Link: https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/gothic-remake-is-committed-to-the-originals-immersive-open-world-you-dont-have-a-minimap-we-very-strictly-kept-that/

They considered "a card minigame, or maybe some fishing" but decided against stuffing it with filler.

The remake looks very promising. It sounds like the developers know what they are doing.

if it is like the original you do eventually gain access to various maps, some in a hand drawn style by quest givers. But as something you consult, not as a minimap. Not having minimaps and not having floating objective indicators forces game designers to make better quest descriptions. The npc will describe the way to you using landmarks, which, indeed, is more immersive than just magically knowing where some random hole in the ground is supposed to be located. Not having a minimap also allows for more freeform exploration instead of there being a "correct" direction to follow. It even the actual posibility of getting lost in the woods, a staple of folk tales but not something you can experience in a game with gps. Not having a minimap was one of the things that made gothic great. Not having a card game is whatever.

I am personally quite fond of both fishing and card minigames, and in some cases (like FF XV or Witcher 3) they can significantly influence my thoughts on the product as whole.

But in this case it's a remake so I can't really fault them for wanting to stick closer to the original. And I never played them so I have no idea whether these types of side activities would be against the spirit of the games.

I agree that some mission/locations in Morrowind were a massive pain (I hated the lower level of the capital), but its not impossible to make an RPG work with no dynamic map.

And not having a dynamic map really does make exploration more exciting (if the game has strong world build, writing and area design).

Terrible neck heard shit.

Look, mini games are one thing. But shit like maps needs to be a toggle. Not having a map is early 90s garbage.

No they don't. They don't tell you shit. I'm old enough to played. It was a mess.

Our experience was simply different then. I also played it, it was one of the first rpg games i played. Often there was even an npc to guide you. Or you would simply have to explore. Having maps freely available is immersion bteaking, maps are luxary items in the historic context. Crudely drawn sketches is how it should be for the most part, and that is what you got in gothic, before you were wealthy enough to afford a proper map.

A point for where ypu should go, put there by the quest giver, sure. And that is also what was done in gothic (if you owned a map).

A dot that always shows your current position, either magic or technology sufficiently advanced to be indistinquishable from magic.
Gothic is not elderscrolls. Npc absolutely would tell you the location in an adequate way. This is exactly why i dont like automatic maps, it allows for lazy writing, which is immersion breaking.
When done well it works extremly well.

Let's see how the game works out.

Not having a GPS map isn't the same thing as having extensive survival game mechanics and use of magic (and how common it is) also isn't directly related to your map UI/UX.

That is very good news, a mini map would just ruin the experience. I always really liked that to even get a map in Gothic you had to buy it from a map maker. I hope they keep it that way.

But it works both ways.

When developing VTMB2, Paradox/TCG decided to say "to hell with skills, well made side missions, in-depth RPG elements" and it turned out the resulting vampire-themed action game with some minor RPG elements didn't sell as much as they thought it would.

Chances are action game fans have a wider selection of choices (perhaps ones with less story and RPG lite elements). And I am almost certain a lot of fans of the OG VTMB (myself included) didn't see the point of giving Paradox money for what is barely an RPG.

The magic of Gothic was that you had to discover all the sidequest sides by yourself without the game showing you. Just based on description and a basic map.

Honestly all games should include it as annoptiin unless GPS navigation exists in the world.