An editorial by a geek who tirelessly played through every exausting element of Origin's Ultima IX: Ascension.

Eye Candy

The amount of detail that went into generating the environment and terrain is astronomical to say the least. There is a high level of satisfaction one could gain by simply 'investigating that strange rock at the peak of those mountains over there'. Every nook and cranny of Britannia was waiting to be explored.

It's massive landscape and towering mountains leaves the player totally immersed in it's pixelated illusion. Each and every texture that defined the slopes, hills, peaks, cracks, and corners were painstakenly placed for ultra-realism. The graphical environment is truly amazing, and very effective at making you believe that the environment has a depth deeper than it's surface that you can see.

The game took me a long time to beat. Having a full time job and a website to update; I looked forward to finishing it. But, I feel sad. The cinematic beginning of the game, lured me deeply into Britannia's beautiful world, and I will miss it.

I praise Origin; not only for creating a visually beautiful game, but for re-introducing me to a wonderful set of characters, in a gorgeous, and dynamic sounding setting. Britannia had personality, and that's not easy to do in a game. What Origin did was truly difficult; and I thank them for sticking their heads out, and breaking the norm. The amount of work and technology needed to create Britannia in Ascension, costs more than 98% of what other companies could afford. Ultima IX: Ascension was worth every penny.