[[Break]]

In our journal there is an opinion that the development of the official fourth part Gothic (already as a year has been responding to Arcania: A Gothic Tale) It is among the strategically important national projects of Germany and is protected by the law on non -disclosure of state secrets. Because getting intelligible information about this game is not easier than talking to the silent Japanese kamikadze in American captivity. The last time we wrote about the project last fall, and almost the entire note was devoted to listing the capabilities of the graphic engine – simply because there were no other details. Since then, new information from the camp Spellbound And Jowood – The cat cried. Sincerely worried about the situation, "Gambling" decided to call the developers to answer. Despite the fact that the executive producer Arcania: a Gothic Tale, Johan Ertl, was, to put it mildly, laconic, we still managed to pull out some details from him-huge, hot ticks.

From mud to bunch

For example, there was at least some certainty with the plot. The fact that the action of Arcania unfolds in the southern regions of the Kingdom of Mirtan, 10 years after the events of the Third Gothic, we knew a year ago. Now it is known that the permanent hero of the past "Gothic" adventures, who is loved by everyone, was convinced by everyone, convinced of his own experience – the authorities are really corrupting. According to the plot bridge thrown by Indian migrant workers from Trine Game Studio between Gothic 3: Forsaken Gods and Arcania, the nameless became the new king of Mirtana, Robar III. However, his policy was far from populist: he began conquering campaigns, made many controversial decisions, quarreled with the electorate and former friends, became a tyrant and eventually lost the protection of the witches of fate. Those put forward the new hero, also nameless, and gave him a good reason to personally turn to the monarch-rack with a number of uncomfortable questions: according to Johan Ertla, the game begins with the fact that our protege returns to its native village (where is unknown) and it is unknown) and finds only charred ruins in its place.

The task faces him – to find, take revenge and simultaneously fix excesses in big politics. On this path we will meet many old acquaintances. Among them will be, for example, Diego, with whom, as before, we will encounter already at the very beginning of the game; A dark -skinned man Thorus, who led the orcs back in WG Casino sister sites Forsaken Gods. And, of course, Xardas – without the active participation of this “Cardinal Richelieu” Mirtana, no important mess in the life of the kingdom. According to the latest data, about 20-30 hours of real time will take to fulfill the plot quest, but if you want to explore the whole world in detail, then feel free to multiply this number by half.

By the way, the affordable territory in Arcania will be less than in the third Gothic, but the authors promise to more tightly populate it. We start on a small island, from where we can get on a large one, where seven different cultures get along with each other, each of which has its own traditions, its own weapons and armored pantalones.

As the hero passes, a choice will appear: overthrow the tyrant by violently, convince him that “you can’t live like that”, or join Robar III. Already now, many fans of Gothic (even those who previously played out an extremely good role in RPG) speak of the desire to take the side of the one with whom they associated themselves for three parts of the series. The game will have three fractions and five guilds, including magicians and warriors that we can work for. Moreover, the arrangement of guilds now resembles what was in the TES series: they are divided by professional recognition, and we are free to sew on any. But we can not pay attention to them at all. With fractions, of course, this will not pass.

Our decisions and our behavior in specific situations will affect the reaction of others. “If you behave aggressively, then people around can be afraid or try to repulse,” says Johan Ertle. Accordingly, there will be a system of reputation. Which one is unknown. But definitely not the one that was in Gothic 3. “It will be something new, although overall similar to what you saw in other RPG,” the arcania producer is engaged in sophistry.

About 300 quests are planned in the game, most of them are associated with the main plot. Here, unhealthy associations with MMORPG immediately arise: most likely, some cheerful quests generator will joyfully propose to collect the ears of hares to help with the price of the prisoners. Nevertheless, it is known that many tasks can be performed in different ways. Here Johan Ertl cited Gamemany the first concrete example. One of the local residents will ask the nameless hero to purchase weapons oil for him. He himself cannot do this, because he quarreled with the merchant and does not talk to him anymore. The latter, of course, will understand who sent us for the goods, and refuse to sell it. Four options for solving the problem appear here: to convince the capitalist in a peaceful way, threaten him with the weapon of the proletariat, try to lie that you buy oil for your own purposes, or proudly turn around and combine the surroundings in search of the coveted liquid, faced on this path with a number of new difficulties.

Many quests will use the most different player skills, and solution options will directly depend on the skills and abilities of your character. That is, it is possible that the ability to convince or lie determine the specific parameters of the conversational and social skill. There was no one in the series before.

Gothic

Specifics about the role system is still not enough. It is known that there will be four classes (warrior, archer, magician, thief) and we will be able to study the skills of any of them without restrictions. “The game has always been famous for the very flexible development of the character. You could calmly grow a fiery magician who was famously waking swords, or an archer who actively using heavy axes in battle. We will maintain this flexibility in Arcania, ”promises Johan Ertle. Moreover, we will be given the opportunity to roll back already distributed experience and throw them into new abilities.

Spellbound special emphasis is on crafting, that is, the ability to manufacture a unique weapon and armor. “We want to fill the game with many powerful items that cannot be found in the surrounding chests, but which can be done independently according to the recipes found,” the producer promises.

The Germans are preparing surprises for virtual housekeepers. “On this occasion, we are now conducting an active brainstorming, we try different options. Absolutely, there will be no more situations when you could quickly cash in and become almost invulnerable after you easily stole some kind of super-minute and inaccessible weapon or armor. We want to make thieves' skills more interesting and balanced, ”they share Spellbound plans.

Information about how the battles will take place until recently there was almost no. A year ago, we knew that the combat system would undergo changes: less attention to the reaction speed and luck that allow you to jam enemies (or they beg you), more on the influence of specific character parameters. Some details have appeared now. Special emphasis is on the combo and special attacks. Spacesudars are activated when the blade begins to glow: at this moment you need to click on time in time, and then the hero will weal the nearest enemy into the beiftex in a particularly sophisticated way. All this directly sends us to " Witcher " – the hero will alternate the near and distant battle, magic. At the same time, using the onion, you can fix the sight on a specific purpose: the arrows in this case will guaranteed to fall into the enemy. But if you do not use the services of a carman, then the same arrows will apply more damage. In addition, the same spell can be used in two modes. If you just click on the enemy, our hero is throwing a single fireball into it, and if the same spell is “charge” (obviously, holding the appropriate key), then you will bring down real fiery rain on the enemies.

Multi -platform (and Arcania will be released not only on PC, but also on the Xbox 360/PS3) makes itself felt: they promise to make the game more flexible and less hardcore. With the advent of a mini-card and the tracker of quests indicating the current target, navigation will be simplified. At the same time, teleports for quick movement will be opened on the map. They promise that lovers of royal antiquity will be able to turn off all this, but now it is obvious that from now on the faithful fans of Gothic will be considered the only correct continuation of their beloved series Risen.

Here we need to take into account the following fact: Jowood really want the game (unlike the previous parts) to be recognized not only in Europe, but also in America. And for the North American audience the things described above – like a quests marker and a distinct card – has long been a GOST. At one time, information was even passed that in European and American releases the color scheme will differ: for the Old World, it will remain the same gloomy, gray and Gothic, and for the new one will be more bright and sunny.

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By the way, about the schedule. About the technological capabilities of Arcania: A Gothic Tale is known more than about all other components of the game combined. The authors have long, stubbornly and with visible enthusiasm painted the charms of the engine. Last summer we personally saw technodemo, and the game really looked impressive. And this year there was a number of embarrassment. First, screenshots from the console version appeared on the network, which caused a stormy discussion with unpleasant comments for Spellbound by comments. A miserable interface, scarlet paints and the overall non-casuality of the picture created the complete feeling that we have some kind of Korean Mmorpg, and not the continuation of Gothic.

The authors immediately hastened to report that the screenshots were from the early version and it was impossible to judge them of the final quality. And in May it was news that the developers changed the engine – now Arcania is being developed on Trinigy’s Vision Game Engine 7. The motor, of course, is good, and in the freshest screenshots the game looks decent (although not as enchanting as last year), but here a logical question arises: when the Germans will finally take up the game and stop these technical throwings? Today it is already obvious that the release will not take place in 2009: a new date flashes in the last video-February 25, 2010. Let's hope that the authors during this time will have time not only to cope with the new technology, but also to make, in fact, the game.

We will wait? Rebranding "Gothic" takes place with ambiguous results: the game smiles broadly with a new public, trying to be easier, brighter and more accessible, but at the same time is desperately trying to preserve old fans from Russia and Germany. So far, it turns out with varying success.

Percentage of readiness: 50%

[[Break]] Evolution in pictures

This is what the game on last year's screenshots looked like. The spirit of the original Gothic is still on the spot.

Such Arcania appeared on screenshots from the console version.

In new screenshots, the game is more reminiscent of the advanced version of Fable. It’s also not bad, but not quite what many were waiting for the continuation of the Gothic.

All weather is grace?

Dynamic change of weather and day of day in Arcania: A Gothic Tale will directly affect the gameplay. For example, residents will now get wet and freeze in the rain. The guards, having fallen under the rain, naturally run to look for an umbrella or a roof over our heads, and we will be able to take advantage of this in selfish interests. The declared opportunity to independently change the weather was canceled last year, but it is possible that we will still be able to call rain. Information about this can still be found on the official website of the game.

Familiar faces

In Arcania: a Gothic Tale there will be many acquaintances in the previous parts of the "Gothic" monsters. Here are some of what we have noticed.