1UP: The code we saw running today at the Game Developers Conference is still early -- the developers are aiming for a Fall release -- but it was interesting to see what happened when one of the game's producers walked us through town and demonstrated the combat model. Magic isn't implemented yet, so a massive two handed weapon that appeared in the main character's hands was the focus of what we saw. The producer took his armored, armed character and attacked an unarmored guard who was standing ill at ease by a gate. The NPC proceeded to beat the player character to death, hounding him throughout the town square. If the AI had been implemented, other guards would have joined in as they saw the fight, townspeople would have reacted as if their lives had been disrupted, and the action could have drawn the attention of factions like the Assassins; but the real key here is that the producer was soundly beaten.

IGN: One way that the two differ quite a bit is in the action gameplay. The melee combat system in Gothic III is much more robust than that of Oblivion with different moves, button combos, and animations for each set of weapons. Gothic has the advantage in this arena being built as a third-person game, which eliminates some of the limitations of the primary first-person mode in melee fights. From what was shown, the combat is also much easier to use this time around. While we didn't get the chance to lay hands on the game, characters seemed to auto acquire targets well and animations were much smoother and directional attacking better.