Trailers: The Witcher 2: Disdain and Fear

[Yossarian1507]

Is anyone else finding the graphics rather lacking given when the title is released?

Also Geralt seems to have forgotten how to block with his sword..

a) No. It's not as gorgeous as in the trailers (I guess they were shot in 'ultra' graphic details), but it's still a beautiful game, even on medium details.

b) No, he didn't. Press E to do so (default setting). Blocking uses your vigor meter though, so you can't do it all the time.

Okay, I beat the first act yesterday. So far, so good. Some minor annoyances (finding the path in the forest can sometimes be a major pain in the ass, and there are a few logical flaws, like Loredo first threatening us with death [fist fight sidequest], then striking a deal to kill a sea monster and get rid of Sco'iatel like nothing happened, and after that sending two goons to kill you for the aforementioned fist fight). But those are a few minor details. Overall, it's stellar. TES: Skyrim will have a worthy opponent for the RPG of the Year crown.

BTW, to people who are playing it right now: How many easter eggs did you find so far? I'm double interested, since I have a Polish version, so I'm pretty sure some jokes are regional, like one of the fighters in the tavern, who's name is backwards for 'Pudzian', which is the nickname of famous Polish StrongMan and (mediocre) MMA fighter Mariusz Pudzianowski.

I've also found a body of a dead Assassin from AC series, lying on a broken cart with hay. Geralt even says something like 'they'll never learn', and you get a bonus perk to backstabbing your opponents for finding it. There's also a shout-out to Prison Break tv series in Temerian prison (duh!), and a Baywatch reference in Flotsam at one point.

 

[samsonguy920]

Excuse me while I go in a corner and stick my finger between my lips and go, 'Beblbeblbeblbeblbelbeblbeblbeblbebl....'

This game has already stolen the chat over at SW:TOR so I am figuring this is good. Especially where postponing a main quest in favor of a side quest and end up getting lost miles from where you started strikes me as a good selling point.

It's true, check the Metacritic user scores and you'll see a bunch of 10 reviews bitching about a user named M_Stannard, accusing them of being a BioWare employee and rating the Witcher 2 down. But get this: M_Stannard is a troll account named after Knight-Commander Meredith and has no affiliation with BioWare.

Anyway, sorry for the rant, but it's a shame to see this sort of thing.

I've learned to not bother with Metacritic reviews as they can be spammed by anyone colored the wrong way if the game was made by people from the planet Hiccup. Heck, I don't even listen to professional critics. Although some reviews are still entertaining to listen to, but I prefer to listen to what friends and peers think that have played the game and don't have some kind of bias running. Tough conundrum, I know, but you just gotta know how to sift through the bs.

 

[rsvp42]

I've learned to not bother with Metacritic reviews as they can be spammed by anyone colored the wrong way if the game was made by people from the planet Hiccup. Heck, I don't even listen to professional critics. Although some reviews are still entertaining to listen to, but I prefer to listen to what friends and peers think that have played the game and don't have some kind of bias running. Tough conundrum, I know, but you just gotta know how to sift through the bs.

I guess it's not so much the reviews or the scores, it's the principle of it. It's the idea that there's hundreds of gamers still so pissed about DA2 that they'll bring it up month later on different game reviews. It's knowing that it's to the point where people will actually make fake accounts and convince others that there's more foul play on BioWare's part. It's knowing that this is not an isolated incident and being reminded just how petty, bitter, self-entitled, and mean-spirited our community can be. This is how people act when a company's only real fault was releasing a less-than-stellar game.

 

[samsonguy920]

I've learned to not bother with Metacritic reviews as they can be spammed by anyone colored the wrong way if the game was made by people from the planet Hiccup. Heck, I don't even listen to professional critics. Although some reviews are still entertaining to listen to, but I prefer to listen to what friends and peers think that have played the game and don't have some kind of bias running. Tough conundrum, I know, but you just gotta know how to sift through the bs.

I guess it's not so much the reviews or the scores, it's the principle of it. It's the idea that there's hundreds of gamers still so pissed about DA2 that they'll bring it up month later on different game reviews. It's knowing that it's to the point where people will actually make fake accounts and convince others that there's more foul play on BioWare's part. It's knowing that this is not an isolated incident and being reminded just how petty, bitter, self-entitled, and mean-spirited our community can be. This is how people act when a company's only real fault was releasing a less-than-stellar game.

And yet that fault is more on the consumer than the company, for setting the expectation so high the company has no chance to reach it. I don't play Dragon Age so can't say myself how either 1 or 2 plays, but I have heard from many that 2 does deliver with some good bits to be overall satisfying. Anytime there is a sequel anymore to a movie or a game, I hope to experience something not so much better as just different. This expectation that a sequel is supposed to be 'better' is farcical trash. I would expect it to be just as good as the previous, giving us a new adventure to experience.
Then there is the fallacy of comparing Witcher 2 to Dragon Age. True the two are the same genre but the stories are so different I fail to see where comparison even fits. It really is an unfair comparison that will unjustly color people's expectations that follow metacritic reviews.
My advice? Don't give critic's advice anymore regard than the entertainment value you might get out of it. Case in point: Zero Punctuation. I quite enjoy Yahtzee's show but I will never follow his critique on games as gospel.
We are allowed to follow our own opinion, after all.

 

[Scarlet Mongoose]

this looks amazing!!! I can't wait to get it. Wish I had more money

 

[Random Glitch]

Is anyone else finding the graphics rather lacking given when the title is released?

Also Geralt seems to have forgotten how to block with his sword..

a) No. It's not as gorgeous as in the trailers (I guess they were shot in 'ultra' graphic details), but it's still a beautiful game, even on medium details.

b) No, he didn't. Press E to do so (default setting). Blocking uses your vigor meter though, so you can't do it all the time.

Okay, I beat the first act yesterday. So far, so good. Some minor annoyances (finding the path in the forest can sometimes be a major pain in the ass, and there are a few logical flaws, like Loredo first threatening us with death [fist fight sidequest], then striking a deal to kill a sea monster and get rid of Sco'iatel like nothing happened, and after that sending two goons to kill you for the aforementioned fist fight). But those are a few minor details. Overall, it's stellar. TES: Skyrim will have a worthy opponent for the RPG of the Year crown.

BTW, to people who are playing it right now: How many easter eggs did you find so far? I'm double interested, since I have a Polish version, so I'm pretty sure some jokes are regional, like one of the fighters in the tavern, who's name is backwards for 'Pudzian', which is the nickname of famous Polish StrongMan and (mediocre) MMA fighter Mariusz Pudzianowski.

I've also found a body of a dead Assassin from AC series, lying on a broken cart with hay. Geralt even says something like 'they'll never learn', and you get a bonus perk to backstabbing your opponents for finding it. There's also a shout-out to Prison Break tv series in Temerian prison (duh!), and a Baywatch reference in Flotsam at one point.

I'm playing in Ultra, all setting set at their highest and still

I should have said repeatedly block, I can happily parry one attack, then subsequent attacks land without issue.

I like the AC shout out, I'll keep going until I get to that. The framing device of interrogation for a tutorial is a nice touch; though I picked the last conversation option first before realising it would dump you in the action which resulted in a dragon in my face and not knowing the key bindings which was err interesting.

 

[The Zango]

Whats this? Boobs on the Escapist! Well I never!

OT: So looking forward to this arriving, I've been trying to pass the time with trailers and lets plays of the prolouge, but its getting unbearable! Hurry up and arrive already!

 

[Gildan Bladeborn]

Whats this? Boobs on the Escapist! Well I never!

It's not the first time actually - the Unskippable video for Dante's Inferno had an age gate in front of it because of the bare breasts involved in that cutscene, and the earlier "Jailbreak" trailer for The Witcher 2 also featured some exposed bosoms (and since that first showed up as just an embedded video in a news post, there wasn't even a cursory age gate to click through to see those boobs either, heh). Knowledge is power!