Ultima Forever: Quest for the Avatar out now on iOS

EA’s take on the Ultima series, an iOS game dubbed Ultima Forever: Quest for the Avatar, is out now on iOS devices. The game is available for free on devices running iOS 5 or better and is available on the iTunes App Store. Ultima Forever is a reboot of 1985’s Ultima IV. Though it is free, the game includes the ability to buy in-game gold and better accessories for real money.

The game involves a small group of three or four characters wandering the world of Britannia, flying in hot air balloons over mountain ranges, sailing across oceans, surviving storms, battling sea monsters, and competing to collect the eight Virtues. The game also features a mentorship system where low-leveled characters can get more experience from high-leveled characters.

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Don’t let the Ultima name fool you. This game has nothing to do with Richard Garriot.

The story of the game takes place 21 years after the events of Ultima IV. Players are sent on a mission by Lady British, who is the daughter of the now-retired Lord British, to help out as the land is under attack by a plague called the Black Weep.

The Ultima series has been divided into three major parts – The Age of Darkness, which is Ultima I to III; The Age of Enlightenment, which is Ultima IV to VI; and The Age of Armageddon, which is Ultima VII to IX. Ultima IV: The Quest of the Avatar from the Age of Enlightenment was a major departure of the series’ usual good vs. evil plot. Instead, the game chose to explore more mature themes, with additions like a complex morality system based on the Eight Virtues.