Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar

After the defeat of the evil Triad in the three previous Ultima games, the world of Sosaria changed beyond recognition: continents rose and fell and new cities were built, heralding the beginning of a new civilization. United by the rule of the benevolent monarch Lord British, the new world was renamed Britannia. Lord British wanted to base the well-being of people on the ethical principles of truth, love and courage, and proclaimed the Eight Virtues (honesty, compassion, bravery, justice, sacrifice, honor, spirituality and humility) as the ideal to which everyone should aspire. The person who manages to fully understand and realize these virtues would serve as a spiritual guide and moral example to the inhabitants of Britannia; only he would be able to obtain sacred artifacts, descend into the Stygian Abyss, and gain access to the Code of Ultimate Wisdom. This person is the Avatar. The fourth game in the Ultima series features an improved game engine with color graphics and enhanced character interaction: The player can hold conversations with non-playable characters by typing names on various topics. However, the main difference between Ultima IV and its predecessors in the series (as well as other role-playing games) is in the game's objectives and the ways to fulfill them. Instead of building a character by any means necessary to face a villain at the end of the game, in Ultima IV the player tries to become the Avatar, a role model for people. This means upholding the eight virtues and trying to become a better person. Making morally conscious decisions and helping other people is not done in the expectation of a material reward, but because it is the real goal of the game and the main focus of the gameplay. The game frowns on behaviors that are typical of most other RPGs, such as backstabbing fleeing enemies or picking up anything that isn't nailed down, even if it doesn't belong to the protagonist. This different approach established the game's reputation as the first "real" Ultima and influenced the design philosophy of later parts and the general spirit of the series. Character creation is done by choosing answers to morally ambiguous questions. Each of the eight virtues corresponds to a character class; by determining the player's personal priorities in relation to the virtues, the game assigns a class and starting location for the avatar. After arriving in Britannia, the player can explore it in a variety of ways (on foot, by lunar gate teleportation, on horseback, by ship, etc.). Certain items must be collected in any order to enter the Stygian Abyss and complete the game. The avatar must also reach the highest level in all virtues. This is achieved in various ways: donating blood increases sacrifice, not fleeing from battle increases bravery, etc. However, the process is not irreversible: if the avatar overpays a blind vendor, he gains compassion points; if, on the other hand, he cheats the vendor by paying too little, his level in several virtues drops. These unorthodox features of the game coexist with many traditional RPG elements, such as dungeons to explore and enemy monsters to kill. Battles take place on separate top-down screens, where both player-controlled and enemy groups can move freely. Characters gain experience points and level up, gaining more hit points and access to stronger spells. As in the previous installments of the series, the world map, the exploration of the city and the battles are presented in a top-down view, while the dungeons are explored in a pseudo-3D view and from the first-person perspective. Ultima IV also introduces some new gameplay features to the series and to role-playing games in general. A number of originally non-playable characters living in different areas of the game world can join the party and fight alongside the hero. They replace the traditional player-generated characters or mercenaries and adventurers that are only available in special locations. Other new elements include buying and combining reagents to cast spells, puzzle rooms in dungeons and others. The FM Towns version, although identical to the other versions in terms of gameplay, introduces improved graphics similar to those of the next part of the series.