Ultima 2

Publisher: Origin Systems/Sierra On-Line

Designer: Richard Garriott

Type: Roleplaying Game

Platform: Various

Release Date: 1982

Rating:

This is one of those games that requires a lot of imagination to appreciate how great it actually is. Initially, when I was playing it (and ironically I got if off a truckie that happened to live just down the road from me) I would just keep on dying, but after years of perseverance, I actually managed to kill Minax, who happens to be hiding in the realm known only as the Realm of Legends (though I suspect that in later versions it would become Britannia).

So, you start off in the modern world, and it appears that these gates have appeared and monsters are all pouring out. Yes, you play the game on Earth, and there are these gates (which also appear in later games as well) that allow you to travel to different time periods. The date of the game shows us the feeling at the time as we end up at a point where the Earth has been destroyed by Nuclear War. However, you can also travel to the distant past, the ancient world, and of course the land of legends.

If that isn’t enough, you can also go to outer space where you visit each of the planets in our solar system (actually, you have to do that to complete the game, though you will need fuel for the rocket which, not surprisingly, lies at the bottom of the dungeons). Yeah, there are dungeons as well, and you can complete the game without actually going into any of them, but as I mentioned in a side remark, you may need to to get fuel for your rocket.

Honestly, while the game, and the gameplay, really isn’t all that great (it was made in 1982), the story behind it, and the concept, is actually pretty awesome. In fact, I don’t think I have found any other games with a similar storyline, though they are probably out there.

Well, not surprisingly, Wikipedia has an entry for this game, since it is pretty popular, and quite well known. You can also find details of this game on one of the Ultima Wikis. Oh, and Moby Games also has an entry, though it isn’t anywhere near as detailed. If you are looking for a walkthrough, you can find one here.