10 Reasons Why "The Witcher 2" Is Winning

CDProjekt’s The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings port for the XBox 360 has been a long time coming. Released last year as a PC-exclusive, it chronicled the continuing adventures of Geralt of Rivia, a legendary warrior on a quest to stop an unknown group targeting royalty for regicide. From that description, the game may sound like a pretty standard RPG, but it isn’t. Here’s some reasons you should care, no, absolutely care about The Witcher 2, as well as a few gripes I had with it.

This is to be expected these days when you play a high profile console game, but after hearing all the praise heaped on The Witcher 2’s graphics last year, I wasn’t sure what to expect from a console port. It’s true, there have been drastic changes to lighting and shadow detail compared to the game running on a high end PC. Also parts of the UI have been scaled back a little. This is still a fantastic looking console game that outperforms the vast majority of its competition.

Not that I necessarily have anything against the writing in most western RPGs, but The Witcher 2 has been penned with the utmost attention to detail. You'll find strong characterizations and varying degrees of nuance for any character you want to concern yourself over. Particularly noteworthy is the game’s dialogue, which can range from gravely serious to dry and sarcastic. If you haven’t played the first Witcher, the names and lore may not make sense at first but it gradually comes into focus in time with no need for a recap. It's no surprise considering The Witcher is based on a series of European books currently being translated into English.

I’m not going to bother going into detail about what an embarrassment the “maturity” label usually means in most video games. The Witcher 2 is serious about it. This is a game for adults, and most of the content is presented in the matter-of-fact way you see (i.e., without fanfare) in most well-made R-rated films. The interesting part are the sex scenes which can be frank and titillating. Just so you know, there is for-real, uncensored nudity. This is about as close as we’ve come to a Game of Thrones RPG. Well, maybe with a little less bump and grind.

Think RPGs are a cake walk? Like to grind your way to the top? You’re in a for a rude awakening: you can’t use potions in battle, and Geralt’s healing abilities are surprisingly limited. This puts a focus on strategy over hacking and slashing. This results in a refreshingly like something action-oriented feel like Dragon Age…by way of Dark Souls. Prepare to die, indeed.

Lore aside—and there’s plenty of it—when you enter a new town it will probably take upwards of an hour to learn its ins and outs. Then you start talking to people and a number of side-quests and story paths open up, all of which entail multi-step processes to complete. Beyond that, the game itself is packed with polish and intricacy; go into a dwarven hut and every square inch looks lived-in, even if you never enter that room again. CDProjekt have gone to great lengths to make sure Witcher 2’s varied realms stay architecturally interesting. The result feels like a living world.

Think of Geralt as a ranger like Lord of the Ring’s Aragon, but with animal instincts and as something of a monster hunting mercenary. Like Mass Effect's Commander Shepard he can be cold and ruthless or kind and altruistic as you see fit. But with the source material, he remains a complex and interesting protagonist regardless of how you choose to play the game. Rather than coming off as a bland cypher, Geralt can react with indifference, compassion or just a dry joke. Just don’t get him too drunk.

The Witcher 2 is not afraid to take its time which shouldn't surprise those used to western RPGs. The plot is heavily embroiled with political dealings and multiple motivations among several parties you can choose to ally yourself with. All of which are told in no brief amount of time through scads of dialogue. You may feel on occasion that you’ve spent too long in one location, or that you’re getting caught up in local matters too much—sometimes this is a product of the story, but you still won’t face your initial target until well over ten hours into the game. This may be a bit slow for some.

Hopefully issues like these will be patched, but The Witcher 2 suffers at times from audio that cuts out, NPCs that don’t act in exactly the right manner, flickering visuals and other problems. Nothing breaks the game though. When fighting your way through a dangerous dungeon with three allies that get stuck behind doors right when enemies appear, it can still be a little trying on your patience.

Every fantasy game strives to be Tolkienesque. What separates The Witcher 2 from its competition is just how interestingly CDProjeckt has adapted the genre to match their style and tone. Non-human types in game are often viewed as minorities; elves and humans are still at odds with each other, but it's more complicated than that. An elven nation-state is a satellite of questionable civil autonomy of a human-led kingdom and a sect of elves have been drawn into a long, bloody quagmire with imperialist powers as a result. In time you learn of a free nation a group of rebels are trying to establish for humans and non-humans alike, and then things get really interesting...