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Ultima V
Warriors Of
Destiny
Darkness has fallen upon the land of Britannia. Lord Blackthorn, with the
help and manipulation of the evil Shadowlords, has taken over, banishing
Lord British from his own kingdom and ruling over the world with an iron
first. Having settled into a little house in the woods after your ascension to Avatar, you are called upon once
more to set things right. An underground resistance movement is quietly
biding its time, waiting for Lord British to return, and hailing you and
your friends as its heroes. But there are also many who have fallen in
line behind Blackthorn and his dark masters - and would be happy to dispose
of the Avatar for him.
(Origin Systems, 1988 / reissued in 1999 as part of The Ultima
Collection)
A true sequel to Ultima IV, Ultima V
is deeper, more realistic, and more challenging by far. Possibly the
biggest change between the two games is literally the difference between
day and night. Whereas the moons were indicated only in a tiny window at
the top of the playing field in past Ultima games, really only
determining the presence of moon gates, Ultima V makes them more
integral to the game. Britannia's sun sets and night falls upon the land,
drastically reducing your field of vision (and forcing you to keep torches
in stock; fortunately, in this game, you can "borrow" torches
found in townes and castles). And of course, evil walks the land at night
frequently, and numerous dangerous animals such as rats and snakes also
proliferate in the dark.
The Shadowlords, far from being backstory fodder, are a real presence
in the game, and occasionally inhabit townes and influence the people who
live there: guards will warn you away at best and attack you at worst,
the townsfolk will be afraid to speak to you, and somewhere in the towne
itself lurks a deadly Shadowlord eager for a confrontation. Taking on a
Shadowlord early in the game is a one-way ticket to the undiscovered
country. An apparition of Lord British can revive you after such
a confrontation, or any other battle which leads to the death of your
entire party, but each resurrection leaves the party in a diminished
state, lowering the maximum number of hit points per character each
time.
The landscape is even more refined in Ultima V, with many new
items appearing within townes and castles (fireplaces, bookshelves,
mirrors, kegs, barrels, lockers, etc.), and a new class of watercraft,
the inexpensive skiff, can actually navigate the previously off-limits
shallow waters of rivers and tributaries (though skiffs and their
occupants take heavy damage if one attempts to venture into the deeper
waters without a sturdier sailboat). And if you're worried about taking
to the water after dark, you can light a torch - or hope that one of
the many islands with lighthouses (which can be entered and explored)
will light the way.
Other signs of continuity with Ultima V are all over the
map - the dungeons have been sealed (but they can be re-entered, at
the player's peril), and there are more townes and villages.
Overall, Ultima V is an excellent addition to the series,
and was the last game in the series to use the 2-D overhead engine
that had served so well thus far. Ultima VI took on a whole
new engine for the games, a whole new look - and may have lost a few
people in the process.
Rating: 
One dollar - top of the line. Go trade it in for more quarters, you'll
want to play this game several times.
Reviewed by Earl Green
theLogBook.com editor/webmaster
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