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The German GameStar magazine edition 06/2010 contains a detailed preview of Arcania. Under the supervision of two Jowood representatives, the editors were allowed to test the game a little and examine at least the beginning of the story on the island Feshyr, which serves as a tutorial, and the main island Argaan.
On a total of nine pages, the impressions gained by the editors are bundled in an extensive preview article. Types of enemies known from the previous Gothic games are listed, and there are questions asked about the role of the Orcs. Also the planned copy protection is mentioned. However, the decision about which copy protection will be used still has to be made. According to Jowood, no permanent online-connection will be required, as was recently the case for Ubisoft games, but a one-time online activation may be necessary. The creation of a binding account as is necessary for example Steam, is also not planned.
On a separate page the three editors, Christian Schmidt, Michael Trier and Daniel Matschijewsky assess the various major innovations from their perspective: such as the elimination of the fixed fraction binding, the absence of the teacher, or the feature functions for more comfort, which can be switched on or off.
Some information from the article in summary:
* The island Argaan: The swamp Toshoo in the South harbours a giant tree and a Mage Quarter; in the southeast there is a monastery; in the east (Setarrif) a hot jungle and desert landscape; in the middle a snowy mountain range is situated, which is not accessible; in the north Thorniara, where Rhobar III resides.
* Once unlocked, landscapes are accessible at any time.
* The impression of the level design is of varying quality: The city Stewark in the west of the island seems coherent and alive. Outside the city are partially generic-looking Speedtree-forests, abandoned fields, just a few small groups of monsters, and caves which are partly distinctive and partly boring.
* A number of quests can be solved in different ways, the different solutions having no effect on the game world.
* All comfort features can be disabled, only quest-related NPCs and items are constantly high-lighted by a green aura.
* There are no teachers in the game. After a level rise the player can freely distribute talent points. The talents Alchemy, Smithing and Thieving are no longer available. Lockpicking has become a mini game, pickpocketing does not exist anymore. Forging is possible with a recipe and the materials needed to forge.
* Mana rises automatically with the increase in magic skills in the talent tree. When you reach certain key points in the talent tree, new skills are unlocked. In total there are 25 talents. The talent tree is still being developed.
* The combat system is based on stamina with blocking, attacking, dodging, and special attacks. At the moment the balance is still being worked upon. Influencing the weather by using magic has been removed.
* The game ran smoothly and crash-free, but for the moment still contains many bugs, which, according to GameStar, will be removed by autumn.
These are just some of the many things in the article. The text itself of course contains much more, and in much more detail. In addition, there are plenty of screenshots and a video as an additional highlight on the DVD included with the magazine, which documents the trip to Argaan in just about eight minutes.
In conclusion Christian Schmidt summarizes his impressions:
The landscape, the diversity and credibility of the world are some of the key elements that distinguish the Gothic series. Piranha Bytes has produced three master pieces in this segment. As a result the bar lies high for Spellbound. No wonder that in the first two years of development of Arcania especially landscapes were shown. These are, without question, designed beautifully and varied.
The Inn ‚The Cleaved Maiden‘ is the first stop on Argaan, in the background Stewark stands out. As we seek our path along the west coast of Argaan, we run through overgrown fields and through fruit plantations, along quaint farmhouses into lush green forests, over rolling countryside, high on mountain slopes, where ancient towers sit on projections and tunnels run deep into the ground. The walled city Stewark situated on an island cliff, squeezes in alleyways and is closely interwoven with many stairs. Around it the sea surges at the steep walls. The massive walls are built into the ruins of an older civilization - great architecture!
In Stewark people bring color on the street, even if there can be no question of a real daily routine, it all feels comfortably alive. Outside the city walls, it looks different. Because the open regions give of the impression of being mostly empty. Not once did we encounter another person, even the fields are deserted. Here and there are little groups of mosters, which are placed rather sparingly in the world. While in Gothic 3 or Risen, scum lurks all ten steps and the next quest is just twenty steps away, the land of Arcania appears desolate to us - at least the small part we have seen.
Spellbound captures the mood of the series well, they built a detailed world, and we are probably not threatened by a bug debacle. This is good news. It still remains unclear however, how motivating the game-play will be, how big the variation, and how strong the urge to explore and discover. For these are the core elements that have distinguished Gothic. I have the quiet fear that Spellbound has taken to much work on itself with the size of the game world. This is indicated by the cuts and the minimalist staging. We are not standing before a milestone in the genre. But probably quite a solid Gothic - and that's the most important thing.
Translation by bigsnappy
Original article by Don-Esteban
To read the whole preview (in german): Arcania Preview on GameStar
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