Discussion About the Gothic Series

[mrthejoshmon]

I was looking at the GOG RPG sale one day and saw the entire Gothic series on sale, I heard that it was a niche, clunky but ultimately held in high regard game, so I bought the entire series.

 

Starting with Gothic 1, I didn't know what to expect, the game did little to explain what to do and how it worked, after minutes of fumbling like a moron I figured out the controls.

 

That's when the chicken attack happened, large birds named "Scavengers" started clucking at me and they ripped me to pieces in moments, all progress lost.

 

I knew I was in for a ride at this point, time to buckle up. The first few quests were odd, unclear and vague, I learned that human enemies will just rob you rather thank kill you (which is remarkably worse), the first human fight I had was to initiate into the "Old Camp", I had to challenge the toughest fighter and he would 1 bomb me every time and rob me, loading again I had an idea:

 

You can't rob me if I have no money

 

I stashed the dosh round the back and let him clobber me, mission complete with no money lost.

 

It was one of those games where understanding it was half the battle, you had to fight the mechanics to make progress rather than work with them, I realised this.

 

I went out and exterminated the population of Scavengers, did meaningless tasks for sweet XP, trained to use weapons, killed bigger pests... I had come back a formidable force only after hours of studying and reflecting on one shot death after one shot death, failure after failure I learned what to do. I loved this experience, infuriating yet so rewarding! By the end of Gothic 1 I led a 1 man crusade and purged the map of all hostile life, only friendly/neutral NPCs remained, during the final boss fight I summoned an army of golems to fight for me as I had learned that I can abuse the game's mechanics to my will, Gothic 1 was amazing in this way, brutal and unforgiving yet malleable and breakable, so satisfying too.

 

Not to mention the story, subversion, betrayal, surprise, stakes, it has it all going, it is a topic all up in itself.

 

I then went onto Gothic 2, one shotted by everything, enemies of all levels and danger dotting everywhere, the struggle was amplified because I was using the Gold version that makes the game nigh near impossible, no amount of Gothic 1 could prepare you for this...

 

The fun begins again, I am so looking forward to conquering Gothic 2 like the first game, I highly recommend these games if you want a satisfying challenge and don't mind mad jank.

Edited September 19, 2020 by mrthejoshmon

[Redneckerz]

The Gothic series is far deeper as a RPG and was once mentioned as a Elder Scrolls killer. Gothic 3 in particular scored exceptionally high, and did so with its own engine.

Sadly most of these games, as are the successors the Risen series and Elex suffer from a lot of jank. But the Gothic series is one for the RPG enthusiast.

[mrthejoshmon]

29 minutes ago, Redneckerz said:

The Gothic series is far deeper as a RPG and was once mentioned as a Elder Scrolls killer. Gothic 3 in particular scored exceptionally high, and did so with its own engine.

Sadly most of these games, as are the successors the Risen series and Elex suffer from a lot of jank. But the Gothic series is one for the RPG enthusiast.

I feel like Gothic's brutal difficulty and jank, whilst charming and a reason as to why it is so good, didn't net it mainstream appeal like Elder Scrolls as those games are remarkably more accessible than Gothic.

 

Even Daggerfall is more forgiving than Gothic is.

[Vic Vos]

G2 NotR > Gothic > Gothic 3 > Playable Teaser > Forsaken Gods > Arcania

Risen and Elex were boring af

[Chopkinsca]

Gothic 1 and 2 are probably my best RPG experiences in my life (so far). I just love the level of immersion you get in these games. 

 

I remember the first time I played Gothic. I wondered how big the game world was, so I spoiled myself and looked up a map. I was kind of disappointed at how small the map was. This was after playing Morrowind. But Gothic was quick to teach me that world size isn't important.

 

The 'quests' are interesting and have a certain level of meaning to them. The start of Gothic 2 has you picking turnips for a farmer. Not just for money, but to lower the cost of farmer clothes the farmer is selling, so you can get into the city (and there are multiple ways to get into the city). 

 

If you have never played the Gothic games, and are into RPGs, I really suggest you play them. It can feel clunky at the start, especially with the weird control scheme. I feel it is so worth it. Playing the two games are up there with most memorable game playthroughs that I have.

[Mordeth]

Loved Gothic 2. Still have Gothic 3 lying around somewhere, if I ever find out where the wife has stashed my entire CD / DVD collection.

 

It's a true RPG. You pick you class IN-GAME. By doing the appropriate quests. Combat isn't "click button", but you have to anticipate your opponent's moves. You get better at combat by unlocking faster responses, so you can eg block immediately after a strike. It's pretty wonderful.