I picked this game up for $5 during the last Steam sale, and just got around to installing it. I think I am close to the end of the prologue, but I’m not 100% sure.
The Graphics
When I first tried playing it it actually hurt to look at. Fortunately, this seems to only be because the game inexplicably set itself to the lowest graphics settings. Switching to medium graphics with depth of field turned off makes for a much less obnoxious appearance.
The Gameplay
So far, I hate the gameplay. The last third-person basher I played was Arkham City, which did a really good job of making you feel like a complete badass who can take on forty mooks and win, so the drop in the quality of the fight sequences is especially jarring. Maybe it gets better later, but that just tells me they stuck too many abilities behind unlocks - none of which I’ll be able to access for another four levels.
The Story
This part is good. I laughed out loud when the king revealed that he gave the ballistae currently shooting at him to the Baroness as a birthday present. And then again when he saw a friend up on the wall, and decided the proper response to this treachery was to try to blow his head off with an artillery piece.
The video at the start of the game showing the king’s assassination was really nicely done. I winced when the mast started to shatter, because I had been dreading that revelation since he first used the ice spell.
On the highest settings I think the game is actually rather pretty (though I recall a few characters seem poorly drawn/oddly animated ). But that assumes your machine can chug along at those settings.
Hmmm…I thought it was a distinct improvement over the first Witcher. Not least of all because there are now multiple ways to build a viable character, where before there really only was one. Still, I agree it does take some getting used to and yes it does take a few levels and some thought before you turn into a badass. But I can’t fault anyone for not caring for the mechanics - I think they work but have mixed feelings about the design choices.
I ended up really liking the game and it is a reasonably entertaining story ( half the battle to my mind ). But I don’t think it has as much universal appeal as some competitors - some folks just won’t like its quirks.
I admit, I’m still playing myself and haven’t gotten past Act 1 (there’s a very specific and critical choice). Gameplay is actually very good, but the program does a terrible job of explaining how to use it. Once you get used to it, it’s really something. While you will have to vary your tactics, the upshot is that you do have plenty of tools to win any fight.
The really obnoxious aspect is the bosses. These are just plain bad in several ways, but mostly because they can take a lot of punishment one way or another and often have spammable 1 or 2-hit KO’s. A lot of the boss fights is just dying over and over and over until you figure out how to survive long enough to figure out his weaknesses. And the second boss is a complete dickmove in that they gave him every single thing you can have, only twice as good. He’s specifically designed to exploit the fact that most players will still be inexperienced and won’t quite know how to fight him… because they’ve never done anything like it.
First Boss Hint:
You must use Yrden traps the arms. This screed up over twenty times because for some reason the mage chick didn’t bloody well tell me, so I was completely lost. I had no idea you even could do so because Yrden it never worked that way before (or, indeed, after).
Second Boss Hint:
The easy way is to spam fire spells whenever his shield is down. Even melee specialist will get destroyed up close. You can also try using Yrden traps and then chopping him in the back, but he randomly ignores the trap effect just because. if you have the perfect no-endurance block, you can try block him up close and then stabbing when he finishes his combo. But otherwise, just run around and throw fireballs and knives at him. if you’re a bomb specialist, you can also use those. And then, in a further dick move, you lose in a cutscene so it didn’t matter.
In short, the bosses don’t so much require mastery of the game system or form the pinnacle test of the skills you’ve learned, as they are a completely separate minigame you have to practice over and over, then forget about.
But apart from that, it’s an incredible game. If I weren’t distracted by Crysis 1 and Dragon’s Dogma right now I’d be all over this. Your choices matter to you and they don’t always have very easy answers. And past Act 1 it’s actually like having two separate games!
Make sure you are running the official combat mod!
It vastly improves the way combat and combat related abilities work. You cna download it form the Witcher 2 website, as it was actually made by one of the devs.
The game, is probably one of the best looking RPG’s out there on max settings (always turn off uber smapling though!).
The first boss fight was a huge pain. There were a couple phases, that took several runs to figure it all out. Then I knew what had to be done, but it took me maybe 50 more runs, cause everytime , my timing would be off just enough in enough places to kill me before the end.
I’m in Chapter One, and there’s a good chance I’m done with the game. There is still some very nice dialogue but I absolutely hated the final quest of the prologue.
Not only was it a forced stealth mission with really obnoxious controls, not only could I not free any of the prisoners except that La Valette brat, I had to just stand by as he threw a tantrum and burnt the others alive? Fuck you, game.
Combat is still unfun, especially those bug queens. Stun grenades are worse than useless, because the synch kill animation that follows will often leave you in the middle of the mob with your back turned.
I had a look, and I’m going to say “No, thanks.” If this was Skyrim, I’d be able to download a standalone combat mod or two that does pretty much exactly what I want, and nothing more. It would not be 1.5 gigabytes, it would not be packaged with “fixes” like removal of combat XP and equipment, and I would not be left with the impression that said unwanted fixes would invalidate my current save.
I really didn’t like the prologue and the first boss fight, but after that the game got much better. Now, I think it’s one of the best RPGs I’ve played in a long time and I’m really looking forward to the Witcher 3 next year.
The stealth is forced, but the game doesn’t give a hoot whether you stealth or not. There’s no game over if the guards catch you, you just have a little fight, bop them on their heads and get on with your life.
Combat in the Witcher 2 is all about strategery, picking your battles, and dodging. Lots of dodging, while you try to create the opportunity to dispatch a foe one way or another. In your example, sounds to me you’ve correctly identified the problem with your chosen tactic, but not moved from there to “let’s try something else”. Namely, killing off the little bugs first then finishing off the queen.
It’s certainly not Arkham Asylum. In Arkham, you’re supposed to be a badass one-man army flowing gracefully from elbow crunch to dick punch. In the Witcher, you’re just a guy with a couple tricks up his sleeve and a substance abuse problem (btw, always always always use potions :p). You most definitely can’t wade into a throng of dudes the way the Batman does, you’ll just get dog-piled and crushed.
I’ll agree with smiling that the boss fights are a bit of an annoyance ; but other than that I was really fond of the general gameplay myself.