[FLASHBACK] How to Become the Chosen One of the Gods – “Gothic”

The thing about playing is that it can provide many intense emotions and feelings. One of them is undoubtedly nostalgia, especially when we talk about games as old and as iconic as Gothic . Because who of the Polish players has not had contact, or at least has not heard about this RPG from 2001? Well, that’s exactly … I think it’s high time to take a second look at this title and see if it provides the same experience as a kid …

I must admit that this lyrics will be very personal – my love for the series has not faded away despite all the years since I played any part of it and recently played the famous one (famous, because even a few songs were written about it ) with a flushed face . However, before I tell you about my feelings in detail, let me introduce you to the atmosphere of the game. So, sit back comfortably and listen to a song that cannot be forgotten even with the passing of time …

Ah, this climate …

Ah, this is the main menu … You can immediately feel this unique, one-of-a-kind atmosphere, which for many (including me) is one of the game’s greatest assets. And here is a curiosity – the name Gothicit was due to the fact that one of the game’s creators, Bert Speckels, listened to gothic rock in his time and proposed it because it sounded dark enough (and, by the way, internationally, which would translate into RPG success outside of Germany, his home country) . In fact – it is fully adequate to the title’s climate. From the very beginning, the impression is that the Penal Colony, where the action takes place, is a hostile place where everything (and potentially everyone else) can kill us. At the same time, during the game, you feel that something is in the air – something that, as it turns out later, is a threat to its inhabitants, and more than anyone inside the Barrier can imagine … But one by one.

 

“My name is Diego …”

Apart from the climatic (again this climate …) monologue of the necromancer Xardas, introducing us to the world of the game, these are the words that begin our adventure in the Mining Valley. To the Penal Colony – a place surrounded by the so-called a magical Barrier, which is a prison for various types of criminals, who are supposed to mine magic ore for the king – because another convict finds himself, whose fate we have to direct. Although he gets his fist in the face at the outset, it is Diego, his future best friend who pulls him out of trouble, explaining the realities of life under the Barrier. During the conversation, the hero tries to introduce himself to him, but to no avail. Since then, it is known to the player as the so-called Nameless, who has to find himself in the new reality.

He has to do this by joining one of the three camps in Cologne – the Old (represented by Diego), the New (mercenary and pest camp) or the Sleeping Brotherhood Camp (referred to by the heroes as a “sect”, which by faith in its deity to liberate its inhabitants). Each of them has different laws and their members are treated differently, but due to the fact that our hero is new, he is welcomed everywhere with more or less open arms (although in some cases he has to show special cunning to be noticed).

While exploring the map, The Nameless Hero not only gets to know interesting places, but also gains new allies – he befriends the mage Milten, the mercenary Gorn and the novice Lester, who, like Diego, often help him later in his quests. And these are very different. Due to the fact that the Nameless Hero acquires contacts in all camps, important personalities in Cologne (including the shaggy Gomez, the noble Lee or the good-natured Y’Berion) give him various missions that push the plot forward, and some of them (such as the Dreamer’s attempt by Brotherhood members, in which the Nameless Hero also plays a role) are crucial for the entire game. And although the hero’s initial goal is simply to get out of the magical prison in the world, things take a completely different turn when it comes to light, that the Dreamer (worshiped fervently by the people of the Brotherhood) is … a demon who poses a great threat to everyone within the Barrier. The unfortunate course of events leads the Nameless Hero to the tower of Xardas – an extremely powerful necromancer, thanks to whom the protagonist discovers who the Dreamer really is and how he relates to the magical Barrier. In this way, the mundane desire to get out of Cologne turns into a fight between the forces of good and the forces of darkness, and it is up to the main character to decide on which side the scales of victory will tilt …

 

Old age is not joy …

Unfortunately, even my attention, as a loyal fan, does not escape the fact that the technical side of the game is basically poor. It’s not just about the angular graphics, which for most players is ugly and repulsive, but also about its mechanics. The gameplay is quite coarse – the fight (and basically any action) is not based on the mouse. And although it is quite characteristic of the positions from that period, it makes playing a lot more difficult. The game is also not the most dynamic – the reactions of the characters are not particularly fast, and we will not experience any special special effects here (even spells are not very effective, with a few exceptions).

The game also has a problem with some bugs, especially the ones that are general bugs (with the “crazy” Gorn in the Free Mine at the fore) and the way around which players only found after some time. The trading system is also very annoying – although barter seems like a fair option, it is difficult to trade unless we have a value equal to or close to what we want to buy. This is all the more difficult because we either don’t always have the required amount of items or ore with us, or, surprisingly, we have too many of them (which was fortunately changed in Part Two).

Finally, the biggest disadvantage of the game is its very uneven balance – after the third chapter of Gothic , although of course still proportionally more difficult than at the beginning, it ceases to be mostly a challenge. From a certain point on, we do not have to spend at all, the more so because we perform tasks for which we receive 1000 and more experience points (!), Which is an exaggeration, even for an RPG game. The second stay in the Temple of the Dreamer is also not a big problem – only the final fight presents some difficulties. This means that from the middle of the game we are practically mowing our opponents like a peasant grain – we are almost invincible, and we should not have such a feeling, even at a very advanced stage of the game. However, do all these shortcomings make my attitude towards Gothic? after that time has it changed?

 

A good game is not bad

The answer is – not at all. The game has gotten old, but you have to pay attention to the fact that for its time it was quite an ambitious project – a wide, open world with an intriguing plot and interesting characters made Gothicit definitely stood out on the Polish gaming market (the only one where it gained more popularity outside the German market). Some of its aspects can be objectively considered advantages even today – we are talking here, among others, with relatively complex characters, arousing the player’s interest to such an extent that he can take care of their fate. Of course, the most noteworthy here is The Nameless Hero, whose ironic sense of humor and sensitivity to the point of personal dignity, combined with the willingness to sacrifice himself in the name of a higher cause, make him a very intriguing hero. Another interesting character is Xardas, who constantly exudes an aura of mystery around him, which, as it turns out, does not disappear even in the next part of the saga (his motivations are finally revealed only in the third part). It is also worth mentioning the camp leaders – Gomez, Lee and Y’Berion, along with the ambitious Cor Kalom (whom we will face in the final battle), who are heroes with either an interesting story or two faces. One cannot forget about the aforementioned friends of the Nameless Hero, arousing the player’s sympathy and making the game not boring even for a moment.

 

The plot is also addictive – twists and a gradual change of purpose from the desire to escape into the fight between good and evil increase the sense of immersion, thanks to which the player constantly wants to return to the world of Gothic. As is typical for RPG titles, the attitude of other characters towards us, as well as the relationship with them in later chapters, depends on our actions and the course of interactions. Speaking of them, one cannot ignore the fact that in the first chapters our allies often help us (and not always in human form), which makes it easier to perform particularly difficult tasks. After all, the AI ​​of the opponents is not so bad – the enemies do not work mechanically, but adapt to us, e.g. depending on how far we are from them, they use a different type of weapon, which is definitely a plus. In addition, you can feel that the game world is alive – each of the NPCs has their own life (although simplified of course), the time of day and weather are changeable, animals often fight each other for territory or hunt each other,

Finally, one should mention the most important element in the context of the Polish localization of the game, namely the fantastic dubbing, which, objectively speaking, is still one of the best games on the Polish market. An unforgettable acting by Jacek Mikołajczak, who plays the main character, and Tomasz Marzecki, who voices Xardas, along with the performance of Adam Bauman (including the role of Diego), Paweł Szczesny (Lester), Przemysław Nikel (Gorn), Paweł Iwanicki (Milten) and Janusz Wituch (Cor Kalom) give the characters a distinct character and make them much more colorful. Anyway, what can I say – solid and carefully made dubbing is undoubtedly the greatest asset of the Polish version of Gothic.without which the title might not be accepted so well. And I think many will agree with me that, unlike other aspects of the game, its quality still cannot be matched by the Polish version of many modern games.

 

Old but good

To sum up – Gothic is a really old yet good game. I consider playing it after many years to be an incredibly sentimental journey, as much as it gives me satisfaction and allows me to feel like that kid from high school who was just discovering its possibilities. In fact, it was the first RPG I’ve ever played in my life, and also the first game that really got me hooked in the long run, making it (like the rest of the series) a permanent place in my memory and heart. And although it is indeed outdated, and most of the solutions are no longer practical, all its charm lies in these shortcomings and simplicity. Because even they enhance the overall atmosphere of the game – as I mentioned above, unique and characteristic only for Gothic – which, despite the passage of so many years, still accompanies each game of it and which makes you want to keep coming back to it.