Origin Systems published Ultima IV in 1985, and Richard Garriott designed it as a clean break from the "kill the final boss" formula that dominated the genre: the goal is to cultivate eight virtues — Honesty, Compassion, Valor, and others — until you earn the title of Avatar, with the player's choices carrying as much weight as combat. The Atari ST version arrived in 1987, ported by Bob Hardy, the same programmer who had already brought Ultima III to that machine. It remains one of computer role-playing's essential reference points, the first game to reward ethics over brute force. For anyone approaching the series today, it's the most honest starting point: demanding, with no hand-holding, but with a moral proposition that still surprises.
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