If I'm to enjoy a video game, it has to tick the following boxes: Gameplay Characters Story Atmosphere ... in that order. Gameplay will always hold the 1st place, as the strongest aspect. If the video game is to be enjoyed, it needs to play well. That's what the 'game' part represents. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings is an unique instance where The other three parts take over and hold the experience. It's been 10 years since I've played this game last (writing this in 2025). Story still holds up, the twists are captivating, characters memorable and inteligently written and the atmosphere is palpable. The game basically gives you two separate, but still interconnected paths to go down, ensuring at least one 2nd playthrough. However the gameplay suffers quite a bit and it's a tad too long in its rotten tooth. The movement feels as if you're a puppeteer controlling your puppet that's suspended on 5m long rubber bands. The traversal via the prompts slows the pace down by quite a lot. The combat is a step in a right direction, however it lacks polish. I'm an Elden Ring veteran and if someone told me that they kept dying in TW2:AOK due to its clunky combat, I'd believe them. In all fairness, this game isn't perfect, however of you haven't played it yet, do not hesitate. You won't regret it. Furthermore, there's no other way for Geralt to have a neck tattoo in TW3:WH, other than importing the save file from this one, so ... that alone is a reason to give this game a try.
Just like the title says, there's currently no other game which oozes more atmosphere than CP77. The story is solid, character extremely memorable, and I'm not talking only about the main ones. The quests connected to the side chars make them truly unique. The music is top notch, graphics are abolutely stunning with immense attention to detail (even in the vanilla version ... trust me, I know, I don't do mods). It's one of the most "snappable" game I've played. Photo mode is amazing and it allows the played to capcture various moments throughout their journey through Night City. Gameplay is stable (at least for me), fast paced and feels 100% natural and effortless (no matter the "class" you choose). All in all, I cannot recommend this game enough. Just wait until the sale and discount is over and buy it at full price. The devs deserve it!
I like to keep my reviews brief and easy to navigate so I can say as much as possible about the game in question. So, let's begin: Cons: - limited role playing, since you're playing already established character (books + previous games)* - cannot pause cutscenes / dialogues - longer pauses between saves/quick saves (may be an issue for more frantic F5-ers, like me) - seldom crashes, minor bugs (most fixed by patches) - annoying minor game mechanics like sword auto-sheating, constant sword redrawing when fighting monsters and humanoids at the same time - annoying combat** Pros: - * brilliant role playing. Even though you're playing an already established character, the options within are extensive and still retain Geralt's character. This is the perfect combination for both people who already read the books and know who Geralt is, and those who are new to the franchise - **great combat ... let me explain. It basically needs to be mastered. It's not easy to jump into it and hope for the best while frantically clicking around - (let's get the shallow stuff out of the way ...) graphics are amazing, optimization on PC is very good, animations are perfect, lip syncing is more than good. People, who are talking s**t about the "downgrade" obviously never played one certain another AAA RPG this year (2015) - cough*Fallout*cough*4*cough - extensive settings (key bindings, graphics, HUD, ...) - INTERESTING characters (looking at you Bethesda) - interesting and meaningful story, and this applies to side quests as well! (again ... looking at YOU, Bethesda) - run-of-the-mill fetch/kill/save quests are hidden beautifully behind lore and mini stories (... BETHESDA!) - choices have consequences - good dialogues and perfect voice-over - amazing soundtrack and ambient noise - crafting, runes, glyphs, sets, bombs, potions - enemies :) - cameos, ester eggs TL;DR Reading books will greatly enhance the experience. 397 hours in, 3rd play-through and I'm still finding new stuff.
