Arcania: Gothic 4

On one hand, ArcaniA - Gothic 4's gameplay and the technical things are really good, but on the other hand you can finish the game easily in 15 hours.

A shallow but entertaining adventure. The world is wonderful to explore, but a lack of depth keeps this from achieving greatness.

It's a solid game with strengths and weaknesses, fans will check this one out at any rate. Fact is, you'll need a pretty good PC; that said, it's typically Gothic all the way.

Gothic games have been bemoaned for their graphical bugs and sloppy code but things are a lot cleaner and tighter this time around. Gone is the open-world of previous titles, replaced by mundane, rote, disappointingly shallow RPG that lives and breathes in an engaging, beautiful, and invitingly realized world. But for an RPG-as in life-just being pretty isn't enough.

A classic and complex roleplaying game has become an entertaining and enjoyable adventure in a fantasy world. Despite some flaws, Arcania: Gothic 4 is a highly recommended game.

It's not going to please hardcore D&D purists or gamers looking for the next Elder Scrolls, but as a middle ground between deeper entries and linear adventures, Arcania: Gothic IV hits its stride.

Arcania is more of a restart of the series then a regular sequel – some dedicated fans will be disappointed by its overall simplification but it does not make Gothic 4 a bad adventurous experience. [Issue#197]

Though similar in title, Arcania: Gothic 4 bears little resemblance to its predecessors. It is a traditional action-based role-playing game, which lets you play as an adventurer in the battle against ancient evil forces. The story and graphics are among the game's strongpoints, while almost every other aspect is bland and unorigonal.

An able-bodied RPG in the land of bland, but one hardly worthy of the Gothic name. [Issue#185, p.64]

Arcania: Gothic 4 is an action/rpg adventure with strengths and weaknesses. Probably it isn't what anyone thought Gothic 4 would be.

Arcania: Gothic 4 is a polished action adventure, well produced, visually attractive and very solid at the technical side. However, on its way it has lost many of the aspects that defined the series, with the purpose to embrace a new public and make the game more open to everyone. But for the seasoned RPG player, the new idea around Pinata.

Arcania isn't what anyone thought Gothic 4 would be. It's a marginally competent action/RPG with all the depth of a kiddie pool, not the huge open-world role-playing epics the series was previously known for.

Linear, simplistic gameplay with no multiplayer component limits replay value.

So on the whole I'm unpleased with Gothic 4. It's a wonderful graphics engine with an adequate combat system hampered by dull quests and a lack of action. More action would have put them into the action RPG realm, which I personally think is somewhat under-populated on the PC platform. Of course, more mainstream RPG fans are going to be turned off by the lack of common RPG elements. You'll likely be better off picking up Dragon Age on the discount rack if you, like me, haven't played it yet.

Gothic IV is not a a great RPG. Gameplay is too simple (too similar to an Hack'n'Slash), story is uninspired and characters are dull. Linear and straightforward, it offers at least some kind of visual magic.

ArcaniA is functional, it looks good, but it offers nothing special in its 20 or so hours. And if this is the bright future of the series, I can already say "May it rest in peace".

The last born in Gothic series maintains the trademark atmosphere, suffering however an excessive simplification of the gameplay mechanics and a heavy, flawed graphics engine.

Like an MMO, there's an undefinable something that keeps you playing, probably far beyond what your sanity can properly stand.

If you seek a simple game with breathtaking scenery and a ridiculous number of weapons and armor, then Arcania Gothic IV is for you.

More a hack 'n slash than an RPG, Arcania: Gothic 4 is a game with good graphics and some flaws on the narrative side. The lack of complexity and substance are the primary faults of this title, which is probably not the worst chapter of the saga, but surely not the best.

Quotation forthcoming.

Beneath Arcania's often outstanding art direction and technical achievement lies a dry spreadsheet of must-have RPG elements, none of which is sufficiently developed to compel and all of which fail to balance against one another.

Besides the handy automap and the journal, the only other positive thing about Arcania is that it's at least better than Gothic 3: Forsaken Gods.