SNES-port of Ultima VII
Ultima VII was the last Ultima released to a console by Origin, and a version of the game was released for the Super Nintendo in 1994.
Like the SNES-port of Ultima VI, and most of the console ports, this version was released in Japan. Unlike the other console ports, this version was released in Japan and the United States at the same time, and the Japanese version still bears The Black Gate as a subtitle. In fact, the Japanese box art is based on the original box; pure black with a blue logo.
Description[edit]
The technical limitations of the Super Nintendo made it necessary to cull a fair amount of the content which had been present in the PC version of Ultima VII, which had been approximately 20 megabytes in size and had featured VGA graphics, a full soundtrack and a deeply interactive game world. In order to compress the game into a one-megabyte module, a great deal of material had to be removed – resulting in a product with simplified graphics, a limited musical score and a greatly simplified world map.
In addition to this, Nintendo of America appeared to impose a great deal of editorial control over the games content – leading to the removal of many of the original versions darker aspects for the sake of keeping the game family-friendly. As such, the game's plot was changed from focusing on a spree of mutilation killings to focusing on a rash of unsolved kidnappings, and macabre or sexual imagery was removed. It is likely that the Japanese version has less censorship, as usual.
Nintendo Power praised Ultima VII's interface, sound, and exploration, but criticized the uncomfortable combat and movement. The game received a 2.9/5 for graphics and sound, 2.5 for play controls, 2.9 for challenge, and 3.1 for play and fun.[1]
In 2006, this version of The Black Gate was made available on the Sony PSP by Electronic Arts (EA) as part of their Retro Replay package, along with thirteen other older EA games.
Included with the Game[edit]
- Instruction booklet (international release)
- The Book of Fellowship (Japanese release)
- Paper map of Britannia (only international release)
Changes from the Original[edit]
Several changes made this remake more similar to Ultima: Runes of Virtue II:
- The game does not support a party system, leaving the player only able to control the Avatar. Unlike the Runes of Virtue, he is defaulted to their male version and cannot be named.
- The combat system lacks any automation and plays similarly to many action-adventure games (e.g. the aforementioned Ultima: Runes of Virtue II).
- Several plot-relevant items were relocated to former nameless caves. The latter were each given a name and were expanded to large dungeons.
- Conventional ship travel is not available, limiting exploration to islands which may be reached via an item known as the Magic Boat. The moongates are also completely non-functional throughout the game.
- The game world is much smaller than the original, and there are far fewer NPCs – all of whom lack daily schedules. Many characters have been replaced or altered drastically to conform to the new story, and the amount of dialogue in the game has been reduced.
- The game is divided into outdoor and indoor maps, which prevents the player from using the isometric view to look inside of unentered buildings.
- Several spell-casting items were added (e.g. Hail Storm Amulet, Sword Storm Amulet). Many of them use the Avatar's magic points.
Further changes from the original version:
- Both the introduction and ending have been greatly reduced in size, and are limited largely to narrative text rather than animations.
- The spell-casting system is streamlined such as to exclude reagents and spell purchasing, and there are only 16 available spells instead of 72. Spells not seen in the original game have also been added, such as Water Walk and Lifting.
- A set of elemental swords was added: earth sword, fire sword, frost sword, water sword, wind sword.
- The function of the day and night cycle has changed, with visibility being greatly reduced at night and certain items (such as the bedroll, or magic lantern) being only usable after sundown.
New dungeon list[edit]
| Dungeons | Treasure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Covetous | Caddellite helm | Quest item (destroy Cube Generator) |
| Deceit | Tetrahedron Generator | Guardian’s generator n.1 |
| Despise | Sphere Generator | Guardian's generator n.2 |
| Destard | Empty chest | Quest item |
| Hythloth | Black Gate | Guardian's gate |
| Wrong | ? | - |
| Shame | Gem of Paralysis | Magic weapon (3MP; paralyzes enemies) |
| Bee cave | Tseramed arrows | Weapon (inflicts sleep) |
| Buccaneer's Cave | Power bolt wand | Magic weapon (1MP) |
| Vesper mine | Blackrock talisman | Quest item (obtain the Ethereal Ring) |
| Caves originally nameless | Treasure | - |
| Cyclops Cave (originally: nameless cave near Spiritwood) |
Plate armour | Armour |
| Heftimus Cave (originally: nameless cave near Jhelom) |
Potions | Item |
| Heroes' Hole (originally: nameless cave near Shrine of Honor) |
Scale boots | Armour (walk on lava) |
| Pirate Cave (originally: nameless crypt on Dagger Isle) |
Lightning wand | Magic weapon (2MP) |
| Scorpion Cave (originally: nameless cave north of the Drylands) |
Energy crystal | Magic weapon (1MP) |
| Sutek’s dungeon (originally: nameless mines on Terfin island) |
Enchanted hourglass | Quest item (destroy Sphere Generator) |
| Swamp Cave (originally: nameless cave near Cove) |
Rudyom's wand | Quest item (destroys the Black Gate) |
| Dungeon of Serpents Undertaker (originally: nameless cave of the Meditation Retreat) |
Cube Generator | Guardian's generator n.3 |
| SNES-only dungeons | Treasure | - |
| Dungeon of Unknown Fears (it replaces Martingo’s palace on Spektran) |
Ethereal Ring | Quest item (destroy Tetrahedron Generator) |
| Dungeon Sagatious (it replaces Alagner’s storehouse in New Magincia) |
Alagner's notebook | Item |
| The Crypts (it replaces the Dark Tower in Skara Brae) |
Ghostly armour | Armour |
Enemy elemental resistance[edit]
The five exclusive elemental swords are ineffective against some enemies. Default sorting is by number of elemental resistances.
| Enemy | Resistance(s) |
|---|---|
| Ethereal monster | - |
| Giant bees | - |
| Giant rats | - |
| Gremlins | - |
| Liches | - |
| Snakes | - |
| Wolves | - |
| Cyclops | Frost |
| Headless | Frost |
| Trolls | Frost |
| Acid slugs | Water |
| Alligators | Water |
| Gazers | Water |
| Giant spiders | Water |
| Slimes | Water |
| Mongbats | Wind |
| Bats | Earth, wind |
| Fairies | Earth, wind |
| Dragons | Fire, wind |
| Drakes | Fire, wind |
| Scorpions | Fire, water |
| Skeletons | Fire, water |
| Ghosts | Fire, water, wind |
| Stone harpies | All |
Trivia[edit]
- One strange piece of merchandise associated with the game was the Japan-exclusive Ultima VII boomerang. The Boomerang is a hidden weapon in this port.
Gallery[edit]
Ultima Black Gate SNES advertisement
See Also[edit]
- Ultima VII transcript (SNES)
- Ultima VII (SNES) magic
- SNES map for Ultima VII
- Ultima VII (SNES) walkthrough
External Links[edit]
- Silellak played through the entirety of Ultima VII for the SNES, and recorded his experience at: here.
- He also has recorded the last 5 minutes here.
- YouTube – Ultima VII (SNES) Gameplay Video
References[edit]
- ↑ "Now Playing". Nintendo Power (Ultima VII). Jan. 1995. Pages 106, 107.
| Console Ports | |
|---|---|
| Games | Ultima III ☥ Ultima IV ☥ Ultima V ☥ Ultima VI ☥ Savage Empire ☥ Ultima Underworld ☥ Ultima VII |