Ultima 6: The False Prophet, is another jaunt into the fictional world of Brittania as created by Richard Garriott and his fell company.
It's like a regular RPG in most ways, save one special difference: IT IS NOT A GAME ABOUT FINDING THE BIG BAD GUY AND CAVING HIS FACE IN! Repeat, it is not a "Kill the Foozle" game.
Instead, you play the nameless Avatar, a hero of some renown in that land, as he (or she) is sent on a mission to find out why the Gargoyles, a race from below the surface of the world, have taken over the Shrines of Virtue and are going on killing sprees.
Ultima 6: The False Prophet, is another jaunt into the fictional world of Brittania as created by Richard Garriott and his fell company.
It's like a regular RPG in most ways, save one special difference: IT IS NOT A GAME ABOUT FINDING THE BIG BAD GUY AND CAVING HIS FACE IN! Repeat, it is not a "Kill the Foozle" game.
Instead, you play the nameless Avatar, a hero of some renown in that land, as he (or she) is sent on a mission to find out why the Gargoyles, a race from below the surface of the world, have taken over the Shrines of Virtue and are going on killing sprees. Along the way are the usual twists and turns, but the ultimate goal is to stop
total war.
Graphically, it looks pretty good for an older game. As you can tell from the pictures, it is full-color and there are portraits of the major NPCs. It isn't spectacular, mind you, but it works. This also goes for the music and sounds, as well. Sounds and Music tend to run the gamut from "Tolerable" to "WANT TO STAB EARS WITH PENCIL" with frightening randomness.
The cast is fairly memorable, although their lines are all built in already and you have to type in words to get responses. Unfortunately, this means that if you've beaten the game already, you can speed through parts of it simply through remembered dialogue (like when you are getting the pieces of map from the pirates).
Combat is turn-based and fairly unique. You control the Avatar as he or she lays a swath of destruction with a sword or axe, while your party members act according to parameters set in their menus (such as "Assault," "Retreat," and "Berserk,), or you can set them up so you control them as well. During this, you can cast spells from your spellbook (which vary from useless, such as the spell "HARM", to outright broken, such as "Summon Demon", which summons, well, a nigh-unkillable demon who ravages the battlefield.) or toss items about, like flasks of oil. You can equip yourself or your party members with various armors and weapons, including the standard sword, a halberd, or the awesome Glass Sword, which will kill anything in one hit. Armors include chain, plate, and magical gear.
All in all, Ultima 6 is a good game. I recommend it for those who have some time to burn.
