What is Ultima?


Ultima is the best-selling, longest running series of role-playing games ever. The series started in 1979 when Richard Garriott (a.k.a. Lord British) created the Apple IIe based Akalabeth: World of Doom . It wasn't long before Origin became interested in the "state of the art" video game and in 1980 Garriot created Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness and the Ultima series was born. Ultima I-III are considered the Darkness trilogy, in these games the hero is fighting Mondain, Minax, and Exodus single forces of evil faced in each game respectively. Ultima IV - VI are known as the Virtue Trilogy. In these games there is no antagonist for the Avatar to fight instead he must instill the Principals of Virtue into the populus. The Virtues are Honor, Justice, Valor, Compassion, Spirituality, Sacrifice, Honesty, and Humility. Ultima VII - IX is the Armageddon trilogy in which the Avatar must stop the Guardian's continuing attempts to destroy both Britannia and Earth. Ultima IX Accension has just been released and is the conclusion to this long-running saga.

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