There's a teaser video for the "Gothic" remake that THQ Nordic is
working on. If you're a fan of that classic game, it behooves you to
take a look (it's only two minutes long; go on, you got the time to
spare!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUnzf9krUIs

Now, I'm no fan of remakes. Still, I approve of this video just
because it is SO MUCH BETTER than the "Gothic Remake" demo that was
released a year or two back. That demo was so disappointingly awful
that I had no hopes of the remake being anything but a cheap cash-in.
The visuals were awful, it had none of the gritty feel of the original
game, and the controls were poor. I don't generally hate on games, but
that game brought me as close as I've ever come. ;-)

The video, though, much better captures the feel of the original game.
It still feels a bit too Skyrim in appearance and how busy everything
is, but it's a huge improvement over the demo. It also better captures
the mix of down-n-dirty sword-n-sorcery and tongue-in-cheek
action/fantasy.

I'm still on the fence on playing the game

(I'm not going to bother with any pretense that I won't eventually buy
it; both you and I know /that/ is an inevitability I won't be able to
avoid)

but it's a lot more likely than it was six months ago.

Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote in
news:12lidipurju2t7tvhcle5nh8qpjt063hr5@4ax.com:

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUnzf9krUIs

Woot!

--
Clotho, Lachesis, Atropos -- the only sysadmins that matter

On 8/13/2023 6:13 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
> There's a teaser video for the "Gothic" remake that THQ Nordic is
> working on. If you're a fan of that classic game, it behooves you to
> take a look (it's only two minutes long; go on, you got the time to
> spare!)
>
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUnzf9krUIs

This looks really good, considering it's using the game's engine.

But why is Piranha Bytes not the developer anymore? I've never heard of
Alkimia Interactive, they seem to be a brand new studio based in
Barcelona with zero games to their credit - never a good sign, but
here's hoping for the best.

And they're hiring just about every position conceivable, which makes me
think this game is still years away from release. Ironically enough
Gothic 1 is the only PB game I have never played - loved Gothic 2 and 3,
Risen (didn't care for either of the pirates games much) and Elex 1 and 2.

Appreciate the link and heads up.

--
Actual headline about an escaped psychiatric patient who assaulted the
staff of a laundromat: "Nut screws washers and bolts"

On Mon, 14 Aug 2023 04:30:06 -0400, Metal Guru <MetalGuru@IsItYou.com>
wrote:

>On 8/13/2023 6:13 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
>> There's a teaser video for the "Gothic" remake that THQ Nordic is
>> working on. If you're a fan of that classic game, it behooves you to
>> take a look (it's only two minutes long; go on, you got the time to
>> spare!)
>>
>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUnzf9krUIs
>
>This looks really good, considering it's using the game's engine.
>
>But why is Piranha Bytes not the developer anymore? I've never heard of
>Alkimia Interactive, they seem to be a brand new studio based in
>Barcelona with zero games to their credit - never a good sign, but
>here's hoping for the best.

From what I recall, developer Piranha Bytes no longer owns the Gothic
license; publisher THQ Nordic does. Of course, THQ Nordic /also/ owns
Piranha Bytes. However, the developer has indicated they are not
interested in making any more Gothic games, preferring to focus on the
Elex franchise. Thus, THQ Nordic created an entirely new development
house - Alkimia Interactive - specifically for the purpose of remaking
Gothic.

>
>And they're hiring just about every position conceivable, which makes me
>think this game is still years away from release.

Seems likely. Development officially was started back in 2020
(although obviously some work had been done before hand, since the
demo was released in 2019). In February 2023, the game was reported to
be "in the middle" of its production schedule.

>Ironically enough
>Gothic 1 is the only PB game I have never played - loved Gothic 2 and 3,
>Risen (didn't care for either of the pirates games much) and Elex 1 and 2.

"Gothic" - like all Piranha Bytes games - was a fun but flawed game.
It is hard to recommend to new players, just because its crunky
visuals and obtuse controls detract a lot of the fun from the game.
Certainly, "Gothic 2" was the better title. Still, I've a soft spot in
my heart for the game, if only because - unlike so many other open
world games - it doesn't try to pretend it's representing a whole
world (which leads to really weird scaling issues) but just simulates
a tiny valley. It always annoys me how cities in other games - like
Skyrim - are spaced only a mile or two apart. "Gothic" suffers from
the same problem, but at least there's a logical reason for it.

But I've had got less and less enjoyment from Piranha Byte games as
they developed. I loved the original "Gothic"; I adored "Gothic 2"; I
was one of the few who enjoyed "Gothic 3". The Risen games were
passable, but increasingly formulaic. The "Elex" games were equally
formulaic, and lacked a consistent vision to boot. The latter games
felt like they were trying to recapture the old magic without quite
understanding what made the originals so captivating.

So, while I have doubts about the involvement of Alkimia, neither am I
entirely disheartened that Piranha Bytes isn't involved.