The Witcher 2 - Review @ GameCritics - Modding Tools Coming

aries100

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GameCritics has a review up for Wicther 2 - the score is 5.5/10 - and here's why in a few excerpts:
About the combat:
Then there's the actual combat, which is even more problematic than the potion-chugging prep work. Even with the simplified controls, Geralt's actions are extremely sluggish, and there's often a slight delay between when I press a button and when he actually does something. Such a delay can be a massive headache when being attacked from behind does 200% damage, or when I need to throw a bomb to stop an incoming group of Rotfiends. Worse still, the game has a nasty habit of spiking the difficulty, especially when facing multiple enemies. When up against a large group, there will inevitably be a ton of running around in circles using ranged attacks and bombs (a practice commonly known as kiting), which gets old very fast.
About the story:
The story of the Witcher 2 is a sleepy, tired, Tolkien-esque fantasy slog with some softcore porn thrown in. I had a hard time keeping an interest in the game's world (yes, including the porny bits), and it didn't help that the writers assumed a lot of familiarity on my part regarding its details. Based on a popular series of fantasy novels, Witcher 2 presents a lot of people and places that a player won't necessarily be familiar with, and then doesn't do much to introduce them or provide illuminating context. I'm certainly the kind of player that loves digging into a game's lore, but even that didn't help much since the available lore doesn't shed much light on anything.
Thanks to Luki1234567 in the Witcher 2 thread at the Bioware forums and Kicek11 in this Witcher 2 thread at GOG for finding this.

On a lighter, yet somehow related note, modding tools will be coming for Witcher 2.
CDP RED's Andrzej Kwiatkowski confirms it in this thread on the Witcher 2 forums at GOG.
Here's the official word:
We fully endorse The Witcher 2 modding and we plan to release modding tools. Nothing has changed since our last statement on that matter. Unfortunately we don't have any timeline of the release.
Thanks to slimgrim in the Witcher 2 thread at the Bioware forums for finding this.
More information.
 
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5.5!?

are these guys for real..?
 
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GameCritics review: He got his ass kicked in the first 5 minutes of the game - and now he's whining - poor boy.
 

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I have to agree. Then again aren't most game critics crybaby's.
 
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If they really care about the mod community the tools would have been release near the time the game was, when interest was highest. By the time they release them it may be too late because interest in the game will have faded.

Hopefully it won't be to late.
 
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Fruitful observation.

This game in reviews has more or less suffered from a biased approach.

The extract on the story is spot on. The reviewer starts from his personal experience (he did not get hooked on it) and underlines a possible cause by linking to players who have not played the first episode (this episode does a poor job at introducing the universe)

Fruitful observation to know that he reviewed the first episode and therefore is aware of the general universe as the first episode was a presentation of it.

Again, blatant dishonesty to introduce oneself for someone who one is not.

I played 2 just after finishing 1. Clearly, 2 is a follow up to 1. If I did not get hooked on the story, I would have looked for other causes than poor presentation of the universe.
If I tried to put myself in the shoes of people who did not played the first episode, I could only have done it by tapping in my own experience, which would lead me to say that the game story, the plot are well understood with the story of the first episode in mind.

So a reviewer who experience two situations at the same: having playing the first game and not having played the first game.


The Witcher 2 is really good information. Combat takes a lot of flak when being a fair representation of what light armoured combat could be.

Quotes like :

When up against a large group, there will inevitably be a ton of running around in circles using ranged attacks and bombs (a practice commonly known as kiting), which gets old very fast.

I played first run as an alchemist (few combat enhancement) and there was not inevitably tons of running around in circles and bombs.
Basically, this guy is stuck in the mind attrition based approach which does not suit well light armoured combat.
When getting used to the targeting system which provides unpredicability, it becomes a matter of mastering space and reasses position on battle field at every second to deliver highest damage possible at a given location. It is about making the combat the shortest possible, in opposition to attrition when the combat is expected to be dragged as possible.

The Witcher 2 reception delivers insightful pieces. Developpers are limited in their freedom to deliver a system as players try to repeat what they like in previous systems. Designing a mobile character should be done with the thought that players will not play it as a mobile character but rather a static character fitted for attrition.

It has consequences of RPG as it is doubtful that players would bear the requirements dictated by RPing. Because roles come with unbypassable requirements and therefore grow old fast enough.
 
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I really dislike it, when players themselves agitate against more complex stories with such bogus arguments like "too many places/characters"... Too often the only answer/reaction to this from developers is, to cut all the interesting bits out and everyone ends up with a much more mediocre/uninteresting game. No thank you. The fact that there are many characters and locations is what makes it cool and is what creates a rich world suited for a good RPG in the first place.
If characters, story and locations aren't for him, maybe he shouldn't play RPGs.
 
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He's complaining about getting lost in caves. There's something called a MAP, you know, upper right corner. M key. LOL

Maybe they got the wrong person to review this game!
 
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As much as I absolutely love the modding part of gaming, there are some games that just don't get much value out of modding tools. The Witcher franchise is one of them. When thats the case I dont see much benefit of spending developer time on polishing and release the tools and usually they will be too limited for anything huge anyway.

Sandbox games benefit greatly from modding tools as you are customizing your own hero and need a wider variety of looks and items to do that. Anything with a strong story line where the main character is picked for you doesn't benefit much releasing the developer tools. There are no absolutes but generally the kinds of mods that are generally made are item, clothing, body, face mods. (Hopefully they will be releasing blender/max/maya exporters and rigs). Few side-quests and storyline mods will be made and will take months or years before being released and most players will have moved on by then. Having said that I'm still looking forward to the release of djinni mark 2 and seeing what is possible.
 
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I agree with the pcgamer review. They gave it 89/100. The only fault I agree on are the ending was a letdown after all the buildup. Just remember most new players have no idea who the hell Geralt is.
 
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The fact that there are many characters and locations is what makes it cool and is what creates a rich world suited for a good RPG in the first place.
If characters, story and locations aren't for him, maybe he shouldn't play RPGs.

This is stated as being of his tastes. He enjoys diving into huge lore. The issues he had is that TW2 might be a real follow up that requires to play the first episode for the story to be easily caught on.

Contrary to what the reviewer claimed, neither him or me are in position to tell on this point without a serious investigation that I doubt he will deliver. It must be told also that he has not finished the first game so he does not know fully the story, the locations, the stakes introduced in the first game.

For players who played the first episode, all that can be said at first hand is that the story in 2 follows the story in 1.

Does the story of 2 stand alone enough if you dont play TW1? Players who never play TW1 are in a better position to tell. Is the game making enough of introduction work or rely too much on prior knowledge?
 
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I've been advising everyone new to the series to play the demo of The Witcher - even just to the end of the prologue, as that serves as the best introduction to the lore of TW2 that's easily available (and then forget the gameplay mechanics).

I also enjoy diving into lore, but the lore has to be available in a non-spoilery, official, way. In my review I wished they had included a lore book with the game instead of a cheat/walkthrough book - doing so would most likely satisfy the likes of this reviewer.

Even completing The Witcher is not enough to get full enjoyment/understanding out of the sequel. I required knowledge from the books to appreciate some major elements of the story, and even then I only had a faint grasp on it due to the lack of English translations.
 
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Its a shame most of the witcher books never got translated. Only two books in the last four years.
 
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That whole GC review is a pure joke.
The most hard part of it to understand is how after that whole charade he didn't put a number less than 5.5.
 
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My major gripe with Witcher 2 is the lact of fast travel. I hate going through empty areas.
 
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I agree with the pcgamer review. They gave it 89/100. The only fault I agree on are the ending was a letdown after all the buildup. Just remember most new players have no idea who the hell Geralt is.

Yeah, I agree :D.
 
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