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The witcher 3 thread.

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I've played this game a ton the past few days (although I suspect I'm still not that far into the main plot), so here are some updated impressions...

Pros:
  • There is a ton of stuff to do in this game. That said, it manages to avoid the problem that many open world games have by actually making a lot of the side quests interesting. Yeah, they'll all pretty much conform to a couple of basic templates like interrogating people, using your witcher senses to explore areas and track monsters/people, killing things, or retrieving an item. However, the characters giving you the quests and the people involved in each one tend to actually be interesting and well-written. You get a real sense of the world and each person's place in it.
  • The writing has improved substantially since the second game. I thought much of the dialogue in the second game was awkward and clunky. That's mostly fixed this time around.
  • Visually, obviously, it's phenomenal. There are some issues, such as people or objects occasionally popping in while I'm moving, but I assume a lot of them will be addressed over the next month or so.
  • The world is vast, but it's also interesting. There are always new and interesting things to see.
  • The world feels lived in. There's dirt and mud. Only very nice manors are clean and tidy. Peasants look suitably dirty. There's just a sense of authenticity here that, for example, Oblivion lacked.
  • The characters aren't just cardboard cut-out quest givers. They have backstories and loved ones. You talk to them and then almost feel bad about taking their money after killing a beast that killed one of the family members. This is something Bethesda could really learn from.
  • The quests can be long and complex, and a lot of them don't involve a ton of combat. I'm currently working for a mob boss who had his vault broken into and robbed. Before that, I had a multi-part quest where I was looking for Dandelion and had to interview all the women he was known to have been sleeping with the past few months, which included posing as a fencing instructor for a lord's daughter.
  • Buildings aren't just for show. You can enter them, or at least most of them.
  • There's no loading time when you enter a building. Also, in general, loading times during fast travel are very quick (five to ten seconds, on average). Loading after dying takes a little bit longer, as does loading a save game, but even then it's nothing ridiculous and only frustrating during a couple of particularly difficult fights.
  • They've streamlined the potions/bombs system considerably from the second game. Now, when you make a potion or bomb, you never have to make it again. They will be automatically replenished (provided you have a certain, relatively easy-to-find item in your inventory) each time you meditate. You can also mix potions any time, not just when meditating. It just makes the game more fun and user-friendly. Less time spent micromanaging and more time spent exploring is always a good thing.
Going to head out now, but I'll post cons and maybe a few more pros tomorrow or Sunday.
 
Been a few days, so here are some more screenshots...

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I'm not really a PC gamer, just could never get into it with a mouse and keyboard. Anyway, Witcher 1&2 are both on the 360 right? With 3 on the XBone? I may go back and give this series a go, seems like I'd like it.
 
I'm not really a PC gamer, just could never get into it with a mouse and keyboard. Anyway, Witcher 1&2 are both on the 360 right? With 3 on the XBone? I may go back and give this series a go, seems like I'd like it.

Doc, play these kinds of games with a 360 controller sitting on the couch.

I played through Fallout 3/Fallout NV/KOTOR etc like this..

You get the benefits of having PC graphics, mods, updates, content, etc; but the same convenience of the wireless gamepad.
 
@Jack Brickman

How would you compare this game to Fallout 3?

I know you haven't finished it yet, but does it have the same level of immersive gameplay? Is it as good?
 
I'm not really a PC gamer, just could never get into it with a mouse and keyboard. Anyway, Witcher 1&2 are both on the 360 right? With 3 on the XBone? I may go back and give this series a go, seems like I'd like it.

I think Witcher 1 was PC only. Witcher 2 is on the 360 for sure.

Witcher 1 doesn't take much of a PC to run, as it's more akin to being closer to Diablo 2 than anything else.
 
@Jack Brickman

How would you compare this game to Fallout 3?

I know you haven't finished it yet, but does it have the same level of immersive gameplay? Is it as good?

I'd say it's just a totally different game. Sure, they're both RPGs, but the worlds are just so different as to be incomparable. Also, Fallout has always had a kind of wry sense of humor about itself, even as you explore a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Witcher 3 is just a darker game. The world is one that is at war. You can ride across battlefields littered with bodies, and now and then you'll see a peasant just sobbing outside of their home, presumably over a dead loved one.

It's also a world where horrible things happen with regularity. Quests involved missing children or women (of which you almost always find nothing but bones), and just generally there's a sense of despair overriding the side quests to the point where you feel bad about taking these peoples' money (although I do anyway...I'm a fucking witcher).

As far as immersive gameplay, I would probably say it's comparable to Fallout 3, though. You're constantly finding new and interesting things in the world, many of which lead to quests of their own. There's probably more to do than in Fallout 3, too. I know that was a big game, but this one is just overwhelming in the amount of stuff they throw at you. I've got at least ten quests in my journal right now that I'm nowhere near leveled up enough to tackled (the game gives you a recommended level for each quest), along with probably close to two dozen I could tackle right now.

To clarify, I have 37 active quests in my journal right now. I've completed 59 quests and failed one, although I had to choose between that and one of my other completed quests. There is just so much shit to do in this game, and the majority of the side quests have more detail than the average game. Sure, some are just treasure hunts or collectibles, but those are the minority I feel like.

I think Witcher 1 was PC only. Witcher 2 is on the 360 for sure.

Witcher 1 doesn't take much of a PC to run, as it's more akin to being closer to Diablo 2 than anything else.

For reference, it uses the same engine (although obviously upgraded) that BioWare used to create Neverwinter Nights forever ago. You can run it without a workhorse PC easily.
 
Yeah still heavy into Bloodborne I just got done with early game. I am trying to juggle many RPG's and Nintendo games. That said this game is as close to a Diablo 1 on PC yet On console. It Is a great game and while I like Bloodborne more does not mean this game is as worse or better as said game. That said this game is fucking awesome.
 
I finally made it to Skellige in Witcher 3. It's insane that there's just a whole other map in this game, considering how insanely large the Novigrad/Velen area is. And in case you're wondering, no, I haven't completed all of the Novigrad/Velen quests. I've still got at least ten to fifteen that I could do right now at my current level, and probably another dozen that I'm not currently leveled highly enough to complete. There are probably plenty of other sidequests I haven't found too. This game is massive. I picked up about six quests almost immediately after arriving on Ard Skellig, and that's not even taking into account the other various isles of Skellige.

And with that, more screenshots!

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Apparently fucking Tywin Lannister voices a role in this. Awesome.
 
Just started playing on XB1 a couple of days ago but I sense, from this thread, that I'm in for a whirlwind of fun.

Don't know much about The Witcher series and am one of those that has jumped at the hype - curious to see where the game takes me. I get the feeling it delivers that same immersiveness that made GTAV such a fantastic video game.

Is it suppose to be quite difficult in the beginning? I found myself trotting along on my horse on my first day of playing, only to get mauled by a bunch of savage looking creatures. Now I panic each time I ride through the game world!
 
Apparently fucking Tywin Lannister voices a role in this. Awesome.

Noticed this like 2 years ago when I watched a trailer of the game. Never played a Witcher game, and I was like oh shit.
 

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