Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales

I have been a Gwent player roughly since the start of open beta and I have seen the game change for the better and for worse. I got Thronebreaker as soon as it came out, because it seemed like the new Gwent with some extras, hoping for some relaxing single-player games and puzzles. Little did I know Thronebreaker is only partially about Gwent. Narration and story-telling blew me out - it is flat out superb. Finely written story is accompanied by beautiful 2D animated scenes and, most notably, fully voiced. Yes, all of the characters, even the narrator. Every mundane banter, every cutscene. And it is not just any voice-over: quality, variety and acting are what you would expect from AAA titles, not a little spin-off game. Speaking about little... it is not. I remember those single-player campaigns from Hearthstone that were similarly priced. I was of course expecting more from CDProjekt, but they still managed to surprise me positively. The game offers you more gameplay than majority of blockbusters. Don't get me wrong - many games offer 50+ hours of gameplay by forcing you to repeat certain portions of the game, or by filling it with mindless, repetitive activities and FEDEX quests. It's not the case. Here we are speaking about story-driven gameplay with Gwent puzzles and battles here and there. I have seen some complaints about the difficulty level. I believe for experienced Gwent players that may be valid - although for most of us difficulty would seem about right. I still found myself struggling a little bit with some of the puzzles, but even on the highest difficulty standard battles do not pose a great challenge for anybody that is well accommodated with Gwent. This is a game that I can with clear consciousness recommend to anybody. It has a lot to offer for fans of puzzles, visual novels, card games, RPGs, and Witcher universe. If you're a fan of any of the above, you'll have a great time. If you're a fan of all of the above, JUST GET IT!

(Note: At the time of posting, I've only played this game for a bit over an hour to complete the tutorial.) Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is, so far, everything I would have hoped for from a narrative driven version of Gwent. Now, I'm a very casual Gwent lover and have little experience with other card battle games, but I love well crafted stories, immersive gameplay mechanics, and unique experiences. On the first point, Thronebreaker noticeably delivers right out of the gate with well written and voice acted encounters with your allies and random strangers. It wastes no time in letting you know that this story is going to draw you in and enrapture you. As for gameplay mechanics, I absolutely LOVE how CD Projekt Red have taken traditional deck building from card battle games and looped it into this mechanic of expanding Queen Meve's army and camp. The little bit of choice offered in base building is enough to satisfy the management itch and works well with the story and the environment Thronebreaker has dropped you in. For my final point, well, you don't need me to tell you that this is a solitary experience. I'm sure there's other games out there that fit into the narrative card battle genre, but I doubt any of them offer quite the same experience that I'm getting from Thronebreaker. Anyone that loves medieval fantasy settings, casual strategy-management titles, and well crafted stories will likely enjoy this game to some extent. ---------- A quick note about the Gwent changes: like I said above, I'm a casual Gwent player, but I think the way Gwent's been altered to work here suits the game fine, though I'm not sure if it'll satisfy the more hardcore Gwent fans. Though, by now, I'm sure they're used to changes. That being said, I bet they won't be happy about the addition to Gwent of exclusive cards that have to be earned through playing Thronebreaker.

The game has that vibe of previous Witcher games, with dark and dirty but yet beautifull scenarios that lloks like a live comic book running in front of your eyes. The sound is surprisingly good and has very charming background songs playing just in the right tone following the action on screen and - for what i could see - theres LOTS of story on every corner to flavor much more the adventure. It mix perfectly parts of exploration and management with something like card game battles using some Gwent mechanics, where you use your deck as your army to overhelm the enemies and keep going through until the end of the game. If you like medieval tales and/or "The Witcher" related content, you absolutely should try this fantastic game!

Thronebreaker a real 10/10 game experience. Let me preface this by saying that I was not an overall lover of this look or style but this game really drew me into it. With promises of Witcher lore and to see a journey unfurl before my eyes I could not help but click buy. I am so glad that I did. Gwent in Witcher 3 was so pleasurable. The fixed minigame which had consistent rules where and when you could play something and on what row. The card game depicted Warring armies or skirmishes. Now Gwent is a game set in a land of unrest where the armies are depicted by this marvelous card game. The depth they went to, the creative process they have undergone to make this and all its puzzles, they pull at my heartstrings. Can I say what superb voice acting. CD Project has knocked it out of the park again. Now that I have played all the Witcher Titles I have this to consume my time until the next game.