The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

 PC
User Score
9.1

Universal acclaim- based on 23035 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20,928 out of 23035
  2. Mixed: 473 out of 23035
  3. Negative: 1,634 out of 23035
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  1. cercisyusuf
    Sep 8, 2023
    5
    just mainstream populer cultur that was boring i want war this game says comlicated things
  2. Tintler
    Jul 20, 2023
    7
    Her yan görevin özgün olması ve özenle yapılmış olması hikaye örgüsü ve bunun açılması. Dönemine göre ve hala teknik/grafik olarak güncelliğini koruması ile Witcher 3 iyi bir oyun. DLC'leri ise başarılı ve ayrı standalone oyun olabilecek kadar iyi.
  3. NZXD
    Jul 11, 2023
    6
    Story:

    The main quest of rescuing Ciri could be seen as a missed opportunity for an open world game. Wow, Geralt, look at this expansive and breathtaking map... BUT HURRY, THEY ARE ABOUT TO KILL HER! But take it easy... why not take a break and play some cards? Why not visit the tavern, share stories, and enjoy the world around you? - BUT HURRY, THEY ARE ABOUT TO KILL HER!    Story:

    The main quest of rescuing Ciri could be seen as a missed opportunity for an open world game.

    Wow, Geralt, look at this expansive and breathtaking map... BUT HURRY, THEY ARE ABOUT TO KILL HER!

    But take it easy... why not take a break and play some cards? Why not visit the tavern, share stories, and enjoy the world around you? - BUT HURRY, THEY ARE ABOUT TO KILL HER!

    Protagonist:

    Geralt is portrayed as an exceptionally skilled and cool character. Geralt is cool... I wonder if maybe a bit too much.

    It's common in most role-playing or open world games to start as a nobody and gradually become someone, building and defining your character along the way. This can be a highly satisfying experience. When you envision how you will design and develop your character, and finally witness their full growth, it feels amazing. It reflects all the hours and effort you've invested in the game. However, in The Witcher 3, you begin as Geralt at level 1 with 5 spells and 2 swords, and after countless hours, you end up as Geralt at level 35 with 5 spells and 2 swords. The only difference is that, mysteriously, the latter feels ineffective and unable to face any challenges, despite being Geralt of Rivia, the legendary witcher with years of experience. For instance, I can easily defeat a griffin without any issues, but then I enter an area where I supposedly shouldn't be, and a dwarf bandit kills me. At a certain point, you question whether the leveling system was necessary in this game, if it was included simply because other games have it, and if it truly aligns with what a witcher is supposed to do. If perhaps they should have focused on depth in other aspects of the game instead.

    Inventory and Rewards:

    I'll be clear: On which planet, in which corner of the known universe, is the inventory system in this game considered acceptable? How many crafting materials does Geralt carry? I often find myself not knowing what half of the items I take are for. Does the game genuinely expect me to have the energy to read and learn the purpose of each item? Instead of being a game with 5 significant options, it presents us 100, and in the end, I find myself performing the same actions in every battle. As for the open world... Rather than exploring by gazing at the horizon, I'm constantly guided by a minimap with markers indicating where to go.    … Expand
  4. Mindurbidniss
    Jan 5, 2023
    7
    Awesome game. Game of the decade? Hell no, it's full of euro-jank and character movement and animations are nowhere near the level of Red Dead Redemption, but there's a level of agency to be found in this game that existed nowhere else at the time. Combat is incredibly "of the time" consisting of hit, roll, and dodge mechanics reminiscent of Assassin's Creed. This system leaves so much toAwesome game. Game of the decade? Hell no, it's full of euro-jank and character movement and animations are nowhere near the level of Red Dead Redemption, but there's a level of agency to be found in this game that existed nowhere else at the time. Combat is incredibly "of the time" consisting of hit, roll, and dodge mechanics reminiscent of Assassin's Creed. This system leaves so much to be desired considering the implementation of potions and concoctions that were barely utilized, even on the Blood and Broken Bones difficulty. The graphics are also nothing to sneeze at. Released in 2015, this game still gives more graphically intense titles a run for their money. Add that to an open world, brilliant quest design, and characters with multiple levels of depth to them and you've gotten yourself a title that punches way above what was expected of it, judging by the previous. Side quests also play a large role in The Witcher 3, which is great because side quests are where this game shines. Due to multiple choices which lead to multiple outcomes, each playthrough of The Witcher 3 is different. Some side quests even surpass those that are essential to the main story with their intricacies and decisions driven pathways. Ultimately The Witcher 3 is a game to own, or at least a game to experience. The player driven choice aspect is enough to entice the curiosity of many a gamer. Is it as good as most publications would leave you to believe? No, not at all. But it is a game worth getting lost in. A game you'll play and lose track of time with. Even a title you'll find yourself returning to year after year because of the quality that lies underneath it's many flaws.… Expand
  5. egyptianbeggar
    Apr 12, 2023
    5
    I wish I could lose my memory and play this game again and finish it. In a word, a unique experience. I promised myself that one day I will play this game on the highest settings, I hope I can keep my promise.
  6. gamerz4life
    Apr 7, 2023
    5
    The Witcher 3 was barely out before being hyped as the absolute pinnacle of RPG-gaming, a must play for everyone & you needn’t bother playing Witcher 1 or 2 before playing 3. Naturally it gets picked as 2015’s GOTY. Who knew it was possible to win more than 800 awards for a video game? Those who say these things clearly haven’t played many video games, not to mention RPGs, let aloneThe Witcher 3 was barely out before being hyped as the absolute pinnacle of RPG-gaming, a must play for everyone & you needn’t bother playing Witcher 1 or 2 before playing 3. Naturally it gets picked as 2015’s GOTY. Who knew it was possible to win more than 800 awards for a video game? Those who say these things clearly haven’t played many video games, not to mention RPGs, let alone Witcher 1&2, which are both far better than Witcher 3

    Its biggest sin is being an open-world game. They did this to compete with games like Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014’s GOTY) & Elder Scrolls: Skyrim (2011’s GOTY). Too much time was spent on building this massive world that not much thought was given on how they would fill it. It was empty & incredibly tedious to trek across the map between missions. You’ve done wrong when the player chooses to fast travel everywhere rather than go on foot. You’re also forced to find a sign post in order to fast travel, you can’t just do it from the map. An open world usually means cutting meaningful quests & characters, which Witcher 3 did in spades; the biggest being no Scoia’tael/Iorveth. In addition, the AI chatter was enough to make me go mad; the same lines repeated over & over w/ the same voices. I can say them in my sleep. The cutscenes were supposed to be Dandelion but for some reason aren’t done by his voice actor, the guy doesn’t even sound close.

    The combat is atrocious, when you feel that the better option is to hack, slash & roll like a ballerina rather than use tactics because the enemies aren’t known for their brains. The use of potions/oils was practically nonexistent until halfway through because you don’t get the crafting diagrams & by then you’ve learned to cope w/o so you don’t even remember that you can now use them. Meditation is not to make potions but to reload your stock using alcohol in your inventory. Tutorials would have been immensely helpful rather than a block of text you’ll never remember. Negotiation is senseless, “A bit high… We’re almost there.” The upgrade system is a complete joke. What’s the point in investing in skills when you can only use a few? Getting to level 30 you can use 12 skills and yet I had many more! You literally need to use a slot in order to have food/drink heal you over time! What? That was just a given in the other games.

    The story absolutely requires you to have not only played the first 2 games but that you’ve read the books as well. I can’t imagine what anyone could have gotten out of this game otherwise. But even though I had the knowledge of the whole story, I felt this game’s story was super weak. They were trying to tell too much & pull in the worst parts of Sapkowski’s books. The first 2 games felt like CDPR was adding to the story of The Witcher and telling their own tale, they weren’t just making the books a game, rather they continued Geralt’s tale a few years after the books. But with this game, it felt the complete opposite. They were now pulling everything they could from the last 2 books (which were awful) & pulling phrases & jokes from every form of entertainment in the real world. It seriously hurt the story. The idea of Ciri traveling between worlds, including our own is just stupid, they could have rewritten something so much better. Instead what was once a dark fantasy is now science fiction. It was very obvious that they had a completely different writer this time around.

    Despite calling itself an RPG, there were no significant choices in this game. Sure there were 3 different endings for Ciri’s fate but as to how those endings were decided, it was a couple small things in conversations rather than actual decisions. It really makes you feel good when you read the wiki and see ‘You can choose whatever you want here, it makes no difference to the story.’ When a choice cutscene would randomly pop up, it felt more like a whoops we forgot to give this meaning so here’s a choice that sucks either way.

    The game is at 4.02 & still buggy. The choice scenes are at a far lower volume than the rest of the game, it’s a miracle if you can hear them w/o subsequently blowing your eardrums out when it switches back to the actual game. There is so much clipping, things disappearing from NPC’s hands or hovering in front of them, animals including Roach would appear in the middle of a conversation with an NPC, etc. What exactly did they fix?

    Now how can we talk about Witcher 3 w/o mentioning the card game Gwent? What a truly horrendous, time-wasting addition. It was clearly there to pad out the game time. You’re forced into your first game to ‘learn’ the directions & I came away no wiser as how to play. All Gwent did was make me miss dice poker.

    In the main game alone, I completed 141 quests in 104.8 hours. I would only recommend for the serious Witcher fan b/c all I can say is thank the Eternal Fire I’m done, I’m headed back to Witcher 1&2    … Expand
  7. Bushido_DZ95
    Mar 12, 2023
    7
    Years later, I have to admit that the game is not that good. I don't think I want to go back there again. The main storyline is very mediocre. The game would be better if we as Geralt were just doing side quests. The open world didn't impress me either if you compare it to the same RDR2 it's heaven and earth.
    Luckily for The Witcher 3 the series has the loathsome The Witcher 2 on the    Years later, I have to admit that the game is not that good. I don't think I want to go back there again. The main storyline is very mediocre. The game would be better if we as Geralt were just doing side quests. The open world didn't impress me either if you compare it to the same RDR2 it's heaven and earth.
    Luckily for The Witcher 3 the series has the loathsome The Witcher 2 on the background of which part 3 looks pretty good.    … Expand
  8. nastyjes
    Jan 10, 2023
    7
    An interesting movie with gameplay elements but a little overrated .
  9. HarisBIH9
    Dec 29, 2022
    5
    Story, Open World, Characters, Side Quests are top.

    But a 5 because of the Stupid Leveling System, why can i wear the New Witcher Netflix armor only when im lvl 40 and have to be in Toussaint??, just Stupid. And the Story is way toooo important, to do sidequests etc. you just Feeling like a Idiot. Because 1/3 of all Sidequests are disapearing when you finish the Main Quests. And they    Story, Open World, Characters, Side Quests are top.

    But a 5 because of the Stupid Leveling System, why can i wear the New Witcher Netflix armor only when im lvl 40 and have to be in Toussaint??, just Stupid.

    And the Story is way toooo important, to do sidequests etc. you just Feeling like a Idiot. Because 1/3 of all Sidequests are disapearing when you finish the Main Quests.

    And they missed many things that needed an Update, and Godammit, WHY DOES IT RAINS EVERY DAY IN THIS FCKIIING GAME!!!    … Expand
  10. applecookie
    Dec 11, 2022
    7
    Not recommended for those who dislike games where combat is not fun.
    It is not recommended for those who do not like motion or uncomfortable controls.

    Other than that, the other parts are good. The story is good and the details of the quests are alive.
  11. StarkAgentos
    Aug 25, 2022
    5
    Я не считаю игру плохой, поэтому не буду ставить низкий балл, но мне эта игра неинтересна. Сюжет прикольный. Графика красивая. Геймплей слишком фэнтезийный, что ли. Просто игра не зашла.
  12. yusuf_dgn
    Jul 9, 2022
    7
    Story : 9
    Gameplay : 7
    Graphics : 7
    Atmosphere : 8
  13. quittit1
    Jul 5, 2022
    6
    Okay buddy I’m going to get some stuff for you baby shower lol but I don’t want to know anything
  14. Gazownik
    Jun 8, 2022
    7
    As a Polish citizen, I can't really say that I fully enjoyed the game.
    I tried playing for a longer period of time but in the end, it just didn't work...
    I got way past the Blood Baron mission (can't really tell where exactly) and then I kinda didn't feel the need to play more - it simply wasn't that interesting to me. As for audio, it's 10/10 and the same goes for the story but as    As a Polish citizen, I can't really say that I fully enjoyed the game.
    I tried playing for a longer period of time but in the end, it just didn't work...

    I got way past the Blood Baron mission (can't really tell where exactly) and then I kinda didn't feel the need to play more - it simply wasn't that interesting to me.

    As for audio, it's 10/10 and the same goes for the story but as for me - the combat etc. wasn't to my liking and that probably was the reason why I dropped the game.    … Expand
  15. Jackie_Jackson
    May 26, 2022
    5
    Если вы считаете что эталонная ерпеге должна выглядеть как слешер который кроме боёвки весь такой нудный то как-то что-то не очень всё получается
  16. BrutalPlayer
    May 6, 2022
    7
    It is hard to rate;

    Story is funny
    Graphics are incredible
    Quests are creating great atmosphere

    But at the same time, game is VEEERY boring. It is just about doing all the same stuff over and over, until the end... plus for "no save during combat" thingy and the fact i was actually stuck in this game. I like tricky games!
  17. Highlander117
    Mar 19, 2022
    5
    I think this game is really overhyped and over glorified. The gameplay doesn't do anything for me. Give yourself a shield, use the right consumable for the given enemy type, and that's basically it. The character progression is just unsatisfying and boring. I got 8 hours play time and just quit. I didn't even had high expectations for the game, because I know how overdramatic and overhypedI think this game is really overhyped and over glorified. The gameplay doesn't do anything for me. Give yourself a shield, use the right consumable for the given enemy type, and that's basically it. The character progression is just unsatisfying and boring. I got 8 hours play time and just quit. I didn't even had high expectations for the game, because I know how overdramatic and overhyped gamers get and how they like to throw around 10/10. It is at best a slightly above average game and that's it, just like cyberpunk (after like 1.5 years of beta testing). You play threw it and then you think "Oh, that was pretty average" and then you go on and do something else.… Expand
  18. MetalRobot69
    Jan 31, 2022
    7
    Don't give me wrong it is a great game but it isn't for my taste. I am a very story skewed player and the story wasn't the best for me. You pass hours searching for a girl that I don't even know (because I didn't know The Witcher universe).

    Saying that the gameplay is fun, it has very cool finishing animations and a good variety of monsters, though I don't think Gerald has many combat    Don't give me wrong it is a great game but it isn't for my taste. I am a very story skewed player and the story wasn't the best for me. You pass hours searching for a girl that I don't even know (because I didn't know The Witcher universe).

    Saying that the gameplay is fun, it has very cool finishing animations and a good variety of monsters, though I don't think Gerald has many combat moves, it is just the same attack with swords, dodge, block and one of few magics, BTW spawning quen you are pretty much invincible (I did that on the hardest difficulty and for me, the game was too easy).

    I liked way more the DLC Wine and Blood, for me that was 10/10 but the main story is kinda meh.    … Expand
  19. Bochenki
    Jan 13, 2022
    7
    Do not get me wrong - it is a very good game. Incredible story, great characters, it is like a TV Show, but better. My problem is that I actually enjoy the story more than the gameplay itself. Maybe it's because I don't have experience with complicated, RPG mechanics, tons of items you can take with you, potions and spells. I am probably the weird one, but I would enjoy the game more as aDo not get me wrong - it is a very good game. Incredible story, great characters, it is like a TV Show, but better. My problem is that I actually enjoy the story more than the gameplay itself. Maybe it's because I don't have experience with complicated, RPG mechanics, tons of items you can take with you, potions and spells. I am probably the weird one, but I would enjoy the game more as a simple point-and-click as it is just confusing to me.… Expand
  20. INik
    Dec 17, 2021
    6
    Не зашло из-за боевки и необходимости готовится к каждому противнику — не моё
  21. Arturidze
    Nov 23, 2021
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Amazing game. The best game, where I ever played. Love this. Wanting continue… Expand
  22. andrew9
    Nov 18, 2021
    6
    aight .
  23. KAGASTIEN
    Nov 13, 2021
    5
    Just go for it , this will be the best gameplay experience in any game that you will ever play
  24. DeniMars
    Sep 17, 2021
    6
    Не понимаю такого повального восторга от этой игры. Она плоха во всем, от кривого неудобного управления, до псевдо-искусственного открытого мира. На начальной локации ставить врагов с черепом на голове, которые убивают с 1-2 ударов, игрока, который только-только учится играть и привыкает к неудобному корявому управлению, это верх некомпетентности разработчиков. Смысл тогда от открытостиНе понимаю такого повального восторга от этой игры. Она плоха во всем, от кривого неудобного управления, до псевдо-искусственного открытого мира. На начальной локации ставить врагов с черепом на голове, которые убивают с 1-2 ударов, игрока, который только-только учится играть и привыкает к неудобному корявому управлению, это верх некомпетентности разработчиков. Смысл тогда от открытости мира, если меня насильно толкают по сюжету, а на всех значках вопросов отвешивают завышенные по уровню враги. Ну либо там просто копипаста места силы да гнезда. Нет смысла исследовать локации. Идти строго по сюжету и все, ну и делайте тогда коридорную, сюжетно-ориентированную игру. Дерганная камера, от которой голова кружиться начинает, особенно когда ГГ лезет по лестнице. Максимально убогая однообразная боевка. Ни стелса, ни каких то различий в оружии. Все сводится к маханию мечом и вечным перекатам. Даже знаки и те неудобно использовать. Через меню. В том же Ассассине умения (считай знаки) и то проще и продуманней реализованы. Вне боя Геральт за все цепляется, поворачивается как танк на месте, вечно куда то несется и упирается во все подряд. Играть невозможно. 80% всего геймплея это кат-сцены, от которых через время уже начинаешь уставать и тянет зевать. Инвентарь настолько запутанный, что черт ногу сломит. За что ей завышают так оценки, мне не понятно. Она плоха вообще во всем. Глупые НПС, которые тебя вечно толкают и в тебя врезаются, а спутники прижимаются к тебе и трутся об тебя, мешаясь постоянно. Да и НПС пустые болванки, декорации с одинаковыми лицами, которые по сути не несут никакой пользы в игре, только создают помехи. Мини карта с мелкими значками на которой ничерта не видно. Переоцененная игра. Единственно, за что можно накинуть баллы, так только за музыку и неплохие пейзажи ну и может быть сами квесты и их повествование.… Expand
  25. Reviewer102
    Jun 30, 2021
    7
    The game deserves the attention for the vast open world that the game offers you to explore .

    The story is written well and characters are well fleshed out . The graphics are great and soundtrack is immersive . There are so many ways to praise this game . But enough of that as I'm sure you can find more of that by other reviewers . This game by definition is still    The game deserves the attention for the vast open world that the game offers you to explore .

    The story is written well and characters are well fleshed out .

    The graphics are great and soundtrack is immersive .

    There are so many ways to praise this game .

    But enough of that as I'm sure you can find more of that by other reviewers .

    This game by definition is still 'overated.'

    People are too scared to vocalize that this game has its issues in fear of being downvoted or attacked by fans of this game series .

    Truth is , the combat is lacking .

    You dodge back and strike . You do this again and again .

    Combat becomes boring and a chore .

    The story as described above is well written no doubt but it lacks in good pacing .

    The story fails in pacing as you are bombarded with story after story without having time to digest the stories . It makes the stories unmemorable .

    The story starts off very strong as it hypes you up for an epic journey to find Ciri .

    But it just dissolves into nothing but unnecessarily long talks .

    Yes , the talking in this game is long but the talks aren't very interesting . That is the problem .

    Not going to sugar coat it . Romance in the game is for horny men and is cheap perfume . Not like that is 'bad,' but it somewhat gets old after a while . It is like real life marriage almost . Pretty accurate as some may say .

    The villains in Witcher 3 is terribly cliché . They are the stereotypical bad guys with bulky armor . They aren't that interesting as a whole . There are some villans that are intriguing no doubt though .
    They are so forgettable in general .

    Yes this game is based on a series of books written by Andrzej Sapkowski so CDPR can't do much about the villans other than change the way they are visually portrayed in the game .

    Witcher 3 should have not won GOTY . Games like MGSV should have won as MGSV actually had an epic story and amazing gameplay . Though MGSV comes with its flaws it still does the job better at least in gameplay where Witcher 3 lacks heavily .

    The game is overated and overhyped beyond understand but it indeed deserves the attention but only a fraction of it .

    This is why this review is a mixed score .    … Expand
  26. Matrix4333
    Jun 3, 2021
    5
    Good game story-wise, but gameplay is actual garbage. I completed every single quest in starting location and still only level 3. Can't do anything in next location, Vizima is supposed to be for level 5, but 2nd quest already level 9 enemies, which I can't kill... I use counter like potions and right sword... I improved everything I could, but I had barely 300 crowns at that point...Good game story-wise, but gameplay is actual garbage. I completed every single quest in starting location and still only level 3. Can't do anything in next location, Vizima is supposed to be for level 5, but 2nd quest already level 9 enemies, which I can't kill... I use counter like potions and right sword... I improved everything I could, but I had barely 300 crowns at that point... Played on 3/4 difficulty and it is not like I Am not new to RPG either. It is AC bs design and grind fest, side quests mostly uninteresting...

    Combat system:
    - only items matters skill is irrelevant
    - when you attack at the same time, you get damage and you can't parry...
    - parry gets you stunned useless
    - you can evade attacks, but again if you attack at the same time there is nothing you can do and you get damage for free

    Also some enemies don't show in bestiary...    … Expand
  27. Tryve
    May 28, 2021
    6
    I don't know why I couldn't get into this game. I tried countless times to see the epic greatness of the game from effusive praise and glowing reviews all over the place. Not to say that it is a bad game, just doesn't feel as perfect as ppl make it to be.
    The open world is in the UbiSoft school of Design, filled with world breaking jank that could srsly ruin some1's immersion. Its like    I don't know why I couldn't get into this game. I tried countless times to see the epic greatness of the game from effusive praise and glowing reviews all over the place. Not to say that it is a bad game, just doesn't feel as perfect as ppl make it to be.
    The open world is in the UbiSoft school of Design, filled with world breaking jank that could srsly ruin some1's immersion. Its like they tried to mix AC and Skyrim in moderate doses, but still failed to find a great balance. Combat feels like its out of a 2005 game. There's still that horse running into a wall thingy there. Really bad.
    The story is pretty good though, with some really well written side quests. This is mainly what stands out for the game. There are a ton of quests to undertake and delve deeper into the lore of the world. This is mainly where the game shines.
    Maybe its just that I played RDR2 b4 this, character movement here feels clunky and unnatural and horse riding here is terrible compared to it. If I played this b4 rdr2 I would probably be acclaiming it like everyone else.
    My overall score would be arnd 5.5, but since meta doesn't do half reviews 6'll HV to do.    … Expand
  28. ariangoodarzi
    May 28, 2021
    6
    this is possibly the most overrated game EVER. let me tell you what i like about the game. the writing the villans the endings and the dlc are are mostly great thats what i like. now the bad : the ai sucks. really god damn bad, they stand still and let you kill them.the combat is repetitive and boring. the enemy's are just bullet sponges and reskins. the open world is basicly empty.
  29. praXismaXimus
    May 24, 2021
    7
    An obvious pastiche of Assassin's Creed, Skyrim, and the Far Cry games - and is reaching to achieve the quality of any of them. Basic mechanics are lacking - character movement is like a tugboat piloted by a drunk, the levelling and inventory systems are incredibly half-assed, and enemy levels are literally all over the map. The story is bombastic open-ended and hole-ridden nonsense - evenAn obvious pastiche of Assassin's Creed, Skyrim, and the Far Cry games - and is reaching to achieve the quality of any of them. Basic mechanics are lacking - character movement is like a tugboat piloted by a drunk, the levelling and inventory systems are incredibly half-assed, and enemy levels are literally all over the map. The story is bombastic open-ended and hole-ridden nonsense - even as a fantasy title - but has loads of sex and cynicism mixed in which impresses people, I guess? If you're thinking this game is going to be a big step up from Witcher 2, you're going to be disappointed. Much of the amateurish jank is still here. Many of the cinematic cutscenes are impressive, really nice music, and some solid sidequests with good variety, but this is really just a 6/10 game with high-ish production values.… Expand
  30. wokenoodle
    May 6, 2021
    7
    Witcher 3 is often praised for it's plot and how player choice impacts it, yet I don't feel like this praise is earned. It has mostly good dialog, interesting and charismatic characters (both leads and minor ones), somewhat effective set-pieces, but the story itself (except for the Velen chapter, which is the only one everyone tends to bring up) is kinda lacklustre. As soon as you get toWitcher 3 is often praised for it's plot and how player choice impacts it, yet I don't feel like this praise is earned. It has mostly good dialog, interesting and charismatic characters (both leads and minor ones), somewhat effective set-pieces, but the story itself (except for the Velen chapter, which is the only one everyone tends to bring up) is kinda lacklustre. As soon as you get to Novigrad, plot treads start abruptly appearing only to lead pretty much nowhere and leave no real consequence (witch hunts, Radovid, gangs), pacing is off and characters start to crack up with small inconsistencies (mainly, Dandelion). These issues will be alleviated with Skellige's focused side plot and soft mental reset granted by the new map, but after Battle at Kaer Morhen they kick back in like an obstinate mule with a newfound force of rushing to conclude broad plot threads that shouldn't've been there in the first place. Sprinkled with some awful resolutions of essential story arks (Dijkstra, Avallac'h) and absolutely pathetic main villain - you got a really, really mixed bag of a plot, which is mostly remembered well for the Velen chapter everyone was so blow away by.

    My other criticisms of Witcher 3 are much less controversial: combat is too basic for such a long game, character progression inclines to highly specialise in a few from already not that many options, and enemies rarely require you to step out of that chosen specialisation. Loot system is garbage (literally). Alchemy is a double edged sword: I really appreciate that consumables replenish (it's one of the best design choices in the game), but being able to pop a decoctions whenever you want really takes away from the planning gameplay, while knowing his enemy and preparing accordingly should be one of the key witcher's abilities. And the worst offender is the dumbed down, streamlined and formulaic, almost automatic in nature gameplay loop that became pure torture towards last ten ours of my playthrough. Witcher Sense is one of the most overused and non-engaging mechanics I've ever encountered in a videogame.

    None of what I just said renders the game unplayable or even not fun, it's just really uninspired, mediocre and lacks coherent brave vision.

    The real beauty of Witcher 3, what I consider the reason people fell in love with this game, the strength of CDPR that came to be the highlight even in the disastrous Cyberpunk 2077, is the world and atmosphere. Novigrad is the best videogame city I've ever been to, you won't find more lifelike countryside than White Orchard, everything in this game looks stylish, feels evocative, sounds enthralling and plays damn immersively, even with all the grudges I hold agains it. I might not had the best gaming experience, but it was a great time - time, spent as Geralt of Rivia in wondrous, magical and dangerous lands.

    To sum it all up, Witcher 3 is a mediocre open world action RPG, that stole the industry spotlight for all the wrong reasons, but you won't regret loosing yourself in it for a hundred hours.    … Expand
  31. OmnipotentBobby
    May 5, 2021
    5
    I went into the game thinking its gonna be a masterpiece due to fanboys so i was excited 5 hrs. in and I'm feeling not so good did not like it then i stopped 3 months later i tried again and then stop then my fourth time i played all the way till Skellige got up to level 20 did a few main missions then stopped for the past week i just cant play the game anymore it does not make me happyI went into the game thinking its gonna be a masterpiece due to fanboys so i was excited 5 hrs. in and I'm feeling not so good did not like it then i stopped 3 months later i tried again and then stop then my fourth time i played all the way till Skellige got up to level 20 did a few main missions then stopped for the past week i just cant play the game anymore it does not make me happy nor excited its just this off feeling playing the game. i put it at a 5 because of the side quests the side quests in this game are absolute masterful however the combat and the gameplay is so off for me main quest is alright i guess… Expand
  32. PBrann88
    Feb 3, 2021
    5
    Great story! Great characters! A decent world and a lot of content! Shame its let down massively by the horrific combat! Also the RPG elements in this game are very weak and the control is terrible.
  33. mrPinx
    Jan 30, 2021
    7
    Игра в целом неплоха, однако главный минус это отношение разработчиков к старым игрокам. На пк есть возможность загрузки старых сохранений в последущие версии игры. Т.е прошел первую часть загрузил во вторую, далее в третью. Сюжет первой части и геймплей для тех времен был очень крут. Я проходил Ведьмака 1 много раз и каждый раз было круто. Когда вышел Ведьмак 2, перенос вещей и упоминаниеИгра в целом неплоха, однако главный минус это отношение разработчиков к старым игрокам. На пк есть возможность загрузки старых сохранений в последущие версии игры. Т.е прошел первую часть загрузил во вторую, далее в третью. Сюжет первой части и геймплей для тех времен был очень крут. Я проходил Ведьмака 1 много раз и каждый раз было круто. Когда вышел Ведьмак 2, перенос вещей и упоминание об Адда было неплохим решением, потому что весь Ведьмак 2 это попытка вспомнить прошлое плюс политические предпосылки. И вот мы добираемся до Ведьмака 3. Есть изменения затрагивающие персонажей, однако проходя игру за Нильфгаард , совершенно непонятно куда делась Адда? И когда упоминают, что Темерия стала вассальным государством, почему не говорят об Анаис, дочери Фольтеста. Что с ней? Сам Эмгыр или Радовид убили её что-ли? Есть возможность встретить старых персонажей. Впринципе все нелохо однако вы выпускаете 2 ДЛС "Каменные сердца" и "Кровь и вино". Т.е. Ведьмак 1 я проходил выбирая шани, Геральт сам много раз говорил, что ненавидит магию и порталы, и как бы логично, что Шани лучший вариант. Шани в свою очередь утверждает, что не может быть с Геральтом по причине, что он ведьмак и постоянно не дома. Но блять! В диалоге с Трисс есть возможность сказать, что ведьмаку все надоело и он просто хочет жить как обычно. Почему перед выпуском "Кровь и вино" нельзя было добавить такую же функцию для Шани. Т.е. с Трисс он может жить, а с Шани нет? ОМГ! Проходя все части игры, я надеялся на тот финал, который хотел. Но разработчики сами решают как правильно и все равно на игроков. Графика, боевая система и прочее пойдет.

    The game is generally not bad, but the main disadvantage is the attitude of the developers towards old players. On the pc, it is possible to load old saves into future versions of the game. Ie I went through the first part and loaded it into the second, then into the third. The plot of the first part and the gameplay for those times was very cool. I've done The Witcher 1 many times and every time it was cool. When The Witcher 2 came out, transferring things and mentioning Add was not a bad decision, because the whole Witcher 2 is an attempt to remember the past plus political background. And now we get to The Witcher 3. There are changes affecting the characters, but passing the game for Nilfgaard, it is completely incomprehensible where Adda went? And when they mention that Temeria has become a vassal state, why don't they talk about Anais, the daughter of Foltest. What with her? Did Emhyr himself or Radovid kill her or what? There is an opportunity to meet old characters. In principle, everything is not good, however you release 2 DLS "Stone Hearts" and "Blood and Wine". Those. The Witcher 1 I went through choosing Shani, Geralt himself said many times that he hates magic and portals, and it seems logical that Shani is the best option. Shani, in turn, claims that he cannot be with Geralt for the reason that he is a witcher and is constantly not at home. But **** In dialogue with Triss, there is an opportunity to say that the witcher is tired of everything and he just wants to live as usual. Why was it impossible to add the same function for Shani before the release of "Blood and Wine". Those. he can live with Triss, but not with Shani? OMG! Going through all parts of the game, I hoped for the ending that I wanted. But the developers decide for themselves how to do it correctly and all the same to the players. Graphics, combat system and stuff will go.    … Expand
  34. flopflopper
    Jan 4, 2021
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is quite complex, but theres no freedom. There's only one way to play the game, you have to use every gameplay mechanic aspect such as crafting, alchemy, upgrades, or you're going to struggle in the game. How to do that? loot every single thing you see. But not all ingridients are easy to get, so it feels like a fetch quest outside the quests list. I personally despise fetch quests in video games because they're just a chore and often just a thing disguised as 'exploration'. The controls is one of the worst I've ever seen in a game post 2010 that its so offputting, especially knowing how hyped this game is even until now. I play on the best performance setting possible and it doesn't help. Tried both controller and keyboard+mouse it doesn't make it better either. Looting and combat are heavily affected by the unresponsive controls. The combat itself is very tactical and as I mentioned earlier its impossible to play this in any other way, you're a witcher after all. All the perks, items, and skillsets are important to help you ease the challenge the combat offers. That is a good thing, if the bits and pieces are acquired in more creative ways other than the tedious looting. The open world is uninteresting and areas feel samey. Its full of question marks of places unworthy of exploring usually scattered with enemies, so exploration isn't exploration rather its just giving yourself more things to slash and loot. Many quests (not all but mostly) whether its main/side follow the same pattern. Find the red flashy things with the annoying filtered camera zoom, follow the trail, meet the enemy, fight, go back to quest giver. The worst thing is, you have to do them. Side quests aren't side quests at all. It technically forces you to do it or you'll be underleveled in combat. So theres zero freedom on how you approach the game. Narratively The Witcher 3 isn't a good place to start the franchise if you actually highly value lore and stories in video games like I do. The dialogues are lore heavy and when you know nothing about its just less interesting. The pacing of the story is slow but it wouldn't be a problem if The Witcher 3 open world isn't bland. In conclusion The Witcher 3 suffers confusion of its game design which values quantity over quality. The only good part of the game is the main quests and its choice of dialogue options but that can be a chore at some point.… Expand
  35. Umadbro
    Dec 7, 2020
    7
    The story and sidequests are great, amazing even. Graphics are spot on too, where the game falls flat is the unrewarding exploration and boring combat along with essentially no rpg mechanics. Perhaps it tried to do too much at the cost of quality.
  36. ALIreza57
    Nov 20, 2020
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooddddddddddddddddddddd… Expand
  37. deadcansing
    Nov 7, 2020
    7
    Great game with amazing story line, great graphic , impressive open world, funny and interesting quests with alternative choices.
    But it is the most bugged game i ever played, control system is totally broken ( auto targeting, crapy response and accuracy). You character can hide his weapon just by stepping on different texture, sadly it is console game ported to pc with very bad keyboard    Great game with amazing story line, great graphic , impressive open world, funny and interesting quests with alternative choices.
    But it is the most bugged game i ever played, control system is totally broken ( auto targeting, crapy response and accuracy). You character can hide his weapon just by stepping on different texture, sadly it is console game ported to pc with very bad keyboard and mouse support. Control system killed me more times than enemys ;(
    5 years after it was launched you can still fall in textures with out any chance of going back...    … Expand
  38. unusual
    Jul 30, 2020
    7
    Good game, not without drawbacks, but one of the best I've played. 7/10 deservedly. I advise to buy.
  39. Jehuty57
    Jul 23, 2020
    7
    This game is so slow and the combat is pretty terrible. Good if you have a ton of time on your hands, I guess.
  40. randomedragon
    Jul 20, 2020
    7
    Really amazing game. Graphics and animations are enjoyable. Story is great. Very little amount of bugs. Yada yada.

    My main beef is that the game offers you too much. Whenever I turned on the game I dreaded looking at my inventories or anything in the menus for that matter, there was just so, so, so much going on in there. But not only that but the world itself. It's definitely    Really amazing game. Graphics and animations are enjoyable. Story is great. Very little amount of bugs. Yada yada.

    My main beef is that the game offers you too much. Whenever I turned on the game I dreaded looking at my inventories or anything in the menus for that matter, there was just so, so, so much going on in there. But not only that but the world itself. It's definitely oversaturated which I feel works against the game. I mean, that's only if you don't always want to stick to the main quest and meander off and explore. I love exploring open world games but the Witcher really made me feel as though I only wanted to play the main quest and ignore all the things on the side.

    Amazing all around, again my only issue really is the over-saturation of content. It feels way too overwhelming.    … Expand
  41. Mats2468
    Jul 10, 2020
    6
    This is a honest and spoiler-free review of The Witcher 3. This game is currently the highest rated user score game on Metacritic to this date, which sounds to me that this game is going to be very good, but I left with mixed opinions. First off, i dont think it's a masterpiece what people make it out to be, instead, i find it a decent game, but not that great.

    Graphics in this game    This is a honest and spoiler-free review of The Witcher 3. This game is currently the highest rated user score game on Metacritic to this date, which sounds to me that this game is going to be very good, but I left with mixed opinions. First off, i dont think it's a masterpiece what people make it out to be, instead, i find it a decent game, but not that great.

    Graphics in this game still holds up incredibly good to this date, especially in ultra settings. This is some of the reasons why people gave this game a 10 when it came out, but imo, graphics is not everything to suddenly make this game a masterpiece.

    The majority of time you playing this game it comes to dialogue from diffirent quests and main story, a very slow based dialogue that it feels forever to end, and the way characters talk, it is very tedious to watch and listen too, i cant seem to understand why people loving this.

    The main story however, its way too complex imo, its somewhat hard to pay attention to the infinite amount of dialogue because the lack of cutscenes that could come with a bit of action or "epic moments", and the main story is unnecessary long (90 hours including travels from A to B, complete seveal side quests to level up to).

    Now to the open world, and daym those worlds look looks beautiful! It's quite impressive that CD Project Red has managed to create many maps with so many different beautiful landscapes that are ready to explore, but it is also important to note that not all areas in the game are not recommended to go to in the beginning, due to the level progression, something which is typical in RPG games.

    The combat feels very repetitive and there is a lack of opportunities to unlock different ways to attact against enemies. Well combat in a game determines a lot if the game is good, and Witcher's is not one of them.

    One thing I have to be honest guys, is that this game offers so much content for the money you paying for and that is a big positive about the game.

    Overrall, I can't believe the praise of this game. The Witcher 3 stands out to be the most overated game in history of video games (Terms of user score on Metacritic). Its a good game, dont misunderstand me.

    I really appreciated you reading my review of the game :)    … Expand
  42. PUFL
    Jun 26, 2020
    7
    Nice game, but still not Zelda's level. It have a big world (but still, Zelda's is bigger), nice characters.
  43. Lizarino
    May 31, 2020
    7
    The game itself is great, a 9/10
    With all the issues I'd give a 7/10
    Cons: Very clunky movement, especially painful in small spaces or near ledges making you get stuck or die at times Bad visual glitches and pop-in Horse controls. Gear randomly unequipped by itself Switching signs not working half the time Very repetitive music Bad ending However the game crashes    The game itself is great, a 9/10
    With all the issues I'd give a 7/10

    Cons:

    Very clunky movement, especially painful in small spaces or near ledges making you get stuck or die at times
    Bad visual glitches and pop-in
    Horse controls.
    Gear randomly unequipped by itself
    Switching signs not working half the time
    Very repetitive music
    Bad ending

    However the game crashes frequently, game breaking bugs happen a lot and it straight up breaks my PC and forces me to restart.    … Expand
  44. DudDOOD
    May 16, 2020
    6
    It does not have vr support, so talking about immersion is kind of silly. Unless the scale of the game is huge. That's how witcher slowly builds up immersion with hours and hours of gameplay to the level of today's vr games. Also, for more immersion it's better to play on highest difficulty, because witchers are fragile in this hostile world and die after falling from 10 feet height.It does not have vr support, so talking about immersion is kind of silly. Unless the scale of the game is huge. That's how witcher slowly builds up immersion with hours and hours of gameplay to the level of today's vr games. Also, for more immersion it's better to play on highest difficulty, because witchers are fragile in this hostile world and die after falling from 10 feet height.
    Guess, Pareto Principle is the norm, and it's okay that today a game with many clues about that it's unfinished is treated like a final product. Many pros, many cons. Won't enumerate them all, my personal biggest letdown is that there are no puzzles to solve. You, a medieval detective, just go to the marked location, click on marked objects, and puzzle solves itself for you. Basically same as Arkham Knight. Geralt just tells the player what to do, it becomes such a routine so quickly. I actually bought this game because of detective vibes it has. Because fantasy is mostly all the same to the point of annoying, and this felt so new and so fun. However, nope, cdpr also thinks that apparently the least risky move is to treat players like idiots. I wonder how did they come out with this for such a big game. The bigger the game the safer it is to experiment even if just a little bit. Could at least add some puzzle side quests, or could add adjustable puzzle difficulty by hints option if there were any in the main quests. I will still keep my hopes high for Cyberpunk, because witcher expansions show that developers kinda realized that they **** up the potential in wild hunt, and added some puzzles into hearts of stone, just a little bit. It's almost nothing though, and very-very basic.
    Could be such a masterpiece gameplay-wise. I mean it's fun to follow investigation in blood and wine, but it could be so much more interactive and therefore more fun.
    Gwent was fun exactly because of the point I am highlighting. Breath of the wild looks deserted in comparison to witcher, but is inherently more fun to actually Play because of puzzles    … Expand
  45. Mikyto
    Mar 21, 2020
    7
    Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has not aged well and even when released it was quite an sub-par experience propagated to universal acclaim by a ravenous fanbase. The graphics are gorgeous to look at but the clunky gameplay leaves a lot to be desired.

    Story is well written and not contrived, sadly it does not elavate itself above others in the genre and medium. Reading the books by Andrej    Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has not aged well and even when released it was quite an sub-par experience propagated to universal acclaim by a ravenous fanbase. The graphics are gorgeous to look at but the clunky gameplay leaves a lot to be desired.

    Story is well written and not contrived, sadly it does not elavate itself above others in the genre and medium. Reading the books by Andrej Sapkowski is far better and I am sad to say the videogame does not do it justice in the slightest.    … Expand
  46. Wiebe
    Feb 25, 2020
    7
    Gameplay is amazing, but I found its open world design lacking. Too many of the quest where, go to place x to kill monster y. The game felt like a chore.
  47. Bustaskool
    Feb 4, 2020
    5
    What a game. Still on first play through but WOW.

    Immersion is unparalleled
  48. Deaden84
    Dec 24, 2019
    7
    Good story and nice game atmosphere drops behind of bad combat mechanics and unbalanced game play. Control schematics and other things are making this game hardly bearable. Even at easiest difficulty is being pain to play. Always dodge dodge hit dodge dodge hit which is boring and provide dull game play. Also if we compare with other RPG games, this one have a very bad shapedGood story and nice game atmosphere drops behind of bad combat mechanics and unbalanced game play. Control schematics and other things are making this game hardly bearable. Even at easiest difficulty is being pain to play. Always dodge dodge hit dodge dodge hit which is boring and provide dull game play. Also if we compare with other RPG games, this one have a very bad shaped Leveling/Experience design. Even they didn't care to fix their mistake over these years. If need risk and rewards, playing easiest or hard doesn't matter because nothing is rewarding you. So, playing easiest will be best option but don't expect it as easiest difficulty. Conclusion: Be realist and don't throw your coins to give over score. 7 point is fine for this game.… Expand
  49. watde
    Oct 6, 2019
    6
    I've tried so hard to like this game, I really have. First off, I love RPG's I love TES, I love zelda, I love fallout, etcetc. The voice acting of the protagonist is quite **** with robotic lines and bad voice lines. The combat is utter dreadful, just as bad as assasins creed. hit hit dodge, hit hit dodge, repeat. Gfx wise its not terrible but the gameplay is **** Very linear even tho youI've tried so hard to like this game, I really have. First off, I love RPG's I love TES, I love zelda, I love fallout, etcetc. The voice acting of the protagonist is quite **** with robotic lines and bad voice lines. The combat is utter dreadful, just as bad as assasins creed. hit hit dodge, hit hit dodge, repeat. Gfx wise its not terrible but the gameplay is **** Very linear even tho you can pick up generic side quests here and there. Very overhyped game and its obviously made for console gamers since their standards are lower.… Expand
  50. cemoya97
    Sep 22, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I don't play a game like this ever before my entire gaming life i did not see any game like this before this game is the best game i ever play… Expand
  51. Fliff
    Sep 21, 2019
    5
    I'm not really sure how this game came to be praised so highly. It's a severe case of story over gameplay. The combat is repetitive and incredibly simple, and only barely evolves as you progress through the game. The only two things I can recommend this game for are the visuals and the story, which are both very well done for the most part. Geralt can get a bit one-note at times with hisI'm not really sure how this game came to be praised so highly. It's a severe case of story over gameplay. The combat is repetitive and incredibly simple, and only barely evolves as you progress through the game. The only two things I can recommend this game for are the visuals and the story, which are both very well done for the most part. Geralt can get a bit one-note at times with his whole gruff demeanor, but there is some good characterization throughout. The visuals are stellar, but the controls are abysmal and the animation during gameplay is janky at best.

    So again, the story and maybe the visuals are why you should play this game. Beyond that there is very little depth to gameplay, the loot system is worthless, and the world is basically lifeless if you stare at it for more than 10 seconds and realize 99% of the people you come across are essentially just window dressing.

    TES has many, many faults, but I think Witcher shows me why TES is so well done. The world feels alive in TES, each NPC has a path and purpose, and the world genuinely feels alive, not just in cutscenes but everywhere the player goes. The world of Witcher 3 feels lifeless in comparison, it's all just there for you and the handful of NPCs who can actually give you a quest or play Gwent with you.    … Expand
  52. vodkaffee
    Sep 21, 2019
    5
    great game, good combat and world exploration, remembered me a lot of zelda, but the combat and music gets very repetitive very fast; the scripted scenes looks amazing, and i mean all of them even for secondary missions, pretty recommendable to try
  53. Qofik
    Sep 16, 2019
    6
    Отличный симулятор поиска людей.Так же бы хотел придраться к боёвки,а точнее какой урон проходит в размере с комариный укус от великана с якорем и от алкаша из корчмы у которого просто уровень выше на 10,а с апперкот пол полоски хп уходит.Ну в принципе никто вроде не обещал реализм в игре,но это всё равно тупо,Отличный симулятор поиска людей.Так же бы хотел придраться к боёвки,а точнее какой урон проходит в размере с комариный укус от великана с якорем и от алкаша из корчмы у которого просто уровень выше на 10,а с апперкот пол полоски хп уходит.Ну в принципе никто вроде не обещал реализм в игре,но это всё равно тупо,
  54. matdimond
    Aug 10, 2019
    6
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  55. PetrPetrenko
    Apr 6, 2019
    6
    As for me this is overrated game. Of course it has some good aspects, especially compared to the present games, there are well written story, one of the best graphics even nowadays, fresh lore, not linear and bright side quests, charming characters and may be few others. I can give 7 or 8 for all this. But it's not very versatile in upgrading character, combat and skill systems.

    For the    As for me this is overrated game. Of course it has some good aspects, especially compared to the present games, there are well written story, one of the best graphics even nowadays, fresh lore, not linear and bright side quests, charming characters and may be few others. I can give 7 or 8 for all this. But it's not very versatile in upgrading character, combat and skill systems.

    For the first look you could see some different skills, clothes, weapons, but all this don't bring big changes to game-play. If you start second or third time you can make some other decisions, complete some steps in different order, which would make you see other cut-scenes, but you are always gonna be a man with sword and very limited action set. There is no such things like was in "Skyrim" for example, where you could make much more different characters (I'm talking not only about appearance) and skill build really could completely change game process.

    So, it's more like mix of uncomplicated slasher and action adventure with some customization, huge world and variety of outcomes. And it's definitely well made mix but it's not give all that i wait from RPG. I was between 7 and 8 but after I've looked to all this 10 of 10, i had to rate 6 just to sick balance because game is not brilliant.    … Expand
  56. Jenia
    Nov 30, 2018
    7
    have 26 hours in the game.. i tried to like it but i cant. this game is totally overrated.
    the story is boring, and most of the missions are generic.
    maybe it's just me, i dont like rpg's that much (prefer arpg's like titan quest more), but the gameplay is too slow for my taste. i do like the combat system and monster fights.. its a solid 7 in my point of view, also for the high polish    have 26 hours in the game.. i tried to like it but i cant. this game is totally overrated.
    the story is boring, and most of the missions are generic.
    maybe it's just me, i dont like rpg's that much (prefer arpg's like titan quest more), but the gameplay is too slow for my taste.
    i do like the combat system and monster fights.. its a solid 7 in my point of view, also for the high polish of the game. but not my cup of tea.    … Expand
  57. ReiAyanami
    Nov 16, 2018
    5
    alright let's get the good out of the way right now, it has amazing graphics & a huge expansive open world.

    Now onto the rest, First off, the combat is really bad. There is little to no variety in encounters and combat outside of a boss, every mechanic feels annoying in some way like a bandit parrying a master swordsman of a witcher or a wolf jumping out of the way at the right moment,    alright let's get the good out of the way right now, it has amazing graphics & a huge expansive open world.

    Now onto the rest, First off, the combat is really bad. There is little to no variety in encounters and combat outside of a boss, every mechanic feels annoying in some way like a bandit parrying a master swordsman of a witcher or a wolf jumping out of the way at the right moment, these built in mechanisms to prevent combat from being easy are just as annoying as Assassins creed, hell that's what the combat is most like to be honest. Geralt moves like a **** 80 yr old suffering from severe Arthritis. The RPG mechanics feel out of place a lot, like wow, a potion that gives me 10% bonus damage on a contract monster I already killed that would take me several minutes (lets say 10) to actually create, amazing. Or having to repair armor and weapons, why? Food and drinks being required to heal are annoying too. Then all that gear - when it essentially boils down to just remaining leveled, because that's the artificial nonsensical difficulty of this game. Geralt can take on the wild hunt, but stay away from that level 10 rotfiend because even though he can slay all those level 3 rotfiends, this one is too much for this god-tier warrior.

    The Main Questline is incredibly repetitive, 90 % of the story can be summed up like this, Go to one town, Ask someone about Ciri, Get set on a Monster hunting quest, return & ask about Ciri, play a short flashback as Ciri, regain Control as Geralt, leave town & repeat this for 35 **** hours. Wow really the pinnacle of storytelling right here.

    The side quests don't fare much better either, Go to an NPC, they lost their brother, mother in law, wife, dog, uncle to some **** monster. You use your witcher senses, Geralt goes "hmmm blood tracks, looks like there was a fight", you find the monster, kill the monster, get reward. Repeat. Oh and let's not forgetting searching for someone's **** frying pan. Holy **** i'm really blown away.

    Overall: High 5/Low 6/10    … Expand
  58. DrSiko
    Nov 12, 2018
    7
    Let me first say, I spent 100 hours on The Witcher 3 and I still didn't finish the main plot, not started with the DLCs yet, so while I still have much play hours to go, I think my past hours allows me to review the game.

    The environment is beautful to being with. It is the best game to show the medieval ages which is gloomy, dangerous, stink everywhere and peasants are struggling hard    Let me first say, I spent 100 hours on The Witcher 3 and I still didn't finish the main plot, not started with the DLCs yet, so while I still have much play hours to go, I think my past hours allows me to review the game.

    The environment is beautful to being with. It is the best game to show the medieval ages which is gloomy, dangerous, stink everywhere and peasants are struggling hard to survive the consequences of wars, unlike other medieval RPG games which shows you people dress well, streets are clean and buildings are like built yesterday. Every city, town and village shows a bit of unique looks, while NPCs will eventually repeat the same one-liners and sentences which can be disappointing.

    Much side quests to indulge with, and they're all written well, not those burdensome fetch quests you find in Skyrim often. Cutscenes are likable and characters are fun when they talk and argue.

    The combat system is very basic. It's like designed for people who are playing RPG for the first time. There are not much moves to do which makes the combat boring. The signs are fun to use for some hours until they feel repetitive.

    Leveling is really bad in this game. You don't feel you have "leveled up" like other RPG games. They stealthly improve your attack and defense points without knowing it. You don't know what was exactly improved. In my 100 hours, I didn't have to use spells because I simply didn't need them. Oils, not really. Some oils sometimes are very hard to make because some ingredient is hard to find and I won't waste hours to find it and better try my chance without it.

    The inventory and quest UIs are horrendous. Looking for a quest? Go through 3-4 tabs with 50+ rows each. Worst is, they're not sorted by name, level or anything. Inventory can be messy and everything is in one place. While they break into food, weapons and armor, etc, but try looking for a particular item in the spells inventory, and you'll be lost among other 150+ items.

    What's more disappointing is, it's not worthy to work hard to get that fine sword or armor, because you'll simply find better 1-2 levels later. I worked for 3 hours on a side quest to build me an armor, just to replace it with a better armor 2 HOURS LATER.

    Killing monsters while exploring is useless. Who in the world thought that players shouldn't be given experience points for slaying monsters or bandits?? The landscape while huge, it's "too real" it gets boring to explore. The question marks thrown all over the map is just either a monster nest, a treasure guarded by some monster, or a bandit camp. That's it. There is no dungeons to discover or landmarks to explore.

    The music is astonishing and makes a great background.

    Currently, I'm playing it to finish it rather than enjoying it. Having a game which the first hour is the same as 100th hour is really boring. Oh, and the first 10 hours of the game? The most boring I had. I had to stop playing the game twice until a friend convinced me to play it and pass the tedious first hours to get to the meat, which I really enjoyed later, but now it's becoming boring again, maybe until I start the DLCs.    … Expand
  59. psylife
    Oct 14, 2018
    5
    The combat has weight and managing the stamina adds a welcome tactical layer to the experience ; that said the game knows only to challenge you by spawning a stupid amount of enemies. Button mashing is often necessary and interior combat is as bad as it gets, which is a situation the game puts you in often.

    The magic signs have their importance but you will be spending most of your time    The combat has weight and managing the stamina adds a welcome tactical layer to the experience ; that said the game knows only to challenge you by spawning a stupid amount of enemies. Button mashing is often necessary and interior combat is as bad as it gets, which is a situation the game puts you in often.

    The magic signs have their importance but you will be spending most of your time recharging your shield which essentially confines your magic abilities to boosting your armor. The perks, abilities, and weapon upgrades are mechanically useful yet they fail to excite beyond their functionality.

    Dialogue wise, the genealogy of answers is quite shallow and deprived of branching - Suffice to experience Deus ex: Human revolution's dialogue system to understand what I mean by that. There is no "Game" to be found in the dialogue mechanics. The characters are inanimate dolls and the choices on offer are nothing more than a bunch of glorified playback buttons.

    Exploration wise, I think the game does a descent job in terms of environmental story telling, but nothing that is worth the praises beyond the best the competition has to offer. Shenmue 2 does much more in my opinion and the game came out nearly 20 years ago. The investigative phases are a real joke too, where you are mindlessly following red marks - yet another example of shallow, unaccomplished mechanic.

    The pacing is a real problem too ; During the first half of the game (10hrs), the story literally stalls. The game becomes more engaging once you reach the second half, but it feels too little too late. The characters are likable and by the end of the game I did feel some attachment towards some of them. The difficulty is also an issue, where the beginning happens to be much harder than the end; I beat the final bosses on my first attempts while being vastly under-leveled.

    The visuals are fairly bland retrospectively ; For instance, I find the sunsets particularly vulgar and over-saturated . The towns also, lack authenticity in their structure and layout, and that is particularly jarring if you compare it to the original Assassin's creed's urban layout, which feel substantially more authentic and researched.

    To conclude, I'd say that the disproportionate success and admiration this game has generated, comes from the fascination that the average nerd historically hold toward medieval sword and shields ; It's the "game of thrones" generation that has brought Wild hunt to the pinnacle.

    Wild hunt is not a bad game, it's just so far from being this timeless masterpiece.    … Expand
  60. Superscifi
    Sep 10, 2018
    6
    This game doesn't deserve the hype it gets. It's not fun, the gameplay is terrible, the only pass it really gets is the amazing story and world as a whole, which, unfortunately, cannot fix this game in my eyes.
  61. RustyCoin
    Sep 6, 2018
    6
    This is an okay game, but certainly not "the best RPG of all time" as many have claimed. I've never played Witcher 2, tried Witcher 1 (Enhanced Edition) for couple of hours, but I've read tons of reviews and gamer's opinions about Witcher 3 before starting playing it. This game has a lot of advantages but it has even more flaws.

    PROS: Start of the game is very detailed with tutorial in    This is an okay game, but certainly not "the best RPG of all time" as many have claimed. I've never played Witcher 2, tried Witcher 1 (Enhanced Edition) for couple of hours, but I've read tons of reviews and gamer's opinions about Witcher 3 before starting playing it. This game has a lot of advantages but it has even more flaws.

    PROS:
    Start of the game is very detailed with tutorial in every aspect of the game.
    Story looks very promising and intriguing.
    Combat (in open areas) is good, various of mechanics and styles of fighting. Mods can improve that even more.
    Main quests seems okay so far, story plays slow, but it manages to keep tension.
    Huge open world with beautiful nature.
    Characters graphical view - face, eyes, lips, nose, body, color looks amazing.

    CONS:
    Most of side quests are too boring, you just play them to get exp, loot or more gold.
    Dialogues (mostly side quests) are boring too. I mostly just skip side quests dialogues just to get to the point and get it done.
    Stupid non-enemy AI - if you stand on the road with your horse, villagers can't simply get pass you, they just bash into you every time.
    Terrible character control in the city - witcher can't get passed other villagers peacefully too, once he starts walking/running in the city - he bashes everyone around like some crazy guy, steps on chairs, tables etc.
    Close quarters combat is hell - if you find yourself in a fight, in a small room it's going to be nightmare. You can't concentrate on certain opponent for more that 2 seconds, you pressing mouse and keyboard to fight one enemy, game decides to attack other, camera sometimes starts jump crazy too and you can't see witcher any more, sometimes you lose control over your character completely, especially when you have to make fast decisions - you press roll, but witcher just keeps standing in place and dying, you press dodge - witcher refused to do that.
    Graphics look good, but it could be better in sharpening aspect - game's world look too sharpened on high and too blurry on low. It can only be fixed with some graphical mods.
    There are some bugs too - citizens sometimes floating in air, roach appearing in air and some optional quest lines not appearing in journal and failling after you pass certain point of quest.

    Right now I'm at this point where I'm wondering whether to continue to play this game or not, I hesitate. Main story is what still keeps me going like I mentioned before, I want to know what's gonna happen next. But other than, there's nothing really that special about Witcher 3 and it's certainly not "RPG king of all time" for me.
    Everyone that loves RPGs should try Witcher 3 themselves, because it really depends on many aspects, some will love it and some will hate it, and both side would be right. However this game is far from the best.    … Expand
  62. zevl12
    Jan 12, 2018
    5
    I had this game refunded because i did not enjoy it at all.

    I was about 5 hours in when i decided to give up. The first aspect that hits you and never lets go is being bogged down with heavy story unraveling at a slow pace. It references parts in previous games which i have not played without explaining it ( early on at least ), the story was so ungripping and boring to follow and did    I had this game refunded because i did not enjoy it at all.

    I was about 5 hours in when i decided to give up. The first aspect that hits you and never lets go is being bogged down with heavy story unraveling at a slow pace. It references parts in previous games which i have not played without explaining it ( early on at least ), the story was so ungripping and boring to follow and did not let me immerse myself in it at all just felt like a infinite wheel of perpetual filler. Just full of dull ordinary this and that dialogue with an underpinned "Find this important character in the end trope", lending itself to be percieved as if you are under somewhat constant urgency. One of the main characters himself proclaiming you are here to find and bring a person to him as fast as possible, making me feel uncomfortable doing side quests involving you to stray from this, as if i wasn't supposed to do them.

    Everyone in dialogue references lore characters, places, factions etc making it sound like they are saying something interesting but in reality they are just spouting heavy words with no impact or good story driven writing. "Oh the lord of superawesome city in the battle of long forgotten dragon in the quest for greater divinity", who cares tell me something that gets me engaged. The story basically has nothing unique or well delivered going for it, it makes you feel as a block of text inside concept art description.

    Combat is a little enticing but in the end very basic and not satisfactory, sometimes you can do some good dodges and attack in a way that feels a little rewarding mixing it up with some cool spells. But in the end its just about mashing the dodge button a lot and strike a few times.

    I have a lot more to complain about, how things such as the witcher sense that you use to be a detective is such a lame mechanic that does not add anything to the game. On rails open world, everything is laid out for you, barely feel like you are playing the game just watching. How being a witcher might work in a narrative driven game where you dont really carve your own path (which is what this game is), but it still makes you out to be a non distinct super mutant that kills things for money with a neutral stance. Making me feel like a mix of "i am my own character and no i am a witcher" this balance is so annoying and i feel lost to who i am.    … Expand
  63. futagodd
    Nov 17, 2017
    6
    Quite possible the most overrated game i've ever played. The map itself feels alive, natural, and very well done at times, with great side quests, side stories and sense of progression - but the game itself is okay at very best. A very mediocre characters, hilariously bad story, awful voice acting (Except some of the main characters), and very basic combat ruins the game completely.Quite possible the most overrated game i've ever played. The map itself feels alive, natural, and very well done at times, with great side quests, side stories and sense of progression - but the game itself is okay at very best. A very mediocre characters, hilariously bad story, awful voice acting (Except some of the main characters), and very basic combat ruins the game completely. Visually also unimpressive even to 2015 standards. Recommended at deep sale only.… Expand
  64. gun661
    Oct 17, 2017
    5
    Rating The Witcher 3 seems quite difficult. I have the utmost respect for all the work that went into this game. It contains a moderate amount of great ideas and fun content that seems personal and passionate, which is a true gift to gamers nowadays considering the excel-sheet game-design of current "AAA"-titles. But those fun pieces are overshadowed by design decisions that throw themRating The Witcher 3 seems quite difficult. I have the utmost respect for all the work that went into this game. It contains a moderate amount of great ideas and fun content that seems personal and passionate, which is a true gift to gamers nowadays considering the excel-sheet game-design of current "AAA"-titles. But those fun pieces are overshadowed by design decisions that throw them into a melange that, at least in my opinion, is pretty much drab and humdrum. The sum is less than it's parts. In the end, I couldn't get myself to finish the game despite trying several times.

    The Good:
    - Astonishing level-art, great models and textures (Novigrad is frickin' massive)
    - Witty episodes in-between (returning a goat; herding pigs; rock trolls; some dialogues)
    - Quest design being tied to story elements; solving mysteries.

    The Disputed
    - Story:
    Overall, its tone, atmosphere, and mentality seemed more in accordance with (the popular) "Games of Thrones" than with the spirit of its own subject. My guess is: that's the reason why this game is so popular: so "dark", so "grown up". Therefore the game's story is a grimdark succession of tragedy after tragedy. Tragedy no matter what. Why? Because of drama. Want to save children? Then other children will die. Want to be diplomatic? Can't be, everyone's corrupt. Want to survive? Kill or be killed. It's this monotonous "human nature is **** " and all around edginess ("you gotta be a dirtbag yourself") that's now copied by every major player in the media industry, be it television, films or games... smells like teen spirit.

    Yes, there also was one such tragic quest-line in the Witcher 2, a game I really liked, but that's the difference: If you repeat this concept again and again and make it your one trick pony, it gets artificial and melodramatic. Besides, while the concept of neutrality was a really interesting topic in the books and also the first 2 games, in the third game Geralt's options to act neutral seemed reduced to Geralt behaving like a stone-cold mercenary, a calculating entrepeneur, regrettably.

    The Witcher novels, as far as I remember, manage a nuanced balance of "dark" and "light" content. At it's core they also convey a lot of gritty humour, sober human warmth and friendship, exciting (i.e. NOT depressing) adventures and tales, and a lot of eroticism (there even was a testimonial from Playboy magazine on the back of the first book). In Comparison, humour, adventure, friendship, and eroticism became a minor aspect of the Witcher 3, whereas the grimdark gore and edginess went into overdrive. Alas, it's also the reason I couldn't really get into the story, I'm no fan of GoT and its grimdark dramatically dramatic drama.

    The Bad
    - Stuff to do all over the place: What to do with the (literal) hundreds of "points of interests", and how to react to the (literal) tens of thousands lootable herbs all over the place? When and what to gather? Gather them at all? Is it worthwhile? I'd say: No. You thought Zelda BotW's krog seeds were a completionists nightmare, well, you haven't seen this.
    - How to get to all these places? The game is designed in a way that the only efficient method to get to places is looking at the mini-map and following the dotted line leading you to your next spot or quest. While the scenery you walk or ride through is nice, it's just that: scenery, empty scenery. I wonder how much time players have spend looking at that dotted line on the mini-map. I wish there was an eye-tracking study about this.
    - There's so many "NPCs". But except story NPCs and merchants, you can't interact with any of them, which seems kinda odd. There's whole villages with no NPCs to talk to, just "models" walking around. The term "NPC" is misleading in this case, it's more like "bots" or just part of the non-interactive scenery, like trees.
    - Loot. Generic, random loot everywhere. Besides the witcher gear quests, there's no "artifacts" or truly special items to discover.

    - All of this adds up to: Aside from the story quests there's no real discoveries to be made, no feeling of adventure, no real incentive to explore the open world. And while I do not know the look and location of many villages in this game or the nooks and crannies of Novigrad, I remember the layout of the mini map quite well.
    - Combat and moving around the world. There are a lot of other reviews that already cover this topic in all its particulars.

    Summary / tl;dr:
    If you're a fan of GoT-style stories, don't mind spectating Geralt's dot as it travels around the minimap to your next story dialogue, and fancy your combat to be rolling and pirouetting, than there's some fun to be had with The Witcher 3 and some beautiful sceneries to be seen.    … Expand
  65. Chadpowers
    Jun 19, 2017
    6
    Graphics: 10/10

    Not much to say here, it's basically the best practice for this genre. Sound: 5/10 Not bad. Not good. Overall Quite forgettable. At least decent SFX. Gameplay: 3/10 This one is really hard to judge, since the player will spend 50% of his time watching cutscenes and 45% following markers on the map. The other 5% the player will frantically spam light attacks    Graphics: 10/10

    Not much to say here, it's basically the best practice for this genre.

    Sound: 5/10

    Not bad. Not good. Overall Quite forgettable. At least decent SFX.

    Gameplay: 3/10

    This one is really hard to judge, since the player will spend 50% of his time watching cutscenes and 45% following markers on the map. The other 5% the player will frantically spam light attacks and stunlock every enemy to death. The pretty animations brilliantly hide the fact that the combat system couldn't be any more simplistic and free of any kind of challenge. The Character of Geralt is already overpowered at the start of the game, as someone who is stronger than any human or monster and a master of Swordfighting, Crossbows, Magic and with superhuman strength and endurance. Not only is the character stronger than everything in the game by lore, also will he not change a thing about the gameplay for the whole game - there is no feeling of progression whatsoever, it's fast attack spam for 100% of the fights. Also enemies respawn and scale, making the huge, but stale world even more static.
    The combat itself is worth about 1 point and the other activities in the game also are worth a single point. Even the crafting system doesn't really score, since the items the players gets from that don't matter compared to what he can get from other sources and faster and easier at that. At least the game has a lot of content, which nets a third point. But what good is a huge world like that if it's filled with only meaningless activities in and between following map markers?

    Story: 8/10

    Story in the witcher is very polarizing. Some people love it, other people hate it. The plot itself certainly isn't as epic as one would expect and the overpowered nature of the main character really leaves very little room for actual surprises. Personally I dislike everything about the characters, the plot and most of the dialogues. However, everything adheres to high standards - just not everyones standards - and the overall quality and detail are extremely good. As per usual for most games though, the story loses drive after the first area and stays comparatively underwhelming for most of the middle of the game, where the underwhelming gameplay is much more noticeable, so that's -2 points.

    Summary: 6/10
    The game can be a 10/10 for people that love cutscenes - but then a movie might be a better investment.
    A more realistic scoring would be either 6 or 7 out of 10, depending on how much one is bothered by the cutscenes and the follow the marker gameplay. That score might seem low, but if one looks past the fancy graphics and sex scenes, the game really has very little to offer in terms of actual player interaction with the world and gameplay, which is after all the core of a game.    … Expand
  66. Draconis13
    Jun 3, 2017
    6
    I hope this has not set a new standard for RPGs in the future, because this is a sorry excuse for an RPG.

    I keep getting bored of this game, even though I'm really trying to like it, and I'm extremely jealous of everyone who loves this game so much more than I do. The game play is terrible, everything about it is a terrible atrocity of RPG game play. The equipment doesn't matter.    I hope this has not set a new standard for RPGs in the future, because this is a sorry excuse for an RPG.

    I keep getting bored of this game, even though I'm really trying to like it, and I'm extremely jealous of everyone who loves this game so much more than I do.

    The game play is terrible, everything about it is a terrible atrocity of RPG game play. The equipment doesn't matter. Better armor, weapons etc. has no affect on game play, and in 99% of RPGs getting better equipment is the only reason for exploring. Not to mention this game has the least amount of dynmanics and replayability of any RPG I have encountered. You can only use 1 weapon type, a sword, 2 if you count the useless crossbow you will never use. And there's 5 spells, OH well maybe given how highly rated The DLC is they released 2 more spells with each one. So that would give it a grand total of 9 spells, I can tell they put so much work into this gameplay.Yet people say this gameplay is like Dark Souls, yeah it's like Dark Souls if you remove 10 out of the 11 possible attack types, 198 out of 199 weapons, and 200 out of the 208 spells. Then it's like Dark Souls.

    Even if equipment had an effect on gameplay, it wouldn't matter, because you could beat this game naked at level 1. This is the easiest RPG I've ever played, and the easiest adventure game I've played since Assassin's Creed 2. For me, the immersion of Dark Fantasy monster hunting comes from the constant fear that you will stumble across an epic abomination that will sodomize you into oblivion. In the Witcher 3, the hardest fight is the tutorial boss, because you are still learning the controls. After that the game is as hard as winning a nose picking contest against earthworms. If a 4 year-old can slay a dragon on this game, the immersion of risky and intense monster hunting is completely ruined.

    The world is also quite disappointing. Given how much better people like this world than Dragon Age Inquisition, I was expecting this to be much more spectacular, but visually it's nothing but a major step down from Inquisition. Velen is all 1 environment of endless acreage of bland tree copses and villages that were copy+pasted 100 times over. the environment and the scenery never changes.

    The story is the only reason to play it, that and Gwent. Overall this is an OK game and the story is good enough that I plan to story mode speed run this game at some point, but for now I've grown too bored of the game play.

    Pros:
    Gwent: 10/10
    Story: 10/10

    Cons:
    Gameplay: 0/10 worst of any RPG I have played. This makes Witcher 1 look like Dark Souls.
    World: 6/10 -not bad but greatly preceded by its reputation.

    Overall: 6/10

    A decent game but largely overrated. I hope to God this doesn't become the game play standard for RPGs in the future.    … Expand
  67. DragonApproach
    Mar 28, 2017
    7
    10 for story and characters, 5 for combat and generic "let me smell" this and retrieve this old body from this camp type of quests. All in all, a pretty overrated game if you ask me.
  68. inkblowout
    Mar 11, 2017
    7
    Game is meh at best for me. I don't see how it's the best RPG of all time.

    Story is probably the only thing The Witcher 3 excels on, although I'm not a huge fan of the story (I stopped playing after 10 hours.) it seems to be reasonably paced similar with Baldur's Gate 1 and 2. Side missions are pretty cool too. Nice to do different things except for once and each side mission has    Game is meh at best for me. I don't see how it's the best RPG of all time.

    Story is probably the only thing The Witcher 3 excels on, although I'm not a huge fan of the story (I stopped playing after 10 hours.) it seems to be reasonably paced similar with Baldur's Gate 1 and 2. Side missions are pretty cool too. Nice to do different things except for once and each side mission has different outcomes which is neat.

    But why a 7/10. Because the gameplay is dreadful. This is where The Witcher 3 really loses it's points because the combat system is just bland. Like sure the first couple of encounters I loved killing enemies left and right but then it gets old quick. People have told me to increase the difficulty.... but that doesn't change anything. You are limited to a formula styled combat system which is the BIGGEST reason that makes it bland. It isn't tactic as people say it is... it just feels like I'm playing a easier version of Dark Souls, but dark souls you need to adapt, with The Witcher 3, all you really have to do is put some oils, use the proper sword and witcher signs.To some the combat could be interesting but to me it got old really quick. And you are limited to Geralt, a witcher... you know what that means, you cannot play a character you want to play. They gave you a template and said "Here now you shape your character with what you get." In RPGs you actually get to choose different classes and races and with all these choices available for you to role play off from. You hardly get much to progress in this game, and the game is a role playing game... you get to role play yes but you are really limited compared when playing other roleplaying games.

    Overall Gameplay > Story

    People don't seem to understand nowadays that good stories doesn't make a game good. It's a good gameplay that will prosper overall. If I wanted a good story, I would rather read a book. So I don't see how Witcher 3 can be the best RPG even when classics like Ultima, Planescape Tourment, Baldur's Gate, Early TES exist. Witcher 3 is a good story driven game, easily comparable to current Bioware titles such as Mass Effect and Dragon Age.

    Also to all you hardcore fanboys out there... stop comparing The Witcher 3 with ever damn game that releases. I swear one dude compared The Witcher 3 to Forza Horizon 3. I'm not joking.    … Expand
  69. kingplain
    Dec 14, 2016
    6
    This game is alright. It feels like a hybrid between assassins creed and skyrim: Triple A open world RPG. If I wasn't aware of its "best game of 2015" status I wouldn't have guessed it on my own. It's fun. It'll hold your attention. But it's not a 10/10 game.

    I like that there's constantly options on how to resolve quests, similar to Fallout New Vegas. That's the best part about the    This game is alright. It feels like a hybrid between assassins creed and skyrim: Triple A open world RPG. If I wasn't aware of its "best game of 2015" status I wouldn't have guessed it on my own. It's fun. It'll hold your attention. But it's not a 10/10 game.

    I like that there's constantly options on how to resolve quests, similar to Fallout New Vegas. That's the best part about the game and the place where it excels beyond its peers. Beyond that, there's room for improvement. Namely in the inventory and combat. The inventory is needlessly complicated. I'm not a big fan of crafting/alchemy, or the silly card card in a game. That stuff doesn't appeal to me. It feels like an added bonus feature that doesn't add anything but makes everything actually want to do filled with spam items and NPCs. Would be nice if there was an option to turn it off.

    Combat's not that great. Fight one person/thing is easy enough, but groups of enemies will gang up and cut you down quickly. There's no good way to handle it without resorting to cheap tactics yourself. The lock-on feature is useless as well. The controls are very squishy and imprecise. I've devolved into swearing at my character as he inexplicably turns to fight an enemy when he's supposed to be running away, or when he gets stuck on a fence. A big issue I have is how dark this game is. With my computer, monitor, and in game settings maxed out, I can see anything indoors. Google shows I'm not the only one with the issue. I often find myself navigating indoor areas by the mini-map and witcher sense because everything on screen is just black.

    I hope they keep the decision making aspect of game intact (t would be a fallout 4-level travesty if they got rid of it) and work to improve the gameplay in future installments.    … Expand
  70. valerian
    Dec 10, 2016
    7
    A well-made game, but not the greatest modern RPG. by far. Which is sad, because I know how much sacrifice was put into this.

    PROS + Sidequests and monster contracts are fun, even if they bring the story way out of focus. + Novigrad, though you don’t get to change the politics of asides killing a few badguys + Combat controls are improved, not clunky. + High quality models    A well-made game, but not the greatest modern RPG. by far. Which is sad, because I know how much sacrifice was put into this.

    PROS

    + Sidequests and monster contracts are fun, even if they bring the story way out of focus.

    + Novigrad, though you don’t get to change the politics of asides killing a few badguys

    + Combat controls are improved, not clunky.

    + High quality models and graphics. Beautiful game for screencapping.

    +Despite its story, the WRITING is good. Lambert, Kiera, Dijkstra and Regis are fab.

    +I hate Ciri, but the relationship between her and Geralt is authentic, for what it is.

    +++ GWENT.

    CONS

    -Open world KILLED the narrative. Why find the girl, save the world from very ‘fast’ villains when I can spend 50+ hours on sidequests with no consequence whatsoever. I can even start Blood and Wine and travel to Toussaint right before I begin the final quest/boss battle. Immersion wise, this is abysmal.

    - Wild Hunt are punch-clock villains. We’re told they’re the worst, but what they DO is dismal. This goes hand in hand with an open world. The Wild Hunt never does anything because they are waiting for YOU.

    -Environments except Novigrad are cut+paste. Felt nothing for White Orchard, or the other clones in Velen.

    -Skellige’s political ‘plot’ is Bioware grade. Skellige itself also felt shoehorned in. Should’ve been cut from the main game and developed further into a 3rd expansion pack, imho.

    - The lack of mentioning of some certain characters *cough* IORVETH* *cough* is irritating. After many patches and two EPs, there is not even a single journal entry.

    - Combat healing= nuked difficulty.

    - It’s easy make money buy what you want, compared to W2. Roleplaying wise, if you are supposed to be a poor witcher, this is a flaw.

    - Ciri. Didn’t like her from the books, don’t like her now. She’s in real need of some actual character flaws.

    Overall, a good game, but with it’s flaws, as a game that strives for better STORY, this fell way off the mark.

    And that’s disappointing, considering how much crunch time went into this. Perhaps if the devs got more sleep they would've thought to get their fundamentals down than being more 'ambitious'.

    TL;DR: Dragon Age: Inquisition, but better. Suffers from the same exact flaws, when it comes to its narrative, but its more polished and was made by less tormented people.

    B+.    … Expand
  71. Proxyzygy
    Nov 20, 2016
    5
    The Witcher 3 is a beautiful game let down by a painful combat system and lazy quest design.

    THE PROS: -The Witcher 3 is a work of art -Graphics. It needs to be said that not only is this game is GORGEOUS, but it easily runs at +60fps. -Beautiful soundtrack, definitely one of the best game OSTs of recent years. From heart pounding combat music to haunting exploration music.    The Witcher 3 is a beautiful game let down by a painful combat system and lazy quest design.

    THE PROS:
    -The Witcher 3 is a work of art

    -Graphics. It needs to be said that not only is this game is GORGEOUS, but it easily runs at +60fps.

    -Beautiful soundtrack, definitely one of the best game OSTs of recent years. From heart pounding combat music to haunting exploration music.

    -Well written story. Your hunt for Ciri is believable and well written thrusting Geralt into a series of smaller and ultimately interconnecting storylines.

    -Believable (and more importantly memorable) characters. The characters you interact with have their own personality and motivations, some you'll love and some you'll hate.

    THE CONS:
    -Keyboard controls are awful. Feels like controlling a JCB riding a tank. Use a controller.

    -Menus are clunky as hell. Heaps of wasted screen real estate here with a 3D model of Geralt and his currently equipped items taking up over half of the screen whilst your inventory items. Your actual inventory items however (I'm looking at you potions and decoctions menu) are relegated to a tiny area forcing you to either memorize the icons or rely on the tooltip (which more often than not fails to show.)

    Enemy Upscaling. This optional feature works great for the run of the mill cannon fodder enemies but some of the enemies just scale like crap, I'm looking to you Djinn!

    -Combat. Really, really repetitive. Every single fight feels exactly the same as the previous, occasionally you might get the excitement of using a different Sign or Oil. The last boss is the prime example of this, he fights just like one of the hundreds of bandits you've killed.

    -Exploration. Yes the world is big. Yes the world is beautiful, but exploring it feels unrewarding when it's as empty as this, there ARE “hidden” things but if you get within half a mile of them the game effectively shouts “There's a hidden thing here!!” and marks it on your map.

    -Pacing, at least if you're doing any side missions. By the time I'd cleared Velen and Novigrad this game just dragged for me.

    -Novigrad. It's pretty and it LOOKS like a city however it's all a facade. You could count the accessible building in Novigrad without taking your socks off, in the crowds of random citizens you'll inevitably find several sets of quadruplets, the random citizens also have all the life and brains of cockroaches (they might run away if there's a fight near them... Maybe).

    -Skellige. I nearly hung up my controller and uninstalled here. I'd thought Skillige would be a rough and hard land surrounded by rough seas.. Nope, flat and clear Mediterranean waters that you have to traverse on a slow as **** boat.

    -Side Quests. Even though I didn't wind up doing too many of them after Novigrad. You can dress them up with voice acting or put in a "follow the red stuff" Witcher sense bit but in the end fetch/kill quests are still fetch/kill quests and are nothing more than padding.

    -GPS. Why? Why do we have a GPS!?

    -Triss Merigold. Actually any of the games redheads. Apparently the “Bozo the Clown” gene is rampant in The Witcher 3.    … Expand
  72. CletusOfDeponia
    Jul 6, 2016
    5
    I've enjoyed this game to a degree, but alas... it's 5/10 for me.

    What is a 10/10 game? It's a perfect game, without a single flaw, without a single thing that would force you out of its immersion. It's a game that's bound to make you forget thirst and hunger, and all of your real life problems. It is a game that revolutionises its field and becomes a bastion in the industry of gaming.    I've enjoyed this game to a degree, but alas... it's 5/10 for me.

    What is a 10/10 game? It's a perfect game, without a single flaw, without a single thing that would force you out of its immersion. It's a game that's bound to make you forget thirst and hunger, and all of your real life problems. It is a game that revolutionises its field and becomes a bastion in the industry of gaming.
    Unfortunately, what a lot fail to realise is that a 10/10 rating is an exaggeration, even upon the game you very love.

    The Witcher 3 brings over fifteen hours of dialogue. To many, this is a joy. To me, unfortunately, a burden.
    If you would like to finish this game, just the main storyline, expect to be laid back for 1/5 of your time, listening to characters talk, listening to a conversation that is out of your control. Surely, you might think there are options of what would you like to say, but much of the game's dialogue follows this format: 1-2 dialogue options in gold font, meaning this option will continue the story. 1-5 options with a grey font, meaning selecting these options will 'tell you more' about whatever you're talking about.
    To 99% of people this is very appealing. The game literally tells you which dialogue options will change your standing with the character you're talking to. However, in terms of traditional RPG this is very disappointing. If you remember Witcher 1, in which your dialogue options could force a character never to talk to you again, in which your dialogue choices may mean that you fail a quest. In Witcher 3, your hand is held throughout the whole experience. It would be just as effective to remove the dialogue options and make you watch the dialogue without them. Is this the kind of RPG you are all praising? Is this the new bastion of gaming? I must be truly insane, but it's a step back. No longer will you be encouraged to think about what you say: just press the buttons and enjoy the film.

    A film - yes. This game is an interactive film. Reading some 10/10 reviews you see praises of "complex narrative", and statements of Witcher 3 "feeling like a complex novel you have to struggle through", so clearly I am just the odd one out, to see that this game is nothing new. However I do agree on the struggling point - you most likely will find yourself struggling through some cheaply-written dialogue that lasts at least twenty minutes, at some point in this game.

    A game of such length is a risk. On an average playthrough this game is approximately 100 hours long.
    Meaning that the first hour of your gameplay must be different from the 99th hour of your gameplay, to keep it fresh and engaging. What I really fail to understand, is the plethora of people turning a blind eye on the extreme lack of actual gameplay in this game.
    - 1st hour or 99th hour: you WILL be using THE SAME fighting method, swordfighting. To make it better, the animations which your character will be fighting with will be THE SAME throughout the whole game, seeing little to no change at all (you may choose to learn a whirlwind move, maybe). Where is the gameplay progression? Why can't the Witcher have the options of learning new moves from other lost schools?

    - I craft a potion only once in my lifetime. When I meditate, ALL of my potions and bombs magically refill. No matter how many of them I have. One hundred flasks to refill? Why not, it will only take a few shots of dwarven spirit that is literally in every container in the game. Why should I be a witcher at all? Let's start brewing things magically out of thin air and make money like that, screw the monster slaying.
    - I receive insane amounts of XP for doing storyline missions. Slaying monsters for experience? Well I'll be here until my hair turns white, oh wait, it already is!
    - Want to earn some money? Do a witcher contract and get paid in around 300 orens! Want some *serious* money? Swim to one of the question marks on the world map in Skellige and you shall find smuggler's treasure there! Sell it to receive at least 2500 orens.
    - Wait what? How did I know there was treasure in the sea? Oh wait the noticeboard told me!
    - Oh I found a new sword. Oh wait... my *witcher* sword that I crafted is better than 99% of the swords in this game...
    - Oh yay I have over 10000 herbs, tens of armour items and tens of swords in my inventory that I shouldn't use cause they're crap, oh wait but they will sell for a fortune!
    - I am richer than a king!!!! I just read noticeboards and find treasures! Screw witcher work!
    - For some reason, everyone I know keeps explaining things to me... Maybe because I haven't read the novels?
    - Hmmm maybe I should prepare for the next battle? Oh wait, why should I? I'll just open my inventory and drink potions while I am doing a back flip?
    - Can I do a backflip? Probably not, I forgot how to do that since Witcher 1.

    I like the game, but it's mediocre. Open world interactive film- not an RPG. Save yourself money and look on YouTube for "Witcher 3 Film".    … Expand
  73. RomanCenturion
    Jun 16, 2016
    5
    Too many technical problems even more than a year after its release. Any game that has bugs galore does not deserve this high score. The Glitcher 3: Bug Hunt is probably buggier experience for me than the dreaded skyrim; yep, it's that buggy.
  74. rrrggg0
    Apr 18, 2016
    5
    click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!click!

    Thousand 10/10 per one month.

    Good Job Metacritic. Good Job!

    Fix this site omg!
  75. surly
    Mar 29, 2016
    5
    I never believed that anyone could click 10/10 on Metacritic for a game, but the last days brought me out of ignorance. Around a thousand clicks within a couple of nights? Wau!
  76. captainkane
    Jan 26, 2016
    7
    I enjoy The Witcher games. They’re based on Polish stories which gained tremendous popularity after the launch of The Witcher PC game in 2007. Over the past 9 years, CD Projekt has emerged from obscurity to give bloated, entrenched developers a run for their money. Although the franchise has definitely matured, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt exhibits shortcomings that shouldn’t exist in a thirdI enjoy The Witcher games. They’re based on Polish stories which gained tremendous popularity after the launch of The Witcher PC game in 2007. Over the past 9 years, CD Projekt has emerged from obscurity to give bloated, entrenched developers a run for their money. Although the franchise has definitely matured, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt exhibits shortcomings that shouldn’t exist in a third installment.

    What makes TW3 so good? Foremost, this is the first open world Witcher game. The world is huge, beautiful, atmospheric, and treacherous. Graphically, TW3 is impressive. Environments feel alive. Observing a town from atop a snowy mountain is breathtaking, and wandering around thru the swamps at dusk is downright creepy. As the wind howls, branches and small plants sway as the sound of creaking limbs fills the air. Despite claims from ardent fans, TW3 isn’t the best looking game ever. But it runs incredibly smooth. Even my aging PC pushes out 50-60fps at Ultra settings, which is impressive given the complexity of the environs. Dragon Age: Inquisition launched 6 months before TW3, but it conjures up a less interesting world while delivering terrible performance.

    Secondly, the soundtrack is phenomenal. Several Polish composers and the folk band Percival collaborated to create distinctly Slavic tunes. The original Witcher had a remarkable soundtrack, but TW3 surpasses it. At times the score is nearly understated, and that’s why it’s so potent. No male choruses shouting chats or drums beating at full intensity. At harder difficulties, even minor battles feel epic as Lazare plays in the background.

    Thirdly, there’s a ton to do. There are dozens and dozens of missions. Plus, there are witcher contracts, horse racing, boxing, and the fabulous Gwent. Gwent is a card game vaguely similar to Hearthstone. Players spar against npc’s in order to win better cards and a bit of coin. Early on Gwent is difficult, but as players build their decks, it becomes quite fun. Players can adjust Gwent’s difficulty in the menus, which is advisable for casual gamers. Completing quests is imperative for leveling up. Enemies yield little XP, so farming for XP is futile.

    But the Witcher 3 isn’t perfect. Most noticeably, the combat sucks. The hero Geralt feels weak compared to the previous games. Spell usage is severely hampered, and potions lack lasting effects. Even at high levels, Geralt can only slot a handful of abilities. To make matters worse, players must swap needed abilities BEFORE fights because they’re locked once battle begins. If Geralt comes across bandits and arrow deflection isn’t slotted, he’s in for a rough time. The leveling system is counterintuitive and artificially difficult because it’s poorly designed. I especially hate how choosing passive abilities eliminates slots for active ones. Stats are poorly explained. Playing as Ciri is even worse.

    Overall, combat is not fun most of the time, and that’s unfortunate because 90% of TW3 is combat! People who quit playing TW3 said combat is its biggest drawback. This problem plagues every Witcher game. There’s no excuse. Lords of the Fallen was created by a former CD Projekt developer, and its combat is infinitely better.

    Next, the story is OK, but there are too many loose ends. TW3 teases at romances that never mature. Players are pitted with “difficult” choices which ultimately have zero impact. Even important choices from The Witcher 2 make little difference. Also, newcomers will be lost because the game assumes players read the novels already. Many characters have backstories, but these are never fleshed out in game. So dialogue is confusing. Other popular characters have simply vanished. These gaps lessen the emotional impact of the overall story and choices being made. Many fans have voiced the same opinions. CD Projekt has acknowledged them, but very little can be done at this point.

    Rewards for completing quests are uneven. I completed a brief sidequest and earned 685 points. Then I completed a main story mission that was 5 levels higher, more complex, and 80 minutes longer, only to gain a mere 35 points. Most loot players earn from quests is useless. Some missions reward no points/loot at all. So the rewards for completing many missions are scant. The higher Geralt’s level, the more miniscule 25 XP points become. Scavenging and crafting are the only ways to net good gear.

    Lastly, despite 20gb+ of patches, TW3 is still buggy. Bugs affect every aspect of the game. After launch, I stopped playing because it was nearly unplayable. TW3 is playable now. Obviously CD Projekt pushed it out too soon and they’ve been patching it up ever since.

    TW3 is a solid game after patches. It’s atmospheric and epic, but that doesn’t merit a free pass. Mediocre combat, uneven pacing, bugs, weak leveling and missing backstories are a few problems that plague this venerable game. The Witcher 3 needed to cook for another year. It’s still fun, but only Witcher apologists give it 10/10.    … Expand
  77. Chronicbint
    Dec 8, 2015
    6
    Pros
    Decent story
    Some good quests
    Voiced well

    Cons
    Poor loot itemisation(its all worthless once you get some witcher gear)
    Lack of dungeons
    Deluge of endless tedious dialogue
    Sub par combat
    Poor crafting system
    Bad inventory management
    Easy to outlevel tons of the content too quickly

    Good game but too many flaws for me.
  78. Iluvatar2111
    Dec 2, 2015
    5
    +Story
    +Graphics
    +Immersion; insane armor and weapons detail -overused assets and music -limited monster animations -large windows between attacks -the weapons you can wield are only swords (because axes are hilarious on Geralt) -half of the skills are boring -boring, unlikeable main character -side quests tend to end anticlimatically -impossible crafting unless you look    +Story
    +Graphics
    +Immersion; insane armor and weapons detail

    -overused assets and music
    -limited monster animations
    -large windows between attacks
    -the weapons you can wield are only swords (because axes are hilarious on Geralt)
    -half of the skills are boring
    -boring, unlikeable main character
    -side quests tend to end anticlimatically
    -impossible crafting unless you look absolutely everywhere
    -a flat world map (unless in Skeliige) full of lazily presented busy work

    5/10. Not fun    … Expand
  79. CiiiHvNiiiOix
    Nov 20, 2015
    5
    Looks great. Feels great. And what comes to The Witcher stories, is good, just like its predecessors. But when looking from RPG standpoint alone and not bothering to concentrate on just graphics... it's nothing magnificent - good enough to entertain until the end of the game, but nothing truly memorable like Planescape: Torment and such epic goodies.
  80. Gormph
    Nov 12, 2015
    7
    This game was vastly disappointing and if not for the attachment to some of the npcs I would have given it a much lower score, to be clear this is the first witcher I have ever played and likely to be the last if these problems persist
    1. Cant skip talking cut scenes and intros
    Ok this by itself isn’t that big of a deal but this game has huge loading times even on my SSD the fact that    This game was vastly disappointing and if not for the attachment to some of the npcs I would have given it a much lower score, to be clear this is the first witcher I have ever played and likely to be the last if these problems persist
    1. Cant skip talking cut scenes and intros
    Ok this by itself isn’t that big of a deal but this game has huge loading times even on my SSD the fact that you have to sit through all the previously on witcher **** grates on the nerves
    2. No auto load
    The game has auto save but no auto load and given its load times on normal saves some kind of quick load would have been a god sent
    3. Loading times
    Loading times are terrible, making every death frustrating as it takes forever to get back to playing
    4. **** controls and combat
    Movement sucks which can make platforming a real pain and sometimes just collecting loot, combat it the worst mostly because it just doesn’t work, there are some skills to combine in order to abuse exploits in the game but until you get them are screwed and if you branched out into different trees before realizing this you may as well start over putting the skills aside the basic combat is a joke and fails on every level, block often doesn’t work at all or just won’t block attacks, and the camera will swing around most times to keep you from dodging out of the way so you get stuck in a corner while the enemy can always block and counter without trying, and even on easy quickly recovers from you counter if it works but if they counter you it lasts much longer, since they already outnumber you in literally every fight in the game this seems like a bull**** thing to do overall combat is a huge fail and the game wants you to do it a lot so combined with the loading times this ruins most of the game.
    5. Game gives no back-story about witcher games before this one but shapes the game based on quests it wants you to answer about the past, how are you supposed to answer these questions?
    At a certain point in the game someone starts asking you questions about what you did in previous games this can effect what resources you have to call on later in the game but if this was your first witcher you have no idea how to answer these questions and there’s no preset answer for new people it would have been nice to get some context on this beforehand notes in game starting group talking about it anything.
    6. The symbol for mind control random
    The symbol used for mind control in random in conversations sometimes the upgraded version works on two or three people sometimes it doesn’t and you have to fight it should always work the same way if it’s the same level and this renders it useless since you can’t chance using it because you don’t know how it will work and how people will respond to it
    7. Side quest are repetitive and boring making the large world feel like pointless padding
    Most of the side quest you do are the same thing with different level monsters and you have to ride all over the huge map to do them, instead of making me feel like the world was big and such this made the map itself feel like padding, pointless window-dressing to fill space and take up time. The map could have been ¼ the size with ¼ the questing and the game certainly wouldn’t have suffered for it, I like a big long game but this didn’t feel like a huge game it felt padded and other games have done this far better
    I could go on but this is mostly what brought the game down for me and really if the combat had been fixed or the loading times been very short it would have gotten a higher rating as it stand the only reason it didn’t get a zero is because the dialogue was good, I became attached to npc easily, the relationships between the characters felt complex and real and the good ending hit me in the feels. The good things about the mechanics I liked was the combat system has a good framework and if it had worked at all would likely have been very satisfying, and using alcohol to refill potions instead of having to find all the things to make them over and over is a good system    … Expand
  81. MadclownJack
    Nov 7, 2015
    7
    1. Story - While some parts of the story are really worth grinding through the end, other parts will ruthlessly attempt to murder your will to play with their indescribable inanity, as most of the main story seems like an endless "bait and switch" type of deal.
    2. Battle system - Simplified, which is a plus for me, even though the battles themselves are nothing to write home about.
    3.    1. Story - While some parts of the story are really worth grinding through the end, other parts will ruthlessly attempt to murder your will to play with their indescribable inanity, as most of the main story seems like an endless "bait and switch" type of deal.
    2. Battle system - Simplified, which is a plus for me, even though the battles themselves are nothing to write home about.
    3. Quests - Absolutely NOTHING you haven't already seen. Fetch quests, hunt quests, Races, treasure hunts, they might sound different but they're not. You go somewhere, get a quest, go somewhere else, use witcher senses, kill something, get treasure, repeat. The battles are extremely boring, and i was playing on Death March difficulty. I would compare the quest variety to that of "Arkham City".
    4. Music and Graphics- These are two of the very few aspects that are so well done, they actually make the rest of the game bearable.
    5. Content - The forging system from Witcher 2 is here as well, meaning You'd have to scour the map for an armorer that is able to craft a decent pair of swords and armor. Though, you'll find, later in the game, that most of the diagrams you've amassed are inherently worthless unless they are of Witcher quality. Basically they get you chasing for an actually USEFUL diagram, only to find out you can't use the item until level 150. Which is fine and well in a free-to-play MMORPG, that uses the gimmick to get you hooked and playing, but this is a single player game. To resort to such methods in a game of this caliber is just stupidly unnecessary. I've never ridden a horse in real life, but even i can tell that the horse's animation and movement is terribly stiff. Lucky you can change Geralt's movement. The monsters are rehashes of their old designs, with an updated texture and animations. There are some new Monsters that spice things up, some mini bosses that are basically bigger versions of regular monsters meaning the battle won't be that much different. The maps are large and filled with trees and wolves. Fast travel helps, but not a lot. There is a fair amount of hidden treasure spots scattered across the map, which can help decrease the boredom, though, again, not by a lot. The Gwent mini game can be heaps of fun, but it's like a fetch-quest-driven-Hearthstone, meaning your game depends a lot on the cards you have found thus far.

    In summation, it seems to me that Witcher games are an acquired taste. They're not for everyone, but some might just get lost in the game and enjoy themselves thoroughly. Me on the other hand, I have played/liked this game for days. Didn't love it, mind you, but i thought it was well made and occasionally fun. But after completing almost 90% of the Novigrad map and the quests found in it, i got really tired with the slow pace of the main storyline, the predictable quests, the uninspiring game play, to the point where i lost the urge to keep on playing. Now, even a 10 minute run feels like a colossal waste of time. So, good game, but not for me.    … Expand
  82. AlexanderVallin
    Nov 1, 2015
    7
    I want to begin by acknowledging that this game is well-made, and that I am a fan of the studio's pro-gamer philosophy. I am happy to see them succeed and can't wait for CyberPunk.

    That said, reviews are personal and for me me this is a solid 7/10 game - solely because this game is having a hard time keeping my attention. I am about 55 hours into the game but not sure I will keep    I want to begin by acknowledging that this game is well-made, and that I am a fan of the studio's pro-gamer philosophy. I am happy to see them succeed and can't wait for CyberPunk.

    That said, reviews are personal and for me me this is a solid 7/10 game - solely because this game is having a hard time keeping my attention. I am about 55 hours into the game but not sure I will keep going. I owned the game since May so I really only play less than 10 hours a month since I would rather play other games.

    Pros:

    - Georgous graphics for an open-world game, and great character models for the main cast.
    - Some good dialogue. Geralt has a personality I enjoy - though it doesn't always work in the context of what is happening.
    - Strong female characters - I know people have claimed this series is very sexist but they have come a long way. Ciri, Yennefer, Triss, Kiera, and even some small side characters have strong moments.
    - Morally grey moments - this game does a good job of making you think at times and does not have obviously right - wrong decisions like many games.
    - game does a good job of making you play an outsider. A vast improvement over playing heroes that people fawn over
    - interesting monsters
    - love the quest journal that is narrated by Dandelion. Really more RPGs need to copy this. Yes it takes effort, but I like reading the quest journal. Also enjoy the people and monster journals which are better than games like Dragon Age.
    - Novigrad - best in-game city I've ever seen.
    - good soundtrack

    Cons
    - I eventually got used to the control scheme, but it remains awkward on keyboard/mouse.
    - combat can feel simplistic - just Quen and fast-attack, occasionally dodge.
    - a lot of copy / paste in the open world. Most towns are populated by the same people saying the same one-liners. The one-liners are sometimes odd enough that you notice them since they would not be something you would expect 20 people to all say.
    - inventory is a mess
    - a lot of ambient characters are annoying / gross. It isn't necessary to hear someone loudly snorting in your face. And several people do this in every village.
    - villager Ai is stupid. If you stand still on your horse on a road, for example, they will walk slowly into you and then scream loudly about it.
    - too many ?s. Id rather the game only mark quest objectives and let you explore. It's not realistic that Geralt would sense 100 points of interest nor would it make sense that he would spend months combing over every inch of the open world when there are supposedly more pressing things to be done. This destroys the story pacing and also just makes the map feel cluttered. Which is odd since
    - a lot of the world feels empty, which is more realistic, but can be a time sink traversing it.
    - needing to find a sign post to fast travel also feels like a time sink.

    If this was an objective review I would rate this a 9 for everything it does right - but for me this is a solid 7 since the totality of the experience doesn't draw me in or keep me interested.    … Expand
  83. xaneyron
    Oct 27, 2015
    7
    Everyone just praising this game, idk why? Well, story is GREAT, as well as dialogues, but beside that there is nothing. Combat mechanic is boring as hell, open world filled with stupid repetitive quests. The only good quests that i found was about characters, they were awesome. It's not the best rpg ever, not even close to BG or Planscape, but it's not that bad. 7/10, cuz maybe game don'tEveryone just praising this game, idk why? Well, story is GREAT, as well as dialogues, but beside that there is nothing. Combat mechanic is boring as hell, open world filled with stupid repetitive quests. The only good quests that i found was about characters, they were awesome. It's not the best rpg ever, not even close to BG or Planscape, but it's not that bad. 7/10, cuz maybe game don't have gameplay in it, it's still good game. Honestly, if it was interactive movie I'd enjoyed it more.… Expand
  84. LD9000
    Oct 25, 2015
    7
    A good open world game with plenty of written dialogue and story. I'm sure you have seen a lot of positive reviews about these. Where the game falls flat on it's face for me is the RPG system and clunky combat.

    In an RPG with equipment, a player must desire the next piece of gear and see it's improvement over the existing gear. Here I don't feel it. The item level system kills all the    A good open world game with plenty of written dialogue and story. I'm sure you have seen a lot of positive reviews about these. Where the game falls flat on it's face for me is the RPG system and clunky combat.

    In an RPG with equipment, a player must desire the next piece of gear and see it's improvement over the existing gear. Here I don't feel it. The item level system kills all the fun. I cant wear or craft most of the items I find. The items that I find are rarely better than what I already have. The result is that I don't care about loot.

    An RPG where I don't care about loot fails, because after a while a player stops caring about world exploration or dungeons. This happened in skyrim and other TES games, and this happened here as well.

    Random loot generation is the exact opposite of a well written dialogue - I can loot diamond dust, silver and other "relic" components from a ransacked peasant hut in a war torn land... Peasants talk about darning socks and have emerald dust stashed in a loot sack.

    Which brings me to crafting - the system is unmanageable, with more than a hundred components. Sounds good on paper, but in reality I stopped caring about crafting, just grab plants when I see them and occasionally buy extra from vendors.

    The crafter levels required to make items is a HORRIBLE idea - I'm fast travelling all over the world to find a blacksmith AND armorer to make my level 11 set of witcher gear.

    Don't get me wrong, both previous witcher games had clunky combat, but here I feel like most of the time I'm button mashing, with the Witcher spinning on screen. The health numbers are incomprehensible - I have 3700 health, yet a couple of level 4 drowners can land a couple lucky hits on me for somewhere between 1000-2000 damage on "blood and broken bones" difficulty. The combat is extremely random - at one point I can slaughter 6-7 drowners without a scratch, other times I get stunlocked and even exploding quen does not help me walk out with more than 5% health remaining.

    Finally the dialogue does not really offer any choice - throughout many story and other quests, I have an option to agree or ask a question then agree to a quest. I can listen to bloody baron then help him or tell him to shove it, then help him.    … Expand
  85. Bazbambridge
    Oct 22, 2015
    6
    OK Game, but the control system completely ruins it. (Using x-box controller)
    Also there are some major bugs (Skellegs Most wanted for instance) that still need fixing even after the latest 12+gb patch.
  86. Gaddammit
    Oct 21, 2015
    5
    Nice story even in every side quest, nice features, overhaul graphics
    but... NOPE
    it has HUGE patch but still poorly optimized low framerate, unless you have high end gaming PC
  87. everin
    Oct 1, 2015
    7
    Tier 2
    + Expansive open world with incredible attention to detail
    + Some engaging and dynamic characters and stories, with interesting twists and turns + Admirable attempt to make side-quests that have weight and narrative substance ? Fairly fun combat that feels fluid and visceral, but can become highly repetitive with dozens of hours of play time ? Very shallow progression system    Tier 2
    + Expansive open world with incredible attention to detail
    + Some engaging and dynamic characters and stories, with interesting twists and turns
    + Admirable attempt to make side-quests that have weight and narrative substance
    ? Fairly fun combat that feels fluid and visceral, but can become highly repetitive with dozens of hours of play time
    ? Very shallow progression system for an RPG, offering mostly bland items (aside from Witcher gear) and ability upgrades; this also leads to very little freedom in play style
    ? For some, the "morally gray" storytelling can become tedious, as it offers less substance than it may appear to on the surface
    ? Suffers from pacing issues due to the amount of side content that interrupts the main quest
    - A considerable amount of padding of the open world, with much of the optional content leading to loot that feels progressively more useless as the game goes on    … Expand
  88. braindamage
    Sep 22, 2015
    7
    over rated game with a bad main story great music some interesting characters , some of of the best graphics in the world , just not to thrilled with the main plot , not a bad game but I could careless about traveling the world to hunt down some chick , a story only for die hard romantics , Id rather chase money
  89. Wood117
    Sep 18, 2015
    6
    Believe me when i say that i enjoyed this game, however there is no way that it deserves all these 10 out of 10's and universal acclaim. if you give a game 10 then you must think it's pretty much perfect, but the Witcher 3 is a far cry from perfect. Look the story, the writing and the narrative structure of this game are some of the best i have ever seen, i don't think anyone would denyBelieve me when i say that i enjoyed this game, however there is no way that it deserves all these 10 out of 10's and universal acclaim. if you give a game 10 then you must think it's pretty much perfect, but the Witcher 3 is a far cry from perfect. Look the story, the writing and the narrative structure of this game are some of the best i have ever seen, i don't think anyone would deny that.
    My issues with the game are more gameplay and mechanical in nature: one of my biggest issues with the game is the controls in a sense, because the controls in and of themselves are fine, they make sense, however the problem stems from the wonky and frankly crappy movement animation of the character and hoarse. There seems to be a time delay between movement and controller input especially on the horse as for some reason it never responds to your commands and seems to have a mind of it's own while getting stuck constantly on the most minute pieces of scenery. and frankly the overall animation is just terrible, some of the worst i have seen since oblivion and fallout 3. Geralt himself feels like he has no body weight and moves as if he were a puppet on a string, oh and who thought it was a good idea to place those dam candles everywhere, surely this should have been picked up and fixed during playlists. Then there is the obvious graphical downgrade issue, the graphics overall are ok but unfortunately lacked that punch that the Witcher 2 had for it's time which also had far better art direction overall. Sound Design overall was fine, nothing earth shattering but fine and the music was fitting for the setting and story elements but there was nothing there memorable enough that would make me want to own a copy of the soundtrack.
    Now lastly and this is also an issue that many raised with the recent dragon age and that is the fetching and grinding and honestly i feel that there was more of that hear. i would have literally spent 80 percent of my time with this game riding and sailing all over the maps going from one guarded treasure pile to another and it wasn't any more enjoyable hear. Anyhow thats all i really have to say on this the game, it is good enough for a play through, but i won't be returning to it.    … Expand
  90. skywalker99
    Sep 18, 2015
    6
    I think it's an OK game but definitely suffers from an “overhype syndrome” which leads to raised expectations.

    I loved TW2, I thought the story, mechanics, soundtrack and voice acting were exceptional. I read all the witcher books afterwards which I loved and would highly recommend over any of the witcher games. I put in 30h into TW3 and I'm somewhere 2/3 into the main plot and    I think it's an OK game but definitely suffers from an “overhype syndrome” which leads to raised expectations.

    I loved TW2, I thought the story, mechanics, soundtrack and voice acting were exceptional. I read all the witcher books afterwards which I loved and would highly recommend over any of the witcher games.

    I put in 30h into TW3 and I'm somewhere 2/3 into the main plot and unfortunately I lost my interest. It feels a bit like eating too much to the point of feeling sick. Sadly, it hasn’t been particularly rewarding experience either. Game feels like watching a poor man’s movie that’s heavily based on book. Which made me think that I’ve seen all this before. I constantly felt that I’m being hand held through a linear story which tries to break the linearity through a huge number of repetitive side quests (go to A kill a monster get back to B – wash rinse repeat) and very often meaningless choices. There is also a huge number of bugs. This game should not have been released at this state! they are not groundbreaking but nevertheless immersion breaking. So hyped open world did not feel open to me like e.g. Skyrim or GTA. Also fights were either too easy or too difficult

    Don’t get me wrong there are some interesting moments in the plot which are very well thought through and executed. And the game has an amazing soundtrack which I keep listening on its own. And I definitely had a feeling that devs did a lot of work on this game. But who cares. I play games to have fun and not to admire devs. Sadly I didn’t have as much fun as with other games I played in recent past e.g. Shadowrun, Dust an elysian tail, Bastion, Dishonored, Tomb raider, Shadow warrior

    Last but not least the boxed version of TW3 is a joke. Poor quality map that look like it’s been printed on glorified toilet paper, no a walkthrough guide that was included in TW2. I paid £10 for it and I really don’t think it’s worth any more than that.
    Thanks    … Expand
  91. CoolDadTx
    Sep 14, 2015
    7
    Starts out as a great RPG and the best of the series but after the first 30 hours it becomes dull and lifeless. By that time I just wanted it to end. Many quests simply aren't "witcher" tasks - fetch this, fix that. There are many quests to complete but they are the same basic stuff over and over again.

    I loved the fact that the DLCs were free but every time a DLC was released so did a    Starts out as a great RPG and the best of the series but after the first 30 hours it becomes dull and lifeless. By that time I just wanted it to end. Many quests simply aren't "witcher" tasks - fetch this, fix that. There are many quests to complete but they are the same basic stuff over and over again.

    I loved the fact that the DLCs were free but every time a DLC was released so did a patch. The patches took the game from solid to buggy. Graphical glitches are comical like when you teleport to a signpost while on Roach and you are floating in the air. Each patch just breaks things even more. None of the DLCs really add much though. The patches did add some useful features like pinning but even that is buggy. Every time you go into Alchemy it explains pinning again. The key binding are also messed up in the latest patches. Half the time I have to unbind, bind, unbind, bind certain keys until it works. Swimming and calling the horse are the most common.

    Speaking of swimming, the sea parts are horrific. Combat is next to impossible because you balance on a tiny boat and, because of glitches, tend to simply slide into water. Combat underwater is a joke. I got to the point where I just sped past enemies. For a game where a significant chunk is water this is really bad. 2 of the worse bugs occur in water as well. In one case I had just finished fighting some sirens and suddenly I was thrown out of the boat and immediately died (I was lv 30 at full health). Another time I was standing in the boat and suddenly I "teleported" far above the water and dropped. More common is the fact that when you get close to enemies you go into combat stance and for reasons I cannot understand you cannot jump. So the logical approach of jumping out of the boat near land to fight enemies won't work.

    Overall it isn't a bad game, especially early on; but as it drags on and on it simply becomes mediocre. Better than W2 but arguably not better than W1.    … Expand
  92. Torain
    Sep 2, 2015
    5
    Witcher 3 was long awaited and got great reviews, so I also gave it a try.

    The graphics are good, but the setting lacks variety. The combat system is average. I like the pace of the combats, but most of the time you spam the same skills and the controls are quite squishy. The character system is bad and you do not even have the chance to create your own character. Is this even a RPG?    Witcher 3 was long awaited and got great reviews, so I also gave it a try.

    The graphics are good, but the setting lacks variety. The combat system is average. I like the pace of the combats, but most of the time you spam the same skills and the controls are quite squishy. The character system is bad and you do not even have the chance to create your own character. Is this even a RPG? Everybody is forced to play this witcher guy, who is already known to be totally skilled. Where is the motivation, when you already start out as a jack of all trades who is known to beat everyone in everything?
    The story never really caught my interest and got hilarious at times, for instance when you had to fight a demon fetus... seriously? A demon fetus?! I don't like this kind of humor (if it was meant to be a joke) in games. Also the constant spamming of these witcher senses in every single quest made most of it just boring.
    All in all, it is a solid game, which fans of the witcher series should definitely play.    … Expand
  93. OnyxShadow
    Aug 29, 2015
    7
    Witcher 3 has an almost unheard of (for a triple A title) over 90% from players on Metacritic. It is indeed a very good game, but it also has numerous rather significant flaws which makes me surprised that reviews in general are so forgiving.

    The Good LOTS of content. The main game is fairly lengthy in itself, but there's a mountain of extra quests, treasure hunts, and exploration.    Witcher 3 has an almost unheard of (for a triple A title) over 90% from players on Metacritic. It is indeed a very good game, but it also has numerous rather significant flaws which makes me surprised that reviews in general are so forgiving.

    The Good

    LOTS of content. The main game is fairly lengthy in itself, but there's a mountain of extra quests, treasure hunts, and exploration. Most of this feels fairly rewarding, too.

    Interesting characters. Also, the dialogue is better than most games. In most RPGs I am frequently tempted to simply skip most conversations and get right back to the action. In Witcher 3 dialogue is interesting enough that I didn't mind listening to most of it, and the majority of the time I even listened to most of the optional conversations.

    It looks great. Unfortunately I have to play the game at low settings because my 4 year old gaming machine has seen better days. However, even at low settings it still looks terrific.

    The Bad

    Levels are just horrible. Monsters a few levels lower are trivial. Monsters a bit higher are nearly impervious to damage. In some games this might be logical, but Geralt is an overwhelmingly experienced monster slayer and has "progressed" about all he ever will. I understand the general idea behind this mechanic, but the outcome mostly just results in bad gameplay. Coming upon a monster and having to save it for later feels bad. Banging your head against a dragon that's 8 levels above you because its annoying to have to make the trip back later is worse. Witcher 3 shouldn't have had levels on the player, monsters, or gear (or find a way to make it not suck).

    Load times are very long. In most games quick loading takes moments. In this game its about 30 seconds. Even more aggravating is being forced to listen to derp-lord Dandelion every time you die or load into the game.

    Movement is often sluggish. For instance, Geralt turns very awkwardly. Its hard to get him to face the direction you want. This issue is magnified while on horseback. It can take 3-5 seconds just to negotiate your mount in another direction.    … Expand
  94. titannet
    Aug 10, 2015
    5
    It's booooring.
    I love walking around in Fallout 3/ New Vegas because there is always the chance you find a weapon that is useful for the whole game and you will always find stuff that is useful. Skyrim is not quite as good because it's far more randomized but still there is enough to to and a chance to find something unique and useful.
    In the Witcher 3.. you can get lucky and find a    It's booooring.
    I love walking around in Fallout 3/ New Vegas because there is always the chance you find a weapon that is useful for the whole game and you will always find stuff that is useful. Skyrim is not quite as good because it's far more randomized but still there is enough to to and a chance to find something unique and useful.
    In the Witcher 3.. you can get lucky and find a unique schematic for a cool weapon and if you are luckier you are actually carrying around the right nonsense (steel, dark steel, shiny silver.. there is a LOT of different stuff to carry around) to have it made by a smith and you may even be very lucky and it is exactly for your Level.
    You will still sell it three Levels later and use some random weapon you found for the new Level because it makes more damage.

    Potions are even more horrible. If you want to create a Potions that make hour toenails grow really fast so you can scratch the feet of your enemies for added damage if you are wearing no boots, this is the game for you! (I don't know if this particular potion is actually in the game but it might as well judging from the deceptions could bring myself to read)

    The story is not as interesting as all the 9+ people claim, perhaps they never had the fortune of reading a good fantasy novel, there aren't many I know. But it's not bad either. Why shouldn't this Geralt dude look for his long lost foster child that is being hunted by these extremely dangerous other dudes? And why shouldn't he solve all those problems everybody has while doing so?
    And mind you, nobody else can do **** in this game. The peasants are completely useless for anything (except killing Geralt two games ago.. yeah right!) and the soldiers always have a reason why they can't do something right now. And so our mighty hero has to kill every monster on the planet and save every cat ... and only gets to rest during the long and mostly boring cutscenes.

    Most of the game I didn't mention is not completely bad. The controls are wonky, but you can get used to them. It's just so sad the designers didn't play Skyrim or any Fallout game and thought.. "hey.. there are things here that are really fun.. and stupid in our game". And given they still sell the nvidia givaway versions for like 20 bucks on ebay.. just go buy it. It may help you waste your time until Fallout 4 comes.

    But DO NOT buy it for 50+ bucks or whatever the steam loonies sell it for and if you believe you have bought the RPG of the century and rate it 9+ you need to visit a doctor.    … Expand
  95. steddye
    Aug 10, 2015
    5
    This is the game with the worst control system, after patch 1.8 is still cumbersome. Inventory management is made really bad. I will not talk about graphics because frankly I do not care to play in 4K ultra etc ... but I prefer the gameplay of a title and Witcher 3 is not compelling. Typical example of the gameplay: follow the minimap to the next ? (point of interest) enemy dodge, hit, hitThis is the game with the worst control system, after patch 1.8 is still cumbersome. Inventory management is made really bad. I will not talk about graphics because frankly I do not care to play in 4K ultra etc ... but I prefer the gameplay of a title and Witcher 3 is not compelling. Typical example of the gameplay: follow the minimap to the next ? (point of interest) enemy dodge, hit, hit dodge dodge, dodge kill, slowly loot (becase sometimes find the right angle to interact is hard), call the horse and start over. Ok it's not so simple like I descibed but is the focus of the game. Most of the quests has the same script. After reading the positive reviews I was expecting much more.… Expand
  96. Heldrin
    Jul 30, 2015
    5
    Game would be spectacular, if it didn't crash all the time. I can't give this a better score until they sort out the buggy code in their engine. You may get lucky and have no issues running it. Many people who are way above the minimum recommended specs are having a hard time getting the game to be stable for them.
  97. WigerToods
    Jul 28, 2015
    5
    Left the score at a 5, because the game is very promising but has some unfortunate downsides.

    + Story seems great, however my frustrations with the gameplay means I probably won't get to finish it. + Graphics are allright but not ground breaking, probably because of the consoles but I'm not sure. - The controls are AWFUL. Delayed actions and very twitchy movement makes it very    Left the score at a 5, because the game is very promising but has some unfortunate downsides.

    + Story seems great, however my frustrations with the gameplay means I probably won't get to finish it.
    + Graphics are allright but not ground breaking, probably because of the consoles but I'm not sure.

    - The controls are AWFUL. Delayed actions and very twitchy movement makes it very frustrating to handle even simple enemies.
    - No way to aim with a crossbow without auto-target? I might have missed some guide on YouTube or something, but the game certainly doesnt make it intuitive to aim with a crossbow like in Skyrim for example.
    - Grouping up enemies. Not sure what this adds to the experience. I prefer fighting one bear, instead of a pack. And with the very sub-par controls, always fighting several enemies at the same time becomes very frustrating and more difficult than it should be.    … Expand
  98. RogerWilco2099
    Jul 28, 2015
    7
    Very solid game and really good fun. Ambitious, well executed and visually gorgeous. This game is vast and you can easily lose hundreds of hours exploring and playing this very well envision game. The positives are self evident and its an RPG done to a brilliant standard. Faults are also there, lag in areas, and most notably very poor movement controls. Which for a game like this shouldVery solid game and really good fun. Ambitious, well executed and visually gorgeous. This game is vast and you can easily lose hundreds of hours exploring and playing this very well envision game. The positives are self evident and its an RPG done to a brilliant standard. Faults are also there, lag in areas, and most notably very poor movement controls. Which for a game like this should never of happened. Patches are still inbound to fix things and has also broke things increasing lag further in areas. Not the best post game support to fix issues, which in the modern gaming world isn't good enough. Other then that a great game with a fantastic story.… Expand
  99. Game_Addict
    Jul 25, 2015
    5
    I think The Witcher 3 has a fantastic storyline, which is why I'm still rating this a 5 out of 10, but it's not a good game.

    My character often gets snagged up in the environment, something that I haven't seen in a game for a long time, so I have to mash the jump and direction buttons to continue the direction I wanted. Traveling on the horse is just frustrating with it's constant    I think The Witcher 3 has a fantastic storyline, which is why I'm still rating this a 5 out of 10, but it's not a good game.

    My character often gets snagged up in the environment, something that I haven't seen in a game for a long time, so I have to mash the jump and direction buttons to continue the direction I wanted. Traveling on the horse is just frustrating with it's constant detours in the wrong direction and stopping because it's hit a blade of grass too high (and I'm using patch 1.07 which was supposed to improve the horse).

    The repetitive dialogue drives me nuts, it's like the people in a village have a few lines of dialogue that is repeated over and over every time you walk past. People walk into you while you're standing still and shout that you've hurt them. The combat is boring and unrefined compared to the prequels, you just cast your favourite sign then dodge/parry and then counterstrike most enemies.

    Such a shame because the story, voice acting, graphics and the attention to certain details in the game could have made this a classic.    … Expand
  100. curzon_dax
    Jul 19, 2015
    7
    I've played a lot of games in my time. W3 appears to be something that is "well done" but to be honest it misses something or rather it misses something on a lot of departments. Its characters are very common (the usual "big guy" to impress kids, the good looking women to arouse teens etc.), the gameplay is cumbersome and simplistic and the story/dialogues while not that bad, they are notI've played a lot of games in my time. W3 appears to be something that is "well done" but to be honest it misses something or rather it misses something on a lot of departments. Its characters are very common (the usual "big guy" to impress kids, the good looking women to arouse teens etc.), the gameplay is cumbersome and simplistic and the story/dialogues while not that bad, they are not that fun.

    tl;dr if you are new to gaming you're going to be impressed, it's not a bad game, but if you have HIGH standards, it's something not entirely bad but prepare to not find it a 10/10.

    For me it's something like 7/10 or slightly better, say 7.1 or 7.2. 7.15.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Best PC Game of 2015
1
#1 Most Discussed PC Game of 2015
11
#11 Most Shared PC Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
93

Universal acclaim - based on 32 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 32
  3. Negative: 0 out of 32
  1. RPGamer
    Jan 28, 2016
    90
    The Witcher 3 says no to all of this - it's a great game with a fully realized setting, it's a joy to play, the business model behind it treats its customers like human beings, and it delivers a story that finally hits the tone of the books.
    Read full review
  2. PCWorld
    Jan 20, 2016
    100
    Probably the best open-world RPG ever made, but it still falls prey to some of the genre's worst traps.
    Read full review
  3. PC Invasion
    Nov 4, 2015
    80
    I've made it pretty clear that it's hardly a flawless game, but that doesn't change the fact that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is something pretty bloody special and you should absolutely play it.
    Read full review
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