Graphics
Very nice graphics and in game cinematics. Athmosphere is really good and there are some 'movies' that actually have a few minigames in them. Nice.
Gameplay:
The gameplay is a bit simple (probably focused on console as you only use very few buttons). In itself that isnt so bad, but 1 of the 4 buttons you have i never used: E for Block.
Fights are fun (i got never tired of fighting. Actually i would have wanted to fight a bit more).
The abilities you get are mostly nice except that there are some really overpowered:
- If you use Quen (magical shield that absorbs and when you upgrade even reflects damage) fights (and other things that do damage) get a lot easier.
- Group finishers make it really easy to decimate groups (but they are also fun and very graphic/violent/bloody)
- When you want to cast another spell you can't press a shortcut key for that spell, you have to go to a weird interface that lets you click the spell you want and only then your (only spellcasting) button Q can cast it. Instead of using the mousewheel to scroll between the possible 6 spells, you actually hve to move your mouse there and select it). To fix this interface problem they slow down the game so you buy yourself some time to change spells or quick slots. Personally i am more fan of shortcut keys or a freeze option to think/strategize.
I focused mainly on the swordplay talent tree as it seemed like the easiest one (if you hit harder this will help you every hit for the rest of the game VS magic requires Vigor (mana)(although it regenerates pretty fast) and alchemy is mostly useful for those moments you use pots).
In most reviews i read that in this game you actually have to use pots/oils and traps but i never used them only 1 time to see what they do.
If i play this game again i will focus on casting.
Storyline:
The story is very detailed and enriched by in game cinematics, conversations with locals and reading books you find. The problem is that i had not read the books this game is based on and i couldn't focus/comprehend the macro political things that were happening. Stuff concerning my character directly were easier to focus on.
Often you are faced with choices in the game that decide how the rest of the story in your game will enfold. This also decide what abilities you will get (or cannot get anymore) and sometimes what loot is available to you. Tbh i often didnt know if i wanted to free or kill X and in the end i decided that it probably wouldnt matter all that much and just chose 1. Some choice are time based. You see a timer of a few seconds and if you don't decide in that time period the game chooses the default answer for you. I cannot say i am a fan of this.
Interface:
The inventory/shop interface is really bad. No way around it. They have invented a lot of square wheels there. You will be able to do everything you want, but most of the time you wish they had made it more user friendly.
Difficulty:
I played it on Normal and that was really easy. There are only a few fights that are a bit hard, but you can usually win them with an unbalanced option. Some bosses are really vulnerable to Yrden (magical trap that stuns them) for example and then the fight gets a lot easier. Also Quen (as mentioned earlier) makes a fight a lot easier and if you have too much orens (gold) (i didnt find any money cheats and never had too many orens) you can basically convert orens into damage by buying and using daggers. They are 1-time usage but do a silly amount of damage.
I played the entire game with gear from Act 1 which shows that the game isnt hard on Normal mode. In Act 3 you get really good gear, but Act 3 is so short that you don't really have any game left to use them anymore.
Summary:
The Witcher 2 is very nice looking game that focuses on very good graphics, storyline, in game cinematics and simple gamecontrols. That being said it seems like they rushed to finish the game (Obama was arriving in Poland too early?
) which can be seen in the unpolished (inventory) interface and the way too short Act 3. Compared to DAO fights are less subtle with a lot less options. DAO has a lot more RPG feeling and is better balanced. For someone who hasn't the read the Witcher books the storyline of DAO is a lot easier to understand. A big difference is that Witcher has a console feel to it and DAO has a pc game feel.
The game boasts that every individual has his own life and everything interacts with everything. This isnt true and even if it would be it doesn't influence your game much. At night, in stead of walking to the shopkeeper on the street, i walk into his house wake him up and instantly he starts crafting items for me. He isn't even near his forge ... huh? So realism in't really realism. Also they train you in the prologue in blocking, using pots/oils, bombs and traps and in their trailers they stress that all those things are needed to advance in the game. I can tell you, on normal mode all those things are not needed. Maybe i chose wrongly by selecting Normal mode for the casual RPG player and are those things are actually needed in harder modes.
Verdict:
7.5/10