Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss

The Good
There is so much to say about this RPG game. It was the first to use real 3D texture mapped representation, way before Doom and 1 month before Wolfenstein 3D. The game was HUGE, 8 underground levels with a perfect, balanced, different designs. The NPC had good AI, offered good lengthy adventure like dialogues, something never seen before in an RPG game.

Being totally underground, the game had a great immersion feeling of being trapped in the underworld. To get to the surface, the avatar had to go down to the deepest levels. There is definitely something special in an end to end totally dungeon RPG.

I played a lot of games, Underworld always stayed the undethroned N°One game in comparison.

If you didn't finish it, don't call yourself an RPG gamer.

The Bad
nothing

The Bottom Line
If you never finished it or worse played it then go and grab this game.

Underworld is the father of the elder scroll games, of Deus Ex, Arx Fatalis, Ultima 9 and the Gothic saga. You'll enjoy UW even if you've played the modern Gothic II.

The Good
Before Ultima Underworld, I'd played a few 3-D games but never thought the quality was very high. That all changed when Ultima Underworld came out!

The game was very polished compared to other 3D games at the time. Your character could run, jump and completely interract with the environment. The atmosphere created by the graphics and music was absolutely intense. I was completely drawn into the game as I scampered around the dark labyrinth.

The Bad
Unfortunately, when you dropped an item you actually wound up throwing it. This was no problem if there was a wall in front of you. The item would simply bounce off the wall so that you could pick it up again. However, if there was water in front of you - then an important or critical item could be lost for good. This is exactly what happened to me as accidentally lost an item and was prevented from finishing the game. Very upsetting when you've invested a load of time into the game.

The Bottom Line
The first 3-D game that truly allowed me to escape. The only 3-D game that has done that since has been Half-Life.

The Good
Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss (UU), was a breakthrough game. Graphics were far advanced over what other companies were claiming as "3D" games. While Wolfenstein 3D, and Doom were really 2-1/2 D games (no ability to move in a up-down fashion), UU had jumping, flying, levitating, and much better (and eerier) graphics than what id had released at the time.

The implementation of Magic, fighting, and inventory were pleasingly simple. Everything is contained on the screen (no swtiching screens except for auto-mapping), and easy to access. Magic no longer requires the Avatar (you) to carry numrous regents and memorization of spells. Runes inscribed with letters (the same used in the Brittanic Alphabet) are used casting spells, and your character has a limited Mana pool. Your character must FIND all the runes needed for casting, so it makes the gameplay very balanced. You can't cast a high level spell on the first level of the game because you don't have the correct runes to cast the spell.

All fighting is done using mouse clicks. The position of your pointer determines the type of attack, and the length you hold down the mouse button determines the strength of the attack. So simple to use!

Communication, Sound and Music is well implemented, much like the S.C.U.M.M. interface for LucasArts Graphic adventures, and the IMuse system used in Most LucasArts games.

The Bad
Control is a bit touchy. You can use the keyboard, but the mouse is better.

The Bottom Line
If you like Ultima 9, or the lastest batch of Forgotten Realms games, find UU if you can (it took me 5 years) and play it. You'll enjoy every minute.