U6 Project - May Update

Lycaeum, Trinsic and Serpent's Hold added to world

The Ultima 6 Project team has been busy expanding the world of Britannia, and adding new content to the game in preparation for the upcoming Milestone 5 (M5) release. The plans are to have most of the entire overworld more or less complete, with most of it playable and accessible. Since last months' report, the Lycaeum, Trinsic and Serpent's Hold have been added to the world. Trinsic is now partially populated, and the NPCs for Lycaeum and Serpent's Hold are about to be placed into their towns. Some exciting previews of what you'll see in game are included below.

But, before we get to the new content, we're issuing a call for testers:

In anticipation of the upcoming M5 release, Team Archon is looking for a few good playtesters who would like to help us stomp bugs, and, of course, play the M5 release before anyone else does. Testing is guaranteed not to be lethal to anyone except the denizens of Britannia (unless you get so excited playing the game you forget to sleep – in which case all warrantees are void). Anyone interested should contact any team member on the U6 Project, General Discussion Board of the Project Britannia Forum:

Recommended minimum system specs are below:

PC

• 1.2 Ghz Processor
• 3D Accelerated Graphics card w/ +MB RAM
• 256MB RAM
• Dungeon Siege patched to version 1.11
• or Dungeon Siege:Legends of Aranna
• 3GB Available Hard Drive Space
• Windows XP

(Note: Dungeon Siege is not officially compatible with Vista, but we could use some Vista testers to see what issues do come up and if there is anything we can do to resolve them)

Mac

• Mac OS X 10.1.5 or higher
• G3/G4 450 or better
• or 2.0 Ghz Intel Mac (Dungeon Siege would run under Rosetta since it's not a Universal Binary)
• 3d Accelerated Graphics Card
• 256MB RAM
• Dungeon Siege for Mac patched to version 1.2
• 500MB Hard Drive Space

As promised in last month's press release, below is picture of Nicodemus working in his rather cool-looking casting circle.

The next two screenshots show the some of the handiwork of Niko, a ferry and a spinning wheel. Niko "Ged" Mäkelä is our Lead 3D Modeler. The 1st screenshot shows the Avatar's party arriving at Horance's island on Skara Brae's new Ferry. There's a bell to summon the ferry if it's not at the dock. The 2nd shows Charlotte of New Magincia working busily at her new spinning wheel.

The Lycaeum Keep, shown in the 1st screenshot below, is the headquarters of the Britannia mages, and the mages congregate there to discuss their most important business. It will in the future include their great library. When you visit the Lycaeum, be sure to also pop over & check out Xiao's workshop with all that interesting looking equipment (see 2nd screenshot below). Xiao is a mage who likes to experiment, but what on earth (or Britannia, in this case) is she doing with all those gears & pulleys? Obviously there's no OSHA in Britannia – looks downright dangerous in there!

The town of Trinsic has new additions as well. There are new log houses, hanging baskets on the light poles, and lots of nice detailing (see the 1st screenshot below). Check out those comfy looking beds at The Honorable Bed & Breakfast (see the 2nd screenshot below). Wouldn't you like to spend a few days there?

The residents of Britannia have become very concerned about all the rumors of the horrible gargoyles. Judging by the mob attacking the Avatar in the screenshot below, they should be. That mob looks nasty!

Serpent's Hold is looking like a nice place to visit. It’s the home of the Order of the Silver Serpent, which is a very exclusive fighter's guild. They have lots of folks wanting to join, so you have to fulfill a special quest in order to get in. Simon and Tessa, Lord & Lady of Serpent's Hold, live at the gorgeous keep. The Keep holds the Flame of Courage, and Lady Tessa is the Keeper for it. Be sure to check out the Keep roof top, shown in the 1st screenshot below, and also the Throne Room / Council Chambers, which is very nicely detailed, down to the silver serpent carpets. It is shown in the 2nd screen shot below.

Be sure to visit the Project Britannia website (http://www.projectbritannia.com/), where you can download the latest milestone release to play (currently M4), and check out the forums for the development diaries of a couple of our team members: Nicodemus, one of our world builders and responsible for many of the new towns, continues to add to his diary. WyrdWeb, a Co-Producer of the Ultima 6 Project, has recently started her own diary on the forums. She is also the team's Lead Conversation Editor and Content Manager, and is our resident "texture goddess" responsible for much of the 2D art in the game, including the silver serpent carpets in the Serpent’s Hold throne room, and new moonstones. The screen shot below shows the moonstones in the Avatar's pack, and you can clearly see the phases of the moon depicted on each moonstone.

Also check out the Ultima 6 Project main site (http://www.u6project.com/) for profiles of the Project team members, and to look at additional recently posted screenshots from the game.

If you like what you see, and would like to contribute to this great game (and help us get it out faster), the team is looking for a dungeon-builder and a 3D modeler. We are also looking for writers, 2D artists (portraits/textures, etc.) and music creators. And, of course, we're always looking for play-testers. Contact any of the team members on the forums if you'd like to join the team.

For those of you who have played the original Ultima 6, and are wondering how close to it U6P will be, WyrdWeb has provided some highlights below, and Zephyr has provided a tentative milestone schedule.

“Most magic spells will be in, but not all. There were some spells that were a bit redundant or with no real purpose. Anything that is useful, with purpose, etc., we are making every attempt to get in and it looks pretty good for the majority of spells from the original.

The Orb of the Moon is in game, and is working, and as we go, more locations will be added. We will do everything possible to make sure locations that are possible in the current milestone (and are authentic moons locations) be added as a destination for the Orb. Keep in mind that the Orb will only take you to a destination you have visited before.

Moonstones can only be buried in their proper locations. Depending on tech, you will either be able to bury them in their proper location and collect them later, OR, you will be able to use them to do what they are intended to do (sorry, avoiding any spoilers for those that have never played U6 or might have forgotten and would rather enjoy remembering again as they play).

Unfortunately, we will not be able to have riding horses or a magic carpet. The balloon will be in, but only as a cut scene. It, as well as the horses and carpet, involve massive tech issues and there are DS limitations. But it is by a number of sheer miracles that Zephyr, Frilly Wumpus, and others, made boat travel possible. Little known fact, Zephyr made the ocean nodes and modified the boat so it could travel along them, as well as other things. Awesome job, Zephyr! And of course, Frilly Wumpus is our resident tech guru and magic man.

Armageddon will be in, of course, that is a must have! All the tech is in place, but we're still working on the SFX - but I don't believe we will have it for the Player to experience until a later milestone. Think of it as something to look forward to.

The following is our tentative milestone schedule. Warning and Disclaimer: This is NOT written in stone - this is merely a guideline that we are internally using to try to keep a pace. This information can easily be altered one way or the other because it is dependent on a number of factors.

At this point, the plan is to have 9 milestones:
The final milestone is likely to be complete at the end of '09
M5 - majority of overworld, some functionality in journal
M6 - gargoyle lands, rest of overworld
M7 - focusing on underground, possibly full game in alpha
M8 - rest of underground, possibly full game in beta
M9 - 1.0
M4 is available now for download for your playing enjoyment!”


Modding for Charity

As many of you know, the U6 Project has been going strong for several years now, and it's cost us personally a fair amount of cash to keep it going. Every once in a while we'll get someone asking us if they can donate some money to the project. Well, since it's an all-volunteer project and not a commercial venture, we can't accept money. However - we've recently realized that there's no reason in the world we can't suggest a charity to which you could donate instead. While gaming is certainly a worthy cause, we think that it would be even better to give the gift of life and donate to the Susan G. Komen foundation for breast cancer research.

http://www.komen.org/

Please note: The U6 Project is not affiliated with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization in any way, shape or form. We'd just like to recommend that you give your money to them instead of offering it to us. Thank you.


About The U6 Project

The Ultima 6 Project was formed in 2001 by Sliding Dragon to develop a remake of Origin's Ultima VI: The False Prophet with newer graphics and a more immersive engine. Soon assembled under the banner Archon, the team members, who hail from all over the globe, have set about recreating the world of Britannia, adding an enhanced storyline to bolster intraseries continuity and building on the Ultima legacy in a way that will please fans new and old.