come.

Single player

Role-playing (RPG)

California Pacific Computer

Sierra Entertainment, Inc. (formerly On-Line Systems and Sierra On-Line, Inc.) was an American video game developer and publisher founded in 1979 by Ken and Roberta Williams. The company is known for pioneering the graphic adventure game genre, including the first such game, Mystery House. It is known for its graphical adventure game series King's Quest, Space Quest, Police Quest, Gabriel Knight, Leisure Suit Larry, and Quest for Glory, and as the original publisher of Valve's Half-Life series.

After seventeen years as an independent company, Sierra was acquired by CUC International in February 1996 to become part of CUC Software. However, CUC International was caught in an accounting scandal in 1998, and many of the original founders of Sierra including the Williamses left the company. Sierra remained as part of CUC Software as it was sold and renamed several times over the next few years. Sierra was formally disestablished as a company and reformed as a division of this group in August 2004. The former CUC Software group was acquired by Vivendi and branded as Vivendi Games in 2006. The Sierra division continued to operate through Vivendi Games's merger with Activision to form Activision Blizzard on July 10, 2008, but was shut down later that year. The Sierra brand was revived by Activision in 2014 to re-release former Sierra games and some independently developed games.

Sierra On-Line

time travel

dragon

spaceships

English

Interface

Atari 8-bit

Apple II

The Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.) and introduced in 1977. It is the first model in a series of computers which were produced until Apple IIe production ceased in November 1993.

First person

Bird view / Isometric

A status of release where the game has gone gold. Typically this is referred to as 1.0.

Full Release

Fantasy

Open world

Steps to reproduce, what you expected to happen, and what actually happened...

Title is required

You haven't submitted any bug reports yet. Found an issue? Use the button in the bottom-right corner to report it.

No bug reports yet

My Bug Reports

Report a Bug

Title

Briefly describe the bug...

Untitled

Help us understand how the site is used so we can improve it.

We use our own and third-party cookies to improve your browsing experience, analyze site usage and personalize content.

Essential for the site to function: authentication, language and visual theme.

Allow us to remember your preferences and personalize your experience.

Choose which types of cookies you want to accept. Necessary cookies cannot be disabled as they are essential for the site to function.

Cookie settings

Choose a Cover

Price drop!

Best offers

Alternative Titles

Subtitles

Regional Titles

All Terrain

Archaeologist

Archivist

Backlog Guru

Rookie Collector

Connector

Conqueror

Constructive Critic

Curator

Dedication

Editorial Legend

First Cartridge

First Impression

Follower

Full Shelf

Gameplay Master

Genre Explorer

Golden Display

Golden Pen

Get one of your lists to receive 10 or more visits.

Influencer

Level 10

Level 25

Master Collector

Multiplatform

Museum Legend

No Prejudice

Organizer

100%

Physical Present

Platformer

Puzzle Solver

Real Shelf

Serious Library

Sincere

The End

Time Traveler

Veteran Hero

Voice of the People

Welcome

You reached

You are now {title}!

{username}'s Gamification

XP History

{count} games tagged with {keyword} on Shelve·ly. Shelve the ones you paused, mark the ones you finished.

Games tagged with {keyword} on Shelve·ly. Shelve the ones you paused, mark the ones you finished.

Games tagged {keyword}

Similar Games

Trending Keywords

Review title

What did you think of the game?

Add to collection

Name

My Collection

Game lists

Describe the games you want to include using natural language

Create Smart List

Modify the prompt to get a new AI result. The list filters and games will be updated.

Regenerate smart list

Lists

Achievement unlocked!

You have achieved {tierTitle}. Keep it up!

You reached level {level}!

My Notifications

Notifications

You have accumulated {xp} XP. You are doing great!

XP Milestone

The platform you're looking for doesn't exist or has been removed.

Browse and discover {name} platform, its commercial versions, and video games on Shelve·ly. Filter by genre, rating and year.

{name}

Description

The variation you are looking for does not exist.

Platform variation

The platform version you are looking for does not exist.

Platform version

Discover the most notable reviews and opinions about video games

Edit review

The review must be at least 50 characters

Your review has been published successfully

Your review has been updated successfully

Title (optional)

Write a review

Try different search terms or adjust the filters

Search games

Explore games and add the ones that interest you most

Publishers

Platforms

Alternative Titles

Game Modes

Perspective

Themes

Keywords

Links

Time to beat

Release Dates

Language Support

Ultima

Description

Storyline

Media

Related games

Similar Games

Community reviews