About U3Project

This is the homepage for U3Project, a re-creation of the classic computer role-playing game Ultima III.

Ultima III is a classic-role playing computer game, in which the player controls a party of four adventurers and embarks on a quest to save the land of Sosaria from the grip of the evil Exodus. It was originally written in assembly on the Apple II by Richard Garriot and released in 1983. Subsequently, it was ported to a variety of other platforms, including the Commodore 64, the Atari 8-bit computer, the IBM PC, the Commodore Amiga, the Atari ST, and the Nintendo Entertainment System. Most recently, it has been rewritten for the Apple Macintosh and the Nintendo GameBoy Color.

U3Project is a recreation or re-engineering of the original Ultima III, but written as a native Windows application. It is a game engine that uses the original Ultima III data files to provide an alternative way to play Ultima III. Players can switch back and forth between using this version of the game and the original Ultima III to complete the game's quest and save the world of Sosaria.

But why? Ultima III runs fine on my PC now!

While it is true that the original Ultima III runs just fine under Windows using MoSlo, and an excellent patch has been written by Voyager Dragon (see the Exodus Project) that adds EGA graphics and music to the game, Ultima III is still an old DOS-based game. It looks blocky, it feels clunky, and its simplistic but engaging gameplay is almost inaccessible to gamers today.

There is much that could be done to improve the game. But any substantial change to the game would require access to the game's source code. Since Richard Garriot wrote the game in Apple II assembly and his source and notes are lost to time, improving Ultima III substantially requires a rewrite.

So we're rewriting the game. All of it. From scratch. I'm building a game engine for the game that uses the original Ultima III data files, so people who already own Ultima III can play the new version with their old game files, and alternate between playing this version and the original with the same party. This is a project similar to what the wonderful Exult already does for Ultima VII, but on a smaller scale. (Ultima III is a smaller game, after all.)

When can I get it?

A test release is available here.

The source code is also available under the terms of the GPL at our SourceForge Project Page. You will need VC++ 6 or higher to compile it.

How will this version differ from the original?

• Multiple supported resolutions
• Improved graphics, hi-res flat and isometric tilesets
• Eliminate some of the kludginess of the gameplay and UI
• Documentation and spellbooks available from in-game
• Enhanced cutscene graphics
• Improved special effect animations
• Optional turn-based tactical dungeon exploration
• Automapping
• Higher detail world map
• Additional game content, higher character levels, more items and tougher monsters.
• Larger party, and in-game characters that can join your party
• Gameplay automation features, similar to those used in Ultima III for the Macintosh

Are there other projects out there like this one?

There are remake projects out there for almost all of the games in the Ultima Series. More complete lists can be found at Ultima - The Reconstruction and Dino's Ultima Page. Here are a few of them: