“Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss is a first-person role-playing video game (RPG) developed by Blue Sky Productions (later Looking Glass Studios) and published by Origin Systems. Released in March 1992, the game is set in the fantasy world of the Ultima series. It takes place inside the Great Stygian Abyss: a large cave system that contains the remnants of a failed utopian civilization. The player assumes the role of the Avatar—the Ultima series' protagonist—and attempts to find and rescue a baron's kidnapped daughter.

Ultima Underworld has been cited as the first role-playing game to feature first-person action in a 3D environment, and it introduced technological innovations such as allowing the player to look up and down. Its design combines simulation elements with concepts from earlier CRPGs, including Wizardry and Dungeon Master, which led the game's designers to call it a "dungeon simulation". As such, the game is non-linear and allows for emergent gameplay.

Ultima Underworld received widespread critical acclaim and sold nearly 500,000 units. The game was later placed on numerous hall of fame lists. It influenced game developers such as Bethesda Softworks and Valve Corporation, and it was an inspiration behind the games Deus Ex and BioShock. The game had a sequel, Labyrinth of Worlds (1993), and a new game in the series, Underworld Ascendant, was released in late 2018.

Gameplay

The player begins the game by creating a character, for whom traits such as gender, class and skills may be selected. Skills range from fighting with an axe, to bartering, to picking locks. By participating in combat, quests and exploration, the character gains experience points. When certain amounts of experience points are accumulated, the character levels up, gaining additional hit points and mana. Experience also allows the player to recite mantras at shrines in the game. Each mantra is a statement—such as "Om Cah"—that increases proficiency in a specific skill when typed. Simple mantras are provided in the game's manual, while more complex ones are hidden throughout the game.^[2] An inventory on the HUD lists the items and weapons currently carried by the player character; capacity is limited by weight.^[5] Players equip items via a paper doll system, wherein items are clicked-and-dragged onto a representation of the player character.

Combat occurs in real-time, and the player character may use both melee and ranged weapons. The player attacks by holding the cursor over the game screen and clicking, depressing the button longer to inflict greater damage.^[2] Some weapons allow for different types of attacks depending on where the cursor is held; for example, clicking near the bottom of the screen may result in a jab, while clicking in the middle produces a slash.^[2] Simulated dice rolls occur behind the scenes to determine weapon accuracy.^[15] Enemies sometimes try to escape when near death,^[9] and the game's stealth mechanics may occasionally be used to avoid combat altogether.^[17] The player may cast spells by selecting an appropriate combination of runestones. Like mantras, runestones must be found in the game world before use. There are over forty spells, some undocumented;^[18] their effects range from causing earthquakes to allowing the player character to fly.^[2]

The developers intended Ultima Underworld to be a realistic and interactive "dungeon simulation", rather than a straightforward role-playing game. For example, many objects in the game have no actual use,^[7] while a lit torch may be used on corn to create popcorn.^[3] Weapons deteriorate with use, and the player character must eat and rest; light sources burn out unless extinguished before sleeping.^[2] A physics system allows, among other things, for items to bounce when thrown against surfaces.^[9]^[15] The game contains non-player characters (NPCs) with whom the player may interact by selecting dialogue choices from a menu. Most NPCs have possessions, and are willing to trade them.^[2] The game was designed to give players "a palette of strategies" with which to approach situations, and its simulation systems allow for emergent gameplay.^[4]^[27]

Plot

Setting

Story

Before the beginning of the game, the Abyss-dwelling wizard brothers Garamon and Tyball accidentally summon a demon, the Slasher of Veils, while experimenting with inter-dimensional travel. Garamon is used as bait to lure the demon into a room imbued with virtue. However, the demon offers Tyball great power if he betrays Garamon. Tyball agrees, but the betrayal fails; Garamon is killed, but seals the demon inside the room. Because he lacks virtue, Tyball cannot re-enter by himself, and plans to sacrifice Baron Almric's daughter, Arial, at the doorway to gain entrance.^[6]

In the game's introduction, the ghost of Garamon haunts the Avatar's dreams with warnings of a great danger in Britannia.^[33] The Avatar allows Garamon to take him there,^[7] where he watches Tyball kidnap Arial. Tyball escapes, leaving the Avatar to be caught by the Baron's guards.^[8] The guards take him to the Baron, who banishes him to the Great Stygian Abyss to rescue Arial.^[9] After the introduction, the Avatar explores the dungeon and finds remnants of Cabirus's colony.^[2] A few possible scenarios include deciding the fate of two warring goblin tribes, learning a language, and playing an instrument to complete a quest.^[3]^[33] The Avatar eventually defeats Tyball and frees Arial.^[6]^[10]

However, as he dies, Tyball reveals that he had decided to contain the Slasher of Veils, whose prison he had been weakening, within Arial as a way to prevent it from destroying the world. Arial asks the Avatar to prevent the Slasher of Veils from being unleashed, and magically teleports back to the surface to evacuate its inhabitants. With help from Garamon's ghost, the Avatar gathers the eight talismans of Cabirus and throws them in the volcano at the base of the Abyss; the energy they release allows Garamon to open a portal that will send the Slasher of Veils into another dimension. The Avatar is sucked through the portal into a chaotic alternate dimension, but escapes back to the Isle of the Avatar and makes it on board the Baron's ship as the volcano erupts. As the game ends, Garamon's spirit reveals that he teleported the inhabitants of the Abyss to another cave.

Development

Neurath had enjoyed role-playing video games like Wizardry, but found that their simple, abstract visuals were an obstacle to the suspension of disbelief.^[47] He believed that Dungeon Master's detailed first-person presentation was a "glimpse into the future", and he sought to create a fantasy role-playing game that built on its example.^[47] In early 1990, Neurath wrote a design document for a game titled Underworld,^[11] which described such elements as "goblins on the prows of rowboats tossed in the waves, shooting arrows at the player above on a rope bridge swinging in the wind."^[50] He contracted former Origin employee Doug Wike to create concept art.^[47] Wike created a brief, hand-drawn animation with Deluxe Paint Animation, which depicted the game's interface and a creature moving toward the player. The animation defined the game's direction,^[15]^[50] and it was used as a reference point for the game's tone and features throughout development.^[12]^[13] That spring, Neurath founded the company Blue Sky Productions in Salem, New Hampshire, with the intention to create Underworld.^[47] Among the company's first employees was Doug Church, who was studying at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).^[47] The team was thus composed of Doug Church as programmer, Doug Wike as lead artist and Paul Neurath as lead designer.^[27] Development began in May 1990.^[13]

An early difficulty was the implementation of texture mapping. Neurath had experimented unsuccessfully with the concept on an Apple II computer in the late 1980s, but he believed that the more powerful IBM PCs of the time might be able to process it. He contacted Lerner Research programmer Chris Green—an acquaintance from his past work with Ned Lerner—who created a working algorithm.^[11]^[47]^[62] Using the Space Rogue engine, Green's algorithm, assembly code from Lerner Research's Car and Driver and original programming, the Blue Sky team completed a prototype of Underworld after roughly a month of work.^[12]^[27]^[47]^[62] Neurath described the prototype as "fast, smooth, and [featuring] true texture mapped walls, though the ceiling and floor were flat shaded and the corridors and rooms were all 10' [3.0 m] high—it looked a lot like Wolfenstein-3D in fact."^[14] The team demonstrated it at the June 1990 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and impressed Origin Systems.^[27]^[47]^[50]^[15] Origin producer Warren Spector later said, "I remember Paul showing me that demo ... at CES and being totally floored by it. None of us had ever seen anything like it."^[15] The two companies reached a publishing agreement that summer, and Origin suggested that the game be reworked to fit into the Ultima universe.^[27]^[47] The team agreed, and the game was renamed Ultima Underworld.^[47] While Spector had hoped to produce the game, he was not assigned to the role;^[50]^[15] and he later said that he "sort of watched [the other producer] jealously from the sidelines."^[50]

After the game was renamed, Doug Church recruited Dan Schmidt, a college friend who had just graduated from MIT, as a programmer.^[16] The team abandoned the Space Rogue engine and created a new one that could display a believable 3D world—one with varying heights and texture-mapped floors and ceilings.^[14] Church estimated that the first year of production was dedicated to creating the game's technological base.^[12] However, Neurath stated that the team spent "comparatively little" time on the game's technology, and that "most was spent working on game features, mechanics, and world building".^[14] Their ultimate goal was to create the "finest dungeon game, a game that was tangibly better than any of the long line of dungeon games that came before it."^[14] Each member of the small team assumed multiple roles; for example, the game's first two levels were designed by Paul Neurath, while the rest were built by artists, designers and programmers.^[47] According to Schmidt, Neurath contracted a writer to create the game's story and dialogue, but the relationship was a "mismatch"; and so the team decided to write the plot themselves.^[16] Alongside his programming work, Church co-wrote the game's story with Dan Schmidt, and he gradually took on project leader responsibilities.^[12]^[50]^[15] Writing duties for each level were given to the person who created that level; Schmidt's role was to edit the dialogue of each level to fit with that of the others.^[16] Schmidt also created the game's sound effects, which were synthesized—no recorded sounds were used—in a graphical sound editor.^[16] Neurath, who Church said was "very day to day at the beginning of the project", became more involved with the company's business and finances.^[12]

Church explained that the core of the project was its "dynamic creation". He noted that the team had "no set of rules ... or pre-written plan", but rather worked organically toward the general idea of creating a "dungeon simulation".^[14] Church believed that the game's Ultima series heritage was extremely helpful, as it gave the team an anchor for their experiments.^[12] According to Church, because the team was young and inexperienced, they were "improvising almost the whole time".^[50] He said that they would "just write something" that seemed interesting, but would then "get it half done, and we'd say, 'Eh? That's not working.'" He believed that this iterative method was useful overall, but that it entailed an abnormally large workload:^[12] it resulted in the creation of "four movement systems before we were done, several combat systems, and so forth".^[50] Certain failed experiments meant that the team created "[AI] code for many ideas which turned out to be largely irrelevant to the actual gameplay".^[11]

During the first year of the game's development, Church believed that Origin had little faith in the team's ability to complete the game. He later said, "They didn't pay any attention at all, frankly."^[12] While Origin CEO Richard Garriott helped the team in fitting the game into the Ultima franchise,^[47] Warren Spector later said that the company seemed "blasé" about Ultima Underworld "for the first several months after ORIGIN and Blue Sky signed the deal", despite his own belief that it was a "change-the-world project".^[15] Neurath opined that this was due to the team's status as outsiders, whose company was "some 1,500 miles distant" from their publisher.^[27] The team was advanced $30,000 to create the game, but its final cost was $400,000.^[47] The game was funded partly by Ned Lerner, and by Neurath's royalties from Space Rogue. Throughout the game's production, the studio was run on a tight budget.^[47]

Roughly a year into development, the team discovered that their second producer—the first having quit Origin near the beginning of development—had left the project.^[27]^[47]^[15] Neurath later said that "neither [producer] had much involvement" in the game,^[47] and that, following the second's departure, the team spent time without any producer at all.^[27] Rumors circulated that Origin planned to cancel the project.^[47] Following a proposal by the team around this time, Spector, who had previously worked with Neurath on Space Rogue, assumed the role of producer. Church later described this event as "a big win for everyone".^[27]^[47]^[15] Spector began to interact regularly with the team by phone and to visit the studio in person.^[12]^[17] Neurath later said, "Warren understood immediately what we were trying to accomplish with the game, and became our biggest champion within Origin. Had not Warren stepped in this role at that stage, I'm not sure Ultima Underworld would have ever seen the light of day."^[47] Church said that Spector helped the team polish the game and "make it real", and that Spector's past experience in the industry enabled him to keep the team focused on completing the game. He explained that Spector "had that ability to help me and the rest of the guys reset, from the big-picture view of someone who has done it before."^[12]

The final four months of the game's development constituted "crunch time".^[47]^[13] During this period, Neurath rented an extremely small basement office space in a Somerville, Massachusetts social services building: he sought to circumvent the long commute that several team members had been making from Massachusetts.^[27]^[47]^[13] Furniture consisted of inexpensive folding tables and "uncomfortable red deck chairs".^[27]^[47]^[13] Development took place during the winter, but the room was drafty and poorly heated.^[27]^[13] The team hired college friends such as Marc LeBlanc to bug test the game,^[18] and Spector stayed at the studio for roughly a month and a half, according to Church.^[13] Spector later said that "in that little office, that team created some serious magic. I mean, the sense of doing something incredible was palpable".^[27] Neurath summarized, "Despite the austere working environment, the game came together amazingly well in the final stretch, and we delivered the Gold Master just about two years after we had started."^[47] The game was released in March 1992.^[14]

Technology

Reception

The game was also well received by non-English publications. The Swedish Datormagazin considered the game to be "in a class by itself".^[34] In Germany, Power Play praised its "technical perfection" and "excellent" story,^[35] while Play Time lauded its graphical and aural presentation, and awarded it Game of the Month.^[19] Finland's Pelit stated, "Ultima Underworld is something totally new in the CRPG field. The Virtual Fantasy of the Abyss left reviewers speechless."^[36]

Ultima Underworld was inducted into many hall of fame lists, including those compiled by GameSpy, IGN and Computer Gaming World.^[37]^[38]^[39]^[40] PC Gamer US ranked the game and its sequel 20th on their 1997 The 50 Best Games Ever list, citing "strong character interaction, thoughtful puzzles, unprecedented control, and genuine roleplaying in ways that have yet to be duplicated".^[41] In 2004, readers of Retro Gamer voted Ultima Underworld as the 62nd top retro game: the staff called it "easily one of the best entries in the long-running Ultima series."^[42] {{Clear}}

In 1998, PC Gamer declared it the 18th-best computer game ever released, and the editors called it "Light-years ahead of their time, and still regarded as some of the best roleplaying games ever created".^[43]

Legacy

Despite the technology developed for Ultima Underworld, Origin opted to continue using traditional top-down, 2D graphics for future mainline Ultima games.^[213] The engine was re-used and enhanced for Ultima Underworld{{'}}s 1993 sequel, Labyrinth of Worlds.^[14] Looking Glass Studios planned to create a third Ultima Underworld, but Origin rejected their pitches.^[11] After Electronic Arts (EA) rejected Arkane Studios' pitch for Ultima Underworld III, the studio instead created a spiritual successor: Arx Fatalis.^[62]

In the early 2000s, Paul Neurath approached EA to discuss a port of Ultima Underworld to the Pocket PC. EA rejected the suggestion, but allowed him to look for possible developers; Neurath found that ZIO Interactive enthusiastically supported the idea, and EA eventually licensed the rights to the company. Doug Church and Floodgate Entertainment assisted with portions of its Pocket PC development,^[63] and the port was released in 2002.^[64]

In 2015, Otherside Entertainment, a new developer founded by Paul Neurath and other Looking Glass and Irrational veterans, announced a new entry in the series, entitled Underworld Ascendant. The new title is an officially licensed part of the series set in the Stygian Abyss, but this licensing agreement does not extend to the Ultima name or greater IP, effectively orphaning Underworld from the Ultima series.^[65]

References

1. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.gog.com/en/forum/general/new_release_ultima_underworld_1_2|archive-url=https://archive.is/20130124140658/http://www.gog.com/en/forum/general/new_release_ultima_underworld_1_2|dead-url=yes|archive-date=January 24, 2013|title=New Release: Ultima Underworld 1+2|author=Galimatias|date=June 2, 2011|publisher=GOG.com|accessdate=29 July 2012}}
2. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶{{cite book | publisher=Origin Systems | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss Player's Guide | year=1992 }}
3. ^¹²{{cite web | url=http://archive.gamespy.com/halloffame/july01/underworld/ | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071227093131/http://archive.gamespy.com/halloffame/july01/underworld/ | title=Hall Of Fame: Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | archivedate=December 27, 2007 | last=Carlson | first=Rich | publisher=GameSpy | accessdate=February 15, 2009 }}
4. ^¹{{cite book | publisher=Origin Systems | year=1993 | title=Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds Manual }}
5. ^¹{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/19990430054541/http://www.gamespot.com/features/ultima/18.html |url=http://www.gamespot.com/features/ultima/18.html |archivedate=April 30, 1999 |title=The Ultima Legacy |publisher=GameSpot |accessdate=March 9, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
6. ^¹{{cite book | last=Allston | first=Aaron | title=Ultima Underworld Clue Book: Mysteries of the Abyss | year=1992 | publisher=Origin Systems | isbn=0-929373-08-1 }}
7. ^{{cite video game | developer=Looking Glass Studios | publisher=Origin Systems | date=1992 | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | quote=Ghost: Treachery and doom! My brother will unleash a great evil. Britannia is in peril! / Narrator: Sure that the ghost can take you to Britannia, you allow yourself to be drawn to him.}}
8. ^{{cite video game | developer=Looking Glass Studios | publisher=Origin Systems | date=1992 | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | quote=Tyball: No matter, thou shalt serve to draw the hounds from the scent. / Narrator: Below a creature heads toward the dark woods, a thrashing sack slung over its massive shoulder.}}
9. ^{{cite video game | developer=Looking Glass Studios | publisher=Origin Systems | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | date=1992 | quote=Baron Almric: If thou art truly the Avatar, then perhaps thou canst offer hope. None here can survive the Stygian Abyss and rescue Ariel. My mind is set! Corwin shall take thee to the Abyss. Return here with my daughter and thy innocence shall be proven. If thou dost not return, Avatar, then thy lie shall have brought thee low.}}
10. ^{{cite video game | developer=Looking Glass Studios | publisher=Origin Systems | date=1992 | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | quote=Baron Almric: Thou hast earned my gratitude and more. Were it not for thee, my daughter tells me we would have lost more than her delightful company.}}
11. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸{{cite web | url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=28003 | title=Feature: Games that changed the world: Ultima Underworld | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071212192612/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=28003 | date=April 16, 2002 | archivedate=December 12, 2007 | work=Computer and Video Games | last=Mallinson | first=Paul | accessdate=February 10, 2009 }}
12. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹¹⁰¹¹¹²¹³¹⁴¹⁵{{cite book | last=Rouse III | first=Richard | title=Game Design: Theory & Practice Second Edition | publisher=Wordware Publishing | at=500-531 | year=2005 | isbn=1-55622-912-7 }}
13. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20030908171031/http://www.cdmag.com/articles/025/191/dougc_interview.html |url=http://www.cdmag.com/articles/025/191/dougc_interview.html |title=The Tracks of His Games |date=January 30, 2000 |last=Bauman |first=Steve |work=Computer Games Magazine |archivedate=September 8, 2003 |accessdate=November 2, 2010 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
14. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹¹⁰¹¹{{cite web | url=http://www.ttlg.com/articles/UW2int2.asp | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419201423/http://www.ttlg.com/articles/UW2int2.asp | title=An Interview With Looking Glass Technologies | publisher=Game Bytes | archivedate=April 19, 2013 | year=1992 | accessdate=February 15, 2009 }}
15. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20011211122730/http://www.pcgamer.com/eyewitness/eyewitness_2001-08-08a.html |url=http://www.pcgamer.com/eyewitness/eyewitness_2001-08-08a.html |title=Warren Spector / Doug Church Interview |work=PC Gamer US |date=October 2001 |archivedate=December 11, 2001 |accessdate=November 14, 2010 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
16. ^¹²³{{cite web | last=Weise | first=Matthew | date=March 21, 2011 | title=Looking Glass Studios Interview Series - Audio Podcast 2 - Dan Schmidt | url=http://gambit.mit.edu/updates/2011/03/looking_glass_studios_intervie_1.php | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327055922/http://gambit.mit.edu/updates/2011/03/looking_glass_studios_intervie_1.php | archivedate=March 27, 2014 | publisher=Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab }}
17. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸{{cite book | last=Hallford | first=Jana | title = Swords & Circuitry: A Designer's Guide To Computer Role-Playing Games | publisher= Cengage Learning | at = 61–63 | date = June 7, 2001 | isbn = 0-7615-3299-4 }}
18. ^{{cite web | last=Weise | first=Matthew | date=November 10, 2011 | title=Looking Glass Studios Interview Series - Audio Podcast 8 - Marc "Mahk" LeBlanc | url=http://gambit.mit.edu/updates/2011/11/podcast-marcleblanc.php | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101185510/http://gambit.mit.edu/updates/2011/11/podcast-marcleblanc.php | archivedate=November 1, 2013 | publisher=Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab }}
19. ^¹²³⁴{{cite journal |author1=Geltenpoth, Alexander |author2=Menne, Oliver |date=June 1992 | title=Ultima Underworld | journal=Play Time | at=20, 21 }}
20. ^{{cite web|url=//www.allgame.com/game.php?id=930&tab=review |title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss - Review |website=AllGame |accessdate=June 28, 2016 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141116040105/http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=930&tab=review |archivedate=November 16, 2014 |df= }}
21. ^Mega Zone, issue 23 (August–September 1992), pages 52-53
22. ^Svenska Hemdatornytt, Vol. 1992, No. 5 (May 1992), page 40
23. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹¹⁰¹¹¹²¹³¹⁴¹⁵¹⁶¹⁷¹⁸¹⁹²⁰²¹²²²³²⁴{{cite web | url=http://www.ttlg.com/articles/uw2.asp | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613054540/http://www.ttlg.com/articles/uw2.asp | title=The Story of Ultima Underworld | last=Neurath | first=Paul | date=June 23, 2000 | archivedate=June 13, 2011 | publisher=Through the Looking Glass | accessdate=February 12, 2009 }}
24. ^¹{{cite web | url=http://www.originsgamefair.com/awards/1992 | title=1992 List of Winners | publisher=Origins Game Fair | accessdate=February 26, 2009 | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080507063623/http://www.originsgamefair.com/awards/1992| archivedate = May 7, 2008}}
25. ^{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=108 | title=The 7th International Computer Game Developers Conference | work=Computer Gaming World | date=July 1993 | accessdate=12 July 2014 | pages=34}}
26. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹{{cite journal | author=Upchurch, David |date=April 1992 | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | journal=ACE | issue=55 | at=36–41 }}
27. ^¹²³{{cite journal |last1=Lesser|last2=Lesser|last3=Lesser|first1=Hartley|first2=Patricia|first3=Kirk|lastauthoramp=yes |date=November 1992 | title=The Role of Computers | journal=Dragon Magazine | issue=187 | at=62–63 | url=http://annarchive.com/files/Drmg187.pdf}}
28. ^¹²³{{cite journal | last=Greenberg | first=Allen |date=July 1992 | title=Abyssmal Perspective | journal=Computer Gaming World | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1992&pub=2&id=96 | issue=96 | at=42–44 }}
29. ^{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1992&pub=2&id=96 | title=Scorpion's Tale | work=Computer Gaming World | date=July 1992 | accessdate=25 November 2013 | author=Scorpia | pages=106}}
30. ^{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=111 | title=Scorpia's Magic Scroll Of Games | work=Computer Gaming World | date=October 1993 | accessdate=25 March 2016 | author=Scorpia | pages=34–50}}
31. ^{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1992&pub=2&id=100 | title=CGW Salutes The Games of the Year | work=Computer Gaming World | date=November 1992 | accessdate=4 July 2014 | pages=110}}
32. ^¹{{cite journal | last=Freund | first=Jim | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss | date=August 1, 1992 | journal=Computer Shopper }}
33. ^¹{{cite news | first=Dennis | last=Lynch | title=Winners and worsts From Corn Gods to Bart Simpson, a look back | url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24318432.html?dids=24318432:24318432&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Jan+29%2C+1993&author=Dennis+Lynch.&pub=Chicago+Tribune+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=Winners+and+worsts+From+Corn+Gods+to+Bart+Simpson%2C+a+look+back&pqatl=google | work=Chicago Tribune | date=January 29, 1993 | at=59 | accessdate=March 17, 2009 }}
34. ^¹{{cite journal | last=Fröjdh | first=Göran |date=May 1992 | title=Tjuvtitten Ultima Underworld | journal=Datormagazin | at=66 }}
35. ^¹²{{cite journal |date=June 1992 | title=Das ultimative Dungeon | last=Hengst | first=Michael | journal=Power Play }}
36. ^¹{{cite journal|last=Nirvi|first=Niko|title=Virtuualifantasian mestarinäyte|work=Pelit|at=22-24|date=April 1992|issn=1235-1199|language=fi}}
37. ^¹²³⁴{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070108183511/http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july01/top505/ |url=http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/july01/top505/ |title=GameSpy's Top 50 Games of All Time |publisher=GameSpy |author=The GameSpy Staff |archivedate=January 8, 2007 |accessdate=February 15, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
38. ^{{cite web | url=http://pc.ign.com/articles/082/082486p1.html | title=The Top 25 PC Games of All Time | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20020613022434/http://pc.ign.com/articles/082/082486p1.html | date=July 24, 2000 | archivedate=June 13, 2002 | publisher=IGN | accessdate=March 6, 2009 }}
39. ^{{cite web |url=http://top100.ign.com/2005/091-100.html |title=IGN's Top 100 Games (2005) | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20050805011731/http://top100.ign.com/2005/091-100.html | work=IGN | archivedate=August 5, 2005 | accessdate=February 9, 2009 }}
40. ^{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1996&pub=2&id=148 | title=150 Best Games of All Time | work=Computer Gaming World | date=November 1996 | accessdate=25 March 2016 | pages=64–80}}
41. ^{{cite journal | title=The 50 Best Games Ever | journal=PC Gamer US |date=May 1997 }}
42. ^Retro Gamer 8, page 67.
43. ^{{cite journal | author=The PC Gamer Editors | title=The 50 Best Games Ever | date=October 1998 | volume=5 | number=10 | journal=PC Gamer US | pages=86, 87, 89, 90, 92, 98, 101, 102, 109, 110, 113, 114, 117, 118, 125, 126, 129, 130 }}
44. ^¹²³{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060629172105/http://gamasutra.com/features/20060425/shahrani_01.shtml |url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/2674/educational_feature_a_history_and_.php?page=1 |title=Educational Feature: A History and Analysis of Level Design in 3D Computer Games (Part 1) |date=April 25, 2006 |archivedate=June 29, 2006 |publisher=Gamasutra |author=Shahrani, Sam |accessdate=February 10, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
45. ^{{cite magazine |title=Next Generation's Top 10 Online Game Picks |magazine=Next Generation|issue=27|publisher=Imagine Media |date=March 1997|page=41}}
46. ^{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=102 | title=A Technological Breakthrough in 3-D Action Fantasy! | work=Computer Gaming World | date=January 1993 | accessdate=5 July 2014 | pages=63 | type=advertisement}}
47. ^¹²³⁴{{cite book | publisher=Origin Systems | year=1992 | title=Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss Manual }}
48. ^{{cite book | last=Brandon | first=Alexander | title = Audio for Games: Planning, Process and Production | publisher= New Riders Games | at = 88 | year = 2004 | isbn = 0-7357-1413-4 }}
49. ^{{cite web | url = http://www.glixel.com/news/the-makers-of-ultima-underworld-return-to-their-roots-w456304 | title = How the Makers of 'System Shock' and 'Ultima Underworld' Rediscovered Their Roots | first = Alex | last = Wiltshire | date =December 15, 2016 | accessdate = April 17, 2017 | work = Glixel }}
50. ^{{cite journal | url=http://www.eludamos.org/index.php/eludamos/article/view/27/40 | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080306020123/http://www.eludamos.org/index.php/eludamos/article/view/27/40 | title=Bioshock: A Critical Historical Perspective | last=Weise | first=Matthew Jason | date=February 29, 2008 | archivedate=March 6, 2008 | work=Eludamos. Journal for Computer Game Culture | volume=2 | issue=1 | oclc=220219478 | at=151–155 | accessdate=March 8, 2009 }}
51. ^{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/2008/12/03/ken-levine-bioshock-tech-personal-cx_mji_1203levine.html | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225110906/http://www.forbes.com/2008/12/03/ken-levine-bioshock-tech-personal-cx_mji_1203levine.html | archivedate=February 25, 2009 | title='Games Are The Convergence Of Everything' | last=Irwin | first=Mary Jane | date=December 3, 2008 | publisher=Forbes | accessdate=March 17, 2009 }}
52. ^{{cite web | archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5tw4lmBm8?url=http://www.pcworld.com/article/154948/bioshock_creator_says_games_are_the_convergence_of_everything.html | url=http://www.pcworld.com/article/154948/bioshock_creator_says_games_are_the_convergence_of_everything.html | title=BioShock Creator Says Games are the Convergence of Everything | last=Peckham | first=Matt | work=PC World | date=December 4, 2008 | archivedate=November 2, 2010 | accessdate=November 2, 2010 }}
53. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1532185/20060519/story.jhtml |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5tw661laO?url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1532185/20060519/story.jhtml |title=Gaming Roundtable Considers Bloody Monsters |last=Totilo |first=Stephen |date=May 22, 2006 |archivedate=November 2, 2010 |publisher=MTV |accessdate=March 6, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
54. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.elderscrolls.com/tenth_anniv/tenth_anniv-arena.htm | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071211032310/http://www.elderscrolls.com/tenth_anniv/tenth_anniv-arena.htm | title=Arena: Behind the Scenes | archivedate=December 11, 2007 | accessdate=2007-09-28 |publisher=Bethesda Softworks}}
55. ^{{cite web|date=August 4, 2000 |url=http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=337 |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5tphjNSo1?url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/warrens2 |archivedate=October 29, 2010 |title=Warren Spector of Ion Storm (Part Two) |work=Eurogamer |accessdate=March 6, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
56. ^{{cite web | url=http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/440/440693p1.html | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20031119071038/http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/440/440693p1.html | archivedate=November 19, 2003 | title=Deus Ex: Invisible War Interview, Part 1 | last=Aihoshi | first=Richard | date=November 17, 2003 | publisher=IGN | accessdate=March 6, 2009 }}
57. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-designer-diary-3/1100-6085643/ |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/6OsvEUZnW?url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/vampire-the-masquerade-bloodlines-designer-diary-3/1100-6085643/ |title=Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines Designer Diary #3 |last=Boyarsky |first=Leonard |archivedate=April 16, 2014 |date=December 13, 2003 |publisher=GameSpot |deadurl=yes |df= }}
58. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/i_e3valvesoftware_pc |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5tw7V8rXy?url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/i_e3valvesoftware_pc |title=Half-Life 2 - Valve speaks to Eurogamer |last=Reed |first=Kristan |date=May 12, 2004 |archivedate=November 2, 2010 |publisher=Eurogamer |accessdate=March 6, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
59. ^{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1410480.stm | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040717173949/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1410480.stm | title=Q&A: The man who made Lara | date=June 28, 2001 | archivedate=July 17, 2004 | last=Gibbon | first=Dave | publisher=BBC | accessdate=March 6, 2009 }}
60. ^{{cite book | last=Kushner | first=David | title=Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created An Empire And Transformed Pop Culture | publisher=Random House | at=89 | year=2003 | isbn=0-375-50524-5 }}
61. ^¹{{cite web | url=http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2003/05/05/doom/index.html | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307094756/http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2003/05/05/doom/index.html | title=Masters of "Doom" | last=James Au | first=Wagner | archivedate=March 7, 2008 | date=May 5, 2003 | publisher=Salon.com | accessdate=March 9, 2009 }}
62. ^{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/arxfatalis/news.html?sid=2856384&mode=previews |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5tw8kwxgf?url=http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/arxfatalis/news.html?sid=2856384&mode=previews&print=1 |title=Arx Fatalis Preview |archivedate=November 2, 2010 |date=March 20, 2002 |publisher=GameSpot |author=Todd, Brett |accessdate=February 9, 2009 |deadurl=yes |df= }}
63. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹¹⁰¹¹¹²¹³¹⁴¹⁵¹⁶¹⁷¹⁸¹⁹²⁰{{cite web | url=http://www.mallo.co.uk/ultima/index.htm | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100721001230/http://www.mallo.co.uk/ultima/index.htm | title=Games That Changed The World Supplemental Material | archivedate=July 21, 2010 | last=Mallinson | first=Paul | publisher=PC Zone | accessdate=March 9, 2009 }}
64. ^¹{{cite web | url=http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20070411/barton_02.shtml | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228013236/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1571/the_history_of_computer_.php | title=The History of Computer Role-Playing Games Part III: The Platinum and Modern Ages (1994-2004) | last=Barton | first=Matt | archivedate=December 28, 2007 | date=April 11, 2007 | publisher=Gamasutra | accessdate=March 7, 2009 }}
65. ^{{cite web | url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/othersidegames/underworld-ascendant/description | title=Underworld Ascendant | accessdate=March 22, 2016 }}