A bit hard to rate this generally, it’s clunky and somewhat annoying at times but the foundation for an amazing story and excellent game are still there.
The Witcher 2 is CD Projekt Red’s turning point in creating what would soon become their magnum opus and, in its own right, a game that stands pretty well on it’s own two legs.
While it’s definitely flawed in the combat and exploration department, it undeniably delivers on the writing department with a good story and CD Projekt Red’s trademark RPG charm. I love when RPG games give you actual morally conflicting decision instead of “be nice or be evil”.
There are a few things that hindered my enjoyment here though. For starters, the difficulty curve is kind of crazy, this is by no means an impossible or hard game, but during the earlier levels it almost feels unfair how tanky some bosses and enemies are compared to Geralt. I spent a good chunk of time locked in a save, with sub optimal preparation having to power through a group or enemies or boss that would take me down in 2-3 hits.
Granted this may just be a skill issue and a lack of dedication on my part but considering most of the mid/late game challenges can just be powered through with one potion and spamming attacks, I did find it noticeable enough to make mention of it.
There are a few other elements that could have benefited from some fine tuning, and one such aspect that definitely shows its age are the forced QTE and stealth sections. I’m no stranger to linear gameplay and even I have to admit I’m a sucker for QTE’s and stealth sometimes.
Sadly I just thought it did not fit here and both mechanics suffered from a lot of jank. It kind of breaks the immersion but for a game released in 2011, I appreciate the effort and definitely understand the influence of the times when every game was trying to be a third person action/adventure title.
Overall, maybe didn’t like this as much as I thought I would but I can’t say I was disappointed. Despite a few hiccups in the side quest and gameplay departments I was fairly engaged with the main story and enjoyed most of the twists and characters.
Some sections are definitely stronger than others, but the Witcher 2 still delivers a pretty satisfying roleplaying package complete with action, romance and adventure. It may not be great just yet, but it sets an excellent foundation for fun gameplay loops and story denouements, which would soon be picked up, upgraded and expanded on all fronts by it’s legendary sequel, The Witcher 3.
Would recommend this to any RPG fan looking for a fun side adventure, or to any Witcher fan looking to get a deeper experience before they inevitably replay Witcher 3 for the 4th time.
The Witcher 2 is CD Projekt Red’s turning point in creating what would soon become their magnum opus and, in its own right, a game that stands pretty well on it’s own two legs.
While it’s definitely flawed in the combat and exploration department, it undeniably delivers on the writing department with a good story and CD Projekt Red’s trademark RPG charm. I love when RPG games give you actual morally conflicting decision instead of “be nice or be evil”.
There are a few things that hindered my enjoyment here though. For starters, the difficulty curve is kind of crazy, this is by no means an impossible or hard game, but during the earlier levels it almost feels unfair how tanky some bosses and enemies are compared to Geralt. I spent a good chunk of time locked in a save, with sub optimal preparation having to power through a group or enemies or boss that would take me down in 2-3 hits.
Granted this may just be a skill issue and a lack of dedication on my part but considering most of the mid/late game challenges can just be powered through with one potion and spamming attacks, I did find it noticeable enough to make mention of it.
There are a few other elements that could have benefited from some fine tuning, and one such aspect that definitely shows its age are the forced QTE and stealth sections. I’m no stranger to linear gameplay and even I have to admit I’m a sucker for QTE’s and stealth sometimes.
Sadly I just thought it did not fit here and both mechanics suffered from a lot of jank. It kind of breaks the immersion but for a game released in 2011, I appreciate the effort and definitely understand the influence of the times when every game was trying to be a third person action/adventure title.
Overall, maybe didn’t like this as much as I thought I would but I can’t say I was disappointed. Despite a few hiccups in the side quest and gameplay departments I was fairly engaged with the main story and enjoyed most of the twists and characters.
Some sections are definitely stronger than others, but the Witcher 2 still delivers a pretty satisfying roleplaying package complete with action, romance and adventure. It may not be great just yet, but it sets an excellent foundation for fun gameplay loops and story denouements, which would soon be picked up, upgraded and expanded on all fronts by it’s legendary sequel, The Witcher 3.
Would recommend this to any RPG fan looking for a fun side adventure, or to any Witcher fan looking to get a deeper experience before they inevitably replay Witcher 3 for the 4th time.