The game feels far less impactful than Witcher 3. The story/lore is VERY interesting, but it doesn't explore it nearly as much with a rushed-feeling. It's been awhile, and the game has only been 'fixed'; many of the game's original promises are nowhere to be seen. We may get them in DLC, but that's not the base-game. Can we or should we expect a complete overhaul in DLC? The RPG is non-existent, a shallow facade. I have very little desire to revisit this game in it's current state; I replayed the Witcher 3 SIX-EIGHT times across PC and PS4; I plan to revisit Witcher 3 again too.
Rogue Mage (RM) is like endless Gwent with competent Ai and interesting lore. The overworld is more like inscryption; the gameplay is a mix of Gwent online and a bit of Thronebreaker (TB); If you like Gwent Online but hate having to queue or wait for matches, RM is great. I LOVE it. I'm a big fan of Gwent's art; imo it's the best of any card game! RM is much closer to Gwent Online than TB. The story snipets in RM are actually surprisingly compelling, but they are far less frequent than TB and FEEL less impactful. TB's story experience is far better. RM has cut all battles to one round; it's something I like for the minion fights, but I wish elite and boss battles were two rounds. You can't craft a starting deck; I wish there was a little more choice, like Inscryption's starting deck choice, then the addition choice. Also, some of the starting decks feel off with unintuitive/questionable synergies. Difficulty depends on your starting deck/area-choices, but it is mostly fair; the greatest exception is last-say. If we can't get two rounds for boss and elite battles, I stongly feel we need to be able to influence last say. In conclusion, there are a few issues, but I am a big fan of Gwent, and RM feels like an 'endless' extension of the multiplayer. If you want a more casual yet challenging Gwent experience, RM is that!
I've played since BETA to Homecoming on PS4 and Crimson Curse to Present on PC; I haven't played any other card games. The game has a lot of information - like any other card game - yet I found it REALLY EASY to get into. The new STARTER DECKS/TUTORIALS better teaches GWENT's mechanics for each faction - I am unsure if the SYNDICATE FACTION has a starter deck. Gwent also allows you to get every card in the game without spending a dime without too much time! Buying an abundance of Card Kegs with in-game currency is VERY generous with Gwent's reward systems; the microtransactions are there but they ARE NOT PAY TO WIN! Content is no issue either. With the base content and FREE EXPANSIONS/OVERHAULS, Gwent has SO MUCH FANTASTIC CONTENT! The game's ART/DESIGN is GORGEOUS - the best of many card games! The HOMECOMING OVERHAUL really made the game GREAT, The CRIMSON CURSE Expansion rounded out the entirety of Gwent post-homecoming: providing great content and more options to play each faction, and the NOVIGRAD expansion adds a new faction SYNDICATE to toy with. Gwent has issues but CDPR has shown they will support the game and do their best to fix any bugs/issues that come along for years to come, and OVERALL GWENT TRULY IS a blast to play and like WITCHER 3 WILD HUNT is beautiful, immersive, fun, and a wealth of content! Gwent's standalone story THRONEBREAKER: THE WITCHER TALES is to!
