Witcher - Retrospective Review @ Sick Critic

Throwback Review: The Witcher

The Witcher is an Action RPG developed by CD Projekt Red, released on PC in 2007. The beloved series has been played by many, but I wanted to explore CDPR's first outing. I tend to find that the first game doesn't get nearly as much attention as the other two, most likely because of its PC exclusivity.

Let it be known that I am playing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition, a version of the first game that came free to buyers of the original. The enhanced edition added a few improvements, most notably a plethora of new character animations and a larger variety of color to NPC clothing.

The Witcher is based on a series of fantasy novels by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. Sapkowski's books are a household name in Poland, with some referring to him as Polish Tolkien. I am a big fan of The Witcher series as a whole, so I was excited to see how the first game holds up today. I was also looking forward to seeing how CDPR would adapt the rich world of The Witcher into a video game.


Adapting Sapkowski's World

Unlike most book adaptations, The Witcher doesn't directly re-tell the stories from the books, with the game's narrative being set after their events. The game has you playing as Geralt of Rivia, a Witcher who has recently lost his memory. A Witcher, to put it briefly, is a mutant who kills monsters for money. At a young age, they are experimented on and are trained to kill. While amnesia in fiction is quite a tired trope, I feel that CDPR made a good decision having Geralt lose his memory; it allows the player to learn about the world along with him. There are a plethora of characters from Geralt's past that book readers will recognize, a lot of the dialogue involves them re-introducing themselves to our forgetful Witcher.
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The Witcher took me around 45 hours to complete. I did find that a low part of the game was Act IV, where the story slows down a little bit. However, I felt satisfied with the conclusion of the story and the narrative has a good level of escalation, especially in Act V which I won't spoil. It's mostly the games underwhelming main villain, needless running back and forth, and lack of inventory options that weigh this game down. While simple and satisfying. the combat could have more to it, and customization options are a little slim. For those reasons, I can't wholeheartedly say this game is for everyone, but if you're a fan of The Witcher series you should definitely check it out.

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