February 27, 2025, 9:34 am | Read time: 3 minutes
Fans of the legendary role-playing game “Gothic” can get an increasingly clear picture of the planned remake for themselves. THQ Nordic has released a playable demo. This includes a stand-alone prologue that goes beyond giving a taste of the revised game world.
Publisher THQ Nordic has released a free demo of Gothic 1 Remake on Steam and GOG (Good Old Games). The test version offers a prologue that focuses on a new character and introduces players to the modernized game mechanics compared to the original.
A New Look at the Colony
With Welcome to the Colony, THQ Nordic has provided a playable demo for the Gothic 1 Remake. The prologue lets players slip into the role of Nyras — a character that fans of the original might still have fond memories of. According to the official description, however, this introduction will not be included in the finished game; it will only serve to introduce the game mechanics and convey the atmosphere of the remake.
The demo is available for free on Steam and GOG and can be downloaded at any time. It includes a short quest in which players can interact with other prisoners and also fight their first battles. The story takes place before the arrival of the nameless hero from the original Gothic in the prison colony, who takes on the main role in the finished game.
Second Demo After Early Prototype
The Gothic 1 Remake has been in development for several years. The demo now released is not the first, either. Back in 2019, THQ Nordic made an early version available in order to test out interest in a remake and possibly spark some interest. However, this first version was merely a rough prototype. The current demo reflects the progress of the actual development work.
The new version has been well received on Steam. According to the current user reviews, 79 percent of the approximately 2000 players recommend the download. Not an outstanding figure, but a pretty good one. There is still no specific release date for the complete Gothic remake. Currently, the only target date is 2025. Presumably, they are also taking a bit of a cue from the competition. After all, the launch date of Elex 2, which takes place directly after Elden Ring, has finally broken the back of the actual developer studio of Gothic, Piranha Bytes.
A Legend Returns in the Remake of “Gothic”
The original game Gothic was released by the Essen-based studio in 2001 and became a cult game, especially in Germany. The title offers a rough, believable, and detailed fantasy world with down-to-earth characters and a dark atmosphere. The sequels Gothic 2 (2002) and Gothic 3 (2006) expanded the universe further, although the latter was met with considerable criticism due to technical shortcomings.
After Gothic 3, Piranha Bytes turned its attention to new projects such as Risen and the aforementioned Elex. However, the studio was closed in 2024 after being acquired by THQ Nordic in 2019. The remake of Gothic 1 is now being created by Spanish developer Alkimia Interactive. It will be released for PC as well as PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
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First insights into the technology
The demo of the remake is based on the Unreal Engine 5, not only to showcase the new system but also to give players the opportunity to test the technical aspects of the title. The current system requirements are available on Steam and GOG.
However, the demo is not entirely new: visitors were already able to test a playable version at Gamescom 2024. It remains unclear whether there have been any changes or improvements since then. The generally positive response to the demo shows that the fan community is still very interested in returning to the dark world of Gothic.