I’m finding the voice acting to be 10x better in Gothic 2 than the first. I realize there are a lot of the same actors but there is a whole lot more inflection and less monotone this time around. I don’t know if it’s the improved script, better direction, more money or what but it’s much improved.
Thanks for the help on the quests. I definitely don’t think I’ll be beating the bandits at the lighthouse in Chapter 1. I was able to do it by luring them into town and letting the townspeople take them out but at least one townsperson died in the attack and I didn’t want to chance losing out on a later quest because of it.
Thanks for the thoughts and link. Another question for you – what’s the voice-acting like in the German version? Did the same actors voice their roles in all of the Gothic products?
I think they did a very good job. AFAIK there were about 12-14 voice actors in the German version, and some of them were also involved in the prequel. Same for the expansion since that one adds new dialogue content to the ‘old’ G2 characters. Not to mention the new NPCs. There are also 2 or 3 new voice actors. I haven’t heard the English voices, but I know a number of (UK or NA) players that checked both and like the German voices better. Some of them would rather play the game with English subtitles and German voices. If you’re bored or curious enough you could check out the German Gothic 2 demo Some people modded it and added English subtitles, but I don’t have that link anymore.
I’m definately gonna play Gothic after I’m done with this one. Kinda in reverse order, but whatever.
I was bored the other day so I decided to look at gamefaqs about Gothic 2, and man I instantly restarted. I made it to chapter 2 at level 5 and skipped almost all of the quests.
Can’t say that I really agree with this review at all. I’ve had nothing but an absolute blast playing this game. The only thing that I really can’t stand is the voice acting. :P
The game does deserve a higher rating than 2 stars, but I just recently started it and found myself experiencing a lot of the frustrations that review mentions, frustrations that motivated me to start KotOR (which I’ll probably finish before touching Gothic 2 again).
I have hesitated to pick this one up despite mostly high praise. My experience with the first was quite underwhelming. The voice acting was terrible, I really didn’t like that I would choose my dialogue and then have it spoken (I know what I just said, I don’t need an excruciating line reading). The controls were annoying, I didn’t really like the combat (maybe because of controls), and more importantly, a lot of the features the game boasted were things sort of done in Ultima 7, just in a 3D world. It really wasn’t that revolutionary for me (granted I didn’t finish it).
Here’s hoping that RPG’s return back to Ultima 7’s greatness.
The reviewer’s apparently of the view that “leveling up”, and garnering cool loot, are the most important aspects of a RPG, while I don’t even think they’re prerequisites. In terms of offering a great, well-developed gaming world to role-play in, very few games match, let alone top, Gothic 2.
I can definitely see reasons for not liking Gothic 2: it’s too non-linear, too easy to die if you take advantage of the freedom to explore and go into dangerous areas, trading/inventory interface isn’t mouse controlled, too talky at the beginning if you try to get everything out of each NPC before attempting quests…but some things in the GameSpy review are just factually inaccurate:
“your stats …don’t increase at all [with each new level]” wrong
" it costs five [skill points] to make any significant advance in any given stat" wrong
" You can assign hotkeys to healing scrolls and spells, but not to potions," wrong
etc.
If you don’t even notice (and/or think it’s worth noting) things like the dynamic nature of the gaming world, or the fact that NPCs all have their own daily schedules, the complex and distinct AI of the enemy types, the detailed 3D environments – and instead think it’s a drag (and the biggest problem with the game) that you start an RPG as a puny, low-level character (same as almost every other RPG, although the game’s non-linearity makes it more dangerous) – then Gothic 2 is not for you, I guess.
The game does deserve a higher rating than 2 stars, but I just recently started it and found myself experiencing a lot of the frustrations that review mentions, frustrations that motivated me to start KotOR (which I’ll probably finish before touching Gothic 2 again).[/quote]
Gamespy’s adopted one of the harsher rating scales you’ll find. They don’t do half-stars and a two-star game is “fair”. Three stars = “good” and four stars = great. If a game gets five stars that means that the reviewer considers it to be game of the year material.
Gamespy’s adopted one of the harsher rating scales you’ll find. They don’t do half-stars and a two-star game is “fair”. Three stars = “good” and four stars = great. If a game gets five stars that means that the reviewer considers it to be game of the year material.
I still don’t buy Gothic 2 being labeled as “fair.” I would think three star minimum (personally I’d give it five). Of course it all comes down to opinion, but its depressing to think that someone would avoid one of the best RPGs of the year because of that review.
Exactly. I would not hesitate to call this a great game. And as Desslock pointed out, it’s a very dynamic world with distinct characters who all have their schedules to go by. I can get myself immersed in this game within minutes of firing it up, and that’s saying a lot, as I tend to be an impatient gamer who can often get pretty frustrated when things are too slow-paced.
I think I’m 6th level. I’ve travelled all the way across the map looking for mobs I’m confident I can take for xp, but I felt like I was running out of steam. Should I start chapter 2 (I’m one conversation click away) or am I too low level?
What I’d basically like to know is what’s the best way to get more xp at my level in chapter one?
I think I’m 6th level. I’ve travelled all the way across the map looking for mobs I’m confident I can take for xp, but I felt like I was running out of steam. Should I start chapter 2 (I’m one conversation click away) or am I too low level?
What I’d basically like to know is what’s the best way to get more xp at my level in chapter one?
Well I was level 7 or 8 I think when I started Chapter 2 and didn’t have any problems in it.
Best way to get XP is solving quests. Its much safer than combat and can net you some serious experience. Have you done as many quests as possible for whatever factions you are choosing not to join? You can do their acceptance quests all the way up to when you have to make a decision.
In the Gothic games if you are starting to burn out on a Chapter the best thing is to move on to the next one. The gameworld of Gothic 2 changes quite a bit in each chapter and you can get all new quests from many NPCs. Chapter 2, specifically, is very different than Chapter 1.
I wasn’t even aware of the different factions and ended up joining the militia after I became Harad’s apprentice. Andre is no longer offering duties for me, so I’ve also depleted that source for quests. Perhaps I should talk to more NPCs around town for additional quests.
The gap between German and English reviews of the game is quite notable. (Check out the scores here.) Of course, it certainly is the case that some of those outlets are a little more enthusiastic about Gothic 2 since it was developed by a German dev, but there’s also another apparent trend I’ve perceived. The majority of the English reviews I read can be summed up as “good game, but horrible interface” (in that order). The interface design seems to have more impact on how the game is received. I certainly agree that the controls aren’t perfect and that the item handling and organization could have been done better, but it took me like 1 hour to get used to it and after that the game provided no less than 50 hours of absolutely immersive entertainment. (And another 40-50 hours again as I beat it again with the add-on installed.) I’m tempted to think that the scores often are also a result and indicator of how much time the person to review the game actually spent on it. (Well, of course, in other cases the game simply didn’t do anything for the player.)
As for the Gamespy review, Desslock already pointed out that the author assumes that purpose and focus of an RPG should be the character/stats development itself. Sure, there are games where the main characters receive a new super move (or something along those lines) every second level. I tend to play these games under a different premise though, and so do most of the people who enjoyed Gothic 2 for what it is.
Its not that revolutionary other than its an U7-like game in a 3D world. This is a good thing. Really.
You want RPG’s to return to U7’s greatness and complain when one tries some of its unique features? It wasn’t the Second Coming or anything but it was a very sold RPG. I’m looking forward to Gothic II.
I think not having a mouse-navigable inventory/trading interface is just much more unusual in North America. A lot of the German reviewers (and the developers) seems content to play the game entirely without even using the mouse. The mouse controls are actually pretty decent, aside from inventory management – I think they work well for combat.
I think not having a mouse-navigable inventory/trading interface is just much more unusual in North America. A lot of the German reviewers (and the developers) seems content to play the game entirely without even using the mouse.
Well, as far as I can say that most players over here were tempted to use the mouse as well for the inventory handling. Games like Diablo 1&2 or BG sold very well over here, too, afterall and had an impact. I personally don’t think that the majority of the players considered the Gothic UI intuitive. But they got used to it and it didn’t break the experience. Which is exactly the impression I got after reading a number of English reviews.
Heh, I remember that one interview with Piranha Bytes (conducted way before Gothic I was finished) and they stated that one of the aspects they’re focussing on is making the controls as accessible as possible. “Like a console game. Not more than 8-12 keys required.” I’m convinced that hardy anyone outside Piranha Bytes - not even over here - thought that the Gothic 1 controls were truly accessible. Many of these elements were streamlined in G2 (f.i., picking an item up not requiring a key combo anymore). As for the battle system, I liked that one as well and kept it instead of using the new, simplified one in G2.
I mentioned it, although I might not be the only one. The problem in not having shields is there isn’t enough benefit to a one-handed weapon. They’re a little faster than the two-handed variety, but the parry thing essentially makes them the same, at higher levels.
I love this game, played through as a paladin, but I wish there was a bit more direction than simply getting the biggest freakin’ two-handed sword I could find – for a fighter class. The crossbow is also superior to the bow; there’s no reason I could see to take a bow – although, I took quite a few levels of bow before I figured this out.
And I found killing the boss monsters a wee bit too easy. All I had to do was get into a position where the foozles got stuck on the geometry (not difficult) and pelt them with bolts. Even the final foozle was a breeze with this method. Otherwise, it was pretty damn frustrating with the blow-back effect of their breath weapon. I mean, if I eventually have a choice of reloading for the dozenth time or finding a safe spot in the geometry, I’ll choose the latter. I typically feel guilty of taking advantage of a game’s weaknesses, but constant reloading isn’t exactly maintaining my suspension of disbelief in an RPG.
Woo. I didn’t mean to go off like that. It must have bugged me more than I thought. I still can’t wait for the expansion, but I’m looking forward to the new engine in Gothic 3.
Its not that revolutionary other than its an U7-like game in a 3D world. This is a good thing. Really.
You want RPG’s to return to U7’s greatness and complain when one tries some of its unique features? It wasn’t the Second Coming or anything but it was a very sold RPG. I’m looking forward to Gothic II.[/quote]
Yep, I definitely will complain in this case even though Gothic tried to get back to U7’s greatness. I thought the controls were so bad, along with some of the other fundamentals, that giving NPCs schedules and the other little details wasn’t enough. I actually found it to be a somewhat bad RPG trying to imitate some of the better features of U7 in a 3D world.
