I didn't play it until the enhanced edition came out so I don't know how buggy the first edition was, but this game is really something to behold and is a must buy if you like RPG's. The graphics were beautiful, the scenery was perfect. The first village I went to was amazing...people doing their chores, running from the rain to seek shelter..chickens, birds and ducks that you could chase really helped set the scene. Tall grasses, dark scary nights, beautiful homes and kids playing games along the paths. There was a tavern you could go to to drink and be merry or have a fight and gamble if you wanted. There was so much more and that was just the first ACT!! Wow.. There was swearing, sex, bloody messes, consequences and a grand scheme that opened up to you all along the way. You had books to read to add to your knowledge, potions to make, bombs to create, oils to put on your sword. You had to make strategic choices on what you wanted to spend your skill points on when you leveled. You had bulletin boards where people posted notices about monsters with rewards that you could go after..after all you are a monster hunter. And talking about monsters, you had ugly mean monsters..and some monsters that weren't and you had to decide if they should die or not. Unlike many other games, the choices MATTERED..they mattered big time. And the character, Geralt, really embodied what I see as an epic hero..someone making hard choices and accepting the consequences. Someone strong and capable and confident who is able to see through the mess of the world. Someone who does what he believes is right even if it may be wrong. And he grows along the way just as you do as you become more involved in the game. Will you remain neutral or will you pick sides? Some issues I had were quests that made you go back and forth and back and forth. And with pretty long load times, that wasn't a fun part. Often times you had to keep talking to the same person over and over just to get more information out of them because it cut out of the talking screen too much. Some of the monsters were very overpowered, but that's okay since the combat was, I thought, pretty easy. Anyways.. You could pick herbs!! How awesome is that? I had a good time checking out the raspberry bushes and the slime molds in caves..and you could experiment with them and make potions. You could take mutagens that altered your body to give you benefit. Don't miss out on this game, it is EPIC! And CDPR is a great company that cares about the gamer. You won't be disappointed.
