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Finally!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: November 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

**UPDATE** For PC users, the fine makers of this game have released the 1.2 patch which DRAMATICALLY improves load times (by about 1/2 according to my tests) Now I am going to be yearning for the next release!! (PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE) :)

I accidentally discovered this game (that's the way I usually find a new game) through an Amazon "suggestion". My life will never be the same now. Not since Planescape Torment has there been an RPG that touches on something completely different as a story line. Unlike other reviews, I'm not going to include a whole bunch of other stuff that you don't need to read... I'm just going to say you HAVE to buy The Witcher. I have only a couple of minor complaints about this game: Load times can be excruciatingly slow (but are worth it in the long run) and quest progression can be a little bit confusing at times. Other than that, I will never regret buying this game and it will be a prized "member" of my collection for years to come.

Without a doubt, the best RPG ever

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 12 / 19
Date: October 31, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I'm a long-time RPG player.
Gothic 1 & 2 were my favorite games until now.
The Witcher is the most open RPG I've ever played.
Every choice, every decision you make affects the game.

I never thought there would be a game this fantastic, this all-consuming.

Everything about this game was well done by ther developers.
The people that did Gothic 3 should have done this well, for that game (Gothic 3) was a total waste of money.

I didn't like Oblivion at all. It's way too repetitive. Seems like you're doing the same tired old crap over & over.

The Witcher is different, very different.
The story, the battles, this game sucks you into a wonderful fantastic world and keeps you there.

I've already finished this game and am currently playing it a 2nd time.
This game will remain at the top of my favorites list until they come out with "The Witcher II".

Yes, this is truly the best RPG ever.

Immersive, Interesting...if you have enough horsepower

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: December 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Quite simply, one of the best games I've played in a couple of years. Graphics are beautiful and stand up to close scrutiny, characters are interesting, the storyline (while it drags a bit sometimes) is engaging.

I originally thought that the limitation of character (you play Geralt of Rivia. Period. No changes or adjustments) would be frustrating, but the backstory and ongoing plot kept me engaged and interested. Decisions and conversations have long-ranging consequences; the game really does change dramatically depending on what kind of person you decide to "make" Geralt through his decisions and allies. Most other games have an "out", or an alternate way to reach a goal, or repeat a section of the quest...I haven't found that Witcher allows a do-over, which I find leads to surprisingly intense play.

Graphics are gorgeous, cut-scenes are smooth and movie-like, and full-screen conversation mode (nearly all conversation is done via animated scenes) is detailed and clean. The music can get a little repetitive, but is moody and well-suited to the storyline. It's also a little predictive -- certain themes herald the arrival of specific characters or monster. Technically, the game is great -- although (as everyone else has noted) load times for areas and save time are atrocious. I definitely felt "punished" by not having a top-of-the-line machine. Adding more memory brought load times from 30-60 seconds down to < 10 seconds, though, and the designers promise improvement with a patch release near Christmas.

My major complaint is definitely the load times. The recommended hardware for the game seems to really be the minimum you can play with and have any sort of enjoyable experience -- plan on an upgrade if you want max graphics and speed.

Nearly every RPG or RPG-like game compares itself eventually to Oblivion or NWN, it seems; in this case, the comparison is positive. WHile this is built on the Aurora engine of NWN2, the environment is not (or at least does not appear to be) completely tile-based and the different areas have a variety and individuality that is a welcome surprise after playing both Oblivion and NWN/NWN2. I tend to like 3-rd person isometric views, which Witcher does very well (using the point and click method of navigation), but the first-person (over the shoulder) movement option available is very good, if a bit oversensitive. Switching between the three camera options is seamless and smooth.

Oh -- If you want the full monty sex cards, they can be found online or you can pick up the version from the UK. Other issues are with the translation itself, which lost a lot of it's color and vulgarity in the translation to English. Sad, but it doesn't really impact game play. A true-to-the-original translation would have been nice, though.

Definitely worth the cost. I'll be watching for new games from these developers.

An Excellent RPG

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: March 27, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I will state the verdict first: if you enjoy gaming, buy this game. It has won many awards from the press and it deserves every single one of them.

The Good:
+ A very compelling story that spans over 7 chapters. Each chapter takes around 3-8 hours the first time, which makes the overall length feel just right.
+ The Witcher has the best graphics I've seen in an RPG game, little details like bats flying overhead toward a cave's exit really add to the realism of the game environment.
+ Very good voice acting, which is quite rare these days.
+ Interesting quests. Even though all quests boil down to "kill x monsters/fedex/escort", the Witcher adds enough twists and turns, so the quests don't feel repetitive.
+ Excellent map and journal. As you progress through quests, relevant locations are automatically marked on your map, making finding quest objectives a snap (unless the designers would like otherwise). Journal is also usually very clear about what you need to do next, and records everything from alchemy formulas to backstories on key NPCs.
+ The combat system is innovative and well implemented. As others have mentioned, you have two types of swords and three styles for each type. Choosing the right sword and style will have a direct impact on the outcome of a battle. In combat, you don't need to click like a maniac. If you are using the right sword and style, 3-4 clicks will be all you need for most non-boss mobs.
+ Tradeskill (alchemy) is useful and well integrated into the gameplay. You get ingredients right off the monsters you kill, and you can supplement that with plant parts, which are also plentiful.
+ One thing I really like about this RPG is that you gain level very consistently, it never feels like you need to grind for the exp. (FYI, you gain about 8 levels each major chapter and will be around level 40 by the time you finish this game -- assuming you do the side quests.)
+ I also like how most choices you need to make aren't a simple matter of good vs. evil. You really have little idea on what consequence they will bring about until your progress further into the game. Thus you can see the impact of your choice, but you can't change the course of history when greater forces are in effect. (but you will always receive some kind of reward).

The Bad:
- A few quests and the main story as a whole aren't fully developed. (but who doesn't want a sequel?)
- Character development is a bit weak compared to most RPGs. For one, you can only customize your weapons and chest armor, of which there are only a *very* limited selection. Secondly, upon each level up you will receive talent points (bronze, silver and gold) for improving your raw attributes, melee combat or spell's effectiveness. But since there is an abundance of bronze talent points, you can practically take every bronze talent, diluting the character customization part of the game.
- Definitely less stable than most of the games I've played, even with patch 1.2. You can crash while saving a game, and you will probably crash at two loading screens (but crashing while playing is very very rare). Tabbing in and out may make freeze the controls.
- It has some bugs like minor NPCs not showing up when they should, but nothing game-breaking.
- In some later areas the in-game graphics and map aren't very clear about whether there is something blocking your path. Since your character can't jump, many innocuous-looking rocks will force you to backtrack, which is quite annoying.
- The camera's tilt in isometric mode can't be adjusted, and as a result you can't see as far ahead as you'd like, especially given how beautiful this game looks. The other camera mode is quite unwieldy in combat so I never use it.
- As other people have said, your stash needs some improvement. The game does sort the items in a very general way, but otherwise there is no quick way of finding something.
- The interfaces relating to alchemy could be more streamlined. For example, say you want to brew a few potions, you first have to check your journal for the ingredients you need, then close the journal so you can access your stash (with the problem mentioned above). Often times during the search process you forget an ingredient or two, so you have to close the stash and check with your journal again. It would be much easier if there was a way to access your journal and stash at the same time.
- Contrary to what other people have said, I find this game to be fairly linear. Sure, some decisions will have game-changing effects a few chapters down the line, but for the most part, if you are not following the main quest you can't progress at all because there is simply nothing for you to do. Thus it doesn't have the openness of some other RPGs, such as Morrowind and Gothic.
- There should be more information on how some talents work (for example, many +% dmg moldifiers from talents don't stack, but the game doesn't tell you that.)

Other thoughts:
* With patch 1.2, load time isn't as bad as some reviewers would have you think. On my computer small houses generally load in 5 seconds, while the longest load time is around 20 seconds. Somewhat of a nuisance I suppose, but didn't detract my enjoyment in the game.
* I think the translation is pretty good.
* More spells would be nice. Right now there are essentially five spells in the game and only the first two you learn are truly useful.

This game would score 8.0 out of 10 on my scale (lower end of "excellent"), but I am pretty stringent so I give it 5 stars here.

FYI, there is an enhanced version coming out in mid-2008, which improves the load time among many other fixes and additions.

My system: Intel Core 2 Dual E6600 (2.4 GHz), 2GB ram, GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB, Windows XP.

Game is run at 1600x1200 with everything other than shadow and anisotropic filtering turned to max. Version 1.2.

Visually beautiful, technically bugged

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 7 / 9
Date: December 14, 2007
Author: Amazon User

First with the bad stuff:
I have a brand new computer which excedes the system requirements and run this game on Windows Vista. The game crashes constanly, so unless you guys don't save it every 5 minutes or so, you risk losing a lot of play time. I had to kill Javed twice, because after i killed him the 1st time and tried to save, the game crushed. The first chapter and 2nd chapters aren't that bad. The 3rd is the worst, the Trade Quater is much buggier than other zones, and the game crushes more frequently. The 4th, 5th chapters and the epilogue are tolerable. Also, the ammount of loading in the game is rediculous, it could've at least been avoided when entering/exiting the buildings.

The good:
The story line is amazing, and very unique; the characters are very believable. I couldn't put the game down and am sad that it only has 5 chapters. I hope they make an expansion or The Witcher 2. The game is not about running around looking for new gear and weapons, but making choices, it concentrates a lot on the story. Everytime you play it you can play it differently. The main character has a specific look which you can't really change much, which is good because it suits his personality.

I was a little dissappointed to find out that the US virsion is censored. But i still had a blast with it. If you have a lot of patience like me and don't quit after a few crashing, you will have fun with it.

One of the best RPG's since Morrowind ...

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: November 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This is one of the best RPG's I've played since Morrowind. It doesn't have the depth of exploration or interaction of Morrowind. But it goes beyond the current run-of-the-mill RPG.

I usually don't pay attention to the story line because typically there isn't much of one. But this game differs. There's a story; it's interesting and it changes depending on the choices you make.

The fun factor is definitely a 5-star rating, although I think the re-play value is limited. Certainly, it's more limited than Morrowind, which I still play 5 years later.

Pros:

-- Story - draws you in. You want to play.
-- Graphics
-- Lots of quests (many are secondary, if you don't want to do them)
-- Simple/limited keyboard use (a con, if you like to control the moves yourself)
-- Interaction - the story is linear, but the secondary quests you follow, and when you follow them, are up to you up to a point. There's significantly more interaction than Diablo II, but significantly less than Morrowind.
-- Intuitive play - Few "I'm stuck" areas. I played this as soon as it came out, so there was virtually no online help. But I didn't feel like I needed it. There really wasn't anything I couldn't figure out.

Cons:

-- Game and scene load times (Game load takes 60-90 seconds on my laptop, and the processor is just under the minimum requirement. Scene load time takes about 30 seconds. Word is, a patch to address this problem is in the works.)
-- Occasional black shadow, if playing with minimum graphics (I have a GeForce Go 7600, which is a 128 mg card running with 2g RAM.)
-- Drawing a weapon is automatic and out of the player's control. There are a limited number of scenes where this is an issue; for instance, when you walk into an inn and encounter 5 or 6 bad guys with weapons already drawn and in attack mode. You have to wait for the game to respond, which means taking a hit (or 2).
-- No character choice. You're a witcher and that's that. You have limited choices on how you build him up - to rely on the sword or magic.

If you liked Neverwinter Nights or Baldur Gates, you will probably like The Witcher. Other similar games include Diablo, Diablo II, Lords of Destruction and Titan Quest.

Great story line, long load times

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: November 28, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The Witcher provides a very well written storyline, something that most RPGs do not. The decisions you make will have a immediate and long-term impact on the game which is refreshing as most RPGs just give you an immediate effect to your decisions. There are also many decisions that you will have to make without having complete information at your disposal, as such you won't know if you are making the righteous or evil decision. Again, this is also a refreshing change from your normal RPGs. The combat sytem is based on timing of clicks which is more entertaining then your simple hack slash RPGs like Diablo and Dungeon Siege. The only draw back I have with the same is the abnormally long load times. Unfortunately the game loads outdoor locations and indoor locations at different times rather then just loading the entire environment at once. The effect of this is that any time you enter a tent, house, or building you will be rewarded with a relatively short load time (5-10 seconds), only to get frustrated by the long (usually around 30 seconds to a minute) load time when you try to go back outside. Keep in mind I am running the game ona dual-core Pentium 2.4 ghz with 2 gigs of RAM. Despite the load times this is still one of the best RPGs I have ever played and I would recommend it to anyone.

One of the best RPG's in a long time

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: January 13, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This game is a ton of fun!!

Graphics: Amazing visuals in this game, from the detail of towns and cities to the rain. Crows flying overhead complete the picture. Just the general feeling of everything being alive is really something to experience. 5 stars to graphics.

Gameplay: The interface is very smooth and easy to use, and the controls are simple yet involving. The fighting is really really fun, and nothing like the monotonous hack and slash, button mashing of say...oblivion elder scrolls. There are tons and tons of characters to get involved with and you may find yourself a little overwhelmed at first with the number of quests. But not to worry, all tasks assigned to you flow smoothly together so that you wont find yourself getting annoyed at having to run all over the place. Characters are surprisingly life-like, and you wont find yourself just being able to short cut yourself through tasks by sleeping or waiting a little. Characters have schedules during there day that they adhere to, and wont just come back to their houses if you run in and out again. Once again really life-like. Your choice to support one group or person may find you ill favor with another, limiting your ability to buy certain items or get information, essentially changing how you succeed in quests. Leveling up is quick enough so that you dont spend hours wandering around and fighting monsters final fantasy style, and yet not so fast that you are all powerful right away. You get all your magic spells within 20 hours or so, allowing you to have fun with them instead of getting some at the end of the game with no chance to use them. The adult like ability to get layed is also amusing and a refreshing twist, although dont worry those easily offended...no nudity. This game is long but surprisingly not frustrating. Boss fights are more like hard monsters and not impossibly huge beasts that take hours of training to survive. Several mini game like dice, fist fights, and drinking are also fun. 5 stars to gameplay. Gameplay 5 stars

Audio: Absolutely amazing soundtrack!!! Interesting, well composed, not repetitive, and really reflects the dreary-ness of a post war wracked world, where money is hard to come by, and choices must be made between the lesser of two evils. Audio 5 stars.

Now you may have noticed that Ive given five stars to everything. So why the four star rating? Well, you need one hell of a computer to play this game even close to smoothly. And that of course could be the one reason that negates all the positive things. My brother recently purchased a brand new xps with 3gb ram, Intel core 2 duo 2.4Ghz processor and a 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT video card, and running the game on medium setting still skips once in a while, and during a boss battle had to turn setting down to low. Setting on high is not playable during some cut scenes and boss battles.

I love this game.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: March 06, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Warts, and there are a few, and all. The load times are ridiculous most of the time. Some of the translation is a little shaky which leads to mystifying dialogue. Gameplay occasionally is repetitious. As a granny type person I find the "sex" aspect juvenile, but then I saw the creators of the game on video and guess what? Most look like teenagers and are probably close. With all these warts what is to love? Marvelous storyline, gorgeous graphics, wonderful battles, horrific monsters, not open ended by any means but very re-playable. (And I am sorry, but I think Geralt is just simply the coolest looking hero to come along in decades. But then being a gamer at my age embarrasses the kids and delights the grandkids so what do I know?) The developers are including in the enhanced version coming out in May, a modding tool, which if the brilliant player made mods of Morrowind and Oblivion are any indication, will lead to many hours of happy tweaking and furthering gameplay immensely. Even though the game contains a good bit of hackneyed "fetch and kill" quests, there is such a humorous freshness about the game that is in the end extremely appealing. Violence and language definitely keep the game in the mature zone. As for the sexual content, at least in the U.S. version, I've seen racier television commercials.

I purchased the digital download and so cannot use the patch which according to forum users cuts load time to practically zilch. A patch for the digital form is supposed to be underway, and for those who have already purchased the game, the enhanced material coming out in may will be free for registered game owners. My pc is not exactly cutting edge, I only have one gig of ram and my video card is nvidia geforce 7900gs, and other than loading times, my game has so far been smooth with no crashes to the desktop yet, and I am almost at the end of the game.

I love this game.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 12
Date: November 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I purchased this game just yesterday, and I can't put the ruddy thing down. The graphics are beautiful, the story is gripping, and the game play is irresistible. I've rather taken up a fondness for poker dice.

My only gripe is that I've heard that it is censored in some ways within the US version, which I don't appreciate. However, it doesn't really hinder the game play, and it's a smashing adventure nevertheless. Highly Recommended!

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