Ultima IV, completed on a computer I built

Retrospective build log: December 2024 and the March 2025 wrap-up.

Getting Lode Runner running was the first big target. Ultima IV became the next one: not just a title screen or a brief demo, but a game I could play through on my own computer.

In December 2024, I finished it on 3RIC. That was a different kind of satisfaction from making one circuit work. It meant enough of the complete machine was cooperating, consistently, for me to use it for its intended purpose.

The March 2025 wrap-up shows the populated board in its case and talks about further experiments with serial terminals and an ImageWriter II banner program. It also covers the things I would do differently.

The final VGA design ties the processor to approximately 1.57 MHz. That affects compatibility with software that counts cycles or expects Apple II timing. My ROM and I/O are different too. The PS/2 software taught me about interrupt and timing costs, and the PCB taught me to think harder about passive part sizes and even which way the silkscreen will face in the case.

I do not regard those differences as something to hide. They are part of what makes this a learning project rather than a claim of a perfect Apple II clone.

The completion video:

The wrap-up, including lessons and limitations:

Original completion post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Ultima/comments/1hhkeuv/finished_ultima_iv_on_my_homebrew_computer/

Banner-program source: https://github.com/ebadger/banr4000