So, after a late night sprint I finally finished the game. I'm really impressed with the game so far and would probably call it the best RPG I've played so far this year, but I still haven't played everything there's to offer considering I haven't sided with Iorveth yet in Chapter 1.

I thought the game resolved it's story sufficiently and gave answers where needed. The complaints about the bad ending are somewhat justified, but they resolved the Wild Hunt and Kingslayer business well enough. It's just that you want to see what happens next. However, I expect that this is what CDP wants considering they're making an expansion for TW2. And with that, I don't mean some lame DLC, but a real old-school expansion. I played the game on hard and even though it was tough at the beginning, I was doing fine by Chapter 2. It might just have something to do with the fact that I didn't know how to fight in the beginning though, I'll see how I do next time I play through the game.

During the game I killed Aryan La Valette. Helped Roche capture Iorveth at the elven ruins and after that helped assasinate Loredo. In Chapter 2 I ended up in the Kaedweni army camp, which is a pretty impressive sight. The entire quest to lift the curse on King Henselt and the battlefield was pretty good. At the battle of Vergen, I decided to help Roche again and spared Henselt's life. As big of a dick he was, killing him would put yet another realm in chaos. Chapter 3 is quite short, people are right about that, but I didn't feel cheated or anything. In this Chapter I spent my time gathering cool equipment(which is pretty easy to obtain) and after that finished the main quest. I decided to help Roche with rescuing Anais and gave her to the Temerian delegation, I figured there was no way that Radovid would honor his agreement and just hand over all of Temeria to her once she'd come of age.
After that I had an epic fight with a dragon, which was really well done. I really felt like this fight was incredibly well done. It doesn't really make sense for a dragon to fight you on land, which is what you'd see in some other games. However, in this case you're inside a tower, so it'd make sense for it to come close.

After that the talk with Letho remained, in which he answered most of the questions you have regarding his motives and the rest of the plot. I also really like how they explained the Wild Hunt. He's not some spectral force, but he's just a regular elf from another world. I really like this reference, because it strengthens the theory that the Witcher is not a fantasy game, but actually a post-apocalytic science fiction game. In the Witcher fiction only the gnomes and dwarves are native to the world. The elves and humans arrived in this world by "ship" and the monsters arrived when the Conjunction of Spheres(planets?) occured. The explanation that the Wild Hunt is an elf from another world, who still hasn't felt the oppression of humans, nor suffered from them, is good supporting evidence of that.
Ofcourse Sapkowsky left this relatively vague in his books and left it up to the reader to decide, I really like that explanation. It makes sense like that to me, because it explains why the world seems stuck in medieval times, yet has so much knowledge about alchemy and science.

Anyway, that's enough rambling for now, let me know what you think of the ending and what choices you made. I'll also make sure to post some pictures later of my Geralt in his Vran armor and Elder blood gear, with Addan Deith and Caerme as my swords.

Neat, your playthrough is pretty similar to mine!

I killed Aryan and sided with Roche in chapter 1. In 2 I let Roche kill Henselt. And in 3 I saved Triss (Though revenge on Dethmold was really temping) let Sile die from the megascope and killed the dragon.

Did you try fighting the operator in the sewers in chapter 3? Was a pretty tough fightl imo. Also what are those swords rewarded from?

I sided with Iorveth so the quest line for chapter two was completely different for me. In the end I helped getting the dagger instead of going after Triss so I could save Saskia. I let Letho go in the end. I was pretty happy with how it ended. I really don't understand all the complaints about the ending.

Neat, your playthrough is pretty similar to mine!I killed Aryan and sided with Roche in chapter 1. In 2 I let Roche kill Henselt. And in 3 I saved Triss (Though revenge on Dethmold was really temping) let Sile die from the megascope and killed the dragon.Did you try fighting the operator in the sewers in chapter 3? Was a pretty tough fightl imo. Also what are those swords rewarded from?

I sided with Iorveth so the quest line for chapter two was completely different for me. In the end I helped getting the dagger instead of going after Triss so I could save Saskia. I let Letho go in the end. I was pretty happy with how it ended. I really don't understand all the complaints about the ending.

A lot of things in the end will depend on what your choices throughout the game.
So while the chapter 3 is relatively short it is very melable.

People WILL have different feelings regarding the ending, simply because there are many ways for them happen.
Some will feel cheated and unsatisfied, because little is explained of political outcome, or miss Lethos explanations.
Others will have Triss break down the exact outcome of treaty talks, and mine Letho for knowledge.

As for me, I had a drink with Letho and let him go.
(but he IS a bad guy, dude murders witnesses without question, like the priest who healed him)


@Thule: 
I would consider the Operator (dude who can reset your skills) to be the toughest fight in the game.
Fucker summons 2 Gargoyles repeatedly that have more HP then normal and do INSANE damage to you, i had over 100 armor and over 50% damage resist and they still butt raped me in like 5 hits.
And you cant harm the operator until you kill them, then he re shields and summons after you get a few hits in.

As for me, I had a drink with Letho and let him go.
(but he IS a bad guy, dude murders witnesses without question, like the priest who healed him)

@Thule: I would consider the Operator (dude who can reset your skills) to be the toughest fight in the game.Fucker summons 2 Gargoyles repeatedly that have more HP then normal and do INSANE damage to you, i had over 100 armor and over 50% damage resist and they still butt raped me in like 5 hits.And you cant harm the operator until you kill them, then he re shields and summons after you get a few hits in.

@Tennmuerti said:

As for me, I had a drink with Letho and let him go.
(but he IS a bad guy, dude murders witnesses without question, like the priest who healed him)

I killed him. I figure Geralt wouldn't have forgiven him for breaking the principles of being a Witcher. Letho took a payment for killing humans(the Emperor promising to rebuild the Viper school) and therefore became a regular blade for hire, witcher or not.
Also he thrust the realms of Temeria and Aedirn into chaos and war by his actions, causing many to suffer, Geralt wouldn't like that.

I just wish that they had an epilogue where they explained the consequences of your actions. Just wanted to know what state the kingdoms are left in now.

I just wish that they had an epilogue where they explained the consequences of your actions. Just wanted to know what state the kingdoms are left in now.

....isn't this game supposed to be over 50 hours long without the side stuff?  

Did you just play it straight?  

@Laketown: It is pretty obvious that things are in the shitter, but I'd like to know the state of each kingdom. Also, no word on Saskia. I know that she lost, but was she killed? Or imprisoned? Or did she escape? Witcher 1 had a fully voiced epilogue. Why shouldn't Witcher 2 have it too? Still love the game though, but the ending was a bit weak.

@zungerman090 said:

@Laketown: It is pretty obvious that things are in the shitter, but I'd like to know the state of each kingdom. Also, no word on Saskia. I know that she lost, but was she killed? Or imprisoned? Or did she escape? Witcher 1 had a fully voiced epilogue. Why shouldn't Witcher 2 have it too? Still love the game though, but the ending was a bit weak.

uh, I dunno about you, in my ending I ended up talking with her, she went off to heal and to go back to Vergen. and witcher 2 will have mad (free) DLC, so I wouldn't worry about that. and an expansion somewhere along the line

....isn't this game supposed to be over 50 hours long without the side stuff?  Did you just play it straight?  

I didn't fight in the sewers, beyond finding the treasure from the Mystic River quest(Vran armor diagram), so I don't know who the operator is.Addan Deith is a silver sword you get from the chest in the room with the runes near the amphitheatre. The room with magic runes to the left of Loc Muinne's main gate contains a magical tome, that once deciphered by Bran of Ban Ard will give you a crafting diagram for Caerme a steel sword. You require a couple of ingredients to do so, Endrega queen pheromones, a Bullvore brain, blood of a nekker warrior and either a harpy egg or rotfiend's tongue.

I had the password for the door in the sewers of Loc Muinne, but I skipped it.  I didn't want to reset my talents, and while the guy drops a dragon scale if you can kill him (which is extremely difficult - the guy peppers you with fireballs and summons a bunch of gargoyles), I had already found one in Philippa's house, which required me to do nothing but loot some crates and chests.

I have a feeling that I missed A LOT of things, and not because I wouldn't do sidequests and have as much conversation as possible, but because of how the story unfolds. I mean, I talked to Saskia only once, I never stepped once into the city of Vergen, I never even met Philippa. I was really shocked when I learned that the dragon I have slain was actually Saskia.
 
It just seems that choosing Roche or Iorveth can and will make you experience an entirely different game.
 
So, to people saying that the choices in the first game have greater impact or whatever... I beg to differ. It's really amazing how much possibilities there are.

Funny thing: I spared Letho, and after the credits I can see a woman walking to the gate, if I kill him she doesn't appear..