Absurdly janky. But this is a masterclass in worldbuilding, and making even small, unspectacular sidequests feel count for something. The first third of the game is brilliant.
Ich brat mir einen
One of the best open world designs ever created and still a benchmark. Unfortunately the game is riddled with bugs and glitches, and feels rough and unfinished at every corner. The story and world building is still great though and it has some likeable characters. The writing is nothing to write home about but the world itself feels alive and acts upon set rules consequently you rarely encounter in modern games. When it comes to open world design many modern and especially the bloated and level-gating ones can learn tremendously from Gothic.
Gothic is an interesting game for me. I don't quite remember how I heard about it, yet at the same time I don't quite know how I didn't hear about it as an avid retro gamer. See, Gothic is considered by many to be one of the most innovative RPGs of all time, and on the outset I definitely agree: aspects like a day/night cycle, NPC routines, dynamic weather, NPC convos, a knockout system, wide-ranging magic, NPC reactions to player actions (like pulling out weapons/entering homes), sword combos, and more may have existed in a title here-or-there, but to be present in a single package was simply unheard of.
So I'm not trying to take anything away from Gothic (and I'll be speaking about those individual components later down the line), but ultimately Gothic falters in too many areas for me to recommend it to newer gamers, particularly in its story and RPG layouts.
The latter, in particular, is especially disappointing because, on the outset, Gothic seems like it has all the right ingredients to call itself an RPG- customizable gear, narrative choice, and a leveling system ripe with skill points. However, examining each of these facets carefully discloses just how many holes they truly have, beginning with the gear. Gear is limited to a singular item in the form of generic body armor, meaning there's no division amongst all the other compartments; no helmets, torsos, legs, plates, or boots. As a result, you never have the opportunity to mix-and-match pieces, and because better armor is progressively made available ala the Ezio Trilogy, you don’t even have a reason to keep old sets around.
Regarding the second, skills are very limited, with only three mattering in the long and short runs: strength, dexterity, and mana. Strength determines how hard you hit, dexterity your damage with a bow, and mana your spellcasting meter. Lockpicking is rendered pointless due to non-RNG combinations allowing save scumming, and pickpocketing & sneak end up being exp black holes courtesy of mandatory combat sections in most story beats.
Even among the aforementioned trio of useful ones, you aren’t granted much variety. Strength is, in a lot of ways, overpowered since it also dictates weapons you can wield, and Ranged is outright discouraged courtesy of enemies having the capacity to either charge you quickly or launch their own deadly projectile.
What angered me the most about Gothic’s gameplay was the lack of a defense skill and the implied lies about player builds. Every time you level up fully, your HP bar increases, but this has nothing to do with your resistance to damage. The only way to affect that is to get some armor, but for the majority of the first chapter, you'll be hardpressed to find any. As a result, you’re all but strong-armed into running away from everything until you gain sufficient experience from sidequests, and even when you do get armor, there's no way, as I stated earlier, to upgrade it, forcing you to wait until the next chapter to obtain the next big set.
In terms of lies, you may think you can go into Gothic with a certain build, yet that isn't the case here as the game soft-requires you to invest points into strength, magic, and 2h weapons. If you don't do that, you'll be screwed at the end due to both the necessity of teleportation for saving time, as well as the majority of those late game enemies (orcs) being immune to one-handed weapons.
It's sad they went this route because there were three easy fixes: expand the skill tree, give multiple ways of taking out late-stage enemies, and make fast travel independent from magic.
The main campaign is the final major negative facet of the game as it just isn't all that engaging. Gothic boasts an interesting backstory involving a group of magicians screwing up the creation of a magic prison, their mistake resulting in hoards of prisoners gaining political power through a resource called Ore. While themes like criminal justice, cruel & unusual punishments, and the balance between security and order aren't explored, I wasn't expecting them to be nor was it necessary -- if you give me a good old-fashioned fantasy yarn, I'm down for the journey.
Except, Gothic's is very barebones. Per the above shift in dynamics, every convict has divided into three factions, providing you with your first choice in terms of who to join: the militarized Old Camp, the mercenary-run New Camp, and the tripping balls Sect Society. To the game’s credit, the first chapter spends a lot of time fleshing out the structures of the three: the writers subtly indicating that picking one over the other will yield consequences down-the-line.
ONLY, that doesn't happen. See, it doesn't matter which you choose because the story will progress in the exact same manner. Minus some dialogic differences, you’ll still manage to develop good relationships with enough major characters to render your chosen allegiance pointless. There are some fans who counter this by claiming that Gothic differentiates from other "Chosen One" narratives in that you're a nobody who gets treated like dirt, but having played the game I can say that that is just nonsense. Yes, some characters brush you aside as a nobody....but they treat everybody who isn't within their inner circle like a nobody; it's not specifically directed at you. And even if it were, the vast vast majority of NPCs out there are kind and offer you advice/help, so I don't know what those fanboys are talking about.
But I'm going off on a tangent - the story is lackluster because there's nothing personally motivating the protagonist to do stuff. Most of the early parts of the game have you playing errand boy, completing objectives solely because someone else wants X from somebody else. It's fleshed out enough that I'll refrain from labeling them fetch quests, but the structure is unfortunately noticeable, and even when the questline does get engaging, it's hampered by drawn-out moments that feel more akin to filler than genuine blocks of storytelling: you can't do A until you do B and C; to complete D, you need to find parts E, and F or talk to G, H, & J. I can't go into specifics without spoiling, but you'll notice it pretty quickly.
Another big issue I had with Gothic is how it goes all-out on explaining its mythological aspects. This is admittedly more of a pet peeve of mine than a legitimate critique, but I've never been a fan of video games that develop a deep mythos, only to then have said mythos play a concrete part in the story down-the-line (during which the mystery is inevitably unveiled in full detail): and unfortunately Gothic falls prey to that, revealing the true nature of its folkloric bits over the course of your journey.
The Sect Brotherhood, for instance, worships a deity called "The Sleeper" whom they believe will lead them to salvation. You could've used this as a springboard for exploring themes like how religion provides ignorance and bliss, or the line between faith and delusion, or even gone more metaphysical via pondering whether the Sect has a strong reason for their dogma. But alas, the Sleeper ends up playing a big part in the story.
Another great example is the New Camp magicians developing a plan to blow-up the barrier with a bunch of magic ore whilst being protected by mercenaries. You could've explored the ethics of a private military force, how hope can be used to exploit a populace, or how desperation can result in people believing in anything that promises them freedom (one of the characters in the game, Lester, outright states that!). But nope, that plan plays a big part in the narrative too.
Those are the two of the larger ones, but there are other revelations like the mysterious disappearance of the master magician Xardas, the backstory behind the barrier's creation, and the culture of other species. I'm not saying it hurts the pacing of the campaign, but what it does do is hurt its existential scope: it no longer has these pieces of lore to fall back on; they're just another standard building block for the player to completely examine.
Sidequests (of which there are surprisingly not many) aren't any better. Outside of some kooky characters, I can't recall any standing out for me personally. They don't explore any themes, don’t tell deep side stories, and just aren’t that fun, making them wasted potential. As a saving grace, I did appreciate the journal entries for them as they could be quite humorous at times.
With regards to the Nameless Hero, he's likable enough, though I wish there were dialogue options that allowed you to dictate his demeanor as the de facto one is that of an overly-optimistic homie who just wants to get home. I'm not quite sure why they stripped him of any personality given that he isn't an RPG avatar -- you don't get to name him, you don't get to dictate his morality, and you don't even get to customize his looks. He's essentially a bare bones template in a fantasy adventure, meaning the writers might as well have done more for him. If they were hoping this blankish slate would help make the guy and his situation more investable (i.e. the same thought process behind Isaac Clarke’s muteness in the original Dead Space), then the presence of voice acting defeated this.
I know I've been ranting nonstop, but Gothic does have a lot of good aspects to it. I pointed out in the introduction how it incorporated numerous revolutionary systems into its interface, and they mostly hold up to this day. NPCs have the same repetitive convos everytime you pass by them, but is this honestly any different from the radiant AIs of Oblivion and Skyrim that have become the thing of memes these days? It's also worth pointing out that big franchises like TES and Zelda haven't even brought in facets that were present in Gothic like NPC reactions to swords being drawn or entering restricted property.
Gothic takes a long time to implement fast travel ala teleportation; however, for most of my playthrough, I actually didn't find this to be burdensome due to how compact the overworld was. Piranha Bytes knew what they were doing when designing their setting as nothing feels out of place or extraneous the way you sometimes get in other free roam titles. Everything is relatively within walking distance, and while I would've liked an upgradable skill for increased speed (the presence of sprint potions showcase it was a possibility), you can do enough long jumps to lunge between the three main locales without much time wasted (and trust me, you will have to do such traveling A LOT). Would it have been better to present teleportation from the get-go? Of course. In fact, you don't get the Old Camp rune until the very last chapter (where it literally serves no narrative purpose), but that aforementioned compactness makes this flaw forgivable for the most part.
That said, exploration doesn't yield much in the way of goodies. Sure you'll find a blatantly copy/pasted cave, grotto or abandoned tower here-and-there, but they don't give any unique items -- just potions, ore, and generic weaponry.
Combat is a mixed bag. I mentioned before the presence of combos: movesets and twirls progressively learned from local trainers. However, I honestly found that simple hacking and blocking were highly sufficient in dispatching most foes, rendering such dances more prototypical than fleshed-out.
Magic is surprisingly wide-ranging -- you got your typical elements (minus Earth) and their associated effects (burning, freezing, shock, etc...), but the devs also took the time to program in several additional spells: illumination, bestial shapeshifting, sleep inducing, shrinking, and others I’m sure I’m missing. Sure, you won't have to use these most of the time (and it's more of a hassle to cast them compared to a straightforward spell), but for those who opt to roleplay as a sorcerer, there is a lot of variety to be had here.
In terms of aesthetics, Gothic did come out in the early-2000s so it's got the same charm/flaws as Deus Ex and RuneScape. I won't pretend it's great, but I do think it holds up relatively well as characters are proportioned well, and creature designs absolutely unique. The only major faults would be some inconsistent texturing on cliff surfaces, and the lack of color variety due to every major location boasting the same dull brown/grey/green template.
Kai Rosenkranz score gets the job done- it doesn't stand out the way Jeremy Soule's Oblivion OST did, but its continuous loop never feels annoying. I would've liked the major story beats to have their own leitmotif, especially since Gothic actually has cutscenes, but it is what it is.
SFX is okay. A number of creature noises are reused for different beasts, but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a good diversity overall. Humans, on the other hand, are the same grunts and yelps repeated ad nauseam.
Voice acting is a mixed bag. Gothic suffers from TES problem of having a handful of VAs voice every character, though I did feel the overall quality of the performances was relatively better. Still, it's a shame that they couldn't have gotten unique voices for at least the major NPCs.
The Nameless Hero's VA actually grew on me. I do think he sounds too....Prince Charming-ish considering the grim world around him, and bad ADR does fail him at times, but he really will grow on you, and has some funny deliveries for you to enjoy.
Enemy AI is another thing I want to talk about- I really appreciate how enemy creatures will try and swarm you over attacking one after the other, and how humans do try and parry your attacks and strafe to the side to get a swing in. It's not perfectly done, but it is an improvement compared to a lot of modern enemy AI I've experienced in gaming.
Other things I did like were the knockout system, which makes it semi-possible to play nonlethal against humans (I say semi because, as soon as they recover in the span of half-a-minute, humans will try and attack you again, forcing you to execute them regardless) and the bartering system, which allows you to literally use any item you find and trade it for other items you need with anyone. Now, is it realistic that a weaponsmith will accept bloodfly scales? Not really, but it's a fantasy game so you get what you get. That being said, I didn't like that coins didn't have ANY value whatsoever- I get that currency is going to lose value in a society without a centralized monetary system, but shouldn't the material the coins are made of mean something? Why even include it in the game if they serve no purpose?
Another thing I really liked was how pickable items stood out from the ground. Even if it was darker, the outline coloring makes a strong difference.
Lastly, a lot has been made about the need to hold down "ctrl" in order to do any action. It is a bit strange at first, but you get the hang of it very quickly. Combat is surprisingly responsive all things considered.
But overall, I just didn't enjoy Gothic enough to recommend it. At a $10.00 asking price, it definitely provides enough bang for your buck (though don't take my Steam count seriously- a number of "logged" hours were in-fact my computer being idle while I had to attend to other tasks), but without a compelling story (which ends on a lackluster, sudden, cliffhanger note) or sufficiently developed RPG mechanics, Gothic's revolutionary systems falter in bringing to life a world full of potential.
So I'm not trying to take anything away from Gothic (and I'll be speaking about those individual components later down the line), but ultimately Gothic falters in too many areas for me to recommend it to newer gamers, particularly in its story and RPG layouts.
The latter, in particular, is especially disappointing because, on the outset, Gothic seems like it has all the right ingredients to call itself an RPG- customizable gear, narrative choice, and a leveling system ripe with skill points. However, examining each of these facets carefully discloses just how many holes they truly have, beginning with the gear. Gear is limited to a singular item in the form of generic body armor, meaning there's no division amongst all the other compartments; no helmets, torsos, legs, plates, or boots. As a result, you never have the opportunity to mix-and-match pieces, and because better armor is progressively made available ala the Ezio Trilogy, you don’t even have a reason to keep old sets around.
Regarding the second, skills are very limited, with only three mattering in the long and short runs: strength, dexterity, and mana. Strength determines how hard you hit, dexterity your damage with a bow, and mana your spellcasting meter. Lockpicking is rendered pointless due to non-RNG combinations allowing save scumming, and pickpocketing & sneak end up being exp black holes courtesy of mandatory combat sections in most story beats.
Even among the aforementioned trio of useful ones, you aren’t granted much variety. Strength is, in a lot of ways, overpowered since it also dictates weapons you can wield, and Ranged is outright discouraged courtesy of enemies having the capacity to either charge you quickly or launch their own deadly projectile.
What angered me the most about Gothic’s gameplay was the lack of a defense skill and the implied lies about player builds. Every time you level up fully, your HP bar increases, but this has nothing to do with your resistance to damage. The only way to affect that is to get some armor, but for the majority of the first chapter, you'll be hardpressed to find any. As a result, you’re all but strong-armed into running away from everything until you gain sufficient experience from sidequests, and even when you do get armor, there's no way, as I stated earlier, to upgrade it, forcing you to wait until the next chapter to obtain the next big set.
In terms of lies, you may think you can go into Gothic with a certain build, yet that isn't the case here as the game soft-requires you to invest points into strength, magic, and 2h weapons. If you don't do that, you'll be screwed at the end due to both the necessity of teleportation for saving time, as well as the majority of those late game enemies (orcs) being immune to one-handed weapons.
It's sad they went this route because there were three easy fixes: expand the skill tree, give multiple ways of taking out late-stage enemies, and make fast travel independent from magic.
The main campaign is the final major negative facet of the game as it just isn't all that engaging. Gothic boasts an interesting backstory involving a group of magicians screwing up the creation of a magic prison, their mistake resulting in hoards of prisoners gaining political power through a resource called Ore. While themes like criminal justice, cruel & unusual punishments, and the balance between security and order aren't explored, I wasn't expecting them to be nor was it necessary -- if you give me a good old-fashioned fantasy yarn, I'm down for the journey.
Except, Gothic's is very barebones. Per the above shift in dynamics, every convict has divided into three factions, providing you with your first choice in terms of who to join: the militarized Old Camp, the mercenary-run New Camp, and the tripping balls Sect Society. To the game’s credit, the first chapter spends a lot of time fleshing out the structures of the three: the writers subtly indicating that picking one over the other will yield consequences down-the-line.
ONLY, that doesn't happen. See, it doesn't matter which you choose because the story will progress in the exact same manner. Minus some dialogic differences, you’ll still manage to develop good relationships with enough major characters to render your chosen allegiance pointless. There are some fans who counter this by claiming that Gothic differentiates from other "Chosen One" narratives in that you're a nobody who gets treated like dirt, but having played the game I can say that that is just nonsense. Yes, some characters brush you aside as a nobody....but they treat everybody who isn't within their inner circle like a nobody; it's not specifically directed at you. And even if it were, the vast vast majority of NPCs out there are kind and offer you advice/help, so I don't know what those fanboys are talking about.
But I'm going off on a tangent - the story is lackluster because there's nothing personally motivating the protagonist to do stuff. Most of the early parts of the game have you playing errand boy, completing objectives solely because someone else wants X from somebody else. It's fleshed out enough that I'll refrain from labeling them fetch quests, but the structure is unfortunately noticeable, and even when the questline does get engaging, it's hampered by drawn-out moments that feel more akin to filler than genuine blocks of storytelling: you can't do A until you do B and C; to complete D, you need to find parts E, and F or talk to G, H, & J. I can't go into specifics without spoiling, but you'll notice it pretty quickly.
Another big issue I had with Gothic is how it goes all-out on explaining its mythological aspects. This is admittedly more of a pet peeve of mine than a legitimate critique, but I've never been a fan of video games that develop a deep mythos, only to then have said mythos play a concrete part in the story down-the-line (during which the mystery is inevitably unveiled in full detail): and unfortunately Gothic falls prey to that, revealing the true nature of its folkloric bits over the course of your journey.
The Sect Brotherhood, for instance, worships a deity called "The Sleeper" whom they believe will lead them to salvation. You could've used this as a springboard for exploring themes like how religion provides ignorance and bliss, or the line between faith and delusion, or even gone more metaphysical via pondering whether the Sect has a strong reason for their dogma. But alas, the Sleeper ends up playing a big part in the story.
Another great example is the New Camp magicians developing a plan to blow-up the barrier with a bunch of magic ore whilst being protected by mercenaries. You could've explored the ethics of a private military force, how hope can be used to exploit a populace, or how desperation can result in people believing in anything that promises them freedom (one of the characters in the game, Lester, outright states that!). But nope, that plan plays a big part in the narrative too.
Those are the two of the larger ones, but there are other revelations like the mysterious disappearance of the master magician Xardas, the backstory behind the barrier's creation, and the culture of other species. I'm not saying it hurts the pacing of the campaign, but what it does do is hurt its existential scope: it no longer has these pieces of lore to fall back on; they're just another standard building block for the player to completely examine.
Sidequests (of which there are surprisingly not many) aren't any better. Outside of some kooky characters, I can't recall any standing out for me personally. They don't explore any themes, don’t tell deep side stories, and just aren’t that fun, making them wasted potential. As a saving grace, I did appreciate the journal entries for them as they could be quite humorous at times.
With regards to the Nameless Hero, he's likable enough, though I wish there were dialogue options that allowed you to dictate his demeanor as the de facto one is that of an overly-optimistic homie who just wants to get home. I'm not quite sure why they stripped him of any personality given that he isn't an RPG avatar -- you don't get to name him, you don't get to dictate his morality, and you don't even get to customize his looks. He's essentially a bare bones template in a fantasy adventure, meaning the writers might as well have done more for him. If they were hoping this blankish slate would help make the guy and his situation more investable (i.e. the same thought process behind Isaac Clarke’s muteness in the original Dead Space), then the presence of voice acting defeated this.
I know I've been ranting nonstop, but Gothic does have a lot of good aspects to it. I pointed out in the introduction how it incorporated numerous revolutionary systems into its interface, and they mostly hold up to this day. NPCs have the same repetitive convos everytime you pass by them, but is this honestly any different from the radiant AIs of Oblivion and Skyrim that have become the thing of memes these days? It's also worth pointing out that big franchises like TES and Zelda haven't even brought in facets that were present in Gothic like NPC reactions to swords being drawn or entering restricted property.
Gothic takes a long time to implement fast travel ala teleportation; however, for most of my playthrough, I actually didn't find this to be burdensome due to how compact the overworld was. Piranha Bytes knew what they were doing when designing their setting as nothing feels out of place or extraneous the way you sometimes get in other free roam titles. Everything is relatively within walking distance, and while I would've liked an upgradable skill for increased speed (the presence of sprint potions showcase it was a possibility), you can do enough long jumps to lunge between the three main locales without much time wasted (and trust me, you will have to do such traveling A LOT). Would it have been better to present teleportation from the get-go? Of course. In fact, you don't get the Old Camp rune until the very last chapter (where it literally serves no narrative purpose), but that aforementioned compactness makes this flaw forgivable for the most part.
That said, exploration doesn't yield much in the way of goodies. Sure you'll find a blatantly copy/pasted cave, grotto or abandoned tower here-and-there, but they don't give any unique items -- just potions, ore, and generic weaponry.
Combat is a mixed bag. I mentioned before the presence of combos: movesets and twirls progressively learned from local trainers. However, I honestly found that simple hacking and blocking were highly sufficient in dispatching most foes, rendering such dances more prototypical than fleshed-out.
Magic is surprisingly wide-ranging -- you got your typical elements (minus Earth) and their associated effects (burning, freezing, shock, etc...), but the devs also took the time to program in several additional spells: illumination, bestial shapeshifting, sleep inducing, shrinking, and others I’m sure I’m missing. Sure, you won't have to use these most of the time (and it's more of a hassle to cast them compared to a straightforward spell), but for those who opt to roleplay as a sorcerer, there is a lot of variety to be had here.
In terms of aesthetics, Gothic did come out in the early-2000s so it's got the same charm/flaws as Deus Ex and RuneScape. I won't pretend it's great, but I do think it holds up relatively well as characters are proportioned well, and creature designs absolutely unique. The only major faults would be some inconsistent texturing on cliff surfaces, and the lack of color variety due to every major location boasting the same dull brown/grey/green template.
Kai Rosenkranz score gets the job done- it doesn't stand out the way Jeremy Soule's Oblivion OST did, but its continuous loop never feels annoying. I would've liked the major story beats to have their own leitmotif, especially since Gothic actually has cutscenes, but it is what it is.
SFX is okay. A number of creature noises are reused for different beasts, but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a good diversity overall. Humans, on the other hand, are the same grunts and yelps repeated ad nauseam.
Voice acting is a mixed bag. Gothic suffers from TES problem of having a handful of VAs voice every character, though I did feel the overall quality of the performances was relatively better. Still, it's a shame that they couldn't have gotten unique voices for at least the major NPCs.
The Nameless Hero's VA actually grew on me. I do think he sounds too....Prince Charming-ish considering the grim world around him, and bad ADR does fail him at times, but he really will grow on you, and has some funny deliveries for you to enjoy.
Enemy AI is another thing I want to talk about- I really appreciate how enemy creatures will try and swarm you over attacking one after the other, and how humans do try and parry your attacks and strafe to the side to get a swing in. It's not perfectly done, but it is an improvement compared to a lot of modern enemy AI I've experienced in gaming.
Other things I did like were the knockout system, which makes it semi-possible to play nonlethal against humans (I say semi because, as soon as they recover in the span of half-a-minute, humans will try and attack you again, forcing you to execute them regardless) and the bartering system, which allows you to literally use any item you find and trade it for other items you need with anyone. Now, is it realistic that a weaponsmith will accept bloodfly scales? Not really, but it's a fantasy game so you get what you get. That being said, I didn't like that coins didn't have ANY value whatsoever- I get that currency is going to lose value in a society without a centralized monetary system, but shouldn't the material the coins are made of mean something? Why even include it in the game if they serve no purpose?
Another thing I really liked was how pickable items stood out from the ground. Even if it was darker, the outline coloring makes a strong difference.
Lastly, a lot has been made about the need to hold down "ctrl" in order to do any action. It is a bit strange at first, but you get the hang of it very quickly. Combat is surprisingly responsive all things considered.
But overall, I just didn't enjoy Gothic enough to recommend it. At a $10.00 asking price, it definitely provides enough bang for your buck (though don't take my Steam count seriously- a number of "logged" hours were in-fact my computer being idle while I had to attend to other tasks), but without a compelling story (which ends on a lackluster, sudden, cliffhanger note) or sufficiently developed RPG mechanics, Gothic's revolutionary systems falter in bringing to life a world full of potential.
The key for getting your game reach the cult classic status in Eastern Europe regions is to set it in some sort of closed space where everyone treats you like shit and you can easily get beaten/mugged/killed when you take the wrong step, we just love indulging in our own misery
The atmosphere of this game speaks for itself.
yes I'm from east europe, how could you tell?
Gothic is an open world RPG where you take on the role of a loser who has to deliver a letter, then some other stuff happens. The world of Gothic is very hostile, you start pretty much as a hobo without any significant skills or money and even the puniest of critters pose a threat to you. As an example, whereas in other RPGs wolves are an enemy that becomes a pushover in less than an hour, in Gothic packs will mob you mercilessly for the entire first chapter. Also you are in a prison colony so you gotta watch your back, very few people are actually willing to help you for free.
Ironically, you enjoy a high degree of freedom to explore the finely crafted colony and exploit everything and everyone around you, this may sound bad for people who like to play good characters, but most people inside the colony deserve a beating so don't feel too bad about it. It's this combination of helplessness and freedom that makes Gothic such a great series.
Sure, the controls are weird, the combat is kind of basic, there are some annoying bugs and the graphics have seen better days, but who cares about that when you can master hobo economics and become a mage or something cool like that?
I love this game, take the 10 minutes required to get used to the controls and go play it.
Ironically, you enjoy a high degree of freedom to explore the finely crafted colony and exploit everything and everyone around you, this may sound bad for people who like to play good characters, but most people inside the colony deserve a beating so don't feel too bad about it. It's this combination of helplessness and freedom that makes Gothic such a great series.
Sure, the controls are weird, the combat is kind of basic, there are some annoying bugs and the graphics have seen better days, but who cares about that when you can master hobo economics and become a mage or something cool like that?
I love this game, take the 10 minutes required to get used to the controls and go play it.
Quests break easily. The game is a chore. Why does every enemy one shot you in the beginning? Poor game design is the answer.
Great and amazing game. Loses a bit of pace in the middle, has some bugs, but overall very enjoyable. Honestly, I liked it more than Gothic 2, but that's just my opinion.
Great game I loved each second of playing it the only issue with this game are the controlls but other than that its amazing I recommend everyone to play it
Best game made in Germany.
Good story and atmosphere but clunky as heck
diego schickt mich
jogo é bom, mas me fez perder muito tempo andando
I played this because I want to play Gothic 2 (which is regarded as a great RPG) but I had to play this one first. People still hail the first as a great RPG so I wasn't too worried.
(+)
- The game has great pacing. There's no waypoints encouraging you to explore directions given by NPCs. This in combination with the fact that you can't kill virtually anyone because of how weak you are, gives off a great first impressions, because you have to genuinely think about where to go and think "okay what CAN I kill".
- Small handcrafted open world. You're actually rewarded for exploring random areas with items that can help you become less of a bitch to normal enemies.
- Likeable characters. There are three factions and they're all equally interesting with characters that always have something new to say.
(-)
- Okay, so I gave a 2.5, because everything I say applies to the first HALF of the game, the second half goes downhill and quests start to become fetch quests.
- The formula for the second half is "go to this guy to get something, ok before you can get this thing do this quest that requires you to go back and forth the map 5 times" x10. And by the second half, you've already explored everything the map has to offer. It gets boring FAST, and suddenly, something that was so exciting to explore in the first half has turned tedious.
- Useless skills: no use for some RPG stats at all, e.g. picklocking, lockpicking, sneak.
- Terrible combat (I didn't do a magic playthough, although the magic does seem more fun from what I've done). It's standing on a spot swinging a sword until your enemy is dead. I could handle this combat in the first half because of how great the setting was, but once it got stale, the combat turned painful.
- Although the AI is surprisingly great at times, when it's not it's downright terrible. Friendly AI will attack you for attacking the enemy.
- The plot is ehhh okay, definitely not as good as the actual characters or setting. Wish the factions were more fleshed out and although there are women in this game, you cannot communicate with any of them at all.
Overall, this game is like finding a diamond and getting really really really excited, so much so that you keep staring at the gem. But you stared at it for so long that you begin to see all the cracks, and suddenly you realise that the shit is rhinestone. Though nothings gonna take away the moment of bliss you had for the time you thought it was a diamond, but nothings gonna change that it's not. Let's just hope Gothic 2 improves in consistency.
TL;DR: really good first half, terrible TEDIOUS second half.
(+)
- The game has great pacing. There's no waypoints encouraging you to explore directions given by NPCs. This in combination with the fact that you can't kill virtually anyone because of how weak you are, gives off a great first impressions, because you have to genuinely think about where to go and think "okay what CAN I kill".
- Small handcrafted open world. You're actually rewarded for exploring random areas with items that can help you become less of a bitch to normal enemies.
- Likeable characters. There are three factions and they're all equally interesting with characters that always have something new to say.
(-)
- Okay, so I gave a 2.5, because everything I say applies to the first HALF of the game, the second half goes downhill and quests start to become fetch quests.
- The formula for the second half is "go to this guy to get something, ok before you can get this thing do this quest that requires you to go back and forth the map 5 times" x10. And by the second half, you've already explored everything the map has to offer. It gets boring FAST, and suddenly, something that was so exciting to explore in the first half has turned tedious.
- Useless skills: no use for some RPG stats at all, e.g. picklocking, lockpicking, sneak.
- Terrible combat (I didn't do a magic playthough, although the magic does seem more fun from what I've done). It's standing on a spot swinging a sword until your enemy is dead. I could handle this combat in the first half because of how great the setting was, but once it got stale, the combat turned painful.
- Although the AI is surprisingly great at times, when it's not it's downright terrible. Friendly AI will attack you for attacking the enemy.
- The plot is ehhh okay, definitely not as good as the actual characters or setting. Wish the factions were more fleshed out and although there are women in this game, you cannot communicate with any of them at all.
Overall, this game is like finding a diamond and getting really really really excited, so much so that you keep staring at the gem. But you stared at it for so long that you begin to see all the cracks, and suddenly you realise that the shit is rhinestone. Though nothings gonna take away the moment of bliss you had for the time you thought it was a diamond, but nothings gonna change that it's not. Let's just hope Gothic 2 improves in consistency.
TL;DR: really good first half, terrible TEDIOUS second half.
This game has one of the best opening five hours of any game I've played. The progression feels amazing combat wise and learning about this world is amazing. Sadly, it drops off after the 15 hour mark or so and quickly turns into fetch quests and long walks across the map. Progression drops off too. Still worth a play!
Первые 20 часов это чрезвычайно хорошая РПГ, мир живой и ты его часть. Готика заставляет ощущать мир живым, благодаря тому, что ты буквально поднимаешься с самых низов и все тебя считают лохом, которого надо бы развести ради личной выгоды.
Управление поначалу мне показалось чрезвычайно странным, но когда ты к нему привыкаешь, то оно сразу же становится удобным.
Главная проблема первой Готики, это то, что идёт после этих 20 часов. Понятно конечно, что фентезийная РПГ будет делать из игрока избранного, но последние главы просто сдуваются из-за того, что вся эта избранность становится в главный фокус и мир сдувается. Перестают появлятся новые интересные сабквесты и тебя заставляют исключительно бегать на побегушках мудрых магов и эксплорить плохо сохранившиеся стрёмные данжи.
Именно поэтому я решила забить на игру, ведь ничего интересного в конце нет. Надеюсь, что Готика вторая меня не разочарует сдувшимся под конец миром, и что ремейк первой части пофиксит последние главы.
Управление поначалу мне показалось чрезвычайно странным, но когда ты к нему привыкаешь, то оно сразу же становится удобным.
Главная проблема первой Готики, это то, что идёт после этих 20 часов. Понятно конечно, что фентезийная РПГ будет делать из игрока избранного, но последние главы просто сдуваются из-за того, что вся эта избранность становится в главный фокус и мир сдувается. Перестают появлятся новые интересные сабквесты и тебя заставляют исключительно бегать на побегушках мудрых магов и эксплорить плохо сохранившиеся стрёмные данжи.
Именно поэтому я решила забить на игру, ведь ничего интересного в конце нет. Надеюсь, что Готика вторая меня не разочарует сдувшимся под конец миром, и что ремейк первой части пофиксит последние главы.
One of my favourite games of all time, my passion and love for the genere and for videogames in general comes from this little European gem.
Played little after it came out, never stopped playing it.
Played little after it came out, never stopped playing it.
This review contains spoilers
here's what I think of this game
You’re that “Nothing” when people ask me what I’m thinking about.
You look great today.
You’re a smart cookie.
I bet you make babies smile.
You have impeccable manners.
I like your style.
You have the best laugh.
I appreciate you.
You are the most perfect you there is.
Our system of inside jokes is so advanced that only you and I get it. And I like that.
You’re strong.
Your perspective is refreshing.
You’re an awesome friend.
You light up the room.
You deserve a hug right now.
You should be proud of yourself.
You’re more helpful than you realize.
You have a great sense of humor.
You’ve got all the right moves!
Is that your picture next to “charming” in the dictionary?
Your kindness is a balm to all who encounter it.
You’re all that and a super-size bag of chips.
On a scale from 1 to 10, you’re an 11.
You are brave.
You’re even more beautiful on the inside than you are on the outside.
You have the courage of your convictions.
Aside from food. You’re my favorite.
If cartoon bluebirds were real, a bunch of them would be sitting on your shoulders singing right now.
You are making a difference.
You’re like sunshine on a rainy day.
You bring out the best in other people.
Your ability to recall random factoids at just the right time is impressive.
You’re a great listener.
How is it that you always look great, even in sweatpants?
Everything would be better if more people were like you!
I bet you sweat glitter.
You were cool way before hipsters were cool.
That color is perfect on you.
Hanging out with you is always a blast.
You always know — and say — exactly what I need to hear when I need to hear it.
You smell really good.
You may dance like no one’s watching, but everyone’s watching because you’re an amazing dancer!
Being around you makes everything better!
When you say, “I meant to do that,” I totally believe you.
When you’re not afraid to be yourself is when you’re most incredible.
Colors seem brighter when you’re around.
You’re more fun than a ball pit filled with candy. (And seriously, what could be more fun than that?)
That thing you don’t like about yourself is what makes you so interesting.
You’re wonderful.
Everyday is just BLAH when I don’t see you For reals! (awesome – you are halfway through the list. You’re awesome!)
Jokes are funnier when you tell them.
You’re better than a triple-scoop ice cream cone. With sprinkles.
Your bellybutton is kind of adorable.
Your hair looks stunning.
You’re one of a kind!
You’re inspiring.
If you were a box of crayons, you’d be the giant name-brand one with the built-in sharpener.
You should be thanked more often. So thank you!!
Our community is better because you’re in it.
Someone is getting through something hard right now because you’ve got their back.
You have the best ideas.
You always know how to find that silver lining.
Everyone gets knocked down sometimes, but you always get back up and keep going.
You’re a candle in the darkness.
You’re a great example to others.
Being around you is like being on a happy little vacation.
You always know just what to say.
You’re always learning new things and trying to better yourself, which is awesome.
If someone based an Internet meme on you, it would have impeccable grammar.
You could survive a Zombie apocalypse.
You’re more fun than bubble wrap.
When you make a mistake, you fix it.
Who raised you? They deserve a medal for a job well done.
You’re great at figuring stuff out.
Your voice is magnificent.
The people you love are lucky to have you in their lives.
You’re like a breath of fresh air.
You’re gorgeous — and that’s the least interesting thing about you, too.
You’re so thoughtful.
Your creative potential seems limitless.
You’re the coolest person I know. And I consider myself bet friends with like all celebrities, so. . . .
You’re irresistible when you blush.
Actions speak louder than words, and yours tell an incredible story.
Somehow you make time stop and fly at the same time.
When you make up your mind about something, nothing stands in your way.
You seem to really know who you are.
Any team would be lucky to have you on it.
In high school I bet you were voted “most likely to keep being awesome.”
I bet you do the crossword puzzle in ink.
Babies and small animals probably love you.
If you were a scented candle they’d call it Perfectly Imperfect (and it would smell like summer).
There’s ordinary, and then there’s you.
You’re someone’s reason to smile.
You’re even better than a unicorn, because you’re real.
How do you keep being so funny and making everyone laugh?
You have a good head on your shoulders.
Has anyone ever told you that you have great posture?
The way you treasure your loved ones is incredible.
You’re really something special.
You’re a gift to those around you.
You’re that “Nothing” when people ask me what I’m thinking about.
You look great today.
You’re a smart cookie.
I bet you make babies smile.
You have impeccable manners.
I like your style.
You have the best laugh.
I appreciate you.
You are the most perfect you there is.
Our system of inside jokes is so advanced that only you and I get it. And I like that.
You’re strong.
Your perspective is refreshing.
You’re an awesome friend.
You light up the room.
You deserve a hug right now.
You should be proud of yourself.
You’re more helpful than you realize.
You have a great sense of humor.
You’ve got all the right moves!
Is that your picture next to “charming” in the dictionary?
Your kindness is a balm to all who encounter it.
You’re all that and a super-size bag of chips.
On a scale from 1 to 10, you’re an 11.
You are brave.
You’re even more beautiful on the inside than you are on the outside.
You have the courage of your convictions.
Aside from food. You’re my favorite.
If cartoon bluebirds were real, a bunch of them would be sitting on your shoulders singing right now.
You are making a difference.
You’re like sunshine on a rainy day.
You bring out the best in other people.
Your ability to recall random factoids at just the right time is impressive.
You’re a great listener.
How is it that you always look great, even in sweatpants?
Everything would be better if more people were like you!
I bet you sweat glitter.
You were cool way before hipsters were cool.
That color is perfect on you.
Hanging out with you is always a blast.
You always know — and say — exactly what I need to hear when I need to hear it.
You smell really good.
You may dance like no one’s watching, but everyone’s watching because you’re an amazing dancer!
Being around you makes everything better!
When you say, “I meant to do that,” I totally believe you.
When you’re not afraid to be yourself is when you’re most incredible.
Colors seem brighter when you’re around.
You’re more fun than a ball pit filled with candy. (And seriously, what could be more fun than that?)
That thing you don’t like about yourself is what makes you so interesting.
You’re wonderful.
Everyday is just BLAH when I don’t see you For reals! (awesome – you are halfway through the list. You’re awesome!)
Jokes are funnier when you tell them.
You’re better than a triple-scoop ice cream cone. With sprinkles.
Your bellybutton is kind of adorable.
Your hair looks stunning.
You’re one of a kind!
You’re inspiring.
If you were a box of crayons, you’d be the giant name-brand one with the built-in sharpener.
You should be thanked more often. So thank you!!
Our community is better because you’re in it.
Someone is getting through something hard right now because you’ve got their back.
You have the best ideas.
You always know how to find that silver lining.
Everyone gets knocked down sometimes, but you always get back up and keep going.
You’re a candle in the darkness.
You’re a great example to others.
Being around you is like being on a happy little vacation.
You always know just what to say.
You’re always learning new things and trying to better yourself, which is awesome.
If someone based an Internet meme on you, it would have impeccable grammar.
You could survive a Zombie apocalypse.
You’re more fun than bubble wrap.
When you make a mistake, you fix it.
Who raised you? They deserve a medal for a job well done.
You’re great at figuring stuff out.
Your voice is magnificent.
The people you love are lucky to have you in their lives.
You’re like a breath of fresh air.
You’re gorgeous — and that’s the least interesting thing about you, too.
You’re so thoughtful.
Your creative potential seems limitless.
You’re the coolest person I know. And I consider myself bet friends with like all celebrities, so. . . .
You’re irresistible when you blush.
Actions speak louder than words, and yours tell an incredible story.
Somehow you make time stop and fly at the same time.
When you make up your mind about something, nothing stands in your way.
You seem to really know who you are.
Any team would be lucky to have you on it.
In high school I bet you were voted “most likely to keep being awesome.”
I bet you do the crossword puzzle in ink.
Babies and small animals probably love you.
If you were a scented candle they’d call it Perfectly Imperfect (and it would smell like summer).
There’s ordinary, and then there’s you.
You’re someone’s reason to smile.
You’re even better than a unicorn, because you’re real.
How do you keep being so funny and making everyone laugh?
You have a good head on your shoulders.
Has anyone ever told you that you have great posture?
The way you treasure your loved ones is incredible.
You’re really something special.
You’re a gift to those around you.
While it lacks in the plot and the graphics department (who cares about graphics am I right?), it has easily one the best worlds in video games, it's very reactive, alive, atmospheric and immersive. It might not have the best controls, but nothing that you won't get used to, the lack of an intrusive UI and map markers plays into its strength, characters are solid, the factions are great, a very enjoyable western RPG experience overall.
essential polandcore
I liked almost everything about this game, except playing it
whats up with Piranha Bytes games and a second half that drags on for too long?
This game in a lot of ways could probably be compared to vampire the masquerade bloodlines but just slightly less enjoyable. They're both buggy as all hell and the gameplay of both isn't always very fun but VtMB is better for me just cause its a slightly more enjoyable game. Gothic is still cool though and I hope whatever this upcoming remake is can fix some of the glaring issues.
Solid RPG with clunky gameplay but satsfactory character progression!
Wer das nicht durch hat ist in meinen Augen ein mieses Opfa.
Don't like this one at all. The story is pretty bland, the mechanics are all kind of shallow and weak, and it's really just an ARPG with an inordinate amount of walking. If the character progression was stronger, then I might've considered finishing it, but that was not the case and, entonces, I will leave this game uncompleted for now. Perhaps Gothic 2 is as good as people say this is?
i am literally Bezimienny
Unfortunately, as the game progresses, it becomes to get boring. First chapter where you explore the world, meet the people, join guilds is the best part of the game. Later on, after chapter 3, the game runs out of content and forces you to go to the places that you have already gone. And not for one time. Its old, yeah. Combat is old, rpg mechanics are old, game design and level design is pretty old as I mentioned but it might be still playable. Give it a chance, if you don't like it you could drop it.