Ultima Online

Title: Ultima Online
Platform Played On: PC
Release Date: September 30, 1997
Date Played: 2004, 2011
Time Played: 10 hours
Completed (Y/N): N/A
Score: 3/5



Opinion:

Ultima Online, the pioneer of Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games.

To be honest, a part of me wishes I had Internet and knew of MMOs back in 1997 when UO first came out. From all of the stories I have heard about it, it seems like it was one hell of an MMO. It went beyond the limitations that even today's MMOs share (player housing/building etc). It seems like Ultima Online was one of the best sandbox MMOs out there, and a part of me wishes I was there to experience it. Alas I did not find out about Ultima Online until a few years later, and after spending an ungodly amount of hours playing EverQuest it was too late. EverQuest had a much more immersive world, with much better graphics and controls. Compared to EverQuest (the MMO Juggernaut of the time) Ultima Online felt like an outdated game.

Nevertheless I have attempted to get into UO on several occasions... unsuccessfully. The free for all sandbox gameplay of Ultima Online is very appealing to me, but I could never get past the interface and control issues. The isometric camera angle always seemed weird to me. It is positioned a bit too low, to the point where it looks like you are on a wall. The game mechanics are not explained very well either, and therefore the barrier to entry is a huge learning cliff. All in all it just feels like a game you had to be playing from the very beginning.
 
I ran around Ultima Online for several hours, killing some creatures and exploring the lands of Britania, the sandbox mechanics is what kept me comming back; but every time I was turned off of it by its crude presentation and gameplay. UO's idea excites me, but this idea is much grander than the actual game is.
 
Ultima Online has seen about a dozen expansions and revisions. It went through several engine changes which made it look a lot better than it did back in 1997, nevertheless the controls still remain a challenge, and the weird isometric view persists.
 
I am confident that I will try UO again some day. Perhaps it will grab a hold of me then, but so far the much better looking and playing MMOs out there have managed to successfully pull me away from it. Until we meet again Ultima Online!

Updated Engine