The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition

After a long, careful consideration I'm firmly decided the second Witcher does deserve an absolute rating. Now I don't tend to hand out 10s as if there was no tomorrow, so believe that my point of view towards the game isn't just another temporary shout out of excitement of a young gamer who still wanders around in the state of euphoria. Rather, it's a steady verdict of a quite bored gamer, who's been, after many years, finally torn out of lethargy by this one game that managed to re-wake the passion for gaming inside him. Tomasz Gop once noted their game would be the synthesis of Demon's Souls, Heavy Rain and Arkham Asylum, and wow he was actually pretty accurate with that statement. But what's more important, it's not only these games, but the entire decade of the games' market. The best way to put it is that The Witcher 2 is a game which defines the current condition of the gaming industry. It's the centerpiece of everything the many companies were attempting to come anywhere near to before. You'll find just about everything in this game – from the intensive gameplay to the slowest „stalker"like; from the deep story digging in ethical questions to the sharp escalating twists; from the tactical battles all the way to those that seem as though they come from some one-on-one fighting game; and finally, from the interactive movie with QTE sequences to nearly classical adventure-ing. From the pointed aspects two things are apparent: 1) In a „dream world" The Witcher would be a game that would draw a thick line behind the current development, thus initiating its new generation. 2) The combination of mechanisms leads to a varied gaming experience. The second point is key for the gamers, since the game does NOT go as near as to the standard feeling of satisfaction found in other titles. It's the mixture of what at first seems to be an incongruous material that causes the quantum of „emotions" the game manages to evoke in you. It often goes far to the ancient times for a bit of inspiration, when the challenge meaning hardcore elements also meant some sort of a reward for the player, just as it does in the game (the anger and anxiety during the battle with Kayran -> the unbelievably satisfying and expurgatory feeling after his defeat). CDP RED were well aware of it, and so they prepared the Insane difficulty (simply put, death = game over); I think it would be virtually impossible to juice any more potential out of it. A sequel to an already perfect game merely prompts many and many other questions, for example how does the European market stand in relation to the one beyond the ocean, which I'll rather won't get into. But, I could simply say it's simply the greatest pleasure to play such detailed, all in all perfectly polished and playable RPG that combines various genre directions in a very skilled way. The script is a chapter of itself, but it's excellent in the core; the journey in the trails of the royal murderer is easily one of the finest pieces of writing I've ever seen in this given media. To conclude, I must praise the narrative experiment that no other game of heroes has had the guts to take (afaik) and which works (damn) well in here.

Il n'est pas nécessaire de rappeler (encore une fois) à quel point ce jeu est excellent. "The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings - Enhanced Edition" reprend l'histoire que l'on a pu suivre dans "The Witcher: Enhanced Edition" premier du nom, toujours avec une très bonne narration, qui immerge le joueur du début à la fin de l'aventure. - Le jeu : Une fois de plus, les décisions prises au cours de l'aventure, auront des conséquences plus ou moins lourdes et avec plusieurs fins alternatives, modifiant l'aventure; surtout lors du deuxième et troisième chapitre (plus courts que le début du jeu). Le scénario est littéralement captivant, et on n'hésitera pas à recommencer l'aventure pour voir toutes les possibilités qui s'offrent (ou pas) à "Geralt de Riv". - Le graphisme : C'est juste magnifique! Que ce soit les décors ou la modélisation des personnages et mouvements (certes il y a un ou deux petits défauts mais rien de bien méchant) tout est beau et immersif. Aussi, il y a un grand choix d'options pour la qualité visuelle, ce qui rend le jeu assez adaptatif. Ce jeu restera dans les mémoires comme une baffe graphique peu commune, vu la qualité du travail qui a été fait. - Les musiques, bruitages, ambiances et le doublage (Français dans mon cas) : Encore une fois, tout n'est que qualité. Les musiques collent très bien tout au long de l'aventure, suivant les lieux, et les situations. Le doublage (que ce soit le héros comme les PNJ) ainsi que les bruitages, sont d'une qualité assez rare, et sont vraiment très convaincants. Il y a eu du travail, cela s'entend..! - Le gameplay : Le système de combat a beaucoup changé (ce qui n'est pas forcément pour me déplaire), et est devenu très dynamique. Ici, il n'est plus question de faire un simple clic gauche au bon moment avec votre souris, pour porter un coup à l'ennemi. Néanmoins, les styles de combat ont disparu. Aussi, les déplacements de notre héros sont beaucoup moins limités que dans le premier épisode, ce qui ouvre la voie à une certaine liberté. De plus, les manettes de jeux sont compatibles (Xbox360 ou XboxOne dans mon cas), ce que je trouve être un gros plus. - Au final : "The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings - Enhanced Edition" est un jeu d'excellence qui a sa place au panthéon des meilleurs jeux. Il vaut largement son prix, et il tiendra le joueur en haleine jusqu'à la fin. C'est un jeu à prendre les yeux fermés.

I'm not going to pretend that this isn't a great game, or that I didn't enjoy it, but I can say with certainty that it PALES in comparison to The Witcher 1. The story is well composed, and the graphics are expectedly prettier, but nearly every other aspect is a step back from the predecessor. Where TW1 ASTOUNDED me with its depth and immersion, TW2 is simply another case of a great series being dumbed down for brain dead console gamers. I don't necessarily fault CD Projeckt Red for this; I understand developers want to make money, but at the same time, I cannot help but feel disappointed as a pc gamer. The combat, which previously required strict timing, has now been reduced to mashing. You can, *most* of the time, get by clicking Mouse1 as quickly as you can, even at higher difficulty settings. Battle stances based on the type of opponents you were fighting are also gone. The inventory is an absolute mess, but it almost doesn't matter, as you barely NEED anything. I played through on Dark, and never wanted for ANYTHING. With all the hand-holding this game does, everything will be provided if you just loot crates. If not, merchant's items respawn... Infinitely. Finally, as I'm running short of characters, Quicktime Events! No! BAD devs. I have so much more to complain about, but I'll leave the rest to others. It's a great CONSOLE game, but fails to live up to the first.

I have had this game for well over a year but the support that has been given is outstanding, free DLC, DRM removed and a free upgrade to the Enhanced Edition for people who had the regular edition! This game captures the essence of old school RPGs while modernising it at the same time. Its a mature game for adults that deals some very violent and sexual themes. The game doesn't treat you like a child and it has a fantastic D&D + medieval European feel (Regardless of the american voice actor for Geralt). This has got to be one of the best RPGs I have played in a long time and I'm looking forward to the Witcher 3 ;)

Very good RPG, but not as great as TW1. Hard to explain, maybe a bit too "modern" for me: too much politics, action-based fighting, a rather short and linear story, ... And it doesn't have the dark poetic athmosphere of the TW1. I hope TW3 will include best parts of the first 2 episods :)