Gothic II – PC – Preview

E3 2002 – First Look

There once was a game that featured
the traditional fight between good and evil, wrapped in an RPG shell and set in a
prison. What happened to it? It evolved.

Gothic II,  a JoWood and Piranha PC
release, is a continuation of the original title, but you don’t have to be
familiar with that game to enjoy this outing.

The original storyline detailed the
battle between the goodly king and an unscrupulous band of orcs that resulted in
those who had committed crimes against the kingdom to be enslaved in orc mines.
This prison had been sealed by magicians with a barrier, but all went awry and
the prisoners took over. The hero of the story, Diego, has been sentenced to the
mines; however the king asks him to undertake a special mission.

In Gothic II, the magical barrier has
been destroyed by a massive earthquake. Most of the prisoners flee, but one is
trapped, and for six months survives in the caverns on water and little else.
The temblor also opened a portal and it isn’t long before demon hordes are
coursing through it into the world. Originally freed by one of the demons, your
duty is to rejoin the king against the invasion and stop the demon.

Sounds simple enough. But remember it
was stated that this is an evolved game. How so? Gothic had 100 NPC (non-playing
characters) and Gothic II has 500. The environment in the original represented
seven kilometers, while the second takes place over 25-square kilometers.
Characters in the original were comprised of 100 polygons – that count is up to
500 polys per character. In addition, there are 50 spells, three character
classes (paladin, magician and warrior), and the game is mouse-driven (no more
keyboard aerobics).

Graphically the game is much improved.
There are still common elements in GII in terms of combat action, but the game
was visually appealing. If you enjoyed the original game, then you will want the
sequel.

Look for this game to be released in
the fall.