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Gothic II

2002 video game

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 18, 2026
Entity authorityQ1456987
Source-derived summary

Gothic II is a 2002 action role-playing game developed by Piranha Bytes for Microsoft Windows, and the sequel to Gothic. It was released for Microsoft Windows in 2002 in Germany, in 2003 in the rest of Europe and North America. A Nintendo Switch port titled Gothic II Complete Classic (which includes the expansion Night of the Raven) was released in 2023. Gothic II Complete Classic is announced to be released in 2026 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.

Like its predecessor, Gothic II was praised for its story, quest design, game world, music and sound, and NPC behaviour. Reviewers also noted its improved combat controls compared to its predecessor. Criticism focused on the game's dated graphics, technical and performance problems such as clipping issues and crashes, and, in the English-speaking press, the quality of its localization.

Gothic II was a commercial success in Germany and became publisher JoWood's biggest hit at the time of its release. By 2004 it had sold over 300,000 units when combined with its expansion pack, Night of the Raven, and by January 2005 it had sold around 500,000 units across Europe.

Synopsis

Setting

Like Gothic, Gothic II is set on the medieval styled isle Khorinis. Places include the City of Khorinis, the monastery of the Fire Mages, farms and woods.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Gothic II” is 2002 video game. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Gothic, video and game, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA concise reference frame for defining the subject, testing terminology and identifying the institution closest to the evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2002, 2003, 2023, 2026—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 2002-11-29. For this dossier, Gothic, video and game is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “2002 video game” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 18, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1456987. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2002, 2003, 2023 and 2026.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Gothic II”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Gothic II primary sources, Gothic II archive and Gothic research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Gothic II”?
  2. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
  3. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Subject index

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Gothic II” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.