History-of-interactive-entertainment blogger The Digital Antiquarian has published a series of articles about Richard Garriott, Akalabeth (the proto-Ultima!), and California Pacific, the company that gave Garriott his first big break.
Odkin figured out how to get a look at the Apple II source code, using only Apple II OS commands and the original game data files. While I can’t post his findings (e.g. the actual game code) here, his explanation of his method is something anyone with an original copy of Ultima and an Apple II could follow.
Kingspud, the man behind the Ultima 1 Revisited project, has begun posting a series of tutorials which examine, line by line, the code underneath Ultima 1.
Jason “Xarton Dragon” Penney has released a set of portable, delta-only patches for the first six Ultima games (the GOG versions and, presumably, other installations as well).
Courtesy of Natreg Dragon and Pix, Ultima Aiera is pleased to present images of the manual, quickstart guide, reference guide, and maps from the Ultima Trilogy (a compliation of the first three Ultima games released for DOS).
Courtesy of Natreg Dragon and Pix, Ultima Aiera is pleased to present images of the manuals for the Apple II, PC, and Atari versions of Ultima 1. And yes, there were quite steep differences between the manuals for each platform!
Pix has produced a patching utility that will automatically update Ultimas 1-6 and Ultima Underworld 1&2 (the Good Old Games versions) with all available patches and enhancements for each title.
Comparison screenshots of the title screens from the various ports of Ultima 1.
Comparison screenshots of the gameplay graphics from the various ports of Ultima 1.
The introduction sequence and title screens from the FM Towns and Commodore 64 versions of Ultima 1.
