From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.rpg
On Tue, 10 Aug 2021 03:26:09 -0500,
ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:
In comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action Werner P. <werpu@gmx.at> wrote:
Am 09.08.21 um 10:09 schrieb JAB:
On 06/08/2021 22:01, Ant wrote:
http://www.gog.com/promo/rerelease_ultima_underworld_and_syndicate
"Grab them for free until September 3rd..." Syndicate games were
great. ;) I couldn't get into Ultimate games though.
Unfortunately my stance of graphics don't really bother me still has its >> > limits!
If there was one game besides System Shock (which is getting it atm)
which was heavily in need of a modern overhaul it is Ultima Underworld.
Unfortunately it is buried deeply somewhere in EAs pile of shame!
The game was one of the most influental RPG games ever!
EA needs to remake it with modern technologies!
I find "Utlima Underworld" (the first one) still emminently playable.
Its biggest sins are its somewhat cumbersome controls and the small
viewing window. But the actual graphics are, in my opinion, fine. In
fact, the chunky, low-res graphics greatly add to the mood; it makes
the dungeons look dark, murky and suitably old. Modern dungeons, with
all the fancy lighting effects and much-longer viewing distances,
don't seem half as creepy. Even the sequel suffered from this; despite
its (marginally) higher-res textures, "Ultima Underworld II" never
felt half as immersive as the first (although that likely had more to
do with its plot and setting). It looks heads and shoulders better
than the 2019 spin-off, which has none of the charm or atmosphere of
the classic games.
The graphics of "Syndicate", on the other hand, hold up amazingly
well. The full-screen visuals look incredibly sharp and detailed. Its
difficult to believe the game is only using 16 colors for the in-game
action.
Sadly, I get no advantage from this freebie offer. Both the Underworld
and Syndicate games were some of my first purchases from GOG (well, my
14th and 15th orders, to be specific, but given the size of my GOG
library, that's close enough to "first" as to be a rounding error ;-)
If the graphics of "Underworld" are the only thing keeping you from
playing it, I say give it a try anyway. Force yourself to play it for
an hour or two. You'll quickly overlook the jaggy visuals and
(assuming you have any interest in fantasy dungeon crawls) want to
keep playing.
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