... in an old NES game I have only recently heard of called Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar.



Well, on the game cartridge it just says Ultima, without the numeric installment, but I've heard it is the fourth Ultima game that was made on the NES.

First, let me start off by saying if you ever have the strong desire that I recently did to relive the true experience of playing older video games such as those on all of the classic consoles such as the NES, Sega Genesis, and so on, then I highly recommend picking up a nifty little system called the FC Twin, which I just happened to find on eBay for the amazingly cheap price of thirty or so dollars. According to my Internet research (i.e. as far as Wikipedia, and that's it), this is a system made by ... I don't know who ... known as a Famiclone, meaning it apparently belongs to an entire family of consoles made in the waning years of older video game systems specifically for emulating the NES and Super NES. This information and the incredibly cheap price I found the FC Twin on eBay for naturally made me very suspicious as to whether the FC Twin even worked at all or not, .. but it sure enough does. I have already had the pleasure of the classic gaming experience that is the original version of Chrono Trigger, thanks to this baby. I am even thinking of giving her a fond name just I recently did my viola, which if you read my last thread in General Discussion you will know I now call Cecily. ^_^

So, yeah, pick it up if you just aren't that fond of using wonderful emulator technology to play older video games instead. The FC Twin, in fact, is going to be serving as my gate into the Ultima world.


Anyway, back to Ultima. I have heard of the series before, and apparently it is even older as an RPG franchise than Final Fantasy, dating all the way back to a time when computer monitors only displayed two different colors, and MS-DOS ran rampant. Someone I work with actually mentioned the Ultima games to me the other night, and being about ten years older than me in age (and fifteen years younger in maturity level, might I add), old 70's and early 80's computer games were his introduction into the world of gaming - while it was probably mostly the NES for the rest of us. Ultima is pretty much the extent of his experience in RPG's, but as he talked, it got me to remembering that around a year ago an online reviewer of movies and video games called The Spoony One did a fairly in-depth review of every Ultima game on the NES, a few of them linked below if you are interested in hearing them ->






... Anyway, so I went back and checked out these reviews, and one that particularly grabbed my attention was the fourth installment, subtitled "Quest of the Avatar".

Now, if you've known me around here for a while, you might know that I have begun to take great pleasure in taking up the opportunity to act like a do-gooding hero in games I have played in recent years such as Bioshock and Heavy Rain, which are the first two examples that come to mind when it comes to letting your sense of ethics guide your path; just because you are the protagonist in these kinds of games doesn't mean you have to actually act and think like a virtuous hero to accomplish your goals. Therefore, a game such as Quest of the Avatar is sure to appeal to me and my SK-ish nature. And in lieu of Radiata Stories, I intend to start my first journey through the world of Ultima tonight, soon after finishing this thread.

Without going through The Spoony One's review, I'll try to sum this up for you. Basically the game seems to go like this: you play as (supposedly) the same hero of the previous three games, this time on a quest not to destroy the cliched evil wizard who was bent on taking over the world, but to become a symbolic figure of heroism and virtue for the peoples of the land to look to and use as a guide for their everyday lives, by accomplishing specific tasks around the world (probably each a journey of their own) in an open-ended experience that will somehow result in your becoming what I think to be a pillar of one of eight virtues that the game is based around, such as love, courage, honor, sacrifice, etc. Apparently you actually have to use what you learn throughout your experience in the game to proverbially acquire said virtues, and take careful heed of your own actions that you would normally completely overlook while playing RPG's (for instance, killing "helpless" opponents in battle for the easy EXP). As one who strives to be the kind and noble protector of the innocent (mostly pretty maidens, as you all well know), this game looks to be a terrific and enjoyable trial to find the extent - and perhaps even underlying nuances - of my personal sense of morals and heroism. Yeah, I know this is just video games we're talking about here, and no, I'm not saying that whoever around here enjoys something like Grand Theft Auto must be a raging douchebag in real life. ... But I'm Sarah's Knight, dammit. We don't live in a real world of fairy-tale swords and sorcery, so video games generally provide a world of escapism for nerds like me. Aside from, say, acts of kindness such as giving money to the starving beggar on the side of the road, or providing words of wisdom and comfort to female friends in times of their distress without my harboring some underlying intent of using the "good guy" approach to try to get into their panties, I don't see much of an opportunity to be the Protector of Angels IRL. Only in video games can I fiercely protect the Little Sister from harm at the hands of crazed monsters, and then smile and wave as she curtsies and says "thank you" in her tiny little voice, turning away to flee to the safety of Rapture's ventilation system, and only in video games can I firmly tell Madison that, no, I will not be led by my animal instincts and engage in loveless, tasteless, adulterous sex with her in the wake of my one surviving son being in mortal danger at the hands of a kidnapper and myself being badly wounded by various cuts and burns in my quest to save him. So, there. For every Little Sister I exorcise, for every version of the King of the Monsters that I bravely take up the sword against, I drive the Id that had been my former self several years ago further away from my moral subconscious, and bring myself closer to the sweet endearing embrace of many pretty female angels such as her, the comforting personification of Light who protects me from the ravager and killer that was once me ->




... So, ummm, .... yeah. Only in about half of this thread did I actually talk about Utlima IV, anyway. Sorry.

Granted, the obvious ultimate goal of this game is to become a hero, so I assume that you can't really finish it if you instead choose the way of the evil demon beast in an overall sense. Nevertheless, I imagine there at least several loopholes, shortcuts, and moral low roads you can still take in individual occurrences in order to make the path to accomplishing a specific task a lot easier for yourself (much like how you acquire more Adam in Bioshock by sacrificing a Little Sister instead of saving her, better ensuring your own survival), so there's still got to be some indulgence in ethical role-playing, here.

I'll let you know how it turns out when I've completed my quest to become the Avatar, or at least gotten far enough into it. Who knows? Maybe it can still end up sucking. After all, if there is anything reminiscent of id that I must admit to being prone to these days, it is bitter and oftentimes foul-mouthed cynicism when unexpectedly suffering a bad movie or gaming experience.