# The Witcher 2



## Epona (Apr 19, 2011)

Less than a month to go - anyone else excited about this game?  I can barely wait, it's looking great and the RED engine looks promising.


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## ruffneck23 (Apr 19, 2011)

yeah im looking forward to this one too , i never really played much of the first one but I did enjoy what I played


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## Epona (Apr 19, 2011)

I've been trying to avoid too much information so I don't go spoiling it for myself, but the screenshots I have seen look really pretty.  Apparently the cutscenes are going to be rendered in real time, and they've also introduced some quick time events in dialogue for aggressive resolution of disagreements and where some decisions need to be made quickly - no more leaving the PC to make a cuppa while I think about whether I want to save someone or let them be killed!

Like the first game, choices will have far reaching implications but apparently even more so this time around, and there are 16 different possible endings dependent on choices made throughout the game.


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## Garek (Apr 19, 2011)

Put me down for cautiously optimistic. I got The Whitcher 1: EE the other week though haven't had the time to get into to it. I found the combat system impossible to get to grips with when I tried it so it has been added to the "To Play On A Rainy Day" pile.


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## Epona (Apr 19, 2011)

Garek said:


> Put me down for cautiously optimistic. I got The Whitcher 1: EE the other week though haven't had the time to get into to it. I found the combat system impossible to get to grips with when I tried it so it has been added to the "To Play On A Rainy Day" pile.


 
The combat system in TW did take a little getting used to - it was neither classic topdown RPG nor action hack 'n' slash.  Well worth spending the time to get to grips with it though (and it's not hard once you're used to it, if I can manage it anyone can!) because the plot is superb.

Apparently the combat is going to be different in TW2, so don't be put off by the combat in the original game.


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## Garek (Apr 19, 2011)

Epona said:


> The combat system in TW did take a little getting used to - it was neither classic topdown RPG nor action hack 'n' slash.  Well worth spending the time to get to grips with it though (and it's not hard once you're used to it, if I can manage it anyone can!) because the plot is superb.
> 
> Apparently the combat is going to be different in TW2, so don't be put off by the combat in the original game.



Well I will give it another go then. I was playing it with Polish dialogue and English subs which was quite fun for it unusualness.


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## treelover (Apr 19, 2011)

Been playing Arcania: Gothic 4, has its moments, some good battles, graphics, etc, but quite boring overall..


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## tommers (Apr 19, 2011)

I played the demo of that - too much loot.  I came out of the first dungeon with enough armour to outfit my own army.

I do like the Witcher but it's sat on my hard drive and I'm writing about it on urban instead, which probably means something.  I feel like I should play it cos I appreciate it's pretty good, but I don't particularly want to.


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## Epona (May 9, 2011)

Not long til I start downloading this so that it's ready and waiting for release date!


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## Epona (May 17, 2011)

OK well time for me to post my first impressions!

It's pretty, really pretty.  Playing it on high graphics settings, and there are a lot of advanced settings to fiddle with to tailor the graphics as you want them - there's a motion blur effect in the distance when you turn the camera and I am currently working out how to turn that off because although some people may like it, it's making me feel seasick.  Similar to the first game the art style of the graphics and characters is not what you'd call life-like realism, but very beautifully done, the effect is sort of like an animated oil painting with a lot of detail and colour.

Another similarity to the first game is that it starts with a long cut scene (not so long as in TW1 though, and with some dialogue choices to make) to set the scene before being given full control of Geralt.  Control is WASD to move Geralt with mouse movement controlling the camera and LMB to interact with items and people.

I haven't had any combat yet - from what I have heard it is blisteringly hard so I have set the difficulty to easy for this first game.  Expect a full report soon.


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## treelover (May 17, 2011)

how much did you pay for it?


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## Epona (May 17, 2011)

$44.99 (about £27, they always do their prices in USD but also display the correct price for your country) from Good Old Games.  That price also includes a free old RPG game from a choice of 5, I chose Divine Divinity.  And you get a few old SCUMM type games free when you open an account with them too regardless of whether you buy anything.

It's a pretty good deal if you don't mind a digital version, and you can download using either your browser or their unobtrusive download client.


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## treelover (May 17, 2011)

I am thinking of getting it, but  like others on here i haven't even finished the original, same with Mass Effect 1, great games, but these Rpg's are so massive...


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## Epona (May 17, 2011)

Right can I just amend my previous statement - it's not just "pretty" - IMO it's visually fucking stunning, absolutely gorgeous.  And there's an even higher graphics setting than the one I'm using and the option to turn on super sampling (where each frame is rendered 4 times instead of 1) for those with super-computers, so god knows how good it must look with everything maxed out.

I've not quite got the hang of the controls yet, there are a few more buttons than I'm used to in RPGs as there are things like rolling and block/parry but I'm getting there and it will be an easy transition for someone more used to combat controls in action games.  It's also possible to use a 360 controller for those who prefer that.  

I'm finding combat a bit tricky because of that but button mashing seems to be doing the trick for me at the moment (although apparently this tactic is a quick way to die on harder settings).  But on easy setting I am getting by and it is a great deal of fun, I was concerned about the OTS only camera (I generally prefer isometric/tactical camera modes for RPG combat) but it's really well implemented and part of the fun of combat is seeing Geralt jumping and dodging and rolling, the combat animations are great and there's a lot going on.  Overall I'd say that CDPR have done a fantastic job of making the combat more fun and "actiony" than the first game, while still keeping it attractive to their (hardcore!) RPG fanbase by keeping the damage stat-based and use of auto-targetting (with button presses to select nearest foe or cycle through nearby enemies to select a target) which feels intuitive and unobtrusive.

It's also easier than the first game to change swords and styles - 1 and 2 on the keyboard are steel sword and silver sword respectively, LMB for fast style and RMB for strong style attacks.  There's no group style any more, which makes combat more tactical and interesting as you have to use dodge/roll and move around during combat - if you allow Geralt to be surrounded he will not last long!

Dialogue so far is good and RPG fans are sure to be happy with the depth and complexity of dialogue and story - I am still in the prologue so haven't got very far along yet, but it doesn't spoon feed you by laying it all out in words of no more than one syllable, there are plenty of things that at the moment I don't have a clue what the fuck is going on or what they mean, but it will surely become clear later, much like the first game.

So far I'd give this game an easy 9.8/10 - this is how a modern RPG should be made.  I'll let you know if I change my mind later about that as it's still early days.

Edit to add: Don't believe what the autoconfig tells you are your best graphics settings, I just turned everything up to max (except super-sampling, which is there more for future-proofing than current use and has a massive fps hit on most current GPUs) and it's still running as smooth as silk


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## Cid (May 18, 2011)

Still haven't finished the first one (stopped to get some work done and it's quite a hard game to get back into when you forget all the quests etc). Might have to read a plot summary and go straight for this.


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## LDR (May 18, 2011)

It's a bit good I must say.


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## ruffneck23 (May 19, 2011)

ok , looks amazing, is very engaging , lost the whole of yesterday to it  Been playing with a 360 controller that works really well, the only thing, in certain sections its really dark , i know its meant to be dark but found myself getting a bit stuck , but that's more like due to the skunk id been smoking.

Think this ones going to eat my time up , sorry X3 , looks like I'm going to have to come back to you at a later date


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## Random (May 20, 2011)

The reviews I've seen make it sound like it's trying to be dragon age a bit too much, regarding building up relations with companions etc etc. Any truth in my fears?


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## Epona (May 20, 2011)

Random said:


> The reviews I've seen make it sound like it's trying to be dragon age a bit too much, regarding building up relations with companions etc etc. Any truth in my fears?


 
I'm not fully sure exactly what you mean tbh - but if I've understood your question correctly, no there is no DA style relationships thing where you gain or lose approval (or gain friendship or rivalry as in DA2) with NPCs.  You have friends in TW2 who are by and large the same friends that you had in TW1 - Triss, Zoltan, Dandelion - and you can talk to them throughout the game (sometimes they will give you some information pertaining to a quest, or background info etc.), they are part of the story, and a couple of quests may involve one or more of them directly with them coming along with you - but they are independent, you don't gain or lose influence with them in the DA style.  It's very much like TW1 in that respect, and is nothing like either of the DA games. 

Does that help at all?


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## Random (May 21, 2011)

Epona said:


> Does that help at all?


 Cheers, was just worried that they'd been influenced too much by DA.


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## Cid (May 21, 2011)

Has anyone played it with an imported save?


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## LDR (May 28, 2011)

Completed it last night.  Now the initial novelty has worn off, I feel a bit meh about it.


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## Beanburger (May 31, 2011)

Epona said:


> I haven't had any combat yet - from what I have heard it is blisteringly hard so I have set the difficulty to easy for this first game.  Expect a full report soon.


Playing it on "normal", and I'm finding the combat tough, to say the least.


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## Epona (Jun 1, 2011)

I haven't finished it yet - the OH had some time off work and insisted on a CIV 4 hotseat tournament (which has to be played on my gaming PC not his crap one)   Not that a CIV tournament isn't fun of course because it always is, and he doesn't get much time off work and it's the one game we like to play together so I wasn't going to say no, but it means I haven't been able to play TW2 since the day after it was released!


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## ChrisFilter (Jun 14, 2011)

Just got it. Started playing and it soon became apparent that you really need to have completed part 1 first. I played a lot of 1 already, looks like I'll have to start again.


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## Monkeygrinder's Organ (Apr 15, 2012)

Anybody played this on the Xbox? Looks tempting (well maybe for after next month's exams).


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## Sunray (Apr 15, 2012)

I enjoyed it on my pc. The only issue was that I really needed to play the 1st to fully comprehend the story. It's quite complex. Towards the end I was practically invincible. The balance was a little on the easy side but only
If you fully utilise all your assets so combat was never dull. 

It's cheap, good buy.


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## Chz (Apr 16, 2012)

I liked it, but combat is soooooo clunky it gets annoying having to fight anything. Particularly in the early game.


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## Sunray (Apr 19, 2012)

I think I got the updated version as it wasn't too bad but you had to go out and find decent gear or you'd die quite easily. Difficulty curve is a bit L shaped though as you can get over powerful.


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## Monkeygrinder's Organ (Apr 21, 2012)

Sunray said:


> I think I got the updated version as it wasn't too bad but you had to go out and find decent gear or you'd die quite easily. Difficulty curve is a bit L shaped though as you can get over powerful.


 
I've found that for most games over the last few years tbh. You tend to get better at it at the same rate as your character is turning into an indestructible walking tank.


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## tommers (Apr 22, 2012)

For the 4000th time. Dark souls.

It still falls prey to that a little bit but you can and will die within seconds even after 200 hours and with every weapon in the game , you're never invulnerable.


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## Sunray (Apr 23, 2012)

Dark Souls is too repetitive for me, the constant respawn of all enemies makes far too much of a pita to play. Just being repetitively hard doesn't make it a good game in my opinion.


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## treelover (Apr 24, 2012)

Bought it(TW2) recently quite cheap, just can't get on with the graphics, too cartoony and not as atmospheric as the original...


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