For non Gothic fans: This game is designed to suck at the beginning and get better and better as you play. Most games start you off weak and throw weak enemies at you, increasing their level as you get better. This one starts with you so weak that it's frustrating but once you do get better and are able to defeat those monsters or NPCs that made your life hell, it's so much more rewarding.

In 2001 I quit the original Gothic 1 after less than one hour of playing, but after reading a review in a magazine that told me exactly what I'm telling you now I tried it again, managed to get past the ugly begining and it's been my all time favorite game until Witcher 3 was released. Also, don't bother trying to master it's fighting system, bother getting better weapons and investing skills in it as this will change how you fight and how efficient it is. At the end of the day, it's a classic RPG, not an action game.

For the Gothic fans: The best thing I can say about this game is that it has everything you remember fondly from the original, with improved graphics, UX and even fighting system. There isn't one element that I can think is a downgrade from the original, maybe the lockpicking system but that's debatable, it gets better as you get used to it and put 10LP into it.

The only negative thing I can say about the game, from a Gothic fan perspective, is that maybe it's too much the same as the original. There's maybe less than 10% of new content, some new quests and some twists to the old ones, but most are exactly the same but with improved dialogue. So from the story and quest perspective, it feels like you're playing a modded version of the original. If you were itching for replaying the original, then this game is a no brainer, it's that but so much better. If you played it so many times that you didn't really feel like trying it once more time, you'll probably only half enjoy this game.

Disclaimer: I've had 14.5 hours put into this game so far, and I completed the original about 8-10 times over the years, most recently in 2021.

Broken ladder in Old Mine was not changed, its still broken. New ladder was placed besides it.

Very funny, 12/10!

A faithful remaster of a 2001 game, playing as it did 25 years ago. Give it time and patience. Warning, performance issues exist.

I remember the first time I experienced Gothic. The funny thing is, I wasn't even looking for it. I wanted Oblivion.

It was late 2006. I’d just beaten Morrowind and was looking to take on Oblivion next.

It was a different time. I was a kid, and new games meant convincing mum to take me to the video game rental store.

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After plenty of begging, she agreed, and that weekend we went. Unfortunately, to my disappointment, Oblivion was already out on loan. Mum knew how excited I was, and rather than leaving empty handed, she still let me choose a game.

That game was Gothic 3.

To my young mind, it looked like the same thing - Oh how wrong I was. Little did I know that this moment would shape me as a gamer forever.

While the game installed, I sat there reading through the manual, my excitement growing as the installation bar slowly progressed. Then I heard it, the CD drive became silent, installation was complete.

I spent the entirety of the weekend in Myrtana. It was brutal. Everyone hated me, everything killed me, nothing was explained - And yet, I was hooked. Gothic was like no game I had ever played.

As a kid, new games were far and few between, so even if I didn’t like them, I’d push through and explore as much as I could. Every day I’d rush home to play after school. I’d tell mum about my adventures and she’d listen enthusiastically. She played Sonic and Tetris, so this was new to her as much as it was to me.

The first rental week was up and I was nowhere near completion - But mum extended it. Another week passed, another extension. By then, I understood the combat.

I mastered knowing when to go in and when to step back. I knew what weapons and spells to use when. I build an unstoppable killing machine. Then the unexpectable happened, that week I defeated the final boss.

Gothic 3 was completed, but my journey with the franchise had just begun. I lost my childhood here.

Now, 20 years later, I get to experience Gothic 1 again. I remember thanking Mum for letting me rent Gothic 3 all those years ago and telling her I was playing the remake of 1. She smiled and asked if it was fun, still not understanding what I was saying, but listening enthusiastically, nonetheless.

The rental store is gone, as are big boxes and chonky manuals. And if Oblivion was in stock all those years ago, there’s a chance the Gothic 1 Remake might have been overlooked by me or even hated.

But Oblivion wasn’t there when Gothic was. And playing this remake takes me back to this place, to this time, when I was younger and she was healthier. That’s my story with how I fell in love with Gothic (and Eurojank).

Many times, you’ll find yourself frustrated. You'll get lost. You'll get stuck. You'll run into enemies that seem impossible to defeat. You'll quick-save and quick-load more times than you thought humanly possible. You'll question why the developers made certain decisions, or whether you're even having fun at all.

Yet if you stick with it, something special happens. You stop remembering the frustration and you remember the journey. You remember the feeling of overcoming a world that once felt impossible.

Gothic delivers an experience unlike anything else. I compare it to Dark Souls. You'll either love it or hate it. And strangely enough, both groups usually feel that way for the same reasons.

If you enjoy Gothic, give Drova or Tainted Grail a try.

• Understand that you aren’t the hero, the game doesn’t revolve around you
  
• Take combat and exploration slow, and try to stick to the main roads
  
• At the very beginning, stick with Deigo as he takes you to the camp
  
• Similarly, Mordrag and Baal Parvez will also escort you
  
• Be sure to get the map from Graham in the Old Camp
  
• Save frequently, listen closely, and sleep at night
  
• Side quests are a must to grow and survive
  
• Fight 1 on 1, not against groups
  
• A bow is handy early on
  
• Most importantly, give it time and patience

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