World of Gothic – Review
written by: Thugsoldier
translation: BlackLizard

Xbox 360 - Test

This Xbox-test refers almost solely to the technical aspects of Arcania on the Xbox 360.

Arcania has received numerous bad ratings from online magazines. Often it is mentioned that the Xbox-version was incredibly badly executed. How much truth is in these reviews?

I, as a Gothic-fan since Gothic 1, was very sceptical about Arcania. The information, which was broadcast before the release, has partly surprised me positively, and partly they turned Arcania into a “no-go” in my eyes. But nevertheless I gave it a try.

Regarding the gameplay I will not say much, except that I could only really make friends with Arcania and fall in love with the world after approx. the first 8 hours had passed. When I remember Two Worlds, it was completely the other way around. I played Two Worlds enthusiastically for 8 hours, and everything that followed was torture. I played Two Worlds on the Xbox as well, and was absolutely disappointed, by the technical aspects as much as by the gameplay and feeling of the game. Arcania is of another caliber. The beginning is weak, and as JoWood has already mentioned, not characteristic for the main game.

I play on the difficulty “Gothic” and admit that this difficulty is almost Gothic-worthy. In the beginning you will have a little trouble with the controls on the console. Only after about 6 hours of gameplay I could announce: “Now I finally got it completely.” But perhaps it was because I had turned off all available help functions.

After some time you begin to cherish the graphics and the gameworld of Arcania.

For example, I have no information about how much energy my opponent has. That’s what I call realistic. Before Arcania was released I feared that the console-version would not offer all those options, however on the 360 there are all menu items you can find in the PC-version. For a Gothic-fan like me this is very important. I also liked the typical Bioware-solution with the scroll wheel. It is really convenient and in my opinion an even better solution than for PC.

Although the controls take some getting used to, once you have mastered them you will have a lot of fun. Many people say, to play a RPG on the console is a complete impossibility. Yet I say: I have played several RPG’s on the console already, which I enjoyed just as much as on the PC. I have played Oblivion on both PC and Xbox ,and found no weaknesses regarding the controls. That the game shows weaknesses in other parts I do not need to mention, but the 360-version of Oblivion had very few disadvantages compared to the computer. It’s the same way with Arcania. I played the demo on the PC with graphic-settings between medium and high, and honestly have to admit that the 360-version looks equally good. Considering that my PC cost me 1000 Euro a few years ago, and the Xbox costs 200 Euro, you can call yourself lucky.

The graphics I did not like right from the start (not on the PC, either). Somehow I was spoiled by the perfect color-balance of Piranha Bytes. But after some time you begin to cherish the graphics and the gameworld of Gothic 4. The farsight does not seem inferior to that of the PC, and that is quite impressive. I have read that Arcania also works on CRT-TV. With Risen there were several problems concerning tube TVs, because the texts could not be read on them. Nice that the developers of Arcania thought of this point, since not everybody is able to play with 1080p on a 42” TV. So in this case: all-clear.

A few things stood out negatively nevertheless:

The faces of NPCs don’t look as good by far, compared to the PC, but better than in a lot of other games. Which means: still good enough.

The shadows look great, especially when standing close to a light source and inside buildings. But the shadows of trees are very flawed at certain points. They flicker, disappear and reappear within seconds. I also noticed that this happens mostly at the same specific location in the game, and in no case everywhere. But whenever you find yourself in a large forest, it can destroy the whole atmosphere. This should definitely be patched.

The ground-textures become “washed-out” too quickly: it already happens at a distance of approx. 8 meters. Here they could have managed a softer transition. However, this is equal to a lot of other Open World games, if I remember for example Oblivion or Two Worlds. Red Dead Redemption or GTA4 have performed a lot better in this regard, and should be seen as the standard.

The balancing of the weather is simply ridiculous. Most of the time the weather changes too often and way too fast. One moment the sun is shining, the next it’s already raining. Although this happens in reality, it does not occur so exaggeratingly often. Yet, you can get used even to things like this.

At a distance of about 50 meters tree tops often start to disappear. Strangely they disappear and do not fade in, like most similar bugs in other games, but the disappearing is just as bad.

The frame-rate is very low at times. I am not good at guessing something like this, but fortunately it doesn‘t usually happen unless you are attacked by more than five enemies at once. Oblivion and Two Worlds, which were already mentioned, did not perform any better. However this is no excuse.

The positive aspects about the Xbox-version:

All graphical elements seem to be used just the way they are on the PC. And this is certainly not bad, looking at the age of the console.
There are no loadings screens, only cutscenes of the kind which could also be found in Gothic 2. The world is of course a complete Open World – as far as this is possible since you cannot swim. I am genuinely wondering why this “feature”, which used to be considered standard years

The shadows look great, especially close to a light source.

ago, is suddenly regarded as a “Nice to have” in a lot of games. Arcania, Risen and Red Dead Redemption are only a few of those.

Different from the PC-version (at least concluded from the demo) not all of the nothing-to-say NPC’s answer with phrases like “Leave me alone”. Some do not say anything at all anymore. But on the other hand, they sometimes say those sentences without even being talked to, but simply if you approach them. That’s a matter of taste, but I did not think it is bad.

Bugs are really rare. For one thing, there is the torch-bug, which has already been present in the PC-demo-version. You light a torch and as soon as your hero does another animation, like drawing a weapon, the torch disappears, yet the light remains. I am not quite sure if this really is a bug, because I am getting the feeling it is intentional. But very unrealistic, even though it is often helpful. If I could turn it off, I would do so.

The inventory has been resolved better than for the PC. On the left there is a column showing the items you have equipped, on the right is the inventory. This way you can always have a look if there is any better equipment in your inventory.

Conclusion

The Xbox-version left a very good impression on me. I do not get bad graphics on my 42” TV with 1080p resolution. Even more: it looks better than the other Open World roleplay-games for the Xbox I know. With the controls and the combat system, after getting used to them, I have much fun. The inventory reminds me of Gothic 1 and may be confusing at times, but not exactly bad. Little mistakes in the balancing you might encounter here and there, but after a few hours of gameplay you will not notice them anymore. Some people say Arcania does not have a lively RPG world, but when I enter a cave and find a skeleton hacking ore and it promptly starts chasing me all through said cave, then I perceive this as more than believable and equally lively. In my opinion this is an RPG exactly like Gothic 1-3. There are lots of parallels and similarities to all three parts. Sometimes the tunes of the music, which was without a doubt very well done, sound like Gothic 2, sometimes like Gothic 3.

I was very very doubtful and regarded Arcania as unworthy to bear “Gothic” in its name, but after around eight hours of playing my opinion has completely changed. All my hopes and wishes as to what Gothic 4 should be like in my perception, have been fulfilled almost entirely. If you could also do the things typical for Gothic 3: sleeping, learning with teachers and crafting at workbenches, I would call it a perfect successor. Sure, here and there the world appears a little empty and sparse, because there are very few NPC‘s who have something to say.

I was very very doubtful, but after some hours of playing my opinion has completely changed.

However those who do, practically spread the atmosphere of Gothic. Houses and caves are just like the ones in Gothic. The rambling world reminds of Gothic 1-2, yet there are large meadows in the style of Gothic 3, as well. I played too long last night, since I have to go to work today, and this means: Arcania captivates like Gothic. Arcania is like Gothic. What more could you wish for?

Why some games give better ratings to Two Worlds than to Arcania I simply cannot understand. It is a very nice game and is incredibly fun. It invites to explore the world more than Dragon Age. The graphics on the Xbox look better than Risen. And all in all it is better than Two Worlds 1 at everything.

P.S.: I cannot say much about the storyline, because I have not come very far in my 14 hours of gameplay. I am enjoying the atmosphere and the beautifully designed world. Just yesterday I backtracked to a region, without any intention except to visit the characters again. To my surprise they even had things to say, were asking about the regions, where I came from. I told them what was happening and stayed for a while before I moved on. The only thing I can say: I do not know much about the bigger story, and this is a good sign. The story of Dragon Age or Risen was known after two hours of gameplay: you knew who the final boss was, concerning Arcania you may assume something, but it is only vague.

To all Gothic-fans: Hang me if you like, rip me to shreds, but Arcania is very similar to former Gothics. Would the typical features of Gothic 3, which I mentioned above, be included I would call it Gothic 4 without exceptions. Then I could not have imagined a better Gothic 4 by Spellbound, despite its little weaknesses. However this way, I will stick to the name Arcania, which is a great, believable and very Gothic-like Open World RPG.

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