Ultimate Play the Game Easter Eggs Guide
PREFACE: THE HISTORY OF ULTIMATE
During the early 1980’s, a games developer known as “Ultimate Play the Game” released a number of critically praised titles for the ZX Spectrum home console. Among them were the likes of Jetpac, Atic Atac, Gunfright and Alien 8, but their longest running narrative was woven through a number of games starring a pith-helmeted adventurer named Sabreman. Introduced in the jungles of Sabre Wulf, the fearless explorer became a familiar face for Spectrum owners, starring in the further releases of Underwurlde, Knight Lore and Pentagram.
Unfortunately, the next expedition planned for the ZX Spectrum in Mire Mare would never materialize, and Ultimate Play the Game left the familiar setting of the Spectrum to soldier on into uncharted waters of international games development. As Ultimate began to create games for Nintendo, they did so under a new name as “Rare: Designs on the Future”. While Rare would continue to release acclaimed hits through the years, the characters introduced during the Spectrum era seemed relegated in the past.
Fans of Sabreman would rejoice however, as the spry hero managed to return to his adventuring roots with a title of his own on the Gameboy Advance with Sabre Wulf in 2004. If you’re familiar with his previous Spectrum exploits, you’re likely to recognize some familiar sights and Easter Eggs that hark back to the legacy of Ultimate, but it’s an expedition in and of itself to track them all down. To help out, we’ve decided to list all of the Easter Eggs that can be found within Sabre Wulf GBA below, as a quick reference guide.
THE FAMILIAR CALL TO ADVENTURE (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
Once you’ve created your file on Sabrewulf GBA, you’ll be offered a chance to begin the adventure – once you do, the ambiance and din of the sitting room gives way to a short chant that acknowledges your choice. If you’ve played Sabre Wulf on the ZX Spectrum, you’ll recognize this tune as the one heard on the main menu when you choose to start the game. Both versions can be heard below for comparison:
THE MAYOR OF BLACKWYCHE VILLAGE (BLACKWYCHE REFERENCE)
The first reference can be spotted quite early on, as the Mayor approaches Sabreman for help in his Campsite. When he tells Sabreman of his plight, he explains that the Village of Blackwyche is in peril after Sabre Wulf has managed to escape. The Village shares its namesake with the Ultimate Play the Game title, Blackwyche, released on the Commodore 64 in 1985.
MAPPED OUT MELODIES (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
Once Sabreman has managed to step into the Blackwyche Village, he’s shown the Map Screen for the first time. The theme that plays during this theme is “Prelude in C Major”, a classical piece from Bach. This theme should be familiar to those who played the original Sabre Wulf on the ZX Spectrum, as this composition would serve as the title theme. Both versions can be heard below for comparison:
QUESTIONABLE INTERIOR DECORATING (ATIC ATAC/UNDERWURLDE REFERENCE)
Visiting the Mayor in the Blackwyche Hall reveals two Easter Eggs – the first is a large rug across the floor that shares its art with the packaging of Atic Atac, a title released by Ultimate in 1983 wherein players must escape a haunted castle. The second reference is the taxidermy demon perched at the head of the Hall. This demon is one of the guardians featured in Underwurlde, which Sabreman would naturally be familiar with, as he encountered them following his first exploits in Sabre Wulf. The demon is featured prominently on the packaging for Underwurlde, where it copies the pose shown in the Hall exactly.
WORKS OF ART (SABRE WULF/UNDERWURLDE/KNIGHT LORE/ALIEN 8 REFERENCE)
On the right side of Blackwyche Hall, Sabreman can find his way into the Mayors private office – if you’ve got an eye for detail, you should notice four paintings found around the cozy space detailing most of Sabreman’s career on the ZX Spectrum. Starting at the Mayors desk, you’ll find a painting over top of the bookcase that showcases the cover art of Underwurlde – note the demon in the center and the transition from yellow to red gradient especially. Following the wall to the north, you’ll find the art for Sabre Wulf next, with two identifiable objects serving as the title and the Wulf amulet. Knight Lore is found above fireplace, with its cover art receiving the most exposure given its angle. The final painting in the room is found between Knight Lore and Sabre Wulf in the corner – while you might expect Pentagram given the framed works have all been Sabreman’s games, you’ll instead find Alien 8 with its bright blue cover art in its place.
ONLY FOOLS, NO HORSES (OUTLAWS REFERENCE)
On the east side of Blackwyche Village you’ll manage to locate the “Outlaw Inn”, a charming taproom where you’ll challenge Tom Leaf to a tea drinking competition once the consignment arrives at the Docks. For now however, you could do worse than examining the sign that hangs over the Inn, and the long water trough intended for a horse that Blackwyche doesn’t have. These two details seem to point to a Commodore 64 title released by Ultimate called Outlaws, where a fearless Gunslinger would need to gallop into Black Rock and protect the western town from bandits. Perhaps he would find more use for the water trough for his horse than Sabreman does without…
WHAT’S COOKIN’ AT THE CURIOSITY CREATURE EMPORIUM? (COOKIE REFERENCE)
On the south end of Blackwyche Village (and throughout your expedition) you’ll find a enterprising man named Cookie, who is willing to trade off some curious creatures for the trinkets you’ve recovered. His namesake is an overt reference to Cookie on the ZX Spectrum, which Ultimate Play the Game released in 1983.
RETRIEVING A PIECE OF THE SABRE WULF AMULET (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
After you’ve managed to tail Sabre Wulf through Blackwyche Village, you’ll reach the first of Doctor Dolittle-Goode’s Laboratories. If you can make it to the end, you’ll recover a piece of the lost Sabre Wulf amulet. This echoes the original goal of the first Sabre Wulf title, as the pith-helmeted explorer had to seek four pieces of the broken amulet (as opposed to eight this time around) in order to escape the jungle. The amulet pieces are also delivered with a rhyme or riddle when obtained, a detail which remains faithful in Sabreman’s latest outing.
The piece of music that plays triumphantly when Sabreman manages to collect the amulet might seem a tad familiar as well, and that’s because it can be traced back to the ZX Spectrum as well when managing to collect a segment of the amulet. Both versions can be heard below for comparison:
SABREMAN SHOULD LET SLEEPING HIPPOS LIE (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
If you explore around the jungle when you’re first introduced to a new area, there’s a chance that you might find your path blocked by a sleeping hippopotamus. This reference takes its inspiration from the first Sabre Wulf title where you could also encounter sleeping hippos gating your progress, though you could wake them up with a steely swing of sabre to clear the path! This technique was known to spur a stampeding response that usually proved fatal, so it’s better that Sabreman leaves them to wake themselves up in the latest adventure.
STEPPING INTO THE KARNATH JUNGLE (THE STAFF OF KARNATH REFERENCE)
Venturing from Blackwyche Village into the dense undergrowth, we’ll venture to the south to discover the Karnath Jungle. The title of this area pays tribute to The Staff of Karnath, which Ultimate released as their first game on the Commodore 64 home computer. The Staff of Karnath was also the introduction of the Sir Arthur Pendragon series of games, which continued with three further titles.
THE DESCENT INTO THE UNDERWURLDE MINES (UNDERWURLDE REFERENCE)
Once you’ve entered the disused mine shaft at the peak of Karnath Jungle, you’ll find yourself inside the Underwurlde Mines. There are four floors to visit here, with the bottom of the shaft dedicated to bubbling geysers of lava. This would have been a sight that Sabreman was familiar with in Underwurlde, as the only way up through the sprawling caverns was to hitch a ride on a buoyant geyser bubble.
BOGGED DOWN IN ENTOMBED SWAMP (ENTOMBED REFERENCE)
Based on the second Commodore 64 title of the Sir Arthur Pendragon series, Entombed followed The Staff of Karnath as the aristocratic adventurer finds himself trapped in an Egyptian pyramid when investigating the Eye of Osiris. The only similarity that Entombed would have with the swampland is the feeling of being trapped, as the bog houses a frontiersman named Dave Crockett who fashions bear traps for catching critters.
SCALING THE PEAKS OF MOUNT KNIGHTLORE (KNIGHT LORE REFERENCE)
The steep alps of Mount Knightlore are to be conquered next, its namesake inspired by Knight Lore, the third of the Sabreman series following Underwurlde. A technical marvel for its time, Knight Lore was the first game in Ultimate’s ZX Spectrum games to appear three-dimensional, using an isometric perspective that they would refer to as the ‘Filmation’ technique.
CAPTAIN FINGERS AND THE H.M.S. BUBBLER (BUBBLER REFERENCE)
Making haste to Blackwyche Dock, Sabreman finds an old salt named Captain Fingers who should be able to charter the spry explorer around in his ship. Unfortunately, the Captain finds that his craft, The H.M.S. Bubbler, has been damaged and Sabreman is urged to find another sea-worthy vessel. The name of the ship is a cheeky reference to Bubbler, one of the last titles that was released under Ultimate for the ZX Spectrum.
DIGGING INTO THE NIGHTSHADE MINING COMPANY (NIGHTSHADE REFERENCE)
Setting sail in a bathtub hoisted with oversized bloomers, Sabreman makes his way through to the south shores of the island to discover the Nightshade Mining Company. This references the ZX Spectrum game Nightshade, the first title from Ultimate that used the Filmation II engine to create scrolling isometric visuals. This allowed the village of Nightshade to be openly explored without being restricted to viewing a single screen at one time.
TOURING THE ANCIENT TEMPLE OF IMHOTEP (IMHOTEP REFERENCE)
While the area surrounding the Temple of Imhotep seems to take inspiration from the Aztec architecture, the original setting of Imhotep would be considerably more Egyptian. Developed for the Commodore 64 home computer in 1985, Imhotep was the first Commodore 64 title not to feature Sir Arthur Pendragon – it would be joined by Outlaws before attention returned to the final title in the Pendragon series.
INSIDE THE ANCIENT TEMPLE OF IMHOTEP (IMHOTEP REFERENCE)
Venturing inside the Temple of Imhotep’s Western tower will reveal an interesting detail for eagle-eyed players, as a tapestry depicting the cover art for the game Imhotep can be found on the far wall – though it’s been flipped horizontally as if seen in a mirror. The Wulf Lair found inside this Temple could also be paying tribute to the Commodore 64 title, as its title “Wings of Steel” may be seen as a reference to the metal bird.
EXPLORING THE TOWN OF DRAGONSKULLE (DRAGON SKULLE REFERENCE)
In pursuit of the final amulet piece, you’ll soon find yourself in Dragonskulle Town – the last area of the game. The subject of finality also applies to the game its named after, as Dragon Skulle was the culminating title in the Sir Arthur Pendragon series on Commodore 64. Following the events of Blackwyche, Pendragon would need to explore the Isle of Dragonskulle in order to destroy an ancient and powerful curse.
SABREMAN HASN’T SEEN THE MIRE MARE (MIRE MARE REFERENCE)
There’s a very intriguing Easter Egg to be found in the Blackwyche Docks if you speak to the wife of Captain Fingers – she reveals that the Captain has spent years building his own fishing boat called ‘The Mire Mare’. This reference acknowledges the ZX Spectrum game that almost was, Mire Mare, which would have followed Pentragram as the final Sabreman adventure game, though it was never released.
SABREMAN’S ORCHID QUEST (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
In Blackwyche Village, a man named Freddy requests Sabreman to collect orchids during his travels so that he may present them to a woman he fancies – upon delivering all five orchids, Sabreman will witness Freddy’s proposal to Jayne in the town square. In a bit of déjà vu, Sabreman would have previously encountered all five variations of orchid during this initial expedition on the ZX Spectrum, with each one serving as a ‘power-up’.
EXPEDITION RENDITION (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
If you fancy a bit of a bonus, you could do worse than collecting the secret keys hidden around the Wulf’s Lair. Once you’ve managed to find its corresponding trapdoor, you’ll unlock an extra mode of play where you’ll need to collect stars whilst fleeing Sabre Wulf. If you’re especially observant you’ll notice that the song in this area pays tribute to the musical cue of collecting an Amulet piece in Sabre Wulf. It can be heard first at 0:34 seconds in its most faithful rendition, and then it becomes woven throughout the piece with an alternative arrangement.
THE END TO THE EXPEDITION (SABRE WULF REFERENCE)
Should you fail to complete the Wulf’s Lair or one of Dolittle-Goode’s Lethal Laboratories, you’ll find that a short musical cue will sound the instant you’ve stepped out of line. This theme is inspired by a piece of music from Sabre Wulf on the ZX Spectrum when you’ve run out of lives in the jungle, prompting the game to end. Both versions can be heard below for comparison: