Customer Reviews

Ultima Online Renaissance

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

If you have ever wanted to try Ultima Online, but were scared off by the horror stories of horrible lag, P(layer)K(illers)s around every corner, and buggy, incomplete programming, UO:Rennissance is your chance to give this game a shot. This latest version of UO is probably as good as the game has ever been, or ever will be. Origin has solved the PK problem by dividing Brittania into two different "dimensions": The safer (and IMO, more enjoyable) Trammel, and the PK haunted, monster-ridden Felucca. You don't have to worry about being PK'd any more, if you don't want to be. Lag is much better recently than it has been in the past. I get on even at peak hours of usage and have a usually smooth playing experience. You will be playing this game a lot becuase it is addictive. You get a tremendous sense of satisifaction watching your newbie character grow and gain power. The only characters that I am positive are essentially "second jobs" are the GM Blacksmiths, and they seem to have a blast. The nice people are there, you just need to find them. If you roleplay a character that is different from yourself, and are not afraid to introduce yourself to others, making friends is easy in this game, unless you are a PK.
I recommend trying this game at least once. This is probably the last major upgrade UO will have before UO2 is released sometime next year, and this is about as good as its going to get in terms of gameplay. You pay a monthly fee, but the first month is free, so if you find it's not for you, you haven't wasted much of your money.

Like Diablo? You're likely to find UO:REN just as enjoyable if not more so. One of the other reviews complained that there was no goal to the game. To me, that's a plus, not a minus. When I played Diablo on Battle.net, I was frustrated by how easy the game was in an online scenario. Dupes, hacks, PKs, and not-so-rare rare items made the game a waste of time. Give me an hour, and I'll build the most powerful Diablo character you've ever seen. On the other hand... UO:REN offers a game that is very similar to Diablo in it's format and style, but very different in the gameplay. Gone are the dupes and hacks, you've got more options for skills and stats, your character can look exactly the way you want it to look (you can dye fabrics). A touch of realism is never a bad thing... if you're an archer, you'll run out of arrows. If you're a wizard, you'll run out of spell components. Armor and weapons break down and need repairing. Horses, ships, and player-owned houses add to the fun. If you get bored with adventuring, retire and open a shop. When you get bored with that, go back on the road. Blizzard shouted that with Diablo II comes 4 new towns and dungeons beneath each, with some wilderness in between. The game supports 8 people in multiplayer games. UO:REN offers more than 10 major cities, half a dozen dungeons, a continent of unexplored wilderness, and the ability to play with a few thousand people at a time. Times 2! You've got 2 dimensions (Trammel and Felucca) on each server. I was looking forward to Diablo II until I discovered UO:REN - and I don't need 950MB of free disk space like D.II requires.

Look for me on the Chesepeake shard, I have two characters there, Riverwind and Raistlin. I usually hang around the town of Vesper.

People are still screaming Everquest, but it's nothing compared to UO. Sure, the graphics are a little better. Whoopie. UO is easier to get started in, has alot less lag, and is simply more fun. After playing for 7 months, i still haven't lost intrest in this great game. You have to determine the game flow for yourself. There is no real goal (except to have fun), and you can do virtually anything. From being a fisherman to a mercenary to a fearless warrior, the choice is yours. It's a virtual world, and you can carry on another life online. This is a great game, bottom line. By the way, If you play on the Lake Superior shard and see a guy named Azrail, that's me. BUY THIS GAME NOW.

I don't know that anyone else has said this. If you don't feel like adventuring and exploring, you can just meet lots of people. Basically you can pay $10 a month for a fancy IRC client. I love the openess of this game. The ability to be anything from a taylor to a begger or theif. I even managed to tame an ape, a rabbit, a raven and a mongbat (bat looking thing that walks around). I didn't know anyone in the game to start out with but a few conversations and hours later I had friends and 5k in gold peices (advanced players get karma points for giving away money to newbies). I joined the baja shard where the player city of avalon is located. It was real easy to join this guild. Sparing with guild members improved my stats quite effectively. Being able to travel with advanced players to kill monsters and gain lots of points is really fun. Riding horses also adds a new dimenion to the game. The "path find" feature is also good in frustrating situations. And it actually works to boot.

One thing I didn't like was being auto-patched to upgrade from second age (what I bought) to Renaissance. I don't have DSL so it takes about 15 minutes to finish (I re-install my system more than most people) downloading. There's no way to save the patches for applying yourself (that I know of). If you need help or money you can ask me, AlexExplorer of the Baja shard.

There have been many criticisms of this game, but the hundreds of thousands of people that play it on a daily basis will (most likely) tell you the same thing : It is simply the BEST RPG available. Sure there are those rude people, player-killers and thieves, but that is to be expected. I have found that most players range from about 23-50 for the majority. This game is limited only by one's imagination, and it is not all about gaining skills and joining guilds. I have met many new friends just wandering around the diverse lands offered in UO. We have set up poetry readings, done plays within UO, we go on hunts to wild new places, and you can role play to your heart's desire.

Furthermore, although this game is very complex, there is TONS of help available both in the game, from other players, Counselors within the game who volunteer their time, and numerous websites such as uo.stratics.com

Some people enjoy rare hunting as well - but there is so much more to it than that. With just a little creativity this game has replaced all others for me!

Okay UO rocks. Totally. I have been playing almost for a year and I am not getting tired of it. By the way if you want to meet me in the game my name is Sling Blade and I hang out around Britain. : ) anyway, the only reason this gets 4 stars instead of five is because of the lag which is good for the most part but can be really bad when tons of people get on, and because of the overcrowding, which resulted in me being unable to place my house which I saved all my character's life for. I also camped at a spot for five hours waiting for placement to start and some punk took my spot. So now I have no house thanks to their overcrowding. THanks a lot! BUt it is still a fun game and very much worth your money. Quit your Everquest account and start up your Swordsman or Mage or whatever, UO is the FIRST and BEST online RPG.

This game revolutionized the world of online rpgs. It's simply amazing. I've been playing it for months, and am still hooked on it.

This game has little to no flaws. If you don't have a fast computer and a very good internet connection, chances are, you're going to lag...often. That's the main problem the game has. Sometimes it can be absolutely horrendous, while other times it won't be so bad. You just have to make sure you pick the server nearest to you. In Ultima, you make a character, and virtually go out and do whatever you want. Want to be a fisherman? Go ahead! Grab a fishing pole and you're all set. A miner? tinker? warrior? Yes! You can be all those things and many more. The characters are so customizable. From their stats all the way down to the type of clothes they wear (and trust me, there's many to chose from!). Making a new character can be a long process, but once you get past that first bit, you'll be having the adventure of your life. There are more than a dozen towns in this large world, many dungeons and even land for placing your own house! But houses cost a lot of money, and money is something you have very little of at the beginning.

The new Renaissance pack is a definite improvment over the older version. There are two differnet worlds you can roam in. Trammel, which is like the light side of the world. Player killers cannot thrive here, people cannot loot your corpses, etc. The other land is Felucca. The darker side, where almost anything goes. Be on the lookout for thieves, player killers, evil npcs and more! There are always constant updates made to the game, so it never ends. There'll always be lands to explore and monsters to slay.

The bottom line is, if you're an rpg fan, get UO! Don't hesitate. One of the first, and definently the best online rpg there is. Look me up sometime on the Pacific server. My name is Mymas.

Good luck fellow adventurers, and have fun!

Ultima Online is clearly the best RPG there is. You make and play the role of your character.You can even customize what he/she looks like and choose from many more skills compared to diablo II.. However it is hard when you first start out as a newbie (thats why many people quit after the first week and give it a bad rateing)but now with trammel in reanissance it a lot easier to get started.At times it could get to be frustrateing when you first starrt out but, as you advance it gets extremely more fun. There area lot more friendly people in this enviorment willing to help you out. This is one of the very few game where you can not "beat it", ultima offers you endless oppertunities.Give it a shot and see how you like it, you wont be dissapointed.

This is essentially the same as UO the Second Age with some major, friendly changes. This game is excellent, and now very begginer friendly. The Rennaisance version includes a whole new mirror world, Trammell, where new players can learn. This game is very good for roleplayers. You can choose to be a merchant or adventurer, depending on your preference. You can own a ship or a house; the very rich can even own a castle. A very good game. Come say hi to me, Beouvle on the Catskills shard

I do not agree with other reviews. Seers in the game, or people who organize events, are trying to make the game more fun and more of an RPG. They have organized things like in-game plays and treasure hunts in dungeons.You do not have to spend long hours doing skill gains because sometimes it is just fun to watch. Probably the only negative aspect of this game is that it is addictive. If you can control your urges to play this great game, and not over do it, then this is the game for you.