The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt releases next week, and we're taking the time to look back at the previous entries to this epic fantasy series. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings was released in 2012 on PC and consoles, and like its direct predecessor (released in 2007 exclusively for PC) is based off the series of novels by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowzi. The series follows the adventures of infamous Witcher (basically a genetically enhanced monster hunter) known as Geralt of Rivia, a hero whose past is shrouded in as much mystery to us as to himself.
The game is filled with a diverse range of strongly developed and interesting characters, and features some really engaging voice work. Geralt is immediately likeable as the protagonist and the villain (who turns out to be another Witcher) is also likeable too, even to the point where you start to develop some empathy for him. The game features several different paths to navigate and offers a few different endings, depending on the final choice you make for Geralt on whether or not to let the antagonist live or die. The storyline takes place across three main chapters, each of which features a different setting to the last, as well as a prologue chapter and a epilogue chapter (which sets up the events of The Witcher 3). Each chapter also reveals more about the narrative, concerning a greater conspiracy than simply that of a Witcher who has murdered the king, with other forces manipulating events in order to come out on top. The real strengths of The Witcher 2 come through its nicely paced narrative as well as its somewhat exploratory gameplay within a complex, and graphically beautiful, fantasy world.
Arguably, the game's main weaknesses comes from how limited to the narrative the settings are. Each chapter locks you in a specific area of the kingdom, unlike other fantasy games such as Dragon Age or Fable (where you can freely roam between regions). Whilst these environments are distinctively designed and offer enough diversity to keep you invested, the inability to travel back to previous locations makes the whole in-game world feel somewhat linear. It's probable that each area was cordoned off to a certain extent so that much of the processing power could be reserved for graphical enhancement, but it doesn't feel disguised all that well when compared to other, more expansive fantasy games. Also, because the story does not place enough focus on Geralt's previous identity (which is mentioned a lot throughout) as a Witcher, the narrative feels more like it belongs to a 'middle' game - A filler to keep the fans prepped and ready for the big, explosive finale. That said, this 'middle' game is more than entertaining enough to rouse our interest in what looks to be an upcoming next-generation mammoth of a game in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
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