Gothic 3
Year: 2006
Type: Original Soundtrack (OST) / Gamerip
Composer(s): Kai Rosenkranz
Number of tracks: 29 / 55
Magic Made in Germany
Oh, how time flies. How I loved Gothic 3 . And hated it. And loved it. And hated it again. My brother and I bought the game as soon as it came out in October 2006, installed it agonizingly slowly on our far too ill-equipped PC and immediately put it on the lowest possible settings. The game started: the combat system was unfamiliar, the AI was horrible and even the first side quest buggy. It was a firework display of despair, a journey of discovery into the depths of my own frustration. Version 1.0, or rather 0.2, in which the game was shipped, was legendary. At this point, I'll briefly link to the bug video created by GameStar magazine at the time GameStar , which perfectly illustrates what a disaster the game was back then. Incidentally, it still received an 86% rating and was crowned "PC Game of the Year 2006".
Despite its shortcomings, I played through the bugfest several times, partly because that's how it was done back then - you didn't have an alternative after all. Buying a new game for €50 was a commitment, and you had to see it through. And there were also patches... on the bonus CDs from games magazines, since we didn't have the internet. Oh yes, Memories. But I don't even want to talk about the game, which nowadays, at least in terms of gameplay, can hardly bear witness to its former brilliance. But what really excited me back then, apart from the world, was the orchestral soundtrack that came with the boxed version as a CD. A novelty for me, and in fact one of, if not the first soundtrack in my collection.
The music was composed by Kai Rosenkranz, Piranha Bytes' in-house musician - and what music it was. As soon as we arrive in the world of Myrtana at the start of the game, we have to fight the orc invaders. We draw our swords and suddenly horns sound and drums cheer us on (the track is entitled "Showdown"). It sounds as if we are on the front line, as if an army is charging, then the music surges back, back and forth, accompanied by a fantastic melody that screams fantasy and epic at the same time. As soon as the battle is over, the roar dies away. It gives way to a gentle melody ("Vista Point"), played on a flute, accompanied by harps and strings. In our mind's eye, green pastures and far-off lands stretch out, calling for discovery. The actual game reflects this atmosphere wonderfully, and hardly any open-world game has provided me with such an immersive introduction, at least musically - the Mass Effect-series is an exception here, for example. I just did wanted to get out and discover this world.
I think a nostalgia warning is in order at this point. Anyone who can do the math knows that I was 14 at the time when I played Gothic 3 for the first time and that my ratings therefore include a lot of bonus points. But that doesn't change the fact that the soundtrack was produced to a high standard and, which was not a given back then and still isn't today, was recorded by a real orchestra. The fact that real physical musicians were at work here can be heard not only in the "Main Theme (Gothic 3)", which initially rises and falls softly, before the orchestra swells together with the wind instruments into a symphony, which then, accompanied by the choir, unleashes itself in a fantastic overture to a similarly fantastic adventure.
However, as Gothic 3 offers different biomes, from the cold mountains of Northmar to the Varant desert, the music is also ethnically diverse. However, the songs are based on established stereotypes: if we walk through the steppe or a Bedouin settlement, we hear tablas and qanuns (Arabic drums and zithers, and yes, I had to look up the names), while on the snowy peaks we hear deep horns and lonely strings. That's why my rating here is less positive, as well as the fact that it's not my preferred style of music.
Where the soundtrack scores points, however, is in the wooded inland of Myrtana, in the medieval towns and flat grasslands. This is where the delicate tones resound, often accompanied by a harp - an instrument that invites cheesiness, but in my opinion fits the composition perfectly. Admittedly, Gothic 3 is hardly any different musically from comparable fantasy games, but the overall package is certainly convincing. And because I'm a fantasy fan anyway, this soundtrack offers a nice facet that enriches the genre and my everyday life. A clear recommendation from me!
Nostalgia warning
The rating of the individual tracks is purely subjective and clearly colored by my own experience with the game. You can find out more in the article About Nostalgia.
Gothic 3
Nr. | Title | Interpret(en) | Ratings |
---|---|---|---|
01 | Gothic 3 | Kai Rosenkranz | |
02 | Opening Sequence | Kai Rosenkranz | |
03 | Xardas Tower | Kai Rosenkranz | |
04 | Vista Point | Kai Rosenkranz | |
05 | Ruinfields | Kai Rosenkranz | |
06 | Dark Presence | Kai Rosenkranz | |
07 | Orc Camp | Kai Rosenkranz | |
08 | From Silden to Trelis | Kai Rosenkranz | |
09 | Ominous Woods | Kai Rosenkranz | |
10 | Showdown | Kai Rosenkranz | |
11 | The Dig | Kai Rosenkranz | |
12 | Slaves | Kai Rosenkranz | |
13 | Divine Powers | Kai Rosenkranz | |
14 | Venguard Theme | Kai Rosenkranz | |
15 | Exploring Myrtana | Kai Rosenkranz | |
16 | Revolution | Kai Rosenkranz | |
17 | Northmar (Upper Level) | Kai Rosenkranz | |
18 | The Creation of the Barrier | Kai Rosenkranz | |
19 | Vista Point (Reprise) | Kai Rosenkranz | |
20 | Desert Sun | Kai Rosenkranz | |
21 | Welcome to Varant | Kai Rosenkranz | |
22 | Northmar (Lower Level) | Kai Rosenkranz | |
23 | Sad Strings | Kai Rosenkranz | |
24 | The End | Kai Rosenkranz | |
25 | End Titles | Kai Rosenkranz | |
26 | In My Dreams | Alice Taylor | |
27 | Is Nomine Vacans | Corvus Corax | |
28 | Welcome to the Bronx | Shelly Quest | |
29 | Bring Back the Magic | Steve Baltes RMX |
Gothic 3 [Gamerip]
Nr. | Title | Interpret(en) | Ratings |
---|---|---|---|
01 | Gothic 3* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
02 | Opening [Opening Sequence]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
03 | Orc Camp* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
04 | The Barrier [The Creation of the Barrier]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
05 | Exploring Myrtana* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
06 | Myrtanian Nights | Kai Rosenkranz | |
07 | Ominous Woods* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
08 | Ominous Nights | Kai Rosenkranz | |
09 | A King's City [From Silden to Trelis]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
10 | Castle Nights | Kai Rosenkranz | |
11 | Vista Point* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
12 | Cascades | Kai Rosenkranz | |
13 | A Lovely Location | Kai Rosenkranz | |
14 | The Curse of Gotha | Kai Rosenkranz | |
15 | The Tower of Gotha | Kai Rosenkranz | |
16 | The Castle of Faring | Kai Rosenkranz | |
17 | Sad Strings* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
18 | Vengard [Venguard Theme]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
19 | Vista Point (Reprise)* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
20 | Highlands | Kai Rosenkranz | |
21 | Northmar [Northmar (Lower Level)]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
22 | The Clans of Northmar [Northmar (Upper Level)]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
23 | Monastery | Kai Rosenkranz | |
24 | Xardas [Xardas Tower]* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
25 | Living Ancestors | Kai Rosenkranz | |
26 | Enter the Dungeon | Kai Rosenkranz | |
27 | Dark Presence | Kai Rosenkranz | |
28 | Ore Mine | Kai Rosenkranz | |
29 | Liberation | Kai Rosenkranz | |
30 | Revolution* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
31 | Success | Kai Rosenkranz | |
32 | Death | Kai Rosenkranz | |
33 | Dark Caves | Kai Rosenkranz | |
34 | Clearing Caverns | Kai Rosenkranz | |
35 | Arena | Kai Rosenkranz | |
36 | Showtime | Kai Rosenkranz | |
37 | Hunting Grounds | Kai Rosenkranz | |
38 | Welcome to Varant* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
39 | Desert Sun* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
40 | Desert Moon | Kai Rosenkranz | |
41 | Scalding Duels | Kai Rosenkranz | |
42 | Death Valley | Kai Rosenkranz | |
43 | Ruinfields* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
44 | Slaves* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
45 | The Dig* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
46 | Ishtar | Kai Rosenkranz | |
47 | Zuben | Kai Rosenkranz | |
48 | Showdown* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
49 | Hunting Grounds [Alternate] | Kai Rosenkranz | |
50 | Divine Powers* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
51 | The End* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
52 | End Titles* | Kai Rosenkranz | |
53 | Soul Travel | Kai Rosenkranz | |
54 | Beliar | Kai Rosenkranz | |
55 | Credits [Bonus] | Kai Rosenkranz |
*Track contained in the Original Soundtrack