Gothic 3 G3 1.7 - How is it?

TheMadGamer

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I finished G3 (with CP 1.6) a few months back. I really enjoyed the game.

Now that CP1.7 is out, I'm wondering if it would really be enjoyable to play it all over again having just recently completed it.

I've read the entire 'patch list' and there are a lot of changes/fixes that are interesting.

But I'd like to hear from people playing CP1.7 now. What are some SPCIFIC things about CP.17 that YOU are enjoying most?
 
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First off, if I had actually played G3 through a few months back, I would not have mustered up the courage to start another round with 1.7. A few *years* back, for sure, but only a few months, no way. I'm a fan, but not *that* big a fan -- this is one huge game, as you know, and a massive time sink, and especially the early game of exploring Myrtana, running Fedex quests for XP, and building up your basic survival skills takes a long time and is really very much the same no matter what choices you make or character you build.

Anyway, I played 1.6 a fairly long way in, past the early game, to the point where I had done most of the non-liberation quests in Myrtana and was starting to explore Nordmar. I started over with 1.7. It was worth it, but only barely -- I'm sort of ticking things off a list rather than really enjoying it; what keeps me going is the knowledge that I'll soon confront the mid-game without being a combat god.

So much for the preliminaries. What do I like? Well, I'm playing with Alternative Balancing on, and am making a mage build, and this time around it finally feels like Gothic -- the game will poke you in the eye big-time if you wander off into areas where you shouldn't be too early on, and the feeling of progression and achievement that comes with growing your character is that much bigger. I can't win the tougher arena fights anymore without first building up some melee skills; goblins will turn me into shishkebab if I barge into a mob of them; shadowbeasts are *scary.* That sort of thing.

The alternative combat AI is a big improvement. It's dynamic and responsive, and click-spamming (mostly) doesn't work anymore. You have to be much more careful about timing, about picking off enemies one by one, and about using combined tactics -- e.g. weakening the mob first with fireballs and/or archery, then finishing them off with melee. This doesn't turn it into The Witcher or Jade Empire, mind, but it makes what used to be a silly chore into a perfectly serviceable gameplay element.

I also like the rebalancing that's been done for the mage build. The skill trees make more sense; while the basic mage skills are cheap enough (i.e., you can still spice up your swordsman or archer with some magic), the real "mage specialization" stuff is expensive: once you've made the decision to go for Mana Regeneration, there's really no going back. Conversely, staff fighting has a lot more oomph; you're clearly still behind any sword specialist of a comparable level, but not so much behind you have to run screaming at the first sign of toe-to-toe combat. I'm coping fine against weaker enemies with my blade staff, and the tougher ones go down with it after being softened up with a fireball or two first.

What hasn't changed is the best thing about 1.6: it just *works.* Performance is all-around excellent; there are still some stutters, but not so much it really makes things unpleasant, I haven't had a single crash or encountered a single bug that goes beyond cosmetic issues such as a cohort wading through part of a cave wall.

All in all, I'm hugely impressed with 1.7 -- it takes Gothic 3 back to its roots, as a brutal, hardcore action RPG focused on exploration, with gradual but enormously rewarding character progression, and real-time combat that's basically dead simple, but requires just enough tactics that it isn't incredibly tedious. If the game had come out in this state, Gothic fans would have been ecstatic.

My recommendation? Give it a rest for a few more months, and when you're good and ready, itching to give Myrtana another visit, then give it a go. If you've just completed the game, you won't get enough fresh, new experiences to stop it from feeling like a grind. If you're really curious, though, by all means give it a spin -- the new features are pretty obvious already by level 10, so it won't take you long to find out if you want to continue or not.

But do keep in mind that this is the old Gothic -- you won't be able to do many violent quests until you've built up your character a bit; if you try too early, you'll be staring at that excruciatingly slow red bar a lot. So don't.

(Oh, and -- without AB and alternative AI, forget it; that makes it the same ol' 1.6 with a lick of paint and a bit of polish on, improvements, for sure, but nothing to warrant a whole new play-through.)
 
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For the first time I feel that I might finish the game. Before this patch, I tried it several times, and got bored out of my skull, mostly because of combat. Combat is fixed now, and while not great, it is good enough.

So yes, I can recommend it. Gothic 3 is still the worst Gothic, but at least it feels like one.
 
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Prime Junta said it well. Yes it's worth it. Is it worth it for anyone to replay G3 having just finished it? That's another question :) Personally I've upgraded since I last played it, and that is adding an extra level of enjoyment... so that's what I'd recommend :)
 
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I work 60 hours a week and get to play this game on the weekends only. Ever since the new patch I'm essentially glued to my computer on my days off. It is now the game I wanted it to be 2 years ago. I personally think 1.7 is a huge improvement over 1.6; I haven't crashed once since installing the new patch, whereas with 1.6 I still crashed a few times per session (eventually causing me to stop again).
 
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I work 60 hours a week and get to play this game on the weekends only. Ever since the new patch I'm essentially glued to my computer on my days off. It is now the game I wanted it to be 2 years ago. I personally think 1.7 is a huge improvement over 1.6; I haven't crashed once since installing the new patch, whereas with 1.6 I still crashed a few times per session (eventually causing me to stop again).

Massively improved to the point that I will now finally finish the game. There are still a few bugs and crashes (namely if you quick save/load a few times it will eventually crash on loading). Also, had a big battle crash the game once.
Few dialogue problems here and there. Had everyone attack me when I went into some dudes tent after dark...just started talking to him and everyone in the town attacked me. I guess he hit the silent alarm or something. :)
Overall I give the game now a 8/10.
 
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Some moron registered here to try and sell friggin knockoff handbags?

That's a bit odd.
 
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Massively improved to the point that I will now finally finish the game. There are still a few bugs and crashes (namely if you quick save/load a few times it will eventually crash on loading). Also, had a big battle crash the game once.
Few dialogue problems here and there. Had everyone attack me when I went into some dudes tent after dark...just started talking to him and everyone in the town attacked me. I guess he hit the silent alarm or something. :)
Overall I give the game now a 8/10.

Actually, I didn't see it happen in Myrtana, but in Varant there are some people you're not allowed to disturb at night ...
 
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It's GUUD! :D
 
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I'm trying it again with CP1.72. This time as a mage. I'm ca. 1/4th - 1/3rd in, I think. Just got the quest to find 50k for that Orc boss.

IMHO the game is pretty difficult now. I'm playing at easy, still have problems in close combat and lack money. I have 30k, but I could use 90k for the quest and the Druid armour. ;)

It's absolutely amazing how much better Gothic 3 has become from v1.12 to CP1.72 with alternative AI and balancing. A completely different game. It's much more stable, the performance is okay, the game seems to be complete now (no useless skills). The only negative things are the improved but still crappy combat system and the legion of clipping errors. Of course there are other little bugs here and there, but they are usually minor or AI related and fix themselves after a couple of tries.
 
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