After Oblivion appeared this year, JoWood took a boldly action and released the third installment of Gothic series to the market. Gothic was one of the best RPG series and this is why the fans and not only them, were eager to see what new things this episode is bringing. I can tell you from the beginning that the marks that will be given to this game won't reflect 100% of the experience that Gothic 3 has to offers. Some people might consider the mark too high and some too low. In 2001, the first installment of Gothic was released and since then, from Gothic was expected a unique atmosphere and story.

 

The intro

Our nameless hero, the same who was imprisoned on the island (Khorinis) in the first installment, together with some of its old friends reach the mainland only to discover that the orcs are now ruling it. Only a handful of humans are free, but most others have transformed themselves into rebels. In the south, the Hashishi and the orcs are under a treaty so until now they were doing just fine. In the north of Myrtana, the people are fighting the orcs and here the humans are still in power. It seems that Xardas, your old acquaintance is present here too and it's responsible for the situation in Myrtana. With his help, the orcs have defeated King Rhobar and it's paladins but nobody knows his plans.

As soon as the game starts and you kill your first opponents you realize that the Gothic spirit is still present. For the gamers trying to play it for the first time, the game could seem a little hard, but don't lose hope. Soon you get into the action and you will be swept into the story. Those are the moments when you don't realize the time passing, as well as the fact that you forget to eat and sleep, just to see what quests you receive and how the story evolves. Because of this, I can say that it's better than Oblivion.

Directions?

Myrtana, four times bigger than the map in Gothic 2, features three big areas. In the south, the desert is home to the Hashishi peoples and to nomads. In the middle, we have grass and forests, while in the north we have the only place, which orcs are still trying to conquer. Pyranha Bytes did an amazing job creating the world and that's why the environment looks breathtaking. Even so, the frame rate drops from time to time and you might be wondering why your machine that was upgraded just for this game can't perform better. Well, the performance that Gothic 3 has to offers is poor. Even a powerful computer slows down from time to time, as more and more objects are displayed on the screen and loaded into the game's cache. The world in Gothic is more alive and its inhabitants are busy doing their jobs, not paying attention to what you do or what you say. Compared to Oblivion (as it's the only true comparison that can be made), Gothic wins because here the people are not so scripted and behave more natural. You see hunters chasing their prey, blacksmiths forge weapons and can be found near the anvil not behind the counter, as well as creatures that are fighting each other and if you are patient enough, you even see them eating their pray. Some would say, "So what?", but all this adds to the feeling that Gothic puts into the player.

 

Three main factions can be found in the game. The rebels, the orcs, and the Hashishi, each have their own goals. The rebels are people, who weren't imprisoned by the orcs, thus now, they are fighting to liberate the humans from the Orcs. All would be nice if they would be all unite, but there are internal struggles and this makes them lose sight of the greater picture. The Orcs on the other hand, are seen as a cruel nation with no other purpose then to enslave and conquer the world. However, if you pay attention you see that not all of them are the same. They value humans and their struggle to liberate, they also value honor and maybe that is why they allow orc mercenaries to have certain privileges. The Hashishi are the merchants with nothing else in mind, but to make money. They encourage slavery and they even have slave traders in the cities. You can join any of these factions and help them be the rulers of Myrtana. Most will choose the rebels as they consider that it's the best thing to do, but is it? The story is very complex and when played as it should, you discover amazing things. You must discover the beauty of the game and let it flow through you, to fully understand the game.

The quests number is huge and some cities offer so many quests that you can spend an entire day completing them. With no means of transportation, the vastness of the world is accentuated and you think that it takes forever to explore the entire map, not to mention completing all the quests. You encounter various types of quests for killing people or creatures, fetching items, giving or getting information and so on. The quests have an excellent system that allows you to get to know the town and the surroundings better, after which they guide you to the next city. Because the game is not linear, you can do whatever you want in this world, but be careful because each action means something. If you kill a person, his friends can kick your butt, make you miss quests and even ruin the game. Therefore, think twice when it comes to killing people who have a given name, not a generic one like robber, gladiator, or such. Sometimes you have a specific quest to kill people and you can do it safely, because they are supposed to be killed.

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