Gothic

No other game has a world, that is created as well as the world of Gothic. Add on top of that a very well balanced and paced gameplay, and you get this masterpiece. Gothic 1 for me still is the Gold-Standard of open world games, that no other game ever reached. There is no other World where exploring ever felt as rewarding as in this one, without holdind the players hand to much. The game strikes a perfect balance in that regard. The Characters are very believable, and a lot more lifelike than in traditional fantasy games as well. Gothic 1 does not try to stuff its pretty good story down your throat, it let's you experience it. Can not recomend this game more, everybody should have played it, it's a absolute masterpiece.

I somehow completely overlooked the Gothic franchise when it first arrived in the USA those many years ago, like so many others. I only discovered the game when I was looking online through forums and videos for a fantasy-based gaming experience with a fun magic system and plenty of depth. It has both of these and much more, with a world that feels much more fleshed out than many current games could claim to boast. Yes, there are quirks to the game system, and sometimes things won't function as intended, but all in all, it's worth the time to dive into this adventure.

Tried to run after install, nothing. So then tried to verify and system hung on 94% had to reset computer. Attempted again and eventually did verify to 100 % but still doesn't run. Read about some players patch that solves this, downloaded and it does start the game somewhere in the background according to task manager, everywhere except on your screen. Gave job up as a bad do, uninstalled. At least it was in sale really cheap as if i'd paid £9 i'd be narked to put it politely.

In Gothic 1 you are useless walking bag of meat, disrespected, despised, you are worthless worm, every living creature including the humans in the 'home' area wants you dead, sometimes just for a laugh. And this can be changed through hardwork. The feeling alone when you overcome all the odds to be the hero is so fulfilling, never felt that in a game for years! And the true challenge you need to work through is patching the game until it works! It's worth it. If you want a 'similar' experience to Gothic skip the Witcher and play Kingdom Come: Deliverance.

Thulis ist what Games are made for! You can feel the programmers' passion while playing.