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.
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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