Genre: RPGDeveloper: Origin SystemsYear: 1992
Rating: 0.00 / 10.00
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First of all, let me say that everything I write below about this game will be an understatement. I could write about it for hours. But I'll try to keep it short.
The Ultima series doesn't need to be introduced. Richard Garriott (aka Lord British) practically invented the CRPG genre by himself, and kept reinventing it title after title. All games were successful in the series, although some of them deserve mention in every game archive out there, literally as games of the year when they were released (specially Ultima IV, VI and VII in my opinion).
Ultima VII follows the storyline of the other games. On the role of "the Avatar", you'll have to once again help the people of Britannia to overcome some terrible fate that's reserved for them. You've been away for 200 years this time, and there's a lot to see and do.
There are a couple of innovations that make this game unique and made it a huge hit back in the days. As you mind your own business, life actually happens around you in all of Britannia. The passage of day and night is not only noticeable by the lights and color of the screen. All people have a time to wake up, go to work, do their work, then either go home, or to a tavern, or to the church by nightfall. And when they go home, they remember to close windows, light up candles and lamps, shut doors... I dare to say that no other game managed to recreate the precious life from Britannia with such accuracy. Many tried, but in most you'll find only the passage of day and night, people walking around randomly... I can't recall another game where people go from their work to a tavern and actually order food. Days and nights can have clear or cloudy skies, rain or snow. Their attention to details alone made this game unforgettable.
Then comes the whole gameworld. The britannian society is surprisingly complex and convincing for a fantasy setting. There is history, rich and poor, different activities and problems for each town, islands with alternative societies, wilderness, seas, secrets, ruins, politics, religion, magic, a non-human race... I could go on ad infinitum.
Graphics and interactivity were simply revolutionary for its time. You can move just about ANYTHING in the game. Open/close doors and windows and chests, take almost anything you want, even if you don't need it, eat, drink, sleep, dress, bake bread, fire cannons, light candles, break things... jeez. Nowadays they spend millions of dollars trying to recreate that kind of interactivity.
*sigh* It's painful to stop here. This game is much more than a classic -- it is a case to study. It went far beyond all limits of its time and many years later and it is still to be replaced. Heh, I'm just kidding, no one can ever replace Ultima VII.
