Yeti Corner: I finished a game!
Completing a game from start to finish is a rare occurrence for me anymore. When I was young, I would play through an epic RPG in a matter of a days. It now takes me a few months or more to accomplish the same feat. Between two jobs and family commitments, I simply don’t have as much gaming time as I used to. So when I have the opportunity to play through a game, it better be good.
The Witcher 3 isn’t just good, it’s magnificent. In a year when I’ve had even less time for gaming than usual, due to a cross-country move, heavy work obligations, and unforeseen medical issues, I needed a game to revive my passion. The Witcher 3 did that and more.
As a caveat that those of you who listen to Gaming Uncensored know, I have not played through the first two titles. I tried, but both ended up being unplayably buggy on my PC. To be safe, I played the most recent iteration on the PS4. I’m happy to say that, outside a few times the game froze up or crashed (very few), it was incredibly stable and tight.
But more importantly, the game was incredibly immersive. The last game I got this caught up in was GTA V. The world in The Witcher 3 is easily as alive and engaging. The random NPCs feel like they have personalities. And, while it doesn’t live on a time cycle as well as a game like Skyrim, unless you just sit and watch someone play a lute for 24 hours, the world feels dynamic as you move though it.
The story line is captivating, which is a rarity in modern gaming. While I came in with very little knowledge of the Witcher universe, I felt fully able to follow along. I must admit I did a little research before starting to get caught up on the storylines of the first two games, but that only amounted to 10 or 15 minutes of reading. If you haven’t played the first two, you can pick this one up without much issue.
I must admit I’m not a huge fan of the combat system. It’s fine, but it feels like it’s trying to walk the line between a heavy action title like God of War and a real-time action RPG, which ends up feeling a little forced to me. The most similar combat system I can think of in recent gaming is Assassin’s Creed. There’s a heavy focus put on counterattacking, but the mechanics seemed clunky to me.
However, the big boss fights in the game were great. There’s an epic sense of achievement when defeating a Griffin or in engaging with the members of the Wild Hunt. I actually wish there were a few more of them.
The last thing I’ll mention – Gwent is awesome! Gwent is the card based mini-game. You collect cards throughout the game as parts of quests or simply by challenging an innkeeper or merchant to a game. I spent hours playing Gwent. One of my proudest moments was winning the major Gwent tournament in the game. It took me several tries. Yes, I wanted it that bad.
Moral of the story – go play The Witcher 3. If you love video games of any kind, you’ll likely find something you like in it. Definitely not for the kiddos though.
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