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Ultima Underworld 1 now playable in Unity (source port)

RedSwirl

RedSwirl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,089
Update: Version 1.09 is out: https://github.com/hankmorgan/UnderworldExporter/releases/tag/V1.09

https://github.com/hankmorgan/UnderworldExporter/releases

To briefly explain how important Ultima Underworld is, it's basically the game that inspired stuff like:

--BioShock
--Elder Scrolls
--Fallout 3
--Breath of the Wild
--Deus Ex
--Thief
--Dark Souls (through King's Field)
--System Shock
--Prey

It basically contains most of the game mechanics you find in games like Fallout 3 or Skyrim except it came out in 1992, a few months before Doom 1. It sort of inspired the emphasis on open-ended systemic gameplay in many of today's 3D games.

This thread has a much more elaborate explanation: https://www.resetera.com/threads/ul...y-you-should-still-play-it-today.82943/page-2

Today the graphics are obviously really old (it basically looks like an indie game today) but playing it now I can still easily get sucked into it. The world design holds up really well. The way you interact with NPCs is also still really unusual for 3D RPGs. You can barter with almost anyone, people interact with you differently based on mood, there are different factions, etc.

Until now it's only been available in DOS form, mainly from either GOG or Origin. A lot of source port attempts in the past never got finished but apparently this one did. It's in Unity, and let's you run the game in high resolution with more modern mouse look. It doesn't feel totally modern, but the controls (which in the original version were ancient as heck) feel more in line with late 90's and early 00's immersive sims like System Shock 2, Deus Ex 1, and more importantly Arx Fatalis.

You DO need your own legit copy of the game (GOG | Origin). The zip at the link above has a readme and all that for installation instructions. I think you also have to import the soundtrack from another zip you can download at the github link, and it seems to even include the soundtrack from the Japan-only PlayStation version.

This source port will eventually fully support Ultima Underworld 2, System Shock 1, and TerraNova.

BGSDStr.jpg
 
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ilium

ilium

Member
Oct 25, 2017
477
Vienna
Bica yeshor'click. Isili thesh tosa!

Edit: 'click kri'kla eppa. :(
Tosa thit yeshor'click. Isili ssthresh tosa sel'a eppa! :)
 
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Deleted member 419

User requested account closure
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Oct 25, 2017
3,009
This is so awesome and what a fantastic way to replay the game. Massive kudos to the developers, and a nice surprise after the Ascendant fiasco.
 
the_wart

the_wart

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,266
Oh yeah! UU has been sitting in my GoG library for a while but I've been waiting for something like this to jump in.

Is there any good starting tips or things a newb should know before jumping in? The closest thing to this I've played is the original Thief and Deus Ex, and I know those cut way back on RPG elements compared to UU. Trap builds we should worry about? Useless dump stats to avoid?
 
Tater

Tater

Member
Oct 30, 2017
2,596
UW2 was my very first PC game, it completely blew me away and showed me the power of the PC as as platform. Anytime I try to get others excited about it, the controls stand in the way. At the time, the controls were odd but not primitive. Today, it's painful to play the original game with a mouse - this will go a long way towards making the game accessible!

For those who haven't played the games - mouse control worked in a pretty odd manner: You still had a cursor, but the viewport had different areas that corresponded to different directions. So the top 10% of the screen was "run fast", below that was "walk". The sides of the screen corresponded to "turn left/right" at different rates.
 
Aeana

Aeana

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,955
This is really cool. I'll check it out, although I'll probably stick with the original because I'm a curmudgeon set in her ways.
 

Deleted member 2102

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
692
That's great to hear - I've been wanting to give UU a go, but the interface admittedly has been a bit intimidating to me. Anybody have impressions of how well it runs (like bugs and whatnot - not expecting performance to be a problem), and if it's recommended for a first time player?

e: found some impressions. considering the missing features, I might wait until a future revision. Still excited to see that this has made such great progress.
 
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RedSwirl

RedSwirl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,089
lunarwhale said:
That's great to hear - I've been wanting to give UU a go, but the interface admittedly has been a bit intimidating to me. Anybody have impressions of how well it runs (like bugs and whatnot - not expecting performance to be a problem), and if it's recommended for a first time player?

e: found some impressions. considering the missing features, I might wait until a future revision. Still excited to see that this has made such great progress.
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Been messing around a bit. UU1 seems fully playable from what I can tell. Some of the 3D objects (there aren't many) have placeholder textures and the sound isn't all done (the sound is actually from UU2). The most significant thing is that enemy combat AI isn't up to where the DOS version was.

Still, It's already a fun way to play the game, and the game itself is still pretty captivating. This conversion still seems to be in active development though.
 
MekaDragon

MekaDragon

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
183
Awesome and ambitious game. It's hard to believe it was made in 1992, a year before DOOM!

I will try this when I arrive home.
 
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RedSwirl

RedSwirl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,089
Mr. Tibbs said:
Well, I don't know exactly what ambient means in this case, but looking at videos online I can tell the sound effects for water, doors, and combat are all working in the Unity port as they should. I don't think U.U. has a subtle Thief-style soundscape.



If you follow Hank's setup instructions and select "UW1_SB16" as your pick under the music option in the .cfg (with a / at the end), then you should have sounds even if they're hard to hear buried underneath the super dramatic soundtrack.
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CrichtonKicks said:
IIRC from when I replayed UU1 earlier this year for best sound you need to use MT-32 , not Sound Blaster.
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So I guess that's what you lose from using the PSX soundtrack.
 
CrichtonKicks

CrichtonKicks

Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,258
Mr. Tibbs said:
I wonder if the developer will add MT-32 to his sound pack? Right now the only options are Midi, PSX, SB16.
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I'm probably going to get this horribly wrong but I think the Roland sound packs aren't legally available. If I recall, the Munt emulator is legal but getting the actual sound library is kind of like getting the BIOS for console emulation- easily obtained but not legally authorized for distribution.
 
flyinj

flyinj

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,997
It seems whenever UU1 is mentioned anywhere, a lot of people chime in and say that UU2 was the first game they played on PC and they never played the first.

Was there some kind of pack in deal on a popular PC that had UU2 in it? Or maybe it was a sound card pack in?
 
Aeana

Aeana

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,955
Yeah, the hacks add all of the convenience features I could ever really want to the original. Very nice stuff.
 
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RedSwirl

RedSwirl

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Oct 25, 2017
10,089
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Triangulate

Triangulate

Member
Oct 27, 2017
85
RedSwirl said:
That might be preferable if I don't want to play the game in high resolution.

Also, that PSX soundtrack is still dope. To each their own.

Edit: How do you build the new GOG ISO?
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1) Extract the files from game.gog using 7-Zip or other archive program
2) Patch uw.exe using the site you quoted
3) Copy the patched uw.exe file back to its original location in the game.gog extraction folder you created (make sure it's renamed back to uw.exe)
4) Google and download one of the free ISO creation tools and use it to rebuild game.gog

You should be good to go.
 
Dezzy

Dezzy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,438
USA
Where do we get the sound packs for this? Would love the PS1 music.

Also maybe I missed this, but was there an easy way to switch between combat/interact without having to click the buttons on the left side of the screen?
 
Roshin

Roshin

Member
Oct 30, 2017
2,843
Sweden
This sounds great. I'll have to take a look at this. I hope they keep working on Terra Nova, because that would be amazing. :D
 
Triangulate

Triangulate

Member
Oct 27, 2017
85
RedSwirl said:
This is where I get caught up. I can't seem to make a new game.gog that GOG's DOSBOX will accept. It just crashes when I try to launch.
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Sorry, missed this during all the forum upgrade chaos.

Make sure when you're recreating the ISO that the UW (and UW2 if you bought the combo) folder is in the root of game.gog and not inside a folder you created when extracting game.gog.
 
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RedSwirl

RedSwirl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,089
From what I've heard, picking a music pack is a trade-off. The Roland soundtrack is better but drowns out the sound effects. That's what's so cool about the Unity version though -- you can play with the PlayStation soundtrack.

Man, this might be the one RPG I wish the most to get an "Enhanced Edition" like Night Dive did for System Shock. EA's still holding onto the rights though right?
 
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