Top 10 things to do first in the Gothic Remake if you're a beginner

A mage casts spells in the Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Beginners starting the Gothic Remake for the first time may need some ideas on what to do first, which is why I've played through and come up with 9 key things that you should absolutely do. Without a map and a strong sense of where to start, it's important to know what the best platform is for getting off the ground, and in my experience that means finding the Old Camp and getting a base of operations before moving on. To do that, I'll explain all the top things to do in Gothic 1 Remake from the moment you start playing.

Everything you should do first in Gothic Remake

Here's a step by step series of instructions on what to do first when starting the Gothic 1 Remake, with great detail on each stage below.

Exhaust Diego's dialogue at the start.
Get a Pickaxe and/or Rusty Sword in the canyon.
Find the Hunter's Knife guarded by the Scavenger.
Give the Hunter's Knife to Drax the Hunter.
Head into the Old Camp as a new hub area.
Pay the protection money (if you can), or you'll regret it!
Find free accommodation via Guy at the Arena stands.
Speak to Diego again to get a good tutorial guiding quest.
Do not allow Mud to join you under any circumstances!
Head to Andrew and buy a map when you can.

Diego explains the world to the player in the Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Talk to Diego. You start off talking to him anyway, but make sure that you exhaust his dialogue before moving on, it's essential that you understand the world as well as possible.

A player finds a Pickaxe in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Grab a Pickaxe and Rusty Sword. The path is full of collapsed mines, many of which have pickaxes and rusty swords in them. They're bad weapons, but they're better than no weapons.

The player finds the Hunter's Knife in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Get the Hunter's Knife. This is near the end of the canyon in a woody grove on the right hand side of the path, guarded by a monster called a Juvenile Scavenger. The knife is lying on some overturned dirt - probably a grave - for you to pick up.

The player offers Drax a Hunting Knife in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Meet Drax and give him the knife. As you leave the canyon, on your right are a pair of hunters sitting under a lean-to. One of them, Drax, will reward you for returning his knife with a Shortbow.

The Old Camp in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Head into the Old Camp. This is the large walled settlement that the two Hunters are looking at, very visible as you leave the canyon, and will serve as a hub area for a while.

The player is shaken down for protection money in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Pay the protection money if you can. You'll be menaced for money as you enter (10 Ore Nuggets), and you'll want to give in. If you don't, you'll be beaten and mugged for most of your valuable items, and you won't win the fight.

Guy tells you where to find a place to sleep in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Get a place to stay. Head left as you enter the Old Camp to find the arena, and speak to Guy, who's in the stands. He'll tell you about free accommodation - for more info, check out our guide on where to sleep in Gothic 1 Remake.

The player approaches Diego in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Speak to Diego. He's by the entrance to the castle and will give you the task to raise your status around the Old Camp by working with various characters. These characters will serve as the tutorials for various mechanics and skills, including Fingers, who teaches the Gothic 1 Remake lockpicking system, and the Gothic 1 Remake Torrez quest The Price of Magic, given to you by Torres and which teaches you how to cast spells.

Mud flags down the hero in Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Do not engage with Mud under any circumstances. We've got a full guide on the Gothic 1 Remake Mud NPC, but Mud is a character who offers you nothing, and you are very likely to regret your association with him.

Andrew sells you a map in the Gothic 1 Remake — (Image credit: THQ Nordic)

Buy a map from Andrew! You can find him usually on your right when you enter the Old Camp via the main gate. Andrew sells maps of the whole colony, as well as smaller ones of individual areas. It's definitely worth getting the Colony one if and when you can afford it.

And that should be enough to get you going! Diego's quests will teach the basics of gameplay and the Old Camp works as a relatively safe hub area to learn the basics. Just remember to keep saving the game, and don't expect anything to come easily - because it won't. At this point you can look at getting some Gothic 1 Remake armor, but even that won't be easy.

Want more help in the Colony? Find out how to crack open Scatty's Chest in Gothic 1 Remake so you can get his help as a master thief, or find out how to put a torch away in Gothic 1 Remake so you can keep them after use.