I found that the sole solution was to download and utilize the G1 Classic-SystemPack 1.8 I extracted the .exe file to a temporary folder and copied Shw32.dll and Vdfs32g.dll from ../SYSTEM to ../../GOTHIC/system Following the initial launch and dismissal of the message window, I adjusted the resolution, and shut the game down. Each subsequent attempt to run it has met with success.

I sincerely hope that this solution will also work for you and others facing a similar problem. :)

EDIT:
SEE EDIT FIRST!!!!
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The SystemPack installer doesn't accept any folder to install into. The install button stays greyed out no matter what.

What did you use to extract the .exe file? I tried UniExtract, but it just gives me a bunch of .bin files.

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EDIT:
NEVERMIND, WORKED LIKE A CHARM!!!!

I missed the step about having to install the PlayerKit first (had to translate the page). After installing the PlayerKit, the SystemPack install went through and the game works flawlessly. It even scaled the HUD to higher resolutions so it is perfectly playable in whatever resolution you want. Even widescreeen resolutions. The SystemPack prevents aspect distortion and scales the game properly, only adding image to the sides in place of the black bars instead of stretching the 4:3 image to 16:9. And from what I can tell, the SystemPack brings in a ton of other, non-gameplay changing improvements.

THIS should be the definitive answer for how to play unmodded Gothic on Windows 10. Thanks a ton.
Attached a screenshot of the game in 1440p.

To answer your question first, I used 7-Zip to extract the file. Since I was only interested in the files mentioned in my last post, and in order to keep the game more or less in its vanilla state, it never dawned on me to also mention the need to install the PlayerKit, without which the SystemPack installer would not work. That said, I am glad that your game now works. Have fun!

It doesn't really do anything gameplay related (from what I can tell), so no reason not to install it normally I'd say.

Heh, System Pack is what introduces the problems for me. In every installation I've done, I test after initial install (it runs, but sometimes freezes at startup... what I've come to call the "brute force" method because if you just try again it will run. Then I install PlayerKit 1.08. Test again, and it runs. Then I install PlayerKit 2.8, and test, and it runs fine. Then in ALL of my installations, as soon as I install the System Pack (either one) that's when the game is no good anymore. I get Access Violations every time. EVERY TIME. No brute force method works here, just to be sure I've tried.

And I've already gone in (about a hundred times now) and marked all 6 application files in the Gothic/System folder as exceptions under DEP. Done the same with marking them all with "Run as Administrator" and done the same with all with three different compatibility settings (XP SP2, XP SP3, and 8). Nothing.

As soon as either version of System Pack is installed, Access Violation - Access Violatioin - Access Violation.

I have now gone completely through 2 youtube guides, 1 PCGamingWiki guide, 2 gog forum guides and 1 Steam forum guide. Nothing works. The only thing that "worked" was using the dgVoodoo2 wrapper, and I played all the to Chapter 3 (I think 3-the Chapter after you clear out the Minecrawlers Nest and then you have to go to the Orc cave. Pretty sure it was Chapter 3. Anyway, that's when I noticed, as maybe it was the first time I'd been there I dunno, but when I went into the forest that is sort of southeast of the castle, it became unplayable due to some weird graphical thing. You turned in one direction in the forest and the forest disappeared and it was just like all white nothingness.

I quit the game (three times) and even restarted the computer. It happened every time I went there. So, worried that may not be the only place in the game this is an issue (at Chapter 3 there is still tons of map area I've not been to) I decided to quit and try a "normal" install without any wrappers and all I get is access violations.

Does this window show up for you when you try launching the game's .exe after you install the Player Kit and System Pack?

Yeah, that appears as soon as you install Playerkit. One interesting thing about that little box I've noticed (and I'm sure it's no issue at all I just found it interesting) is that if you notice the words below the "Play The Game" button. After installing Playerkit 1.08, those words say "Gothic 1.08k mod" which is the final game version. Then, after you install Playerkit 2.8, those words change to "Gothic 1.0 mod." Just interesting to me.

But yeah, that's the PlayerKit's starter box. Playerkit is required for any other mods.

I only installed the 1.08 Player Kit, then the System Pack and it worked for me. And the launcher thingy does say Gothic 1.08k_mod for me (in-game too).

Try downloading the Player Kit from the page linked by Mori_Yuki.

I'm on W11.

Anyways, I bought G1, G2 Gold, and G3 (Gothic Universe bundle) from Steam, since they come pre-patched w/ latest Patch from PB and also any other extra (System Packs, whatever).

So, I do have issues w/ Spine w/ trying to get GOCA (Gothic 1 One Click Action) to work properly so that I could have gameplay & controls like that of Gothic 2 (instead of holding a action button and hitting a direction WSAD or UDLR cursors). Not sure if I borked it - but with GothicStarter, it won't boot now.

Does Gothic 1 have an issue w/ GOCA when trying to use Spine? Or was there something else that I did that GOCA is not compatible with?

EDIT - Though, I did make a clean Steam-copy of Gothic 1 (unmodded, only comes w/ what Steam provided there) and moved it way-away from Steam's folder - and then modded that a bit. All I did was installed Ninja's Patch, Community Patch and set-up the path in the INI for Gothic in its new location...and GOCA works with it. Basically that copy works with GOCA. Did NOT apply Spine to that version of G1.

I should have written ... to keep the game installation more or less vanilla ... to make the process of tracking down sources for any additional errors easier if any would have occurred. Analyzing the crash logs pointed me in two directions: An DirectX/D3D related failure or memory access problems. After debugging the .dmp files it became clear that it was memory-related, and so I concentrated on those two files, replaced them and kept testing until I was confident that this time the solution will work.

For actually playing Gothic, I also highly recommend using Classic in combination with PlayerKit, if only for having the convenience of being able to play with Gothic 2 controls. To activate the controls, a small edit in the SystemPack.ini inside the ../../Gothic/System folder is necessary. Changing the value from Gothic2_Control=0 to 1 activates it.

I have also discovered a newer version of the Vdfs32g.dll file, which could be necessary to use when - despite installing Classic and PlayerKit - the game still refuses to run at all or unreliably, as was the case for you and me. The file can be found and downloaded from Github if necessary.

Just testing to see if I can post screenshots (was having problems earlier)

Screenshot is of Gothic 1, with DX11 and HDR activated.

I'll try again.

testing

Hello

Bumping this as for some reason, the original solution stopped working for me and the game started refusing to launch with an access violation.

Had to swap over to the Union patch. It's a continuation of the Systempack. Seems to work flawlessly. Hopefully the definite solution.