Ultima Underworld II, Day 2 and 3

Well, another four hours of Underworld II have passed me by! I can very quickly summarize what I did--in Killorn Keep, I explored and found very little worth having. Well,besides a gem, which I found by accident, and which was accompanied by a key that didn't seem to unlock anything. It is rather see the decrepit old Lord British clone named Lord Thribis. In the realm of the ice world, I was able to dig out the lost city of Anodolous and talk to an unhappy ghost. That city always struck me as weird, due to the mass of locked massive doors, and I can't remember if I ever found a key for them in previous playings of those games.

That city, however, features one of the best parts of the game--You find a crystal ball, and looking into it you see your past and future. Sadly, the game sometimes breaks, and the crystal ball doesn't work. I like it particularly because it's the only in-game reference I am aware of to Martian Dreams! In fact, the fact that the crystal ball did not work was sufficient to make me angry enough to quit playing for the evening.

The variety of environments in Underworld has been pretty exciting, but I have some quibbles. The main one is navigation--I am CONSTANTLY getting stuck on pointy walls. In some cases, like with sliding ice, I have had to re-load a saved game because i just couldn't move. I've also had some trouble keeping myself going in the intended direction. I should probably use the keyboard for combat, too, because nothing is more frustrating than accidentally clicking your compass instead of swinging your weapon!

I appreciate the small details though--the talbes and chairs, and the blood spatters on walls (though British really ought to have a throne). I also like the slow collapse of the ecosystem in the courtyard of the castle. Well...Slow is the wrong word, it's insanely fast. They shut off the fountain and an hour later plants start dying! Ah well.

The game's fun, though. I've picked up an array of magic items that I need to identify. I even found a mani runestone so that I can finally cast heal. Still, there is one unresolved question that is surely on everyone's mind:

Where's Shamino!?

Now, unresolved concerns from other blogs:

Screenshots: They will appear eventually. I feel less pressure to get them for the Underworlds, because they are almost always terrible--you see too little to have any clue what's going on. But they are there and I'll post them sometime.

Akalabeth phone number: For some reason, it doesn't work exactly as it is shown in the display. Try this: Search for (415) 569-9126, no quotes.