Back in 2019, THQ Nordic announced that talks surrounding a Gothic Remake were currently underway, with the publisher releasing a playable teaser over on Steam to gauge player interest. The demo was played by thousands of people and generated a lot of buzz, convincing the owners of the IP to greenlight a reimagining of Gothic back in February last year.
Today, the next step in the project was unveiled via Twitter, with THQ Nordic announcing that it's formed a new studio to work on the remake of the cult-classic RPG. Named Alkimia Interactive, the team will be based in Barcelona, Spain, with the publisher claiming it will primarily focus on "high-quality RPGs."
The first in this lineup of role-playing games will be the reimagining of Gothic, which THQ Nordic states is already well into development and could be shown to the public within the next couple of months. The official website for the studio clarifies that the game will be coming to PC and next-generation platforms, with the team currently hiring additional staff to work on the ambitious remake project. Alkimia joins an already stacked roster of THQ Nordic talent, including SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom Rehydrated developer Purple Lamp Studios and the creator of the Gothic franchise, Piranha Bytes.
For those who never played Gothic, the game takes place in a fantasy setting where orcs have raided the human world, forcing its rulers to craft large supplies of weapons to battle back their intimidating foes. To accumulate the ore needed to craft such an extensive arsenal, humanity sentences convicts to live in a magically sealed-off colony where they're forced to mine resources to pay off their debts. The story picks up after a revolt in the colony, with the player entering the crime-ridden land and having to survive its inhabitants, forge alliances, and figure out a means to escape.
The playable teaser for the remake was gifted to any Steam player who owned a copy of a Piranha Bytes game, with the lineup of titles including Gothic 1, 2, and 3 as well as the Risen trilogy and ELEX. It focused on the first two hours of the original game, acting as a prototype for what a Gothic Remake might look like. The experience culminated with a survey, which asked players whether they'd be interested in a modern return to the classic game. It seems enough players enjoyed the teaser to force THQ Nordic's hand, as Alkimia Interactive is well underway delivering the remake fans have wanted for years.
A Gothic Remake is currently in the works for PC and next-generation consoles.
Source: Alkimia Interactive