Platform: Xbox Series X
Date Started: March 15th, 2024
Date Finished: April 24th, 2024
Time Played: 64 Hours

"Witcher mutations, they strip us of emotion. I’d be jumping for joy otherwise."

This is the first time I have played through The Witcher III since its original release, and not only does it hold up, it surpasses my memories' expectations thanks to the massive updates and upgrades and the addition of the two major expansions in this Complete Edition.

Whilst I found both Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine lacking in comparison to the main story, they are nevertheless both wonderfully written joys to engage in. Toussant is a lovely new location to explore and offers tons to do and gives book readers plenty to feed off of.

The game is a little janky at times in terms of Geralt's stiff movements (this also applies to navigation on Roach), but I have always found the combat to be a good time, and the little jank there is rarely detracted from my enjoyment.

The Witcher III is just a monumental game, and it remains one of my all-time favourites. I'm so glad that I finally got around to doing this second play-through, and while I didn't spend as much time in the world as I did on my initial run, I had just as much of an amazing time. The characters are so well written, the world so absorbing and the story so captivating that there are no doubts as to why this one is held in such legendary regard.

Witcher 3 had a lot to live up to, especially being put on Switch.

I will get my gripes out of the way. I think there's really only one major issue with the game outside of nitpicks, which is that you are way too underpowered and weak at the start of the game. You do barely any damage, you take way too much damage, there isn't a lot of healing options, a lot of the enemies are too strong. It makes the game really slow paced to start and it sets a bad precedent that dosent stay thankfully: but it makes you think the whole game will be an uphill battle like that. Also, I cannot stand item weight. It is a mechanic that never needs to come back again. I get limitations create builds and different experiences, but there is such a thing as being too limiting.

There are a very minor handful of quests that won't click for you. Sometimes you inadvertently fail one by completing another even if you haven't really started the other one yet. On Switch, I think this port gets way too much hate, but I know it is a little rough in some areas. It dips in fps in minor occasions, it crashed a few times. It had some visual bugs. But those were minor. They happened maybe once every 10 hours. Some of the animations, to wrap this up, are stiff and janky.

Ok so why is this game amazing? There are many reasons. The lore of the universe feels very lived in. There's tons of cool monsters and settings. There is a sense of conflict between the regions. You feel like a bit of an outcast and reject. So the odds are stacked against you, yet you have strong powers and can handle the opposition.

The main story is really engaging. Ciri could have been this super annoying foil to drive the plot forward, but she was really endearing and fun to watch. You care about a lot of the characters, even ones that have minor roles. The dialogue is really well written and encompasses what needs to be expressed. Even with some occasional weird deliveries, and while you have to adjust to Geralt's flat voice (by design) you really get sucked into the game.

This is a title that really emphasizes its quests. Honestly most of the meat and time I spent on this game was on random stuff that was going on around me. I've only played the game once yet I remember every single thing about it. All these random towns and people, the one conflict where they can't pick a leader. The one where you venture with a bunch of people into a cave. All the fist fighting, waiting to get a form from the bank. There's many moments that stick with you.

I would be a fool not to mention the best side content, Gwent. I initially ignored Gwent, and then as soon as I played 1 game I proceeded to travel to every single town and climbed every mountain looking for cards for my deck. It is so easy to sink hours into. It is such a simple but stimulating experience. So much so they made an entire game around it!

Presentation wise it's awesome. The various outfits you can customize yourself in. The music is great. The locations are pretty and feel appropriate for the journey. The monsters are all imposing when they need to be and help add to the roleplay aspects here.

Thats a real key thing, roleplay. FINALLY, a game where your choices matter. Not these half lie games where only the last few do. No in this game there were characters that could have lasted all the way to the end that I got killed in the first few hours. It gives you a real sense of purpose and significance being in control.

And of course the game is good fun as well. You have a lot of options for approaching combat. Lots of weapons and powers. Yet the game is a pretty good challenge as well. You can get overwhelmed easily, but you'll still have tools to just barely get by. Thats a great balance to have I think. Fair, but challenging.

The dlc was really great. I felt like it added a lot to the experience in the ways it wanted. And it didn't feel padded. It felt like a natural expansion to what was already in place.

I really had an incredible time with this one. Even my issues aren't ones I think about. When you play it you are just sucked into everything you love about it.

It's one of the few games I ever attempted to truly roleplay with. I turned off the HUD and just explored with the full map that came with buying a physical copy of the game. And it was such a special experience because it was something you could do without it being too difficult.

Just an incredible game all around, in all the right ways. You can't pass it up.

Um dos melhores jogos de RPG já feitos, se não o melhor. Jogo que te prende do início ao fim, com mais de 200 horas, DLCs fantásticas, uma delas que é praticamente um jogo novo. Mundo gigantesco com diversas sidequests para se fazer e que realmente valem a pena de se fazer. Personagens excelentes, você com toda a certeza se lembrará de cada um deles. Vale cada centavo e tempo investido, apenas compre.

Minha nota para o game é 10/10. Tem seus problemas aqui e ali, mas são coisas pequenas quando se considera tudo o que a CD Projekt Red criou para o game.