Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss

"One of the most innovative RPG's ever made."

Ultima Underworld is, without a doubt, one of the most innovative games; not only of its own genre (the computer role playing game), but of all computer games. Underworld was a great "first person" game, well before Doom ever came out, and managed to effortlessly fit in all the RPG elements from the Ultima series into itself. The result is not only a truly original game, but one that is also both fun, interesting, and gives you a sense of accomplishment as well.

Description:

As in all Ultima games, you are once again in the role of the Avatar. Summoned back to the world of Britannia you quickly find yourself framed for a kidnapping which you did not do. The only way to clear your name is to release the captured girl, and return her to the castle. Sounds simple enough. Except that you have to go down the legendary Stygian Abyss to accomplish this. Once inside the Abyss you will be locked in, and they won't let you back out until you have rescued the girl. The first time I played this game, at that moment, I felt like I was the Avatar, locked away for something I hadn't done, completely unsure of how I was going to even find the girl, let alone rescue her. The Abyss is a very dark place.

And you aren't alone in the Abyss. There are many violent and deadly creatures in there with you: Goblins, Ghouls, Headless, and Demons. All conspiring to destroy you. Your allies are few and far between, but each are easily identifiable by the Banner of Cabirus hung near every peaceful settlement. The challenge of the game is to find your way from place to place, without getting killed. You have to solve a large number of clever puzzles, figure out how to cross ravines and lava pools, all to get to the bottom of the Abyss.

Combat in Underworld is simple, and well designed. You can carry any number of weapons (swords, axes, etc.) or even go without a weapon. There are 3 basic attacks (hack, slash, stab). Combat also gets more interesting when you consider the various missile weapons (bows, crossbows, slings) and the magic spells that you can hurl at your enemies. The downside is that your enemies tend to do to you what you do to them. Combat strategy is somewhat limited since you only have yourself in the game, you can't catch a monster in a pincer attack, or something like that. Another thing that I felt was missing from the combat engine is the ability to block attacks with your weapon (e.g. a "parry"). The enemy AI isn't all that intelligent, but most monsters have enough brute force to make up for their relative lack of smarts.

There are also some other great elements in Underworld. You can barter for supplies with almost anyone, you can learn the mysterious language of the Lizard people, and find innumerable treasures in the Abyss.

Graphics -- 7

The graphics were spectacular when the game came out. Unfortunately that was a long time ago, and the graphics show their age now. All the action takes place in a small window, and even so, the world resolution is really bad. Not only that but when you get close to things, you see just how bad the resolution really is as a giant Pixellated monster attacks you! The magic effects are also a little underwhelming, as when you launch a lightning bolt and you see a little blue dot fly out. But the graphics were great for their time, and perfectly adequate for the game.

Controls -- 6

The controls are a little too complicated for my tastes. You have to either constantly use the mouse, which I don't like to use that extensively, or you have to switch between the mouse and keyboard. It is very difficult to play this game with just a keyboard (plus the keys cannot be redefined, a feature it really should have). Not only that but to quickly activate the Combat mode, I had to continually remember which button it was (F5) rather than an easily remembered button (like C for Combat or A for attack). Also after you talk to someone, you are still considered to be in "talk mode" so if you try to look at something immediately after talking, you get a "you can't talk to that" message. These are mostly nits, but they are very annoying to me.

Sound -- 8

The music in Underworld is very fitting to its atmosphere, foreboding. No matter what music is being played, it all carries with it a sense of danger, that things aren't alright, and that you may be killed at any moment. This is a really nice touch. Sound effects seem to me to be a little primitive, especially when you whack a wall (it doesn't matter what you hit the wall with, it all makes the same sound). The only other drawback on sound, is that there isn't much music to go around, there are only a few themes. But what there is, is great.

Fun -- 8

Ultima Underworld is the first game that I played in which I actually felt like I was immersed in the environment. I felt fear wandering down its dark passages, loneliness at its emptiness, and depression when I ran low on food. The game has a great sense of itself. You find your purpose in snips as you attack a monster, or find a vital clue or artifact. This game has a great sense of accomplishment because of that. As you work your way through it, you feel like you are becoming a better person yourself, the hero that you claim to be. And that, I think is what makes this game really fun to play.

Reviewer's Tilt -- +1

This game was a real treat to play, and I wish more games were like it!

Final Score -- 8

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 11/01/99