I pre-ordered the DLC as soon as it was available for preorder, only a week or so before launch, CDPR updates the requirements. My computer apparently would fit the recommended system requirements, but still, the game drops to 17 fps approximately when it has been running for longer than 5 minutes making it completely unplayable. Imagine that kind of framerate trying to traverse that dark underground parking lot where every wrong step will lead you to your death. It's unfortunate that early adopters of both the base game and the DLC are locked out of it not because the 2.0 and 2.01 are any better graphically, but because of clear lack of optimization. It's especially jarring after the backlash the original game deservingly received for failing to keep their promises. It's been longer than week since I contacted support and sent them a DXDIAG, but not having received a reply, I'm sadly asking for a refund of the DLC. .
I knew it from the beginning that if this game turned out to be a 7/10 I'd still probably enjoy it. I'm a huge fan of the genre in all types of media and had researched into the PnP enough to be excited about it. I bought into Pondsmith saying "if someone can make Cyberpunk and not stick the label on it and make something else, it's CDPR". Artistically and writing wise, that's pretty much true. But sadly, the game itself from a mechanics standpoint is very much uninspired and outright unfinished. I'm sad to see that CDPR ended up being that company with great artistic design and true adult quality writing but maybe, sadly, not that great game designers. . I hate to be that guy, but in the end, the game used nothing from the PnP system and drifted away from mechanics that would help convey the feeling the story does succeed at, and instead turned out an uninspired, shallow looter shooter Far Cry where vehicles and verticality are just a means to "getting there", with very little sandbox. In order for a game adapting Cyberpunk to be considered successful in my opinion, you can't strip so much of it to have everything be a percentual increment to three major types of guns and broken hacking, with rinse and repeat, frankly fun and addicting but overall mind-numbing gameplay. Next time, please, start with the game design. I can't believe how boring the cyberware is, but the problem is precisely in not designing a better gameplay loop and systems. You literally have cybereyes with options, none of which is night, thermal or infrared vision, because gameplay isn't built around them. You have two types of legs, none of which makes you faster or more silent, because the same... I don't feel like a professional customizing my cyberdeck or buying and modifying weapons because the Borderlands "rarity loot tags" are antithetical to the setting. It's a damn shame, because I've seen a lot of love put in there by artists, writers and musicians but some weren't doing their job.
I got to the party later than most people, 5 years after launch. Thankfully, though, I finally got the chance to play the trilogy, DLCs included, and finished them all back to back carrying saves over. The Witcher 3 is truly massive. It may not be everything a CRPG can be in the same way DOS2 I am told is, but what it is is an amazing experience. The world is enormous, varied and fully realized. I really enjoyed how much the feel of it changed from one region to another and how you will spend enough time in one place to soak in the atmosphere. Just the base game feels like a multi-season top budget, ambitious TV series. Its enormity may come at the expense, though of some of the established mechanics in previous games. It makes sense that character development feels just incremental, starting with the base versions of everything (and I'd have to replay it with a different build to really say how much it changes) in the third iteration, but it makes it feel less RPG-like than 1 and 2 in that sense. The economy of the game also always has you on a tight budget, but more in the way of buying, selling, repairing and enhancing gear than with potions and oils. In 1 and 2 it used to be a ritual, which I prefer, as in 3, you never run out of oils and recharging potions is never really an issue. But as I say, I can understand where that comes from, and it's the open world element of it and the scale of it that makes those mechanics come second. At least I never felt the game was Ubisoft-iziced, despite some copy-pasted chores. That's because the missions are all fully realized, with excellent writing and production value (which make some graphical glitches all the more jarring). Some apparently minor quests will suprise you with how interconnected everything is. Even if mechanics wise some are simple, the C&C gives a unique experience. It's also to me one of the few truly adult titles: choices are hard, morality grey... but still there's endearing moments and beauty.
I'm some 18 hours into the game as of writing this review and haven't finished it yet and I'm really enjoying my time with it. This is of course GWENT story mode, which as a concept can be executed so well and so poorly. You may be wondering, have I been tricked into buying a feature that was chopped from the free to play game? Why play it if I have GWENT for free? Well, the truth is that you are playing both for very different reasons. Being a single player game, the gwent card battles can go into many different directions that GWENT wouldn't and flow completely differently. We can use season battles from GWENT to make a simile with what you will find here, special rules, etc. but it doesn't come close. Most battles are thematic, with objectives, obstacles, special rules, "escort missions"... and then there's puzzles, which make you think about the mechanics of synergies between cards very differently. And it all comes wrapped in a narrative that I can equate to something like the Shadowrun Returns games or maybe the Banner Saga, with some choice and consequence, effective limited animation animatics and excellent voiceacting in many more languages than the mainline Witcher 3 supports. The story also fleshes out the more geopolitical aspect of the Witcher universe and, believe it or not, you won't miss not having it revolve around witchers for a change. The only downsides to it are some RNG based puzzles that seem to rely on a bit of luck for you to get them solved and, arguably, how the cards in Thronebreaker are so different from their counterparts in Gwent. This last point is not entirely negative, though, as it's pretty understandable that the power levels that would work in the kind of battles that Thronebreaker offers would make them illegal in regular Gwent (plus, they are affected by mechanics which include buffs and debuffs based on morale)... but by playing Thronebreaker you are only practising Gwent to a degree. Unlockables also come with it.
I had to get it and I don't regret it as I'm a fan of the genres of cyberpunk and classic dystopia, but the game feels very cheap (dialogues in text form pop up when you step in front of someone, being able to pretty much "rewind them" going back in front of them), the controls and puzzles are clunky and the plot is generic and adds nothing new.
Ok, so I'm playing Fallout 3 for the first time in 2017. And over my 70 hour mark. Having completed, I think, the final mission (the game keeps going on with... that group, giving you missions), I got an ending. I finished all the DLC, not all of the side content, mind you... but I find myself playing the game just to get over with it. When does one get over with Fallout 3? I'm at my max Level, but I haven't seen it all. Not even some of the most celebrated places (not even the Republic of Dave), which are apparently well written. Well written... I don't know what to make of those claims. What is well written in this game? I find myself not caring for anything or anyone. I don't know anyone's motivations or why I'm doing anything. The game doesn't compel me to care. I go to my mission log to see what my active missions are. I don't get any information other than go there, get that, kill this. Why was I supposed to do it? What place is that again, where is it and what is its importance? How will I recognize it? Doesn't matter. The gameplay just consists of following an arrow through nightmarisly, impossible to navigate otherwise samey tunnels and ruins, use vats and get headshots. Hope you like rinse and repeating to your heart's content.
Visuals: ** + Good lipsync and facial animations. + The pre-recorded scenes include the model we've chosen as our character. - Some character designs are terrible. - Inadmissible lack of effort results in non-solid crowds of NPCs, camera glitches that can only be solved reloading the game, camera that doesn't center on the faces of people talking and very ridiculous scenes. Sound:** + Nice music and a fraction of the voice acting. - Repetitive score. The battle music is sometimes too short for the length of the battle and is slow to loop. - Evil characters talk stereotypically cartoonish evil. Playtime length: *** + The game is around 26 hours length. - I hear fans of the game don't think this is enough, and non-fans will feel it drags for too long. - Dialogues drag a lot and they are often derivative. You can have entire play sessions all dialogue. Fun factor: + Nice overall story. - Horrible writing which is often not supported by the actions you see taking place. E.g: The inventor Kang will talk to you about a device with a lever that he apparently has, but since you can't see what's going on the dialogue turns completely absurd and abstract. And it happens a lot. - Badly designed combat everything. Personal experience: I felt like playing this for the setting, too bad I couldn't stop yawning for a minute of the 28 hours I put in it.
Graphics: ***** +) Very stylized. They earn that score despite (or because) of the pixelart with trippy scaling, rotating and neon effects. The characters have lots of animations for deaths and kills. -) The character portraits are ugly, but they perfectly fit the crude style. Still, thought this belonged here. Sound: ***** +) Fantastic electronic soundtrack with some pretty trippy themes. Most of the tracks will get pumped you up while playing. -) Unless you don't like the music style. Game length:**** +) Lots of masks to unlock, a secret ending and episode selection make it a game you can pick up and play at any time for short periods of time but for a long time. -) Still, the campaign isn't what you'd call long by any means. But it doesn't overstay its welcome. Gameplay and enjoyment: ***** +) It's predatory stealth but it's frantic. Play it how you want, but i'd recommend play fast and dirty. Death isn't frustrating as you instantly restart the section you were in. The story is bizarre and interesting. I love how the game forces you to retread your path to the exit and see what you've done. It's sick! Masks and weapons are a lot of fun. -) It's not a poor man's GTA. Not that it's a bad thing, but it will be if you think that's what you'll find. It's not very varied, but it's insanely fun.
