Ultima Forever - Preview @ Joystiq

BioWare aims to reinvent Ultima with Ultima Forever offers some snippets from the game's lead designer, Kate Flack:

To begin, it will be an iPad game. It will eventually move to other platforms (though Flack couldn't say yet how soon that will happen), but at first it'll be specifically a tablet-based title. "All these tablet devices," Flack told us, "there's something very personal about picking up the game, and touching the screen to make things happen in the game."

You'll tap to move and run your character around, and of course tap to navigate the redesigned menus. The game will also take advantage of the iPad's built-in virtual keyboard, Flack told us, "to chat with other players." A virtual joystick or buttons won't be an option at all. "I don't like them," said Flack.

As we've heard previously, the game is a reboot based on Ultima 4, so it will include many of the same situations and quests, but also updated content. Flack said the map is generally the same, though "we've expanded some things, we've moved a couple of things around on the map. We have quite a graphical fidelity now, so we're able to go into more detail on what things look like." The conversation system has changed as well. "You won't sit there and try to get keywords when you're clicking on things," Flack said.

I got to see a few gameplay shots at Comic-Con (though, unfortunately, EA's PR declined to approve those for posting), and the game does look like Ultima 4's flattened isometric view, albeit with the generous additions of next-gen resolutions and models. Some of Sosaria's original landmarks are in there as well, though they look more like later games in the series than Quest for the Avatar specifically.