Gaming History: Ultima Underworld "The most important game you should play"

free999enigma (67)in #gaming • 7 years ago

The role that Ultima Underworld had in shaping the video games we have today can not be understated. It's contribution was pivotal to the development of every First Person Game, be they shooters or RPGs. And why is that? Because it didn't try to be just a game. It tried to be a simulator.

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Developer(s) Blue Sky Productions

Publisher(s):
Origin Systems
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Victor (Japan)

Director: Richard Garriott
Producer: Warren Spector
Designer: Paul Neurath
Programmer(s): Jonathan Arnold, Doug Church, Jon Maiara, Dan Schmidt & Carlos Smith
Artist(s): Carol Angell & Douglas Wike
Writer(s): Brad Freeman & Dan Schmidt
Composer(s) George Sanger & Dave Govett

Release Date: 1992
Platform(s): DOS,FM Towns, PC-98, PlayStation, Windows Mobile
Genre(s): First-Person Action RPG, Dungeon Crawler

(Game Description) "Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss is a first-person role-playing video game (RPG) developed by Blue Sky Productions (later Looking Glass Studios) and published by Origin Systems. Released in March 1992, the game is set in the fantasy world of the Ultima series. It takes place inside the Great Stygian Abyss: a large, underground cave system that contains the remnants of a failed utopian civilization. The player assumes the role of the Avatar—the Ultima series' protagonist—and attempts to find and rescue a baron's kidnapped daughter.

Ultima Underworld has been cited as the first role-playing game to feature first-person action in a 3D environment, and it introduced technological innovations such as allowing the player to look up and down. Its design combines simulation elements with concepts from earlier CRPGs, including Wizardry and Dungeon Master, which led the game's designers to call it a "dungeon simulation". As such, the game is non-linear and allows for emergent gameplay.

Ultima Underworld received widespread critical acclaim and sold nearly 500,000 units. The game was later placed on numerous hall of fame lists. It influenced game developers such as Bethesda Softworks and Valve Corporation, and it was an inspiration behind the games Deus Ex and BioShock. The game had a sequel, Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds (1993), and a new game in the series, Underworld Ascendant, is forthcoming."
Source: Wikipedia.org