"What is everyone's problem???? This game rules!"

Being a casual fan of the Ultima Series (from 7 and up) I was surprised at the backlash Ultima 9 has recieved. I still bought the game, installed it, downloaded the update, and tried it out. Here is what I thought....

Graphics - 9/10
The games graphics did make it move kinda slow (and my computer was good, not great), but after lowering the detail and increasing fog, the game moved smoothly and still looked great. Maybe this is what the angry peeps didn't do.

Sound - 10/10
The soundtrack is amazing! The original music from the other ones are back and greatly improved. The voice acting also rules, as with the in game sounds.

Story - 10/10
Ultima 9 has one groovy storyline. You start out in your home (in modern day US) and step into a moongate. Some columns appeared messing up the virtues and as the Avatar, you are the lucky dude who has to fix it. Also i think its the final battle against the Guardian, but I haven't gotten that far.

Gameplay - 9/10
The gameplay is typical action RPG, but this game is huge. Sometimes i would just walk around and explore the various towns. This game will keep you uccupied for a while

Replay - 8/10
Like I said, this game is huge, so once through is fine for most gamers, but you will find yourself not wanting to leave Britannia.

Overall - 9/10
My comp is a 300mhz, 64mg RAM, with a Diamond Viper 3d card, and this game lagged very few times. It is buggy at times, but you'll get over it. I know there are plenty of computers that are way more powerful than mine and they should have no problem running it. Overall, this is the most underrated game I have ever played and it is one of the greatest. Do yourself a favor and don't believe the anti-hype and try this game out. If it doesn't work, just take it back, but you are missing out on possibly the greatest gaming experience on the PC.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 12/27/99, Updated 12/27/99