"Return to a Forgotten Land..."

Some long term Ultima fans may remember that in the original Ultima the current land mass of ''Britannia'' was actually one of four continents. Ever since that original Ultima game, the other three continents which make up the world appeared to have vanished into thin air. Pragmatically speaking, the reason for the ''shrinking'' gameworld was a result of Richard Gariott's changing conceptions of the world of Britannia (which was then known as Sosaria). However, this Ultima installments gives us a chance to return to the Lands of Danger and Despair now known as Serpent Isle, one of the lost continents of Britannia.

Please note that this review will contain comparisons to Ultima VII Part 1: The Black Gate. There are no spoilers for the previous game.

Graphics (9/10):
The graphics from Ultima VII: The Black Gate make their return. Once again we are treated to a rather colorfully rendered 2D world with weather effects, a day/night cycle, full 256 color VGA and character portraits for NPCs. In this installment Character portraits have been considerably enlarged from their Black Gate counterparts and are much prettier. Unlike Black Gate, when this game was released it was no longer quite on the bleeding edge.

Story (10/10):
This game is a direct sequel to Ultima VII: The Black Gate. We are told that the Avatar has destroyed the foiled the plans of evil, cutting off the means by which the Guardian wished to enter Britannia. However, unlike all the other times he has saved Britannia, this time the Avatar was not sent back to earth, and is thus stranded. The Avatar passes the time at Lord British's castle, when suddenly a scroll is found! They are instructions from the Guardian himself to his loyal follower, giving him instructs to travel to the Serpent Isle for further directions. The Avatar follows in pursuit, and soon finds himself on Serpent Isle. However, a strange rain begins to pour, and both his friends and equipment are mysteriously zapped away by the rain! Alone and in a strange land the Avatar pushes on, not willing to let the Guardian have his way.

Music/Sounds (7/10):
The musical score once again fails to impress, and seems to most of the time be absent. Songs that were included aren't bad, and the player hardly even realizes that they're being played.

On the sound effects side of things, the situation has deteriorated since Black Gate. The dark and ominous voice of the Guardian has been replaced by the tinny whine of another entity. If I recall correctly however, we are treated to hearing the Guardian a few times during the story so it's not a total loss.

Gameplay (10/10):
Richard Gariott managed to make Serpent Isle have significantly different gameplay mechanics than Black Gate, no simple feat considering that they share the same basic engine. The first half of Serpent Isle is non-linear, although there isn't nearly as much land to uncover as there was in Black Gate. The second half of the game is much more linear, as there simply isn't that much to do in the world EXCEPT for the quests which you are explicitly being given.

One way in which the freedom was curtailed is the inability to purchase ships. Instead, Serpent Isle features ''Serpent Gate'' which is a series of interconnected portals leading to different areas. While this is fine in some ways, it restricts the player from going to any land not directly connected to a portal. Furthermore, the game has strategically allowed gates to open only when it serves to advance the flow of the game.

What Serpent Isle lacks in freedom it certainly makes up for in both content and story. There are even more secrets abound in the smaller confines of the land available than were present in Black Gate. Hidden caves and secret passages litter the landscape. Because of the open ended nature of Black Gate there aren't many scripted sequences, but Serpent Isle manages to pull them off rather well. The actual interface and level of interactivity is identical to Black Gate. The biggest difference in gameplay between the two is that Black Gate lets you go wherever you want from the start whereas Serpent Isle opens up the locales one by one.

Replay (9/10):
Odds are you're not going to want to replay this game after having gone through it once. It is a long game, and takes around 20-30 hours to beat.

Overall (10/10):
Whereas Black Gate explored the philosphical ideals of the Avatar, Serpent Isle attempts to flesh out these ideas through the use of a story. As a result, Ultima VII evolves from morality play to a full fledged Greek drama. Enjoy and savor every moment spent in Serpent Isle because it is the last of the great single player Ultima games.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 09/27/03