The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Review
Played on Xbox One (base)
Developed by CD Projekt RED
Released 18th May 2015
Originally planned for production in 2008, The Witcher 3 would encounter much pushback and many delays as CD Projekt would either avert their attention to porting the original Witcher to console in 2008, or simply delay it to make sure all of its intended features and aspects would run smoothly. While it didn't run smoothly, as evident by how most reviews at the time point to a jarring technical performance and a reported 5000 bugs in December prior to launch, it still became one of the highest acclaimed games of all time. Not only was it the best-selling video game of the year in the UK, breaking the record held by Battlefield Hardline, but it also has 260 Game of the Year awards, being the most-awarded game of all time before being dethroned 5 years later by The Last of Us Part II.
Story
The story of The Witcher 3 is marvellous in every sense. The game follows Geralt; the famed Witcher, the White Wolf, the Butcher of Blaviken, as he is on the search for Ciri, his daughter-like figure who is being hunted by the fearsome Wild Hunt. I love this game in all its brilliance and its narrative is one of the reasons why. The best comparison I could make for the story is to 2018's God of War - a tale about a more mature protagonist looking out for their junior as they come across unwanted bloodbaths. The difference between the two, at least for me, though, is that I prefer The Witcher 3 much more. This might be due to having 100% completed the game and having played the previous 2, or it could just be that CD Projekt Red did an undeniably fantastic job with this game. Even the smaller aspects of the game are great in storytelling. Whether it's environmental or in the format of a side quest, it's superb. The side quests can range from mini-stories like exposing a trader for selling a false dragon or tracking a serial killer, to plot lines that stretch across numerous quests like partaking in a regicide, rescuing mage refugees and more. From significant choices, amazing action sequences, fruitful dialogue, immersive depth and more, this is one of the best videogame narratives to date.
Gameplay
The gameplay is great but not in the long term. The whole game revolves around hacking and slashing with your two swords: one for monsters and one for humans, casting powerful spell-like Signs and utilising your extra equipment like crossbows, bombs, potions and blade oils. While this is all fantastic, it can progressively result in monotony. Although this didn’t become a problem for me until the 150th hour, for other players, this can happen before they even finish the main story. The best way to summarise the flaw is that it has unnecessary depth. Once you conquer the intriguing and fleshed-out skill tree and its ability assignment, the player can mostly follow one type of playstyle and never switch. Essentially, it boils down to the player either being a master of the art of the blade or a powerful magic-wielder. Other upgrades allow for better mobility of their extras, but most of, if not all of the time, the bombs, oils and potions are either for backup or for the player to actively spice up their gameplay. The additional utility never feels like a must when preparing for battle, but if you're looking for some extra roleplay elements within the game, this is perfect for you.
Before most fights, you are taught about the upcoming enemy and their weaknesses. The idea going into the game is that each enemy you come across will force the player to adapt their playstyle - although this rarely occurred for me as a single tactic always worked, or I was already at too high a level to factor in any strategies. This isn't to say that the gameplay is bad, - it most definitely isn't. From blasting enemies with the knockback Aard or fiery Igni to striking at enemies on horseback, I had incredible amounts of fun in the action department of the game.
Now onto the open-world aspect of gameplay. There are easily 100 or so hours that can be spent in the world of The Witcher 3. These hidden locations can range from bandit camps and monster nests that require eradication to more peaceful manners of enjoyment like absorbing the power from a shrine or hunting for sunken treasure. All these activities also have a refreshing cool-down period for soaking in the views while riding on your trusty horse companion, Roach.
Bossfights
The boss fights in the base game of The Witcher 3 are magnificent. The game consists of some incredible fights that take place all across the playable regions. Some are in the main campaign and they're fantastic in every way, while the majority of the more remarkable fights reside within side quests which are called "Contracts". Being a Witcher, you take on contracts that require you to slay some outstanding beasts like Kernun the Leshen or the White Lady Noonwraith. The sound effects of their attacks and screams, their enchanting design and the epic battle music to accompany them make for some enjoyable battles. This goes double for the campaign bosses since their dedicated moments make the individual plot points far more immersive, captivating, and splendid. The Crones of Crookback Bog, Royal Griffin, and the Wild Hunt trio of Caranthir, Imlerith and Eredin, are some of my favourites within the main campaign that I got to slice, burn, and strike my way to victory.
Characters
The characters of this already tremendous game add to the brilliance of the narrative. Dandelion, Triss, and Yennefer are some examples that perfectly present their personalities without exaggerating, underperforming or taking away others' spotlights. Characters like Geralt, Ciri and Vesemir are terrific, as not only do they manage to preserve their uniqueness and likeability in the player's memory, but they also emulate realistic emotions of hardship, joy, and sorrow quite extraordinarily, especially when grouped. This is just the tip of the iceberg as every character ever shown in the game has some form of backstory, depth and great writing involved, ready for the player to explore via the journal, dialogue choices and more.
Atmosphere
Do I even have to continue? It's pretty obvious that after praising every aspect of the game, the atmosphere would be nearly flawless. The audio of every attack and movement done is delightful. The awe-inspiring soundtrack that mixes a European traditionality, a war rapidity tempo and orchestral tone is just god-tier. The murky swamps of Velen, the abandoned and ancient Kaer Morhen and Norse-inspired Skellige not only have beautiful visuals to them that are amplified when the weather rains or the sky shines but are also a great immersion factor. Unfortunately, it falters on the technical side. Character models glitch in and out of place, horse riding sometimes leads to getting stuck on ridiculous things like a rock or piece of a fence post, and objects would take longer to render, alongside some minor audio glitches. Although this may sound like a magnitude of problems, these each occurred rarely. After all, you're bound to come across flaws after spending 167 hours on a game.
Story- 11/10
Gameplay- 8/10
Bossfights- 9/10
Characters- 10/10
Atmosphere- 9.5/10
Near Perfect
One of, if not, the best RPG ever made.
Hearts of Stone DLC
Released 12th October 2015
The first expansion pack of The Witcher 3 is incredible. The story of the Hearts of Stone DLC follows Geralt and his experience with the devious Gaunter O' Dimm and the surviving Olgierd von Everec. At first, the story didn’t appeal to me much, but soon enough I was hooked back into the world of The Witcher 3 and began to love so many aspects of it all over again. The story could be split into three parts: the start, middle and end. The start centres around fulfilling a contract and then getting caught up in foreign royalty matters. This leads seamlessly into the middle of the experience which mostly consists of more individual sections, which are the more enjoyable sorts of fetch quests before the ending concludes with a tense dual of fate. This is all enhanced by the charismatic and powerful Gaunter O' Dimm and the emotionless Olgierd for whom you are collecting debts. The two characters are some of the main reasons this tale is so entertaining, but the performance from Shani is also pretty good and very welcome.
When it comes to gameplay, Hearts of Stone has barely changed compared to the base game, with only the introduction of some new swords and armour sets. However, one new, significant addition is The Runewright. A merchant that you can help out and progressively upgrade, The Runewright is capable of boosting your weapons and armour with runes that provide valuable stats such as fusing the charge of your Signs into your blade or dealing bonus damage when at max health. While the former is the most unique and interesting of the upgrades, the rest were still fun and interesting ways of improving my gear. The DLC also introduced some new bosses that allow you to use this new and improved gear. On average, I would say that this game has better boss fights than both the base game and the second expansion. Even if the fights were semi-disappointing, their build-up, design and audio engineering were at their peak. An example of this would be The Caretaker. He had an amazing visual and audible design to him which complimented his chilling introduction, but the actual fight was lacklustre compared to the build-up; not bad, but not worth the hype. The Toad was a brilliant boss to open up the DLC and Olgierd's spectres have probably one of the best atmospheres I've seen for a boss fight. Through the use of distorted camera angles, swarms of spectres eerily waiting their turn and the sole illumination of a blazing fireplace, the atmosphere created in this boss fight are mesmerizing.
Story - 9.5/10
Gameplay - 8/10
Bossfights - 9.5/10
Characters - 8/10
Atmosphere - 9.5/10
With a fantastic story, a great cast of characters and some of the better bossfights of the game, the Hearts of Stone DLC receives a
—Near Perfect—
Blood and Wine DLC
Released 30th May 2016
The story of the second expansion pack captivated me right from the start in every way. Vampires? Check. Serial killer? Check. New play area? Check. The story of this much larger DLC tells of Geralt being hired by Duchess Anna Henrietta to figure out what beast mysteriously slaughtered the knights of Toussaint and to exterminate it. This phenomenal opening continued steadily before hitting a brick wall where it went from a vampire-hunting contract which is pretty badass, to simply an investigation of motives that were not inherently unenjoyable, just not what I’d been expecting for this DLC. While this inadvertently made the narrative much more intriguing, it warped my expectations for the DLC and left an unsatisfactory feeling within me. This, however, was short-lived, as the narrative eventually managed to return to a level that was equivalent to that of the beginning. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for the ending. The ending is quite empty. There's no real way of defining how I felt about it since it seemed like a bucket of emotions. The pacing wasn't too rushed nor too slow; it was neither sorrowful nor joyous: it was just dispassionate. It definitely wasn't bad, as I did feel a sense of completion from it, but that could've just been me acknowledging that I was a fraction away from finally 100% completing the game. The characters didn't enhance the experience because Regis was the only one whose company I enjoyed. Other characters like Anna Henrietta or Dettlaff were, unfortunately, just mediocre, which is a far cry from the praise I awarded the base game and the first DLC.
The gameplay, luckily, is the best part of my over 100-hour playtime. The new enemies, bosses, weapons, mutations, Gwent cards, and playable regions make me feel like this DLC was meant as a Christmas present. It doesn't make a huge impact or provide much difference to the base gameplay, although the mutations were a lot of fun. Not only do they allow you to equip more abilities you unlock in the skill tree, but they also give a huge boost to the overall gameplay. I chose the mutation that changes my Aard from a kinetic blast of knockback into a frost-biting release that could capture them in ice or shatter them into icicles. I didn't get to experience more as the only way to receive more skill points would be from New Game +, but I think I've reached my limit with The Witcher 3 - for now. The badass swords like the returning Aeorndight or the new Toussaint Knight's Steel Sword were incredible to use (albeit a little OP). The expansion also featured a whole new region in which I could ride my horsey ‘Roach’ around. The beautiful, Italian-inspired world of vineyards, bustling towns and gorgeous scenery is a host of sights, sounds and experiences I'm glad to have gone through. The in-game card game known as ‘Gwent’ received a new deck you could play as - which is another fantastic feature of this game - but most, more importantly, the bosses were a huge part of this DLC. Hearts of Stone had an overall more impressive gallery of fightable foes, but Blood and Wine holds the award for my favourite boss fight in the entirety of this game: the final boss of the DLC. Battling the true form of a higher vampire was more of a spectacle than I could've imagined: the design, audio and gameplay were all perfect. Bosses like the Wicked Witch were great but not next level like this one. Others including the Shaelmaar, Big Bad Wolf and Cloud Giant were all enjoyable too, but they were mostly reskins of either previous bosses or normal enemies and didn’t have the same charm that Blood and Wine brimmed with.
Story - 8.5/10
Gameplay - 8.5/10
Bossfights - 9.5/10
Characters - 7/10
Atmosphere - 9.5/10
Despite the lacklustre ending, CD Projekt Red returned to the world of The Witcher in a spectacular way (mostly in gameplay) rewarding the DLC, with a
