Isn't every RPG one of those? Let's Play Ultima IV blind!

Now, by "blind" I mean that I will be playing this game without knowing anything about it. I will consult no walkthrough save the game's official documentation; I will read no impressions save what is posted in this thread outside of spoiler tags. I will follow your advice as I play, and I will mostly just explore things.

I am playing the xu4 version of Ultima IV, which is an attempt to make a version of Ultima IV identical to the original PC version, but compatible with modern systems. Since Ultima IV is freeware and xu4 is open-source and exists on many platforms, that means you, too, can play along with me, if you wish.

Without further ado, let us play Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar!



An attractive animated introduction and some nice ren-faire music greets me. I had, earlier, gone into the configuration menu to change the graphics from HQ2x scaling to nearest-neighbor, resulting in the lovely pixelation you see here.

Down in the bottom window is an animation of something that looks like pirates getting in a fight and digging up some treasure. It's kind of hard to follow since I'm not controlling it. I dismiss the message and move on to the main menu!



It took me a while to realize that you navigate the menu by typing the first letter of the option you want. Good to know! I "i"nitiate a new game.



Let's not do anything silly in our first excursion.



"m"ale



"Yet this afternoon walk in the countryside slowly brings relaxation to your harried mind. The soil and strain of modern high-tech living begins to wash off in layers. That willow tree near the stream looks comfortable and inviting.

"The buzz of dragonflies and the whisper of the willow's swaying branches bring a deep peace. Searching in ward for tranquility and happiness, you close your eyes."



"It is difficult to look at the blueness. Light seems to bend and distort around it, while the sound waves become so intense, they appear to become visible."





"You pick up an amulet shaped like a cross with a loop at the top. It is an ankh, the sacred symbol of life and rebirth. But this could not have made the thud, so you look again and find a large book wrapped in thick cloth!

"With trembling hands you unwrap the book. Behold, the cloth is a map, and within lies not one book, but two. The map is of a land strange to you, and the style speaks of ancient cartography.

"The script on the cover of the first book is arcane but readable. The title is:
"








... So I guess this game originally came with feelies! Feelies which I don't have. I'm going to go track down some scans of this map and Book of History, and report back.

This has been part 1 of Let's Play Ultima IV Blind.

It's a freeware recreation of the original game and still has the anti-piracy measure included?

That seems... peculiar.

It's not antipiracy. It's a feelie. I can, if I want to, just skip that section, but I want to get the full experience. The book is an actual book that contains details about the game world. I'm assuming I'll want to know what it says.

Edit: and, in fact, now that I consult the documentation, it seems that digital versions of the feelies were included with the original game anyway, and consequently I have them and didn't even know about that. So we're back on track.

I think you should try playing a section actually blind. That should be halarious!

If I made a list of my favorite games ever, this would be on my top 10. And since he is doing this blind, I am doing Majora's Mask blind for his edification in the IRC room.

This Book of History is not a completely terrible gameplay tutorial, but it is long. I am reading it and taking notes. That is how dedicated I am.

Will the notes have graphs? I hope so.

I've only ever played the NES version of Ultima 4. Which is to say, I've never played Ultima 4.

Good luck, silly crazyheaded man!

Also: scan your maps and game notes and things as you go. Yes, you will have maps and game notes.

Man, they don't make manuals like that any more.





"This is no ordinary traveling carnival, but a Renaissance Fair. The pennants on the tent tops blow briskly in the late afternoon breeze."



"The music continues to pull you forward amongst the merchants and vendors. Glimpses of fabulous treasures can be seen in some of the shadowy booths.

"These people are very happy. They seem to glow with an inner light. Some look up you as you pass and smile, but you cannot stop - the music compels you to move onward through the crowd."





"Seeing the Ankh, the ancient gypsy smiles and warns you never to part with it. 'We have been waiting for such a long time, but at last you have come. Sit here and I shall read the path of your future."



"The gypsy places the first two cards upon the table. They are the cards of Valor and Spirituality. She says 'Consider this:'"

A series of questions then followed, asking me to select between two of the Ultima series' eight famous Virtues. I answered with the help of Talking Time's IRC channel.


B: Spirituality (Why fight for no reason?)


B: Honor (Let him plead the same case that swayed my belief.)


A: Honesty (Would I serve a lord who wouldn't want honor done to the right person?)


A: Compassion (We can always come back and kill him later.)


B: Spirituality ("I could not love you half so well / Loved I not honor more")


A: Honesty (If I wanted to help this guy so bad, which I'm not sure I do, give him my own money, not somebody else's.)


A: Honesty (Seriously, dude, if you aren't good enough to get in, you have to deal with it.)

"With the final choice, the incense swells up around you. The gypsy speaks as if from a great distance, her voice growing fainter with each word: 'So be it! Thy path is chosen!'

"There is a moment of intense, wrenching vertigo. As you open your eyes, a voice whispers within your mind, 'Seek the counsel of thy sovereign.' After a moment, the spinning subsides, and you open your eyes to...."



The overworld map!

Okay, what are the results of my questions? I frantically consult the help menu and check out my stats.



I'm a Mage.

...So I'm gonna go read the other feelie, which describes how magic works, I guess.

This has been part 2 of Let's Play Ultima IV blind.

According to my notes, mages come from Verity Isle, which is in the northeast of Britannia. I'm guessing that's where I am. Mages use reagents to cast spells. Reagents need to be bought. Fortunately, I have 200 Gs, and I'm only level two, so I won't be casting the fancy spells yet.

Next time, I will head to that mysterious settlement and see if I can't get directions to my sovereign, whom I'm going to assume is Lord British. I will also try to ask some guys to follow me, so that I don't get devoured by whatever kind of terrible monsters lurk around here. If I remember my video games, mages are extremely squishy. I might be off to a rocky start, dudes!

Also, I need to find out what F is. I waited too long on the overworld map and it automatically entered the Pass command and my F went down by one. Fatigue? Is there a pause button in this game? Must read the help menu in greater detail.

F is food, I believe. which is something of an Ultima vanguard, especially in the later games where you can bake or cook just about anything.

Yeah but if you just come out and answer Bill's questions in the thread, he's not really playing blind, is he?

I'm really curious to see how different the original version is from the NES version I grew up with. I want to say we solved something like 80% of the game on our own. It can get incredibly obtuse at times, but there's a smug satisfaction to piecing together thinly-spread clues and really coming to know a world the way this game forces you to.

My particular oath was that I would rely on no outside information save for reproductions of the manual and other documentation, and non-spoiler-tagged information in this thread (which I ask that you give me only if I'm asking for it (literally or figuratively)).

Don't worry, sir. I certainly won't tell you that you're not reading this sentence, or that the game isn't going to let you read this sentence either. And I absolutely would not want to spoil the wave of relief you'll feel when you figure out what the come on Bongo, you're not cheating are you? Are you a cheater Bongo? ARE YOU READING THIS BONGO BILL!?.

Have fun!

Go to http://www.replacementdocs.com if you want to see the original manuals for yourself. Also, u5 is better.

Well, I thought it'd be ok since it's manual information, but I apologize.


Also, I think the NES version is superior, honestly. The things that made it a lesser game 15 years ago make the entire experience much more zippy and less obtuse for the modern retro gamer.

I also found Ultima 3's relative simplicity to be more fun. I'm sure part 4's size and gameplay were staggering when it came out, but now it just makes for a long slog.

I liked the NES versions better B)

Back in the day, we played this game in FOUR colors, not SIXTEEN! And we liked it, because that was all we had! Those colors were white, black, cyan and magenta!

Also: it's true, V is better, but you might as well play IV first especially since it's free and available. I'm not even sure how I would go about playing V these days. There's the Lazarus remake, but a) it requires Dungeon Siege and b) ugh fan remakes.

For Ultima V, you'd want to go with nu5, though I'm not sure if that's as mature as xu4 is.

It seems to be in a pre-alpha stage, with no existing downloads and no activity in years

Yeah, baby! Ultima IV!

Are you planning on restarting the game at any time, depending on how you fare? I got some information about the quiz which you probably shouldn't know about if you do and want to play blind.

On the other hand, if you decide to stick with your character, I could probably tell you a bit about it.

The NES version of u4 had better music.

The NES version of u5 is a mind-curdling abomination.

I have never played an Ultima game. This is the shame I carry despite calling myself a PC gamer.

I have never liked Richard Garriott aka Lord British.

Now though I don't have to play one! Bongo Bill is doing it for me!

Love that game, really timeless. Just imagine a GBA/DS port.

I don't think I'd ever have the patience to play any of the older Ultima games blind, especially since it must require a massive amount of note-taking. Even with extensive walkthrough-use they're still a bit annoying and frustrating in places, though I do appreciate what they were trying to do. But I guess IV is the best one to do blind if I'd be forced to. And while I loved V, I find the thought of playing through it without any kind of walkthrough close to horrifying. And don't get me started on III, that game has not aged well in my opinion.

I hear the Ultima Underworlds were really good but I don't really know. Also they Sci-fi one was supposed to be good, wasn't it?

Sorry, I don't want to de-rail your LP Bill.

Oh man, I am excited! I played this in monochrome (green and black) in the pre-GameFAQs days. I only got three or four of the virtues' altars but as I recall I had actually discovered a fair amount of the game. My virtue of choice was Sacrifice, which made me a Tinker. I don't recall tinkers being particularly good at anything.

I also played Ultima Underworld some time later. It was pretty okay. I never got all that into it, but a friend of mine wouldn't shut up about it at lunch in middle school.

I ended up as a Ranger back in the (NES) day, which is hilarious now given that their virtue of choice is spirituality. Those dungeons were just fucking impossible.

You're a mage? Good luck buddy, you're gonna need it.

I probably will restart if/when I completely fuck myself over.

Next update to come tonight. I'm shooting for smallish and dailyish.