@@rikk319 Oh man I feel your pain. After a few years of playing, my buddy and I finally got to the bottom of the Stygian Abyss. The whole game, the order of 1-Truth, 2-Love, 3-Courage (and all things associated with them) had NEVER changed. So when it came to those 3 questions, I thought we were being tricked, so I overruled my friend and tried outsmarting the game. Nope.
I spent about two years playing this game when it came out. I created a map of the entire world using a dot matrix printer. I had a journal of every character I would encounter with conversations and key words. This game and music was my life. If only I spend that much time on schoolwork or sports or other hobbies....... haha
That jaunty, powerful main theme playing when roaming Brittania...still makes me want to grab my xbow and magic wand and go stomp some orcs and ettins.
I grew up playing this game. Never did finish it cause I just had fun going around doing everything I shouldn't, but the music has stuck with me all these years. I'll still hum or whistle a tune from the game every now and then.
Ahh yes. This is the machine I first played Ultima 4 on way back in 1985. I played Ultima 5 on the Commodore 128 in 1988 and it had an awesome soundtrack with 16 tunes. This brings back great memories 👍
I played many hours with this on my C64 and quit once because I couldn't figure out the rune of Sacrifice (give blood or alms for the poor I think?). But I went back to it, figured it out and made it to the end. Felt great to make it to the end as the Avatar. Classic intro for a classic game.
I wish I go back and experience it over again. I had no book so no clue what I was doing for months. Then I happened upon a gaming magazine that had a write up on it and the game just clicked after that. I played and beat all of the Ultimas. Wish they would make new ones,
24 hour marathons of Ultima... The sun rises in the East, moments later I look out the other window, and the sun sets in the West... The soundtrack of my youth.
I originally played through Ultima IV on the Atari 800xl. After playing Ultima III on my 800xl and LOVING that music, I was immensely disappointed that it had no music. I later bought a C64c, and since I knew that version of U4 had music, I bought that version and played through again....MAN was I pleasantly surprised at that music! More nuanced than the U3 soundtrack, I fell in love all again. When Ultima V came out...cursed again! No music for my poor C64c...only the C128 had the music. Alas...I never did get to play that version.
SID was pretty good at emulating classical instruments and folk music. The sawtooth wave gives nice warmth and the triangular wave can do decent flute sounds.
The music really set the atmosphere for this game. Made you feel like everyone in the town had depression and felt hopeless, and the dungeons had a feeling of despair and loneliness. Then the adventuring music was awesome! The castle song even made the castle somehow seem bigger.
I was interviewed by a radio station (work thing) a few weeks ago and the host asked me as an aside my favorite XMas video game of all time. I told him Ultima IV. Such beautiful memories playing this game days at a time on my C64, ‘twas December 1984 and I had just turned 12. Of course, the host had no idea what this game was. Millennials 🤷♂️
+sluggotg Just to clarify.. I was not trying to be a dick, I meant that I do reviews often times under the influence of booze.... so the "Wasted" comment was about that.. But it is a SID chip.Sluggo
The soundtrack for this game is a marvel on the SID. I wish there were more games with a dynamic soundtrack like this on the C64, I recall most games having just 1 or 2 tracks but this game's expansive discography makes it seem so much more modern.
Chris Tomoko , I don't wear my Ankh butI still have mine, and the cloth map and the books. it should go without saying, I also have my my disks and my C=64
Strange that the opening song sounds different than the Apple ][ version in timing of the lead with the background chords. Anyway, the SID chip definitely sounds better than the AY in the Mockingboard per voice (since it can do much more with each waveform or what have you), but with the Mockingboard there are just more sheer voices to work with (6 vs 3 i guess or 8/12 with Ultima V and 2 Mockingboards or a Phasor).
Had the Atari 800 only. So weird seeing music on this game especially with such similar graphics. I guess they just didn't want to deal with the Pokey sound chip limitations, or ran out of memory or time on the Atari 800?
I still say that the Apple ][ version has better music, and yes: I do like the Commodore 64. What I don't like is that they didn't bother putting music into the Atari 8-Bit version.
It's probably because the SID's sawtooth waveform was used for everything. Had they used pulse, the C64 soundtrack would have sounded a lot like the original Apple II Mockingboard soundtrack. The best case would have been to use multiple waveforms with filters--using the SID to its full potential--but that's definitely not what they did, unfortunately.
@@rbrtck I have seen Apple and Commie fanboys having this war before, so I listened to this recording vs this one th-cam.com/video/hGvTKvp4pHA/w-d-xo.html So, while I can hear the Apple aftermarket card has a couple more voices in there, they don't sound as "riveting" as the sound from the C64 onboard SID chip. The SID definitely sounds a lot more gripping and intense, and I feel a lot more listening to this version compared to the Apple II version. So I cannot agree with you guys here, and being a TI99-4a user, I don't even have a dog in the race. The Commodore just had a great sound chip, made by a bunch of audiophiles, and it shows. I remember when I first heard sound tracks like those from the Last Ninja games on the C64, I was blown away. They got lucky with this thing, that's for sure.
@@greggregson9687 In terms of which set of soundtracks I prefer subjectively, it's probably impossible for me to be unbiased, because the C64/C128 soundtracks are the only ones I had heard and played back in the day, and are an indelible part of my childhood. I also played these games with classmates on Apple IIe computers with color monitors during lunch (I was lucky enough to attend a math/science/computer "magnet" school), but none of them had sound cards. So for me, the Commodore soundtracks for _Ultima III-V_ are definitive. On the other hand, as a matter of principle I generally consider original soundtracks to be definitive, and this case they're a bit less grating on the ears, as well, so I'm conflicted. I do agree with you that the Commodore soundtracks are "punchier" along with the adjectives you used, though, which makes me wonder whether the original Apple soundtracks are truly definitive, or based on the limitations of the programmer and the hardware itself. It would have been trivial to make the Commodore version sound just like the Apple version (with the occasional missing sound), but impossible to make the Apple version sound like the Commodore version. So is the Commodore version really closer what the composer wanted, but just couldn't get out of the Apple Mockingboard/Phasor? If not, then why was the sound changed so drastically? Who knows, maybe in this way the Commodore soundtracks are the definitive ones. I suppose only the composer, Kenneth Arnold, would know.
@@greggregson9687 Regarding the SID, it is either the fullest or the only example I know of of a classic subtractive analog synth on a chip integrated into a personal/home/microcomputer. Arcade tone/effect generators came earlier and FM synth chips came later, but the SID and therefore the C64/C128 are unique regarding computer music. That said, don't underestimate the Atari 8-bits' POKEY, which is surprisingly versatile for what it is. Here is a good attempt at playing the _Last Ninja_ soundtrack on it: th-cam.com/video/-nsctVKGFUI/w-d-xo.html This is a nice example that puts both the POKEY's musical capabilities and limitations (in comparison to the SID) on display.
The original Apple II soundtrack is certainly more mellow and laid back, in contrast to the more aggressive, energetic Commodore soundtrack. I'm now wondering, though, which of the two styles the original composer was really going for, especially since the Commodore SID chip was easily capable of sounding like the AY chips in the Mockingboard (just set the waveform to pulse and set the appropriate duty cycle). As for the Atari 8-bit version, I guess they didn't think there were enough 64K 800XLs out there to bother with porting the soundtrack (funny, it doesn't seem like a rare machine, even to acquire today). The 800 only had 48K RAM, which made keeping the soundtrack too difficult or too much work, in their estimation. I was disappointed myself that _Ultima V_ didn't have a soundtrack on the C64 (only on the C128), but by then 64K wasn't enough anymore. We were lucky enough to have the game plus the soundtrack on the C128 and the game without the soundtrack on the C64 at all.
![Jeroen Tel - "After Burner (C64) - Title Theme" [Oscilloscope View]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/mM-IdGE51f8/mqdefault.jpg)
![ILLSLICK - KILLSHOT REMIX [FULL VERSION]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RIK8RrqIAzE/mqdefault.jpg)
Does anyone else experience time travel back to the past when listening to these songs? Ah...to be young again...and an Avatar...
I'm still looking for a moongate :-(
ahhh to spend 8 hours climbing down the abyss only to be told your missing the 3 part key and brought back to the top man those were some brutal times
Worst of all...last question in the Codex room, I put 'eternity' instead of 'infinity'...and back to the beginning.
Crap.
@@rikk319 Oh man I feel your pain. After a few years of playing, my buddy and I finally got to the bottom of the Stygian Abyss. The whole game, the order of 1-Truth, 2-Love, 3-Courage (and all things associated with them) had NEVER changed. So when it came to those 3 questions, I thought we were being tricked, so I overruled my friend and tried outsmarting the game. Nope.
I remember every single note of this music vividly. It’s really amazing to hear it again.
I spent about two years playing this game when it came out.
I created a map of the entire world using a dot matrix printer.
I had a journal of every character I would encounter with conversations and key words.
This game and music was my life.
If only I spend that much time on schoolwork or sports or other hobbies....... haha
I painted a map on a 80x60cm sheet and i used to peer at a gem so often to realize this map. Greetings from germany
@@OlliMax100 Me to
one dislike?! An eighth is lost!
+Steven Duncan Honestly with c64 loading times I'm surprised that dick bothered.
+Steven Duncan tho has lost an eighth
I'm the 265th Liker! That only one dislike is before me and none after me. 😎
Why is it that all this 8 bit music sticks in my head so strongly!? Cool beans though.
@@rbp7ooz255 Maybe 8 bit music ~= primary colours 🤔
That jaunty, powerful main theme playing when roaming Brittania...still makes me want to grab my xbow and magic wand and go stomp some orcs and ettins.
I love that this was recorded off of an actual SID chip. It's exactly as I remember it.
Does anyone still remember the smell of 5.25" FD, the sound it made when loading up, and the excitement of unfolding the map that came with this game?
Upon hearing this, I became a young teenager again for a few moments. Such fond memories. Cheers! 8)
I grew up playing this game. Never did finish it cause I just had fun going around doing everything I shouldn't, but the music has stuck with me all these years. I'll still hum or whistle a tune from the game every now and then.
This may be my favorite sound track in a c64 game - it perfectly sets the mood for the game.
Spent a summer vacation playing and finally beating this thing, great memories
I would let this play as background music in my room waaaaaay back when. Thanks for the memories.
*
Ahh yes. This is the machine I first played Ultima 4 on way back in 1985. I played Ultima 5 on the Commodore 128 in 1988 and it had an awesome soundtrack with 16 tunes. This brings back great memories 👍
WOW, talk about a flashback. Those were great days playing my 1st RPG.
I've played this game on a few platforms and this is still my favourite. I love the warmth of the SID chip.
Warmth! That's the perfect adjective for describing an actual SID vs other platforms or emulators!
this opening song is my favorite of all the Ultima music. the Ultima 6 boot up music is my 2nd favorite.
I played many hours with this on my C64 and quit once because I couldn't figure out the rune of Sacrifice (give blood or alms for the poor I think?). But I went back to it, figured it out and made it to the end. Felt great to make it to the end as the Avatar. Classic intro for a classic game.
I wish I go back and experience it over again. I had no book so no clue what I was doing for months. Then I happened upon a gaming magazine that had a write up on it and the game just clicked after that. I played and beat all of the Ultimas. Wish they would make new ones,
I really wish Kenneth Arnold had done more game soundtracks
Agreed! He is a huge talent. His Ultima music is beautifully composed. I looked him up on Linkedin recently.
Played the heck out of this on my C-64 back in the day. Still remember the soundtrack!
Be blessed thou, who put this on You Tube. I miss my 64 sometimes. I also spent (maybe too much of my youth) playing Ultima IV.
24 hour marathons of Ultima... The sun rises in the East, moments later I look out the other window, and the sun sets in the West... The soundtrack of my youth.
Whoa. Major nostalgia flashback.
I originally played through Ultima IV on the Atari 800xl. After playing Ultima III on my 800xl and LOVING that music, I was immensely disappointed that it had no music. I later bought a C64c, and since I knew that version of U4 had music, I bought that version and played through again....MAN was I pleasantly surprised at that music! More nuanced than the U3 soundtrack, I fell in love all again. When Ultima V came out...cursed again! No music for my poor C64c...only the C128 had the music. Alas...I never did get to play that version.
Just play it on VICE in C128 mode. Easy.
AppleWin dev here: Apple ][ forever but I acknowledge the SID chip sounds great! Thanks for archiving an important part of gaming history.
Holy nostalgia! Thanks for posting this!
SID was pretty good at emulating classical instruments and folk music. The sawtooth wave gives nice warmth and the triangular wave can do decent flute sounds.
The music really set the atmosphere for this game. Made you feel like everyone in the town had depression and felt hopeless, and the dungeons had a feeling of despair and loneliness. Then the adventuring music was awesome! The castle song even made the castle somehow seem bigger.
The music for Ultima IV never sounded better than on a C64 SID chip.
Totally Agree ! I also think Ultima 5 on c128 is the best version as well
That's because you haven't heard the Mockingboard version.
@@infinitecanadian I listened to the Mockingboard version, and to me, it is much too sanitised compared to the SID version.
@@greggregson9687 'Rule Britannia' sounds awesome on the Mockingboard.
I prefer the Master System sound personally. Music sounds so rough on this.
I was interviewed by a radio station (work thing) a few weeks ago and the host asked me as an aside my favorite XMas video game of all time. I told him Ultima IV. Such beautiful memories playing this game days at a time on my C64, ‘twas December 1984 and I had just turned 12.
Of course, the host had no idea what this game was. Millennials 🤷♂️
i never got into this game, started at Ultima 5, recently went back to play 3 and 4, they are great, this music brings me back
The c64 music is imo the best...something I can't explain...
I miss this music so much
From the actual CID chip, nice!
Obviously you do reviews wasted too.. It is SID chip, (Sound Interface Device). Yes I know who CID is :),
Sluggo
+sluggotg Just to clarify.. I was not trying to be a dick, I meant that I do reviews often times under the influence of booze.... so the "Wasted" comment was about that.. But it is a SID chip.Sluggo
Sid Chip. but yep. this is the original
When it comes to music Steve, I prefer listening rather than talking, specially when the music is this good.
The soundtrack for this game is a marvel on the SID. I wish there were more games with a dynamic soundtrack like this on the C64, I recall most games having just 1 or 2 tracks but this game's expansive discography makes it seem so much more modern.
Soooo many memories from childhood.
When I was a teenager I and I would be playing this game, my mom would come out into the living room to listen to the music.
The 3 people that disliked this video where the ones that bought the Commodore VIC - 20 exactly one day before the C64 came out.
Thou has lost an eighth!
what memories... :)
No comments....hmm....not very many TRUE avatars left...
Sad but very true!
I don't comment. I just listen.
I still wear my ankh from U4 on my neck.
Chris Tomoko , I don't wear my Ankh butI still have mine, and the cloth map and the books. it should go without saying, I also have my my disks and my C=64
Time dimishes all things, even the memory of the avatars.
Excellent!
Strange that the opening song sounds different than the Apple ][ version in timing of the lead with the background chords. Anyway, the SID chip definitely sounds better than the AY in the Mockingboard per voice (since it can do much more with each waveform or what have you), but with the Mockingboard there are just more sheer voices to work with (6 vs 3 i guess or 8/12 with Ultima V and 2 Mockingboards or a Phasor).
Musical masterpiece
This song makes me want to run for Prime Minis- I MEAN avatar
I’d love to play this game through again, but I don’t have my notes anymore and I’m not sure I have then patience.
TWO DISLIKES?!?!
Oh damn you Guardian and Electronic Arts! ✊
Did you complete this game? I would love to see an ending walkthrough! ;-D
Richard Garriott is to RPGs what Neil Peart is to Drumming.
Had the Atari 800 only. So weird seeing music on this game especially with such similar graphics. I guess they just didn't want to deal with the Pokey sound chip limitations, or ran out of memory or time on the Atari 800?
I would absolutely love to play this on guitar. Alas it doesnt seem as though anyone has made a tab for it yet.
Back to the 80s.🙂
It is missing what I consider to be the best track,
which is the track that plays when you play a bard and meet Iolo at the tavern
1:34 track 2
Hey!! What happened to the "temple meditation tune"????????
Pilfered!
The doors of so long ago.
So many epic adventures to 4:40. So many epic battles to 7:11.
I'm back
I still say that the Apple ][ version has better music, and yes: I do like the Commodore 64. What I don't like is that they didn't bother putting music into the Atari 8-Bit version.
It's probably because the SID's sawtooth waveform was used for everything. Had they used pulse, the C64 soundtrack would have sounded a lot like the original Apple II Mockingboard soundtrack. The best case would have been to use multiple waveforms with filters--using the SID to its full potential--but that's definitely not what they did, unfortunately.
@@rbrtck I have seen Apple and Commie fanboys having this war before, so I listened to this recording vs this one th-cam.com/video/hGvTKvp4pHA/w-d-xo.html So, while I can hear the Apple aftermarket card has a couple more voices in there, they don't sound as "riveting" as the sound from the C64 onboard SID chip. The SID definitely sounds a lot more gripping and intense, and I feel a lot more listening to this version compared to the Apple II version. So I cannot agree with you guys here, and being a TI99-4a user, I don't even have a dog in the race. The Commodore just had a great sound chip, made by a bunch of audiophiles, and it shows. I remember when I first heard sound tracks like those from the Last Ninja games on the C64, I was blown away. They got lucky with this thing, that's for sure.
@@greggregson9687 In terms of which set of soundtracks I prefer subjectively, it's probably impossible for me to be unbiased, because the C64/C128 soundtracks are the only ones I had heard and played back in the day, and are an indelible part of my childhood. I also played these games with classmates on Apple IIe computers with color monitors during lunch (I was lucky enough to attend a math/science/computer "magnet" school), but none of them had sound cards. So for me, the Commodore soundtracks for _Ultima III-V_ are definitive. On the other hand, as a matter of principle I generally consider original soundtracks to be definitive, and this case they're a bit less grating on the ears, as well, so I'm conflicted.
I do agree with you that the Commodore soundtracks are "punchier" along with the adjectives you used, though, which makes me wonder whether the original Apple soundtracks are truly definitive, or based on the limitations of the programmer and the hardware itself. It would have been trivial to make the Commodore version sound just like the Apple version (with the occasional missing sound), but impossible to make the Apple version sound like the Commodore version. So is the Commodore version really closer what the composer wanted, but just couldn't get out of the Apple Mockingboard/Phasor? If not, then why was the sound changed so drastically? Who knows, maybe in this way the Commodore soundtracks are the definitive ones. I suppose only the composer, Kenneth Arnold, would know.
@@greggregson9687 Regarding the SID, it is either the fullest or the only example I know of of a classic subtractive analog synth on a chip integrated into a personal/home/microcomputer. Arcade tone/effect generators came earlier and FM synth chips came later, but the SID and therefore the C64/C128 are unique regarding computer music.
That said, don't underestimate the Atari 8-bits' POKEY, which is surprisingly versatile for what it is. Here is a good attempt at playing the _Last Ninja_ soundtrack on it:
th-cam.com/video/-nsctVKGFUI/w-d-xo.html
This is a nice example that puts both the POKEY's musical capabilities and limitations (in comparison to the SID) on display.
The original Apple II soundtrack is certainly more mellow and laid back, in contrast to the more aggressive, energetic Commodore soundtrack. I'm now wondering, though, which of the two styles the original composer was really going for, especially since the Commodore SID chip was easily capable of sounding like the AY chips in the Mockingboard (just set the waveform to pulse and set the appropriate duty cycle).
As for the Atari 8-bit version, I guess they didn't think there were enough 64K 800XLs out there to bother with porting the soundtrack (funny, it doesn't seem like a rare machine, even to acquire today). The 800 only had 48K RAM, which made keeping the soundtrack too difficult or too much work, in their estimation. I was disappointed myself that _Ultima V_ didn't have a soundtrack on the C64 (only on the C128), but by then 64K wasn't enough anymore. We were lucky enough to have the game plus the soundtrack on the C128 and the game without the soundtrack on the C64 at all.
I still think the Apple II version has the best soundtrack for this game with the Mockingboard.
Link above does not work...404
Whoever downvoted this hath lost an eighth!