Forum LEVEL

In 1992, Ultima Underworld changed the rules of what a fantasy RPG could be. It introduced the concept of 3D immersion, a player-authored experience, and a richly dynamic world to explore. Its influence led to a whole generation of games such as Thief, Deus Ex, BioShock, Skyrim, and Dragon Age.

Underworld has been hidden away in the deepest vaults of its publisher for two decades. Only now have the original creators unchained the franchise, freeing it to innovate yet again.

Backing the game grants you unprecedented front row access to the creation of the next epoch of this storied masterpiece, Underworld Ascendant. With your help, here's a glimpse at what we can together build:

Exquisitely Realized Underworld – Plunge into The Stygian Abyss: dark, ripe with dangers, full of ancient secrets to discover. A vast subterranean fantasy world made startlingly real and alive.
Dynamic Factions – Become embroiled in an epic plot, as rival factions vie for dominance in struggles that ebb and flow across The Stygian Abyss. Your choices will alter the outcome in subtle and dramatic ways.
Improvisation Engine – Delight in player-authored gameplay taken to a whole new level, with a suite of technologies that empower you to solve challenges with astonishing ingenuity. Be the ‘MacGyver’ of a fantasy world.
Hero to Call Your Own – Jump right in as a Fighter, Thief or Mage. Then as your Avatar grows, freely mix and match across any skills to develop a unique hero, tailored to your style of play.
Pushing Boundaries – Stretch Goals will innovate on co-op play with a friend; letting you build your own corner of The Stygian Abyss; and more.

For a design staff that has so many luminaries among its ranks—none higher than Warren Spector, arguably—the fruits of its labor thus far play like a mountain of compromise. The demo didn't disabuse my notion that OtherSide might just be hustling to get this years-old project out the door with its current series of "yes, you can set stuff on fire and do other elemental tricks" duct-taped together. And a lower-scaled sales pitch might just be fine! "Our skeletons are dumb, and our spells are kind of busted, and our questing is limited, but you'll have enough fun with the janky stuff, we swear." I could endure that.

But Fielder aimed high with his pre-E3 sales pitch, and it just didn't match the game I played. Unless OtherSide has some seriously surprising material still hiding in its vaults—a bunch of incredible, branching dungeon designs, or a wealth of new elemental powers, or, gosh, yet another launch delay—anybody looking forward to Underworld Ascendant should be very careful with their optimism.