I have a very up and down relationship with this game. Like at times, it will truly stun me. When everything comes together, it just grips me and I truly feel the emotional gravity of the plot, and fully draw to the characters. On missions like The Bloody Baron for example, just magnificent, and honestly one of the best open world RPG missions I've ever experienced. But then the rest of it creeps through, and fills the experience with monotony and repetition, and my love for it wanes. Then after a good while, another mission will pop up that makes me adore it all over again.
I feel like I really enjoy many of the missions, and initial sense of wonder and expanse of the world, but then I also dislike the typical open world negatives of it all. At first it tricks you in to thinking it's not like other open world games, because even in mundane missions the story matters, but then you realise after the millionth contract, or side quest, or collectathon spree (that usually ends in you getting redundant gear) that you're basically still doing the same things over and over and over again, and that initial veneer is by then long gone. I don't know how many monsters guarding chests I've raided, or pirate sea barrels I've plundered, or contract monster smell trails I've tracked. Unfortunately this stuff you still have to do to some extent, at least if you want to succeed at the hardest difficulty, in order to level up and keep on top of better gear. It's just made worse by the fact that the game so infrequently rewards you with anything of merit, and instead the Witcher Gear (which is a chore to search for in itself), essentially dominate.
I think if the combat and controls themselves weren't as tankish and imprecise, it would fare much better. But as is, I'm not sure the game going as large as it did, actually helped it as much as I would have liked it too. I feel like for Witcher 4, if there ever is one, a size and linearity balance of something that was a cross between the Witcher 2 and Witcher 3, would fare much better. Eg not as massive and repetitive as The Witcher 3, but not quite as concise as The Witcher 2.
I feel like I really enjoy many of the missions, and initial sense of wonder and expanse of the world, but then I also dislike the typical open world negatives of it all. At first it tricks you in to thinking it's not like other open world games, because even in mundane missions the story matters, but then you realise after the millionth contract, or side quest, or collectathon spree (that usually ends in you getting redundant gear) that you're basically still doing the same things over and over and over again, and that initial veneer is by then long gone. I don't know how many monsters guarding chests I've raided, or pirate sea barrels I've plundered, or contract monster smell trails I've tracked. Unfortunately this stuff you still have to do to some extent, at least if you want to succeed at the hardest difficulty, in order to level up and keep on top of better gear. It's just made worse by the fact that the game so infrequently rewards you with anything of merit, and instead the Witcher Gear (which is a chore to search for in itself), essentially dominate.
I think if the combat and controls themselves weren't as tankish and imprecise, it would fare much better. But as is, I'm not sure the game going as large as it did, actually helped it as much as I would have liked it too. I feel like for Witcher 4, if there ever is one, a size and linearity balance of something that was a cross between the Witcher 2 and Witcher 3, would fare much better. Eg not as massive and repetitive as The Witcher 3, but not quite as concise as The Witcher 2.
