Love letter to SOTN
I really really liked this game. After trying to find something similar to C&C Generals (and Zero Hours) I stumbled upon this gem. The game has a lot of nice units and mechanics, a unique economic system and good balance. It aged well but I have one biggest complaint... I could not make it work in widescreen. The resolution was locked and there was no way to remove the black columns. I do not know if this version has this issue but it is my only complaint, this game is awesome to play with friends over LAN.
The combat system is not for everyone. You can't just stand there swinging your sword... you have to side step while attacking, jump backward to dodge incoming attacks and parry... Another unfair thing about the game if that NPCs have a huge amount of strenght that gives them a huge critical bonus, so often they can kill you with a single hit. Another problem I found is the way the melee damage is calculate, it add your Strenght to the damage of the weapon and if that number is not higher than your enemy armor defense, then you do 5 points of damage... nothing. It is frustrating. The system is very realistic, armor is there to stop blows and reduce damage so it is ok but frustrating. Why would I give the game Five Stars if I dislike the combat system so much? Because the game deserves it. There is a nice amount of quests, the world is huge and perfect if you want to explore, there is a lot of things to do and lots of people to talk. Each rumor you hear from the townsfolk are real, so you can found that orc that one of the citizen mentioned or the group of bandits hidden somewhere in the mountains and so on. The world of Gothic 2 is alive with gossip, treasure chest and lots of wildlife. Exploration is the most amazing point of this game, followed by quests and a nice story that wraps it up. If you want to enjoy this game but you find it frustratingly difficult, give notrcustom a try. It comes with a lot of customization that can make the so much more enjoyable.
