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// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhy did Gothic 1 Remake go to therapy? It had a dark past.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Gothic Remake)

Gothic 1 Remake
DeveloperAlkimia Interactive
PublisherTHQ Nordic
DirectorReinhard Pollice
ProducerReinhard Pollice
ArtistDaniel Candil
Writers
ComposerKai Rosenkranz
SeriesGothic
EngineUnreal Engine 5
Platforms
Release5 June 2026
GenreAction role-playing
ModeSingle-player

Gothic 1 Remake (or Gothic Remake) is a 2026 action role-playing game developed by Alkimia Interactive and published by THQ Nordic. It is a remake of the 2001 game Gothic, developed by Piranha Bytes. The game was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on 5 June 2026. It received mixed reviews by critics and sold half a million units within the first week of release.

Gameplay

[edit]

Gothic 1 Remake is an action role-playing game set in third-person perspective in a fantasy open world. The player controls a prisoner who is sent to a penal mining colony, called the Valley of Mines, which is surrounded by a magical barrier.[1] As in the original Gothic, the nameless hero navigates the world without a minimap[2] and starts without any skills.[3] Lock picking was developed similarly to the original, but is presented differently.[4][5]

Development

[edit]

In May 2019, the Austrian computer game publisher THQ Nordic acquired German developer Piranha Bytes, the creators and intellectual property owners of the Gothic series.[6] Piranha Bytes declined to develop another Gothic game, instead choosing to focus on other games such as ELEX.[7]

The Spanish branch of THQ Nordic, THQ Barcelona, released a game demo, titled Gothic Playable Teaser, in December 2019 and began a public survey to gather feedback regarding the demo and the a potential remake of Gothic.[8][9] Over 180,000 downloads of the demo were reported in March 2023[10] and over 30,000 responses,[5] mostly mixed.[11][12] According to THQ Nordic, over 90% of the players were in favor for a production of a remake. THQ Nordic announced the remake's production in February 2020.[10] The playable teaser was scrapped and a "complete reboot" was green-lit based on the community feedback, which called for a remake that was closer to the original.[4][5]

Before beginning production, in March 2021, Alkimia Interactive was founded in Barcelona to develop a remake of Gothic.[13] Some of the original developers of Gothic joined Alkimia, among them the composer, a dialogue writer and a programmer.[14] In 2023, approximately 45 employees were working on the game,[5][15] and over 50 employees in 2024.[3] All employees were required to play the original game.[16]

A main focus of development was non-player character (NPC) behavior, including character routines. The algorithm used 20–30-minute motion capture recordings, which were divided into individual sequences and categorized, referred as "motion magic". According to the developers, iteration was given a lot of work-time during the production. Controls and the user interface were also improved to make the game more accessible. According to lead producer Reinhard Pollice, combat and skill systems were based on the original, in contrast to the playable teaser.[4][5]

Due to increased design options and higher level of detail since 2001, Gothic 1 Remake's game world, which was based on the original, is 10–30% larger. As some places in the original game world were not fully designed, an attempt was made to "take up such potential",[4][5] some locations were made more dense than others.[16] New quests based on the camp affiliation were developed for these locations.[15] Some quests from the original game were supplemented with additional plot options and narrative threads.[17] Chapters 2 through 5, which were trimmed in the original game due to budget and time constraints, were expanded upon.[18] The developers wished to better explain plotholes of the original.[5][15] One narrative difference is that more content and lore about the orcs and their culture is present.[3] The language of the orcs was expanded and professionalized with the assistance of a linguist.[17] A tattoo artist also advised the developers.[19]

The THQ studio Gate21, based in Sarajevo, was commissioned to design armor and NPCs. In contrast to the original, NPC armor models are varied for each character.[16][19] The player character is able to alter the value of his armor through modifications, which in turn has an impact on armor appearance. Weapon smithing and cooking systems were expanded for the remake.[20][21] In order to speed up the work process, NPC faces were created with deep learning AI.[5][19] The development of those faces was a multi-year process, at the beginning of which the faces were designed manually. To avoid having repetitive faces (as was the case in the original) with around 600 NPCs in the game, the developers morphed face models together to create new faces.[21][19]

Other additions include an adjustable camera angle in third-person perspective and the ability to adjust the balance/difficulty.[22][better source needed] Puzzles were revised to include "new interactions".[5] While the original game took around 23 to 38 hours to complete,[23] GameStar reported that an additional 20 hours are required for the remake.[24]

The development did not end with the release of the game; two patches were released within the first two weeks after the release.[25][26]

Engine and mod support

[edit]

Gothic 1 Remake uses the Unreal Engine (UE), which was chosen for organizational reasons.[16] During development, Alkimia Interactive switched from UE4 to UE5.4.[4][27] To address performance issues with UE 5.4, the game uses the PSO precaching system of UE 5.7.[27]

When asked about modding support for the remake, Alkimia Interactive, which itself consists of members who developed mods for Gothic and Gothic II,[28][16] said that modding can be accomplished via AngelScript, a scripting language which was used "extensively for a lot of gameplay mechanics" during development.[29]

Soundtrack, dialogue, and localization

[edit]

Kai Rosenkranz, who composed the music for the original game, was also responsible for the soundtrack of the remake. Rosenkranz reinterpreted his original soundtrack and created new music.[16] He used FMOD to implement his music.[30][dead link]

Some dialogue from the original was rewritten, and new dialogue was added.[31][5][4] As in the original, the choice of dialogue options can determine the outcome of a conversation.[32] Text-based localization for Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese and Spanish were developed.[5][3] The English text localization was completely reworked, as Alkimia Interactive criticized that the original failed to convey the harshness of the German, Polish and Russian versions.[33] The game is voiced in German and English, and in Polish and Russian due to the franchise's large fan bases in those languages.[5][3] For the dubbing of the German, Polish and Russian versions, Alkimia Interactive hired voice actors who had worked on the original game,[34][35][36] if voices didn't change drastically since.[3][5]

Release

[edit]

The first trailer for Gothic 1 Remake was released in August 2022.[37] Several artworks and screenshots of the remake got published on Steam in early 2023.[38][39] Gameplay was first revealed in a trailer in August 2024,[40] and a demo was presented at Gamescom in the same month, which differs from the finished remake in terms of gameplay and setting (e.g. no quick save mode, different player character).[31][41][42] Since February 2025, the demo, titled "Nyras Prologue", is available on Steam.[43][44] After the release of the demo 15,000 players participated in a survey about it.[45] THQ Nordic posted "Making of" videos to their YouTube channel.[46]

In February 2023, Alkimia Interactive claimed the development was "in the middle of production and therefore perfectly on schedule", but did not want to commit to a release date.[5] In March 2023, the studio cited the year 2024 as a "realistic release timeline".[15] In the same month, publisher THQ Nordic said it "did not want to name a final release period".[47] In February 2026, THQ Nordic announced that the game would be released on 5 June 2026.[48]

A "Collector's Edition" of Gothic 1 Remake, limited to 7,500 copies, was available for preorder. Bundled with the game a copy of the game on DVD is a wall decoration (a so-called sleeper mask with a wall mount), a notebook and a bracelet, each made of leather, and the game's soundtrack on CD.[49][50][51] Physical copies of Gothic 1 Remake cannot be played without a one-time internet connection, as the complete game is not contained on the discs.[52]

Reception

[edit]

Critical response

[edit]

Gothic 1 Remake received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[53][54] OpenCritic determined that 57% of critics recommended the game.[55]

Carlo Siebenhüner of PC Games said the game surprised him positively, lauding the atmosphere the game world as exuding a "Gothic feeling" The combat system would take some time to get used to, but the atmosphere is convincing.[64] Stephanie Schlottag of GameStar criticized the absence of features in the review version and a difficulty level that was high even by Gothic standards. However, the publication also agreed that the classic "Gothic feel" had returned. Schlottag praised the new additions as blending well into the game and the progression system as rewarding.[65] Stephan Zielke of the German console magazine GamePro praised the quests, exploration, and character development, while he criticized the balancing, combat system, controls, and technical aspects.[66] Peter Steinlechner of the IT magazine Golem praised the atmosphere, exploration, and progression but criticized technical flaws.[67] Patrick Poti of the online magazine 4Players described the game as a "feast for action-RPG players", though it criticized the technical execution; the game's faithfulness to the original was also viewed negatively.[68] Martin Woger of Eurogamer criticized several issues that were present in the original game.[69] Von Sascha Penzhorn of IGN Germany highlighted the visuals and faithfulness to the source material, while noting "technical issues and AI glitches" that needed to be addressed after release.[70]

Due to specific bugs and problems that GameStar encountered with their review version, they downgraded their rating for the game by 7 points for as long as it is not patched accordingly.[65] Due to technical problems on the PlayStation 5 Version, GamePro also downgraded their score.[66]

Sales

[edit]

According to THQ Nordic, Gothic 1 Remake sold 500,000 units across all platforms within the first week of release.[71][72]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Notis, Ari (1 June 2026). "The Witcher 3's best replacement officially releases in less than 1 week". Polygon. Retrieved 8 June 2026.
  2. ↑ Macgregor, Jody (29 April 2026). "Gothic Remake will be just as strict on murder as the original, and if you get caught NPCs will remember 'you're kind of a rude guy'". PC Gamer. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Halley, Dimitry (11 December 2024). Gothic Remake: Die Rückkehr ins Minental verändert alles (in German). GameStar Talk. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Schubert, William; Schmidt, Christian (31 August 2023). "Preview: Das Gothic Remake wird genau das, was ich haben will". TechRadar (in German). Archived from the original on 31 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Schubert, William (19 February 2023). "Gothic Remake: Wie ist der aktuelle Entwicklungsstand? Ein Interview mit Reinhard Pollice". TechRadar (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  6. ↑ "Piranha Bytes acquired by THQ Nordic". THQ Nordic GmbH. 22 May 2019. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  7. ↑ "Interview mit Reinhard Pollice". World of Gothic (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  8. ↑ Halley, Dimitry (13 December 2019). "Gothic Remake: Alle Infos zur spielbaren Demo". GameStar (in German). Archived from the original on 19 May 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  9. ↑ Bertits, Andreas (13 December 2019). "Gothic: Remake quasi angekündigt, spielbarer Prototyp veröffentlicht". PC Games (in German). Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  10. 1 2 "Gothic-Remake kommt tatsächlich für PC, PS5 und Xbox Series X". Der Standard (in Austrian German). 19 February 2020. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  11. ↑ Nelson, Labrador (4 April 2020). ""Der letzte Scheiß!" – Gothic Playable Teaser". Gamers Global (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  12. ↑ Schulz, Elena (16 December 2019). "Gothic Remake: Das sagen die Spieler auf Steam zum Playable Teaser". GameStar (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  13. ↑ "Alkimia Interactive to develop Gothic Remake". THQ Nordic GmbH. 11 March 2021. Archived from the original on 22 December 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  14. ↑ "Es ist offiziell: Das Gothic Remake bekommt seine wichtigste Stimme für die deutsche Synchro zurück!". PC GAMES (in German). 7 November 2025. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Pichler, Georg (18 March 2023). "Khorinis liegt in Barcelona: Ein Besuch bei den Machern des Gothic-Remakes". Der Standard (in Austrian German). Archived from the original on 18 March 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Engel, Richard (30 August 2022). "Mit Kai Rosenkranz zum alten Glanz: So konnte uns das Gothic Remake auf der Gamescom doch verzaubern". PC Games Hardware (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  17. 1 2 THQ Nordic Inside (13 December 2025). Gothic 1 Remake | Making Of #04: Story. Retrieved 13 December 2025 – via YouTube.
  18. ↑ Rams, David (4 September 2024). ""Gothic 1 Remake": Warum der Wunsch vieler Fans damit wahr wird!". TVMovie (in German). Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  19. 1 2 3 4 THQ Nordic Inside (6 February 2026). Gothic 1 Remake | Making Of #05: Bringing the World to Life. Retrieved 6 February 2026 – via YouTube.
  20. ↑ Siebenhüner, Carlo (7 October 2023). "Gothic Remake: Ich habe Gameplay gesehen". PC Games (in German). Archived from the original on 14 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  21. 1 2 Bayer, Thilo (7 January 2024). "Gothic Remake: 'Jedes einzelne Gesicht ist einzigartig'". PC Games Hardware (in German). Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  22. ↑ Palumbo, Alessio (3 October 2024). "Gothic Remake Q&A - Alkimia Talks About Expanding the Classic RPG with an Extra 10 Hours of Content". Wccftech. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  23. ↑ "How long is Gothic?". HowLongToBeat.com. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  24. ↑ Höftmann, Marie-Lena (19 December 2024). "Gothic Remake: Die Spielzeit wird im Vergleich zum Original deutlich länger". GameStar (in German). Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  25. ↑ "Gothic 1 Remake — Patch 1.0.1 Is Live!". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  26. ↑ "Gothic 1 Remake — Patch 1.0.2 Is Live!". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  27. 1 2 "Nachgefragt bei Gothic Remake: RPG soll ohne UE5-Ruckler auskommen [Update]". PC Games Hardware (in German). 14 April 2026. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
  28. ↑ Miskulin, Michael (28 December 2023). "Gothic Remake: Wird das Spiel über Mod-Support für die Modding-Szene verfügen?". PC Games Hardware (in German). Archived from the original on 29 December 2023. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
  29. ↑ Fareed, Salman (1 August 2025). "Gothic 1 Remake Interview: THQ Nordic on Challenges, Feedback, and What's Next". Tech4Gamers. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  30. ↑ "World of Gothic - Gothic - 02 Interview mit Kai Rosenkranz auf der Gamescom 2025".
  31. 1 2 Wir! Zocken! GOTHIC REMAKE! Endlich! | gamescom 2024 (in German). Rocket Beans Gaming. 22 August 2024. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024 – via YouTube.
  32. ↑ Hilla, Dennis (4 September 2023). "Gothic Remake: Die Neuauflage des Klassikers wird richtig gut!". Gameswelt (in German). Archived from the original on 7 September 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  33. ↑ THQ Nordic Inside (15 April 2025). Gothic 1 Remake | Making Of #02: Old vs. New. Retrieved 31 May 2025 – via YouTube.
  34. ↑ THQ Nordic Inside (7 November 2025). Gothic 1 Remake | Making Of Special: German Voiceover. Retrieved 26 November 2025 – via YouTube.
  35. ↑ THQ Nordic Inside (7 November 2025). Gothic 1 Remake | Making Of Special: Polish Voiceover. Retrieved 26 November 2025 – via YouTube.
  36. ↑ THQ Nordic Inside (7 November 2025). Gothic 1 Remake | Making Of Special: Russian Voiceover. Retrieved 26 November 2025 – via YouTube.
  37. ↑ Bier, Tillmann (1 August 2022). "Gothic Remake: Trailer nimmt uns mit auf einen stimmungsvollen Ausflug in die alte Mine". GameStar (in German). Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  38. ↑ Harsch, Jonathan (28 January 2023). "Gothic Remake: Entwickler geben weiteres Update und zeigen die neuen Riesenratten". PC Games Hardware (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  39. ↑ Harsch, Jonathan (27 February 2023). "Gothic Remake: Neues Entwickler-Update zeigt wunderschöne, aber tödliche Monster". PC Games Hardware (in German). Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  40. ↑ Gothic 1 Remake | Showcase 2024 Trailer. THQ Nordic. 2 August 2024. Archived from the original on 2 August 2024. Retrieved 2 August 2024 – via YouTube.
  41. ↑ Schermann, Natalie (22 August 2024). Gothic Remake live gespielt: Das könnte richtig gut werden! (in German). GameStar Talk. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  42. ↑ Böhm, Markus; Hitzler, Erwin (22 August 2024). "Zehn Gamescom-Neuheiten vom Shooter aus der Ukraine bis zum versauten Partyspiel". Der Spiegel (in German). ISSN 2195-1349. Archived from the original on 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  43. ↑ "Gothic Remake: Demo-Gameplay im großen Test!". PC Games Hardware (in German). 21 February 2025. Retrieved 21 February 2025.
  44. ↑ Michel, Dennis (21 February 2025). "Gothic Remake angespielt: Mein Herz blutet - und lacht!". GamePro (in German). Retrieved 21 February 2025.
  45. ↑ "Gothic 1 Remake - Your Feedback, Our Upgrade: Updated Gothic 1 Remake Demo Now Available - Steam News". store.steampowered.com. 9 May 2025. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  46. ↑ "THQ Nordic Inside". YouTube. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
  47. ↑ Bathge, Peter (22 March 2023). "Gothic Remake: Das Release-Datum liegt noch in weiter Ferne". GameStar (in German). Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  48. ↑ Romano, Sal (12 February 2026). "Gothic Remake launches June 5". Gematsu. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
  49. ↑ Wetterau, Sören (25 April 2024). "Gothic Remake: Limitierte Collector's Edition inklusive Schläfermaske angekündigt". 4Players (in German). Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  50. ↑ Schneider, Bernd (26 April 2024). "Gothic Remake: Inhalte der Collector's Edition vorgestellt". Hardwareluxx (in German). Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  51. ↑ Mazique, Brian. "Gothic 1 Remake Release Date, Pre-Order Info And Details". Forbes. Retrieved 8 June 2026.
  52. ↑ Bender, Niklas (24 May 2026). "Mandatory download on day one: How the game disc is being reduced to a dummy". PlayFront. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
  53. 1 2 "Gothic 1 Remake (PC Critic Reviews)". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  54. 1 2 "Gothic 1 Remake (PS5 Critic Reviews)". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  55. 1 2 "Gothic 1 Remake". OpenCritic. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  56. ↑ Poti, Patrick (10 June 2026). "Gothic Remake im Test: Dieses Spiel macht mich so glücklich wie kein anderes aus 2026 bislang". 4P.de (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  57. ↑ "Gothic Remake im Test: Eine wunderschöne Zeitreise, die an der eigenen Sturheit leidet". Eurogamer.de (in German). 5 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  58. ↑ Trinske, Connor (5 June 2026). "Gothic 1 Remake Review - Restoring A Relic". Game Informer. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  59. ↑ "Gothic 1 Remake review: "Wish Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 was more of a jerk?"". GamesRadar+. 5 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  60. ↑ "Gothic Remake: Wir haben dem Rollenspiel Zeit für ein paar Patches gelassen – jetzt verdient es eine neue Wertung". GameStar (in German). 9 July 2026. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  61. ↑ Green, Jarrett (5 June 2026). "The Gothic Remake Pulls This RPG Classic Into the Modern Era Visually, but It's a Mixed Blessing That It Doesn't Change Much Else". IGN. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  62. ↑ published, Jody Macgregor (5 June 2026). "Gothic 1 Remake review". PC Gamer. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  63. ↑ "Gothic Remake im Test: Eine starke Rückkehr mit Ecken und Kanten". PC Games (in German). 5 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  64. ↑ "Gothic Remake im Test: Eine starke Rückkehr mit Ecken und Kanten". PC Games (in German). 5 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  65. 1 2 "Gothic Remake im Test: Eine starke Neuauflage mit viel Herz, die wir dennoch abwerten müssen". GameStar (in German). 10 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  66. 1 2 Zielke, Stephan (11 June 2026). "Gothic Remake im Test – Ein toller Nostalgietrip, wenn ihr schmerzresistent seid". GamePro (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  67. ↑ Steinlecher, Peter (5 June 2026). "Gothic Remake im Test". Golem (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  68. ↑ Poti, Patrick (10 June 2026). "Gothic Remake im Test: Dieses Spiel macht mich so glücklich wie kein anderes aus 2026 bislang". 4P.de (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  69. ↑ "Gothic Remake im Test: Eine wunderschöne Zeitreise, die an der eigenen Sturheit leidet". Eurogamer.de (in German). 5 June 2026. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  70. ↑ Penzhorn, von Sascha (5 June 2026). "Gothic Remake – Review: Liebesbrief mit Schönheitsfehlern". IGN Deutschland (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  71. ↑ "Steam :: Gothic 1 Remake :: Gothic 1 Remake Sells 500.000 Copies in First Week!". store.steampowered.com. 12 June 2026. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  72. ↑ "Gothic Remake: Publisher meldet riesigen Verkaufserfolg und verspricht »Support und Verbesserungen für die kommenden Wochen und Monate« ("Gothic Remake: Publisher reports huge sales success and promises "support and improvements for the coming weeks and months.")". GameStar (in German). 12 June 2026. Retrieved 14 June 2026.

Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ Based on 21 reviews
[edit]
External videos
video icon Podcast series by Alkimia Interactive
video icon Making of series by Alkimia Interactive
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