The Witcher 2

[Watchers]

It's in development. More Witcher yay!

JciyoGmnGyo

Though it saddens me to see they added QTEs. QTES MUST DIE.

[Thraxas]

**** Yeah!

I think I'll re-install the original right now.

[Silverwolf]

That doesn't sound like and barely looks like Geralt.

[Dunkurtin]

That doesn't sound like and barely looks like Geralt.

Agreed. Makes me want to finally go back and actually finish the original though.

[sausage]

Um wow, don't really know what to make of that.

Ditto on the voice of (*sigh*) Geralt and am hoping it was some spotty-faced intern dragged in to get it done for english audiences.

[JC Henderson]

On a side note is there still going to be a console release of the first game or are is it canned.

[Lazlow]

The console versions have been put on hold due to financing problems on the 29th of April, 2009. Remaining development staff are now reported to be working on Witcher 2 only

.......

[Silverwolf]

Yeah, screw you consolefags.

[Watchers]

I'm hoping the voices are just placeholders atm - it would make sense, and Geralt sounds like arse.

[ScToTeE]

Gah!

I was looking forward to trying out The Witcher, especially after Hyper praised the Enhanced Edition rather highly. Looks like consoles are getting over-looked... Onto Plan B then:

Is the PC version (Enhanced Edition) a system hog? Would it run on a semi-decent laptop or does it require a PC from 2200 to work? I'm sorry, I'm incredibly n00bish when it comes to figuring whether games would run on my PC or not...

*Awaits humiliating berating and tossing out of the PC Board like a drunk idiot out of a Wild West saloon*

[Clockw0rk]

TWEE isn't much of a system hog, you should be able to get it going on a half decent PC.
QTEs in certain fights are a bit lame, but I love the physics based magic.

[ScToTeE]

Sweet.

I've had my eye on it for a while now. Just been unsure as to whether it was too good for my laptop. It shouldn't be, as I only bought it a few months ago and was assured it had good gaming capabilities. Lesser than Crysis, better than KOTOR II (which the other PC in the house randomly can't handle at all!).

Might go bargain stalking during the week.

[sausage]

Geez I dunno then; a mouse running around a wheel could power KOTOR II. My system is pretty middle-of-the-road and it still crashed every 20-40 minutes. Still no gamebreaker though; TWEE kicked serious arse to be sure.

I have quad, 3 GB RAM. 9600GT

[ScToTeE]

Ha. Thankfully I would use my much better laptop instead. Yeah, the other PC is weird. That computer handles World of Warcraft fine. Have no clue why it couldn't take KOTOR II.

EDIT: Just worked out that my laptop's specs include the following:

Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4200@2.00GHz
2.00 GB (RAM)

...

That seems to be worse than yours, sillysausage. Maybe it wouldn't handle The Witcher: Enhanced Edition...

[Silverwolf]

It isn't a very demanding game, as long as you have a dedicated graphics card that isnt from 2003 you should be able to run it.

[Thraxas]

I always use this site to give me an idea if I can run a game:

http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/referrer/srtest

[ScToTeE]

Handy site.

And one of welcome information, as it gave me the thumbs-up to get The Witcher: Enhanced Edition. Woot!

[McChimp]

I'm running it on my PC: Pentium Dual Core @ 2.4ghz, 3gb of RAM and a piddly little 128mb ATI Radeon 2400 HD videocard. Far from a beast, and it runs reasonably well with settings on medium (which suits me fine for the time being).

[ScToTeE]

I'm running it on my PC: Pentium Dual Core @ 2.4ghz, 3gb of RAM and a piddly little 128mb ATI Radeon 2400 HD videocard. Far from a beast, and it runs reasonably well with settings on medium (which suits me fine for the time being).

This laptop seems to have an ATI Radeon 3410 HD videocard. I have no idea whether that means anything but, like you, so long as the game functions somewhat smoothly I couldn't care less how clear the graphics are.

[McChimp]

I was quite surprised at the graphics still looking decent on medium settings, as other games can look rather crap. My only issue with the game is the crashes, and I've just updated with the latest patch too, which is giving me the sh*ts.

[sausage]

Yeah the game is pretty crash-tastic; just save often. Thank god it isn't a gamebreaker.

[Ad-Rock]

I'm playing through TWEE at the moment on my laptop: 2.2Ghz Dual core, Vista 32bit, 4GB ram, 256MB GeForce 8600M GS. It runs the game like a dream in small areas (like in dungeons, houses, caves etc) but slows down a fair bit in large outdoor areas (I'm looking your way, Swamp...) when weather effects kick in. My best tip so far to deal with that is turn grass off.

Such a great game though (and has only crashed once in the last 6 hours of play)!

EDIT: I lay the blame for slow down in games at my processor, would that be correct? Or would it be the speed of my ram or graphics card?

[Vindik8or]

The crashing of The Witcher rarely has much to do with the hardware requirements. On the official forums there are a few very handy guides for getting it to run optimally, including tips that you should use in general including how to properly update your graphics card, and how to best defrag your drives.

As for this alpha video - the voices are obviously placeholders, there would be no need to record those until much later in the production. Quicktime events are so frigging slack, I cannot comprehend how they think those might be a good idea. At all. Then they go crazy and call it "innovative". If they delivered a game that was simply a graphics upgrade to the original engine and a new campaign, I would buy it, I would love it, and I would have no issues with it whatsoever.

[sausage]

If they delivered a game that was simply a graphics upgrade to the original engine and a new campaign, I would buy it, I would love it, and I would have no issues with it whatsoever.


Absofrickinlutely.

[Watchers]

EDIT: I lay the blame for slow down in games at my processor, would that be correct? Or would it be the speed of my ram or graphics card?

Graphics card and the fact you're using Vista/DX10 - that's my guess.

[punkgorilla]

Ha. Thankfully I would use my much better laptop instead. Yeah, the other PC is weird. That computer handles World of Warcraft fine. Have no clue why it couldn't take KOTOR II.


Are you trying to run KOTOR II on Vista? If so it will not work properly. Fortunately, there is a patch you can get to fix that.

[ScToTeE]

Nah, I was attempting to run it on XP. Decent computer, but I think the graphics card was woefully outdated. At least, that was where it keep saying the problem was. It's weird though, because that PC can handle World of Warcraft which can't be much older (if at all ...), than KOTOR II. I ended up getting rid of it a while ago, as I found the XB version. I'd prefer to have it on console to be honest, saves me leaving my room haha. Thanks for the information anyway.

[punkgorilla]

The Witcher 2 will also be coming to consoles. (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/the-witcher-2-is-heading-to-consoles) There's also confirmation that the voice-overs are placeholders.

[AranchineD]

Pre-empting the haters: **** you, it means I'll actually get to play the game!

[Spudzilla]

yo yo, where da sex cards at??

[ScToTeE]

Pre-empting the haters: **** you, it means I'll actually get to play the game!

Score! :D

Looks like I won't have to badger people with n00bish questions on PC requirements this time round. :)

[big_b]

Just installed and started playing through the first game. Got all the latest patches now too. Really enjoying it. Seems like its going to consume alot of my free time in the next few weeks =)

[concrete donkey]

Yeah, screw you consolefags.

thats not very nice. dont we deserve to play it too?

[Silverwolf]

thats not very nice. dont we deserve to play it too?

Just as much as I deserve Brutal Legend and countless other games that I can't play.

[AranchineD]

It's PC's fault for being so easy to pirate games on :-------------)

[concrete donkey]

Just as much as I deserve Brutal Legend and countless other games that I can't play.

but consoles are a lot cheaper for people buy.. its more attainable than a good gaming pc

[borgster101]

Trailer (http://www.gametrailers.com/video/exclusive-official-the-witcher/63500)

Ooh yeah! Don't think my PC will handle it though .. it only barely could run the first :(

[McChimp]

but consoles are a lot cheaper for people to buy.. its more attainable than a good gaming pc

Exactly. I've got a PC, yet HAVING to upgrade it having only bought 6-months ago, just because it doesn't have the most up-to-date components that'd let me play something like Witcher 2 is something I refuse to do, no matter how much I want to play it. I've got a 360 and PS3, which SHOULD be more than capable of running Witcher 2, and in-turn means I've only got to pay for the game, not having to add that to the price of upgrading my PC.

Don't lay the hate on console owners getting something like this if they're the ones making the more financial-savvy format purchase for what they can afford. Games are something we should ALL be able to enjoy, no-matter the format.

Then again, strict PC gamers are all elitist pricks from my experience, so :P to y'all. ;)

[ElPresidente]

Well if CDProjekt RED had the skill internally y'all would all be playing Winter of the Wolf right now. Unfortunately they are PC developers and needed to hand console duties to another party which simply did not work out for the team.

In other words, don't be hating on Projekt Red for making RPGs on the platform that has supported and nurtured the genre since inception. It is like hating on Miyamoto for only making Nintendo games. :P

Anyway... colour me excited.

I think there may be some potential for violence between myself and one other PCPP writer when it comes time to review this. Who will win the honour? :D

[Ad-Rock]

Here's a link to a pretty crap video about The Witcher 2. (http://au.ign.com/videos/2011/04/20/the-witcher-2-video-preview)

Why in God's name have they changed the combat system to a hack and slash style? The combat was one of the best thing about the original!! c****.

EDIT:
"When you're not cutting down enemies with your swords you can expect to do it with your tongue" *video - Geralt punches someone in the stomach* Great commentary right there.

[AranchineD]

Well it's the same combat style actually, they just mixed group style with the other two

[HiredMan]

My local JB is selling this right now. Is the release date today or is this breakage?

[Ad-Rock]

High Overlord Metacritic says it is to be released in 1.5 hours.

[HiredMan]

Well, it's a bit casual for me anyways. Aran might like it though, he likes casual stuff.

[AranchineD]

If you're not playing the game on Insane, go **** yourself, dickhead

[HiredMan]

hey m8 chill out m8

[HiredMan]

Funny how you can dish out casual but cant take it too. Come play EVE :p

[Silverwolf]

Played some hours of this. Amazing is putting the game lightly. It shits all over Dragon Age 2 in basically every way, and I quite enjoyed DA2.

It's also quite possibly the best looking game I have ever played, and i'm playing it on High settings, not even Ultra. The Witcher 2 puts Crysis to shame.

I'm barely into Chapter 1 and i'm already quite impressed. Apart from some minor audio/lip syncing issues (which every game has to a similar degree) and the 'tutorial' being kinda vague about controls and THAT ****ING DRAGON, it's very very good so far.

[ElPresidente]

That dragon ended my games playing prematurely - worst idea for your first battle ever. Learn the basics and avoid getting instantly roasted by Flappy-Flap McRandom.

It does look beautiful though and I'm looking forward to getting past this dragon and getting into the game proper.

[TrinityJayOne]

I'm unsure if I should bother. I found the first too annoying for me to play, because I simply cannot play these games without doing every quest and going through every possible conversation option. Short of the moral choice ones, if I miss something I will reload just to hear it. As such the game takes too long to progress, because I spend 10mins doing a story mission then hours completing side quests. :( I just can't play these games any other way though.

[sausage]

if only there was a way you could do multiple play throughs

[Tonez]

So there were rumours a few months back that this was coming out for console and I haven't heard anything since?

Any one have any idea?

[HiredMan]

The game has been scheduled for release on May 17, 2011, PC exclusive.[21] The developers have hinted that there could be some possibility of a console release after the game is released first for the PC, but for now the game is a PC title.

So thats a maybe.

[Ad-Rock]

My new PC will be arriving tomorrow, and this will be the first game I buy for it. Much excite.

[Silverwolf]

That dragon ended my games playing prematurely - worst idea for your first battle ever. Learn the basics and avoid getting instantly roasted by Flappy Flappy McRandom.

It does look beautiful though and I'm looking forward to getting past this dragon and getting into the game proper.

Yeah, I think we picked the short straw getting the dragon first, the other chat options would have given easier scenarios to learn in. Trial by Fire was a very appropriate title.

The Quen sign is the key, I think. Every time I ran across cover the dragon would take off 3/4s of my HP. Shielding then running across the cover is probably the way to do it, in hindsight.

[Vindik8or]

5 minutes in and it's ****en unplayable. No idea what's going on, no description of the controls to be had (they seem to be the worst version of the three options from the original), and instant death moments after you gain control. I don't even seem to have a pause button.

[Vindik8or]

More reading than a Bioware game, tutorial windows that vanish before you notice they're there, controls like some console port shocker. Did CDProjekt completely fluke the first game?

[Ad-Rock]

They ****ed up the original and then released the Enhanced Edition.

[Second]

You're bad at the game.

[AranchineD]

Yeah sounds like old man Vin can't keep up with the times

[Hyperblau]

I would probably get this if it was on console, really CBF upgrading my PC right now.

[Dunkurtin]

Why did i buy this from steam? -_-
Servers are so clogged up, still got just under 2 gb to go and i started it before going to bed last night. Sif no pre load option steam.

[dinopoke]

The files were only sent to steam yesterday I think.

[Emilbus]

Downloaded the 9 gig from from GoG in 1 hour. :D

[Watchers]

Ordered it from the Hut for around $40 with all the fancy boxed extras. Won't be playing til I upgrade my PC in the next few weeks, so don't really mind waiting.

[Vindik8or]

They ****ed up the original and then released the Enhanced Edition.

The only gameplay part that the enhanced edition fixed was the alchemy pouch. I'm liking all the nudity, but do yourself a favour and click on the interrogation conversation options in order from top to bottom. This game is all over the place, more so than the original. All I was after was pretty much a mission pack for the first game, instead there's this monstrous half-breed of Arkham Asylum and the original Witcher. Having to drink potions outside of combat is all kinds of dumb, ie. you're supposed to guess when combat is on its way? The way of finding and picking up loot is a mess - most things you have to stumble across. The combat varies between effin sweet and immensely frustrating. Sometimes you're slicing all over the battlefield like the best bits of Arkham Asylum, others swinging in the air in frustration, or furiously igniting and extinguishing torches because the game refuses to target something else. There is just no feedback from the game on where you do things right and wrong in fights, even using the parrying and rolling works only some of the time. Quen sign will get a massive workout.

In fact the more I think about it, the more I suspect the designers spent too much time playing Arkham Asylum and haven't given anywhere near enough respect to their original. Everything from the changes to the cat potion (it looks just like detective mode from Arkham Asylum) to the pointless 'click repeatedly to do this action' events, to the way in which you throw all the different types of batara... knives and bombs.

I'm writing this after my first crash to the desktop. At least that bit is familiar. Hopefully it won't be too long until there's an enhanced edition to fix this one too.

[Silverwolf]

It doesn't really require any more getting used to then the first one did.

[AranchineD]

There is just no feedback from the game on where you do things right and wrong in fights

So like the first game then

[AranchineD]

Everything from the changes to the cat potion (it looks just like detective mode from Arkham Asylum)

So like De Vries' Extract in the first game then

[Second]

Should I get this game?

[AranchineD]

Yes, Vin is just neckbearding

[Vindik8or]

So like the first game then

What, you mean like how they didn't have graphics on the screen showing immediately if you clicked right on time or missed the timing?

So like De Vries' Extract in the first game then

De Vries is friggin trippy times for spotting some ghosts and no practical applications. Cat now shows enemies through walls just like...

[Second]

VIN SHOULD I GET THiS GAME?!

[Vindik8or]

Yes, you should.

[AranchineD]

What, you mean like how they didn't have graphics on the screen showing immediately if you clicked right on time or missed the timing?

"Hey you clicked right but since Geralt doesn't even flinch when he gets hit you didn't even noticed you lost 3/4 of your health in two seconds anyway

Welcome to Act 1 fajit"


De Vries is friggin trippy times for spotting some ghosts and no practical applications. Cat now shows enemies through walls just like...

...just like pressing the Alt key in the original game

[Vindik8or]

Man, I wish I could press the alt key and see the lootable objects in this game :(

[Vindik8or]

Does anyone know how to get the DLC? I pre-ordered and registered, but I don't have any preorder code to redeem.

[AranchineD]

You...just click on it in the menu, and click Download

[borgster101]

Holy Crap I didn't realise this was out already!

Another game I'll have to add to the list.

[AranchineD]

Oh btw Vin, I'm playing the first game right now, and De Vries' does let you see through walls

So yeah

Eat that

[Vindik8or]

I'm enjoying the parts of the game without combat. I found that if you hit z to make your medallion burst it will highlight lootable objects in your area for a limited time.

[HiredMan]

C'mon ppl, moar neckbeardery!

[Silverwolf]

C'mon ppl, moar neckbeardery!

The only neckbearding I can do at the moment is about the graphics.

GF bought LA Noire on the 360 today and I looked over at it while I was playing The Witcher 2 and JESUS CHRIST THAT GAME LOOKS LIKE SHIT.

The Witcher 2 makes other games look horrible.

On a serious neckbearding(?) note, the fight with Letho (kingslayer) on Hard difficulty is bullshit, ridiculous and unfair. He has all your signs, upgraded and seemingly infinite Vigor, infinite bombs, and his sword swings consistently hit for you at least half your hp. Plus when he uses Quen sign (shield) if you hit him you recoil and he basically gets a free hit on you.

Is that enough neckbearding?

[Vindik8or]

He's bullshit on normal as well. Just load up on throwing knives and spam him with them when his shield is down.

[HiredMan]

On a serious neckbearding(?) note, the fight with Letho (kingslayer) on Hard difficulty is bullshit, ridiculous and unfair. He has all your signs, upgraded and seemingly infinite Vigor, infinite bombs, and his sword swings consistently hit for you at least half your hp. Plus when he uses Quen sign (shield) if you hit him you recoil and he basically gets a free hit on you.

Is that enough neckbearding?

Yup. Thanks heaps, was starting to get the shakes there.

I reckon I might grab this next week.

[sausage]

doesn't anyone read manuals anymore

i pore over a new game manual before i even install the game on the 'pooter!

[Silverwolf]

He's bullshit on normal as well. Just load up on throwing knives and spam him with them when his shield is down.

I just turned it down to easy for that fight and all I had to do was spam right click. I probably spent 2 hours dying to him and even when I played flawlessly he'd still pull some bullshit and smash my head in.

That's the only fight I've really had a problem with though so far. Pretty sure it's stupidly hard just cause he has infinite vigor.

[Lazlow]

GF bought LA Noire on the 360 today and I looked over at it while I was playing The Witcher 2 and JESUS CHRIST THAT GAME LOOKS LIKE SHIT.

The Witcher 2 makes other games look horrible.

Well you are comparing DirectX 12 to not DirectX12. Everything on PC should look better

[Lazlow]

Its just no one plays PC games anymore, so they develop for console and port them across :D

[Ad-Rock]

Can't say I'm a fan of the combat system so far, but I'm still doing the prologue so I'll withhold my judgement until later in the game. I've noticed that the game is seems unresponsive to commands on a regular basis and several things really break the flow of combat. Combat seems to be similar to dragon age 2, just not as free flowing.

Visuals are spectacular for the most part.

[Araenel]

Geralt's weird and floppy hair is probably the main thing I neckbeard over in this game.

Playing on easy too though because **** the combat.

[Silverwolf]

Combat seems to be similar to dragon age 2, just not as free flowing

the combat is a fair bit more complex though.

[Dunkurtin]

Only problem with combat system is swapping targets when you don't want to.

Did Letho, on normal, wtf you all bitching about? I died once because i made a stupid mistake, otherwise thought it was a pretty decent fight.

[Second]

Look at this ****in' feltrin.

[Dunkurtin]

Seriously, keep Quen up to shield against his Igni and Aard, avoid him while he's got Quen up, soon as he blocks roll away. Maybe chuck a bomb every now and then to stun him and get a few extra hits.

[Vindik8or]

Quen doesn't shield against Aard, and that's the problem. He would just whittle me down with Aard even though I'd not let in any other damage.

EDIT: The combat system feels a bit better now, and I'm spending most fights getting a decent flow happening, but it still has moments where I can do nothing but throw my hands up in frustration. It really seems to be the half-implemented bastard child of Arkham Asylum combat. The block/riposte system is annoying and pretty patchy as you end up spending loads of time just standing still holding 'e' waiting for the riposte indicator to pop up. I've had times where I've had full Vigor and he wouldn't block, and it seems to be random as to when the riposte mode will enable and when it will just leave you completely open to getting creamed in the face by an overpowered Nilfgaardian soldier. In this case it would have been better if it the blocking and countering was more like Batman. You really just don't have effective tools to take on multiple melee opponents in direct combat, but that's what happens in most of the combat.

[Dunkurtin]

Umm, it does stop the damage. Sure you still go flying but thats not that big a problem.

[Ad-Rock]

I'm past the prologue and now I'm finding the combat to flow a bit better by dodge rolling around like crazy and using Quen all the time. Getting hit really ****s combat up.

Awesome game though. I usually specialise as a swordsman/warrior type character on my first run through RPGs, but I'm gonna change it up a little and try to focus on the Alchemy skill tree.

[Vindik8or]

I highly recommend upgrading your Quen sign fully, and maybe some Axii.

[Ad-Rock]

Sounds like a challenge to me...

[Vindik8or]

When you put points in the first upgrade for Quen it reflects damage back at the attackers. When you get the second Quen upgrade it arcs that reflected damage onto up to three enemies. Basically it gives you a fighting chance against tough melee groups.

[igotnewsuper8systemWRONG!]

Shouldn't this thread be in general gaming?

[Vindik8or]

It's PC only, though you couldn't tell from the user interface. I finished it just before, it's a fair bit shorter than the original and ends all of a sudden without much fanfair. Also has The Empire Strikes Back treatment. The combat gets a lot more fun in the second half.

[Ad-Rock]

I was starting to wonder if there was something wrong with all the people saying that this game was visually stunning... Turns out I've had the game set to low visual settings.

Changed it to high and now I can see what everyone was talking about! Amazing visuals. Gonna try Ultra settings on my next play to see if my computer can keep the frame rate up.

[Emilbus]

Definite expansion planned by the way they ended it. Also going down the magic tree made combat alot easier.

[Nic Xtreme]

Shouldn't this thread be in general gaming?

Not too long now ;) (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-05-25-esrb-outs-witcher-2-on-xbox-360)

[Emilbus]

Finished it again on hard with a different choice for act 2 and WOW! I didn't think the 2nd act would drastically change but everything is totally different. Definitely recommend playing this at least twice to get the entire picture. GOTY for me so far...and the bar has been set high.

[Cerebral]

It's PC only, though you couldn't tell from the user interface. I finished it just before, it's a fair bit shorter than the original and ends all of a sudden without much fanfair. Also has The Empire Strikes Back treatment. The combat gets a lot more fun in the second half.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6705127/godot-sniff.gif

[Xanafalgue]

You can move it to General Gaming now http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r251/GourmetJellybean/alexis.gif

[Almighty Beanchild]

All right, as much as my pride usually prevents this; I am goddamn stuck. I'm in act 1, trying to finish off quests, but I can't because I can't find any iron or silver ore to get a silver blade and its fffffffffffff****ing annoying.

Where do I get it?

[Dunkurtin]

Just buy one?

[AranchineD]

I find an easy way is to play through The Witcher, get the Moonlight silver sword at the end of the game by finishing the monster hunt quest, then import it into the second game. Simple.

[Cerebral]

All right, as much as my pride usually prevents this; I am goddamn stuck. I'm in act 1, trying to finish off quests, but I can't because I can't find any iron or silver ore to get a silver blade and its fffffffffffff****ing annoying.

Where do I get it?

I got stuck in the same deal. Bought some silver ore from a merchant.

[Silverwolf]

I find an easy way is to play through The Witcher, get the Moonlight silver sword at the end of the game by finishing the monster hunt quest, then import it into the second game. Simple.

Aerondight is pretty great.

[AranchineD]

Oh right, that's what it's called.

[Vindik8or]

I find an easy way is to play through The Witcher, get the Moonlight silver sword at the end of the game by finishing the monster hunt quest, then import it into the second game. Simple.

Moonblade. Yeah, this is pretty true. It will last you until some point in the second act, by which point combat becomes largely trivial.

Since Aran brought it up earlier, criticism of the story (so, like spoilers I guess):

Still no idea who the original Witcher-like assassin is. Geralt recovers no memory of him and the other kingslayers make no mention.

Geralt being the prime suspect of Foltest's murder is bullshit (so is the fact that the only way the monk didn't get run through immediately was to take control away from the player, and the real Geralt would have jumped outta that window straight after him)

At the very end either the writers screwed up their own story saying that the Scoia'tael helped the Kingslayers escape after Demavend's assassination, or the Kingslayer is straight up lying. Earlier admissions and cutscenes show that the Kingslayer didn't employ the Scoia'tael until AFTER killing Demavend, plus by this point he has no motivation to lie about something so trivial.

The decisions that you make in the first game have barely any influence on the second game. There is no visible effect from choosing the Scoia'tael (or the neutral path for that matter). Choosing the Order means that you get free passage at the start of Act 3 if you follow Iorveth. Nothing of consequence if you follow Roche. Saving Adda has some slight adjustments if you go on Roche's path. Whether you kill Alvin in the first one or hand him over to the King of the Wild Hunt has zero baring, and it's as though Shani never existed.

Finally the last few decisions you make have next to zero consequences. Choosing between Triss and the alternate mission is a hollow choice and you might as well go with the alternate mission since Triss is rescued anyway. Doesn't matter whether you kill, spare (or save) the Dragon really. You don't even get any sweet gear from it. All of these actions are as though there was going to be more game ahead but it got cut off.

That said, and all my previous comments (it should be pointed out) notwithstanding, this is still one of the best games out. It's just... it's like the dumber, but more attractive brother of the original game. I can understand why they made changes to the original combat system, it is always hard to hold firm against criticism, particularly since they're newcomers, but I would have preferred that they tried to improve and adjust the system they had than start anew (patch 1.2 made combat much nicer, though). I'm still hanging out for a properly PC version, (support for hardware devices, support for alternate resolutions, proper user interface), and I still hold nothing but high-minded, seething contempt for quicktime events.

[Almighty Beanchild]

Moonblade. Yeah, this is pretty true. It will last you until some point in the second act, by which point combat becomes largely trivial.

Since Aran brought it up earlier, criticism of the story (so, like spoilers I guess):

Still no idea who the original Witcher-like assassin is. Geralt recovers no memory of him and the other kingslayers make no mention.

Geralt being the prime suspect of Foltest's murder is bullshit (so is the fact that the only way the monk didn't get run through immediately was to take control away from the player, and the real Geralt would have jumped outta that window straight after him)

At the very end either the writers screwed up their own story saying that the Scoia'tael helped the Kingslayers escape after Demavend's assassination, or the Kingslayer is straight up lying. Earlier admissions and cutscenes show that the Kingslayer didn't employ the Scoia'tael until AFTER killing Demavend, plus by this point he has no motivation to lie about something so trivial.

The decisions that you make in the first game have barely any influence on the second game. There is no visible effect from choosing the Scoia'tael (or the neutral path for that matter). Choosing the Order means that you get free passage at the start of Act 3 if you follow Iorveth. Nothing of consequence if you follow Roche. Saving Adda has some slight adjustments if you go on Roche's path. Whether you kill Alvin in the first one or hand him over to the King of the Wild Hunt has zero baring, and it's as though Shani never existed.

Finally the last few decisions you make have next to zero consequences. Choosing between Triss and the alternate mission is a hollow choice and you might as well go with the alternate mission since Triss is rescued anyway. Doesn't matter whether you kill, spare (or save) the Dragon really. You don't even get any sweet gear from it. All of these actions are as though there was going to be more game ahead but it got cut off.

That said, and all my previous comments (it should be pointed out) notwithstanding, this is still one of the best games out. It's just... it's like the dumber, but more attractive brother of the original game. I can understand why they made changes to the original combat system, it is always hard to hold firm against criticism, particularly since they're newcomers, but I would have preferred that they tried to improve and adjust the system they had than start anew (patch 1.2 made combat much nicer, though). I'm still hanging out for a properly PC version, (support for hardware devices, support for alternate resolutions, proper user interface), and I still hold nothing but high-minded, seething contempt for quicktime events.

Jesus christ

[Silverwolf]

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/omgwolfeh/neckin.png

?????

[COMYYY]

it is games like wars.
the world of this game is dark.
this game is definitely not my type.

[Watchers]

Quality post.

[Slippery]

I see what people mean about the prologue being difficult, I'm only up to that dragon showing up, but the early combat does take a little getting used to.

Protip: spells.

Regretting not finishing the first game. Got bored in Act 4 with the random change of scenery.

[AranchineD]

Oh man

oh man

"random change of scenery"

oh man

[Vindik8or]

Act IV is my favourite in the first game.

[Xanafalgue]

April 17th for the definitive Xbox 360 TW2: Enhanced Edition :cool:

[AranchineD]

poor PC gamers, all we get is the exact same content for free :(

[Natrak]

Take that you nutticklers