DESCRIPTION

You, the avatar from the other Ultima adventures, see a gate appear from the world known as Britannia where you have gone on countless adventures. This can only mean one thing: Britannia is in trouble again. You step through the portal to see gargoyles looming over your body which is on some kind of slab. Suddenly, Iolo, Shamino, and Dupre, your friends from previous Britannian adventures come to your rescue at just the right moment, and your adventure begins.

In Ultima VI: The False Prophet, Lord British, the King of Britannia, tells you of a new peril that has befallen the land. Gargoyles have been attacking everywhere, and are currently present at all eight of the sacred Shrines of Virtue. You must fight off the gargoyles at the shrines, and find the runes that can seal them from further invasion from the gargoyles. However, things are not always as they seem, and you will be led on many adventures, and interaction with hundreds of people, and gargoyles.

To travel the vast world of Britannia, you will walk on foot, buy a skiff to travel rivers, acquire the deed to a ship which can bring you across oceans, and eventually contruct your own hot-air balloon that can carry you anywhere you want. You are also aided with a moon orb, a strange stone that can transport you instantly to almost any town or shrine. This game is full of puzzles and riddles in the form of dungeon exploration, and in actuality, the game is less combat-based than most role-playing games. In combat, players can equip various weapons and armor, and up to 48 different spells. Part of the challenge, of course, is finding a teacher for these spells, and the components to cast them. Actions are menu-based, when the avatar performs an action, several options such as "look", "talk", and "item" come up.

Another notable feature is the "Karma" system. Since the player is the avatar, an example of goodness, some actions such as stealing from houses and lying to characters will hurt the Karma score. Low Karma results in a loss of experience when a character dies, and the game cannot be finished if Karma is too low. The game will take most players around 20 hours to complete, but can take up to 40 or 50 if they care to find out all of the game's many secrets and puzzles. ~ David Borowski, All Game Guide