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Gothic II

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games
Gothic II
Gothic II cover
Developers
Piranha Bytes
Publishers
Atari
JoWood Productions
Nordic Games
Engines
ZenGin
Release dates
Windows November 29, 2002
Reception
Metacritic 79
IGDB 80
Gothic II on HowLongToBeat
Gothic II on IGDB
Gothic II guide on StrategyWiki
Gothic II on MobyGames
Gothic II on Wikipedia
Gothic
Gothic 2001
Gothic II 2002
Gothic 3 2006
Gothic 3: Forsaken Gods 2008
Arcania: Gothic 4 2010
Arcania: Fall of Setarrif 2011
Gothic Playable Teaser 2019
The Chronicles of Myrtana: Archolos (unofficial mod) 2021
Gothic 1 Remake TBA

Key points

For Windows 8 and later apply the fullscreen fixes.
Steam overlay doesn't work with this game.

General information

GOG.com Community Discussions for game series
GOG.com Support Page
Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
Disc check (requires the CD/DVD in the drive to play)
SecuROM and SVK Protector DRM disc check.
Windows
Amazon.com
DRM-free
Gold Edition is also available.
Windows
GamersGate
DRM-free after installation (requires an internet connection during installation)
Windows
GamersGate
DRM-free after installation (requires an internet connection during installation)
Night of the Raven
Windows
Gamesplanet logo.svg
Icon overlay.png
Gold Edition.
Windows
GOG.com
DRM-free
Gold Edition.
Windows
Green Man Gaming
Icon overlay.png
Gold Edition.
Windows
Humble Store
Icon overlay.png
Gold Edition.
Windows
Steam
Icon overlay.png
Gold Edition.
Windows

Version differences

The Gold Edition is a complete edition which includes the Night of the Raven expansion.

DLC and expansion packs

Name Notes
Night of the Raven Included with the Gold Edition. Not available separately for some languages (e.g. English).
Windows

Demo

A German demo can be downloaded here. You might have to copy the download link on the page into your browser if it doesn't work.

Essential improvements

Patches

The latest retail patches for the German version are Patch v1.30 for the base Gothic II and Add-on Patch 2.6 for the Night of the Raven expansion. All English versions and German digital distribution versions already include the latest patches.

SystemPack

Gothic ½ — SystemPack is a fan-made patch, which fixes compatibility issues and adds features. Instructions and download. Requires PlayerKit 2.8, which the instructions include as a separate installer.

Alternative version of the SystemPack called Union provides additional bug fixes and engine improvements, including improved performance, steam overlay support and optional 64 bit patch for x64 systems. Instructions (in Russian and English) and download. Requires visual c++ 2008, visual c++ 2010 and Union's own version of PlayerKit which the instructions include as a separate installer.

D3D11 renderer for Gothic II

Requires a GPU supporting DX11
Breaks many particle and transparency effects in the game

A fan-made renderer which adds a wide variety of additional DX11 graphical features, such as hardware tessellation, full dynamic lighting, HBAO+, and more. Can also noticeably improve performance on modern systems, as it replaces the CPU-intensive view culling code. Instructions and downloads available here. Recommended to be used in combination with the SystemPack.

Skip intro videos

Change playLogoVideos setting[1]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Edit gothic.ini
  3. Change playLogoVideos=1 to playLogoVideos=0
  4. Save your changes. The game will now go directly to the main menu when launched.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows <path-to-game>\system\GOTHIC.INI[Note 1]
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/39510/pfx/[Note 2]

Save game data location

System Location
Windows <path-to-game>\Saves[Note 1]
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/39510/pfx/[Note 2]

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
GOG Galaxy
Steam Cloud

Video

Video settings.
Video settings.

Widescreen resolution

Gothic II only natively supports 1280x720, 1280x768, 1280x800, and 1440x900.
The SystemPack makes the game Hor+ instead of Vert- and lists most widescreen resolutions.
Use widescreen mod (recommended method)[2]

Use SystemPack.

Notes

Characters may look fat/thin after changing the resolution. Save and load the game to correct this.
Set resolution manually (alternate method)[2]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Edit Gothic.ini
  3. Change extendedMenu=0 to extendedMenu=1
  4. Set zVidResFullscreenX= and zVidResFullscreenY= to the width (X) and height (Y) of your resolution.
  5. Save your changes and launch Gothic II.
NPCs may look fat in widescreen resolutions. Talking to an NPC will fix this until the next time you load a save.

Windowed

Task-switching may cause repeated Tab input when you return to the game (simply press Tab again to make it work normally).
Task-switching during video cutscenes will crash the game (there are only a few of these).
Change zStartupWindowed setting[1]
  1. Run the game at least once.
  2. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  3. Edit gothic.ini
  4. Change zStartupWindowed=0 to zStartupWindowed=1
  5. Change scaleVideos=1 to scaleVideos=0 (otherwise videos render in the corner of the screen).
  6. Save your changes.

Borderless fullscreen windowed

See Windowed for the limitations of this mode.
Set up borderless fullscreen windowed mode[citation needed]
  1. Install the Gothic and Gothic II fullscreen fixes.
  2. Set zStartupWindowed=1 in <path-to-game>\system\Gothic.ini (see Windowed).
  3. Set your desktop resolution in-game. Gothic II should now display as a fullscreen borderless window.

Anisotropic filtering (AF)

Set zTexAnisotropicFiltering in Gothic.ini[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open Gothic.ini
  3. Change zTexAnisotropicFiltering=0 to zTexAnisotropicFiltering=1 and save your changes.
This is only an on/off setting; if it doesn't work or you want a higher setting, force it in the graphics card control panel.

Anti-aliasing (AA)

Set zVidEnableAntiAliasing in Gothic.ini[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open Gothic.ini
  3. Change zVidEnableAntiAliasing=0 to zVidEnableAntiAliasing=1 and save your changes.
This is only an on/off setting; if it doesn't work or you want a higher setting, force it in the graphics card control panel.
Forcing a higher setting in the graphics card's control panel may cause black videos (sound but no picture).

Input

Keyboard and mouse State Notes
Remapping
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
see Mouse sensitivity.
Mouse input in menus
No cursor; buttons and wheel work but can't change settings.
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Set in Options, Game Settings, Invert camera.
Controller
Controller support
Very limited support available; see Controller support.
Full controller support
Controller remapping
Can't map camera controls or axes.
Controller sensitivity
Controller Y-axis inversion
Set in Options, Game Settings, Invert camera.
Controller types
XInput-compatible controllers
PlayStation controllers
Generic/other controllers
Additional information
Button prompts
Controller hotplugging
Haptic feedback
Digital movement supported
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Mouse sensitivity

Set zMouseRotationScale in Gothic.ini[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open Gothic.ini.
  3. Change zMouseRotationScale to your desired value and save your changes.

Controller support

Set enableJoystick in Gothic.ini[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open Gothic.ini.
  3. Change enableJoystick=0 to enableJoystick=1 and save your changes.

Notes

Some axes are not detected and some inputs cannot be set to controller axes, e.g. camera controls.

Audio

Audio settings.
Audio settings.

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
Sfx and music.
Surround sound
Set Speakers to Surround.
Subtitles
Enabled by default; set in Options, Game Settings.
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
EAX support
Set sound provide to Creative EAX 2. Hardware accelerated DirectSound3D and EAX2 (on compatible sound cards with restoration software like ALchemy or 3D SoundBack) isn't available until the fix is applied.

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
French
German
Italian
Audio only available on GOG.com (added on September 20, 2017)
Polish
Available on Steam, despite not being stated in a store.[1][3]
Russian
Spanish

Network

Multiplayer types

Type Native Notes
LAN play
Online play
Use Gothic Multiplayer mod for multiplayer (requires the expansion).

Connection types

Type Native Notes
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Dedicated server software available for Windows and Linux.
Self-hosting
Direct IP
gmp:// URLs do not connect to IP addresses.

VR support

3D modes State Notes
Nvidia 3D Vision
See Helix Mod: Gothic 2 [DX11].
vorpX
G3D
Included in DGVoodoo2 Default Profile.
Note: Profile may not work with the latest wrapper, in case of issues please report to the vorpx forum.

Issues fixed

Black videos (sound but no picture)

This is caused by forcing anti-aliasing in the video card control panel.
Disable video card anti-aliasing[citation needed]
  1. Open the graphics card control panel.
  2. Set anti-aliasing to Application-Controlled.
  3. Apply the changes.
Disable video scaling[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Edit gothic.ini
  3. Change scaleVideos=1 to scaleVideos=0
  4. Save your changes. Videos will now display centred.

Window border visible in fullscreen mode

Gothic and Gothic II show a window border in fullscreen mode on Windows 8 and later.
The GOG.com version already includes this fix.
Apply the fix[citation needed]
  1. Install the Gothic and Gothic II fullscreen fixes.
  2. Both Gothic and Gothic II will now enter display correctly in fullscreen mode (you do not need to restart your computer).

Low frame rate in fullscreen mode

Gothic II has frame rate issues in fullscreen mode on Windows 8 and later.
Apply necessary fixes[citation needed]
  1. Install the Gothic and Gothic II fullscreen fixes.
  2. Gothic II should now have the correct frame rate in fullscreen mode.

"C: maximum texture size is lower than 32" error

This error happens if Gothic II isn't able to automatically change to 32-bit color mode.
Change zVidResFullscreenBPP setting[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Edit gothic.ini
  3. Change zVidResFullscreenBPP=16 to zVidResFullscreenBPP=32
  4. Save your changes and run Gothic II again. It should now be able to select the resolution correctly.
If it still can't detect your resolution, try setting it manually (see Widescreen resolution).

Can't Alt+Tab (GOG.com)

The GOG.com version prevents task switching to avoid some potential issues (e.g. crashing during FMV cutscenes).
Remove GOG.com fix[citation needed]
  1. Open Programs and Features (appwiz.cpl).
  2. Find and remove the GOG.com Gothic 2 entry.
  3. If you are using Windows 8 or later, install the Gothic and Gothic II fullscreen fixes.
  4. Gothic II will now allow you to task switch at any time.

Constant Tab input after Alt+Tab

After task switching the game may constantly repeat Tab input; press Tab again to stop this.

Mods can't find Gothic II

Some mods expect the game executable to be called Gothic2.exe.
Copy Gothic.exe to Gothic2.exe[citation needed]
  1. Go to the installation folder.
  2. Go into system
  3. Make a copy of Gothic.exe.
  4. Rename the copy to Gothic2.exe.
  5. The mod installer should now see the game correctly.

Notes

Some mods require running the game with Gothic2.exe.

Camera spins uncontrollably

Disable display scaling[4]

Disable display scaling on high DPI settings.

Game reverts back to Miles Fast even after EAX restoration software is installed

Gothic II doesn't see dsound.dll wrapper from EAX restoration software.
Create pre.load file, which orders game to load dsound.dll wrapper[5]
  1. Open Notepad.
  2. Write exactly dsound.dll to document.
  3. Save the document exactly as pre.load to <path-to-game>\System\
  4. Launch game as Administrator, change sound provider to Creative EAX 2 and quit. Launch game again and check if sound provider is still the same.

Notes

Users with SystemPack installed have to change FixMss=1 to FixMss=0 in SystemPack.ini configuration file. SystemPack uses own implementation of restoring surround sound, which is purely software and because of that EAX restoration software won't make effect if FixMss is set to 1.

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
Direct3D 8.1, 11 DirectX 11 requires fan-made renderer.
Shader Model support 1, 5 Shader Model 5 requires fan-made renderer.
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows

Middleware

Middleware Notes
Audio Miles Sound System 6.5e
Cutscenes Bink Video 1.5v

System requirements

Windows
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) 98
Processor (CPU) Intel Pentium II 400 MHz
System memory (RAM) 256 MB
Hard disk drive (HDD) 2.6 GB
Video card (GPU) 32 MB of VRAM
DirectX 8.1 compatible


Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 When running this game without elevated privileges (Run as administrator option), write operations against a location below %PROGRAMFILES%, %PROGRAMDATA%, or %WINDIR% might be redirected to %LOCALAPPDATA%\VirtualStore on Windows Vista and later (more details).
  2. 2.0 2.1 File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/39510/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (39510) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.

References