Exploring the Depths: My Journey into Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss

It was 1994. I was just a teenager with a 386 DX (AMD DX40 running at 33Mhz, never did figure out how to get that last 7Mhz out of the system!) , a flickering CRT monitor, and a hunger for adventure. My prized possession? A Sound Blaster Pro that made my games sound almost as good as they looked. That year, I stumbled upon a game that would change my perception of RPGs forever: Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss.

This wasn’t just another dungeon crawler. It wasn’t a simple hack-and-slash or a top-down RPG like the others I had played. Ultima Underworld was fully 3D, something that felt like black magic at the time. A true first-person RPG where I could move in any direction, jump, swim, and explore a sprawling underground world that felt alive.

And for a kid growing up without the luxury of internet access, every puzzle, every rune spell, and every hidden passage had to be figured out the hard way. My secret weapon? A worn-out notebook stuffed with scribbled maps, cryptic hints, and spell combinations—my own personal cheat sheet built through hours of trial and error.

First Steps into the Abyss

Booting up Ultima Underworld was an experience in itself. The intro music, even on my aging Sound Blaster Pro, was hauntingly immersive. As the screen faded into the dark, flickering torchlight of the Abyss, I was there—an outcast, framed for a crime I didn’t commit, thrown into the depths beneath Britannia.

Unlike the static screens of previous RPGs, I could actually move. Using my keyboard and mouse, I stepped forward, turned my head, and felt an odd sense of vertigo as I looked up and down in a fully realized 3D space. The controls were a bit clunky by today’s standards, but back then, it was revolutionary.

I wandered the dungeon, learning its rules. Hunger was real—I had to find food. I could talk to NPCs, and they remembered my actions. Combat was real-time, a blend of swinging weapons and casting spells through a rune system that required actual memorization. This was not a game that held your hand.

The Notebook: My Personal Walkthrough

By the second or third level of the Abyss, I realized I was in over my head. There were secret doors, riddles, and strange runes everywhere. I needed a way to keep track of it all. That’s when I grabbed an old school notebook and started writing down everything.

  • Rune combinations – I carefully copied down each new spell I discovered. “IN LOR” for Light. “VAS FLAM” for a powerful Fireball. No handy spell menu here—you had to type them in and get them right.
  • Maps – I started sketching rough layouts of the dungeon floors, marking important locations, friendly NPCs, and trapped doors that needed keys.
  • NPC Hints – If a talking Lizardman gave me cryptic advice, I wrote it down, trying to decipher its meaning later.
  • Notes on fights – “Avoid the Troll near the bridge. Too strong. Come back later.”

My notebook became a sacred text, consulted before every session, updated constantly. This was my FAQ, my walkthrough, my lifeline.

Sound Blaster upgrade : A Game-Changer

Halfway through my journey, I got an upgrade. I found a SoundBlaster 2 at Rideau Centre, I can’t remember the name of the store. Suddenly, the Abyss wasn’t just a dungeon—it was alive. The music, and sounds effects now amazing thanks to the MIDI and Stereo Sound! Water drips echoed in the distance. The growl of a lurking beast sent chills down my spine.

Even spells sounded powerful. Casting “VAS ORT GRAV” (Lightning) now had a crackle that made it feel like I was summoning actual storms. I remember reloading an old save just to walk through the halls and listen to the difference.

The battle music is etched into my brain, just writing this I’m thinking about the sound track that would play every time you started a battle.

This upgrade, paired with my growing knowledge of the game’s secrets, made me feel unstoppable.

The Final Descent

After weeks months of playing this game, countless map revisions, and some truly frustrating deaths, I finally reached the lower depths of the Abyss. The final encounters were brutal, but with my notebook filled with clues, I pieced together the way forward.

The Guardian’s presence loomed. The mysteries of the Abyss unraveled. And when I finally won, after hours of real-world dedication, it felt like I had truly earned it.

A Game That Stuck With Me

Ultima Underworld wasn’t just a game—it was an experience. A test of patience, creativity, and problem-solving in a time when “look it up online” wasn’t an option. It made me appreciate games that trusted the player to figure things out.

Just last year, I loaded the game up in DOS BOX and played it all the way though from the beginning, admittedly I did cheat quite a bit using the ‘Internet’ to help me find clues.

I was and continue to be amazed at the continued following and resources across the internet for this game that was, is and always be one of my favorites.