So i plan on picking this up for the 360 since it seems interesting and iv'e had no way to play the first one. But i recently found out the the witcher is available for mac so now i have a way to play the original. So i was just wondering if i should just man up and play through the first one before i start the 2nd one? Or does the 2nd one do a pretty good job at explaining the story so far to new players?
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
Game » consists of 16 releases. Released May 17, 2011
The sequel to 2007's critically acclaimed role-playing game, The Witcher. Players again take control of Geralt of Rivia in this story-focused adventure.
Should i play the first game first?
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is.
I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2.
Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the pun
@AhmadMetallic said:I have never played these games, yet somehow I know exactly what you mean...No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the pun
@The_Laughing_Man said:WOOO!@AhmadMetallic said:I have never played these games, yet somehow I know exactly what you mean...No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the pun
I'll say hell yes to playing the first, personally. I'm playing through it right now (with Dark edition of Witcher 2 on preorder) and am absolutely loving it. I was already heavily invested in the fiction though, having read four books, two of which were fan translated, so I may be a special case here.
I'd say at least give it a shot. The gameplay is slow but there is a lot to chew on in the game. I'm about 40 hours in at chapter 4 of 5... so be prepared for a long game if you play. It's really amazing though, in my opinion.
It's worth bearing in mind that the Witcher franchise did not start with the Witcher 1. The game was actually based on a long series of books, which mostly haven't been translated into English. In the grand scheme of things, the original game isn't that important. The Witcher 2 has far more references to the books, than it does to the first game, so I wouldn't worry about it.
We also have the ingame codex when ever we nee more info.If you want a little exposition or explanation of whats going on in the story/universe Gameinformer has a nice little write up that can be found here. Can't wait to play this come Tuesday!
@Rabid619 said:
I'll say hell yes to playing the first, personally. I'm playing through it right now (with Dark edition of Witcher 2 on preorder) and am absolutely loving it. I was already heavily invested in the fiction though, having read four books, two of which were fan translated, so I may be a special case here. I'd say at least give it a shot. The gameplay is slow but there is a lot to chew on in the game. I'm about 40 hours in at chapter 4 of 5... so be prepared for a long game if you play. It's really amazing though, in my opinion.
This is precisely the reason I play these games. Mechanicly they arent perfect, but the universe is so engrossing that so long as you can tolerate RPG's which take things in a slightly different direction you should be able to enjoy both games. It's not nessesary to have played the first though, but I highly recommend it. If not just for getting additional items (quite a few decisions carry over but they're not all that important) but to give a bit more context to the characters you meet along the way.
..Btw, where can I find those fan translations? ;p it's the only reason I've held off reading any other book apart from the first..
http://en.thewitcher.com/forum/index.php?/topic/20967-our-community-fan-translations/..Btw, where can I find those fan translations? ;p it's the only reason I've held off reading any other book apart from the first..
The last two books are still being translated, but all of the others are there. The translations aren't perfect, but they're quite good.
@AhmadMetallic said:
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.
Doesn't the first game have very shitty sword play where you just click when your sword turns orange and various other problems? I've never played it but I was thinking about getting it along with the Witcher 2. I'd probably manage to like both, thats what happened with Mass Effect.
@Nottle said:
@AhmadMetallic said:
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Doesn't the first game have very shitty sword play where you just click when your sword turns orange and various other problems? I've never played it but I was thinking about getting it along with the Witcher 2. I'd probably manage to like both, thats what happened with Mass Effect.
"AHHH CHANGE IS THE DEVIL! *HISSS*". I've played a bit of The Witcher and I really didn't like the combat at all. I'm really excited to pick up The Witcher 2, however.
@The_Laughing_Man said:
@Sackmanjones said:@The_Laughing_Man said:WOOO!@AhmadMetallic said:I have never played these games, yet somehow I know exactly what you mean...No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the pun
You guys are talking about boobs right? 'cause I understood boobs.
@Nottle said:
@AhmadMetallic said:
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Doesn't the first game have very shitty sword play where you just click when your sword turns orange and various other problems? I've never played it but I was thinking about getting it along with the Witcher 2. I'd probably manage to like both, thats what happened with Mass Effect.
it's basically rhythmic, click to attack, click again when it glows or something and click again, yadda yadda
it's mad boring
Yup. And so much more my child...SOOOOOO much more.@The_Laughing_Man said:
@Sackmanjones said:@The_Laughing_Man said:WOOO!@AhmadMetallic said:I have never played these games, yet somehow I know exactly what you mean...No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the punYou guys are talking about boobs right? 'cause I understood boobs.
You'll be good by picking the 360 version only because The Enhanced Edition (The 360 version at least) includes three videos explaining things, also it does include more cutscenes for further story telling. Just be sure you hit the 'extra' section in the main menu before starting a new game. But even if you don't, as I previously stated, there's more story telling throughout the game. But by all means, get The Witcher 1 on mac, it's a good game, though the gameplay is debatable and I don't know if you're the one who like it or dislike it. It's obvious you'll get more out of the game if you've played the first, but it's not essential.
And yes, I own & I've played both The Witcher 1 and The Witcher 2 for PC. And yes, I'm currently playing the xbox 360 version (Enhanced Edition).
@The_Laughing_Man said:
@ma_rc_01 said:Yup. And so much more my child...SOOOOOO much more.@The_Laughing_Man said:
@Sackmanjones said:@The_Laughing_Man said:WOOO!@AhmadMetallic said:I have never played these games, yet somehow I know exactly what you mean...No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the punYou guys are talking about boobs right? 'cause I understood boobs.
You mean like... butts?
Thanks for the tips guys but by the sounds of it I think I'll wait to play 2. And who knows if I love it I may go back and play the first one later.
You should play the first game because it's amazing. Then you should play the second game because it's amazing.
Do you need to play the first game before the second? Eh, not really I guess, but you will be missing out on a fair bit of backstory. What you need to know of it is reasonably well explained in TW2, but there's a lot of other stuff going on to keep up with which can become fairly byzantine, so you may find it easier to digest if you aren't struggling to figure out the backstory stuff at the same time.
Honestly, I think a lot of the story elements in TW1 are so good that you should find time to play it, regardless of how well the gameplay has or hasn't aged.
@AhmadMetallic said:
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.
You're in the minority.
Play both. Be blown away.
I'd say avoid it. People rag on the combat, but the worst part of it is the god awful plot devices that conveniently place you in new areas, basically starting from scratch, and never delivering anything decent in terms of boss battles or chapter-closing content. It's basically: 'You wake up somewhere new, after being knocked out again, you are a Witcher...go figure right?'
The Witcher 2, like many have said, has recap content that's pretty consistent. It isn't necessary to play through the first at all.
And from personal experience...The Witcher stands as one of the only games I've never bothered to finish, as it got far too repetitive for my liking. People enjoy it, but I'd say give it a miss, it needed major tweaking in the story and gameplay structures, and as far as I know, the second game has seen to those elements.
Both games don't have great combat really. The timing/rythm based combat in the first one didn't have too much depth, especially as it got really easy quickly as you leveled up. The stance stuff was interesting conceptually and I wish they had expanded that for the sequel rather than kill it. Also, the first game was overly long and had way too many fetch quests where you had to endure 3-4 load screens to cross areas (that swamp, bah).
The second one reminded me a bit of the Gothic games (though its been a long while, I may be misremembering), parry/evade and then swing. You need to use your signs much more now, but they did a horrible job making that clear and explaining them well. Can't wait to replay the EE and delve more into the combat with the new tutorial and whatever they changed.
I'm not the biggest fan of The Witcher 2 but I still think it's far better than the first one. Never finished it.
@Sackmanjones said:
@The_Laughing_Man said:@AhmadMetallic said:I have never played these games, yet somehow I know exactly what you mean...No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.Ive played the first and I think some of the stripping down is good. ....*Waits for someone to get the pun
How very appropriate that someone with a Shepard rapeface avatar would make a comment like that ^_^
@FritzDude said:
You'll be good by picking the 360 version only because The Enhanced Edition (The 360 version at least) includes three videos explaining things, also it does include more cutscenes for further story telling. Just be sure you hit the 'extra' section in the main menu before starting a new game. But even if you don't, as I previously stated, there's more story telling throughout the game. But by all means, get The Witcher 1 on mac, it's a good game, though the gameplay is debatable and I don't know if you're the one who like it or dislike it. It's obvious you'll get more out of the game if you've played the first, but it's not essential.
And yes, I own & I've played both The Witcher 1 and The Witcher 2 for PC. And yes, I'm currently playing the xbox 360 version (Enhanced Edition).
and that is in all copies of the 360 version?
The Witcher 2 is very self-contained and does quite a good job of painting a good picture of the world. You'll pick up the names of stuff (such as the "Scoia-Tel" [Forgive me if I mis-spelled that.. I just woke up]) very organically through the dialogue, so while the lore may seem a bit overwhelming at first, it won't be for long!
I played the first game AFTER The Witcher 2 and found myself enjoying it far less than I think I would've done if I'd played it first. Terrible character models, voice acting, lip syncing and a truly labyrinthe set of mechanics and menus. TW2 may be streamlined, but it truly is for the better. The less time spent staring at menus and the more time spent immersed in the world ROLE PLAYING the character the better, at least in my opinion. Worth playing though, it's a cool game with some good writing and its depth and complexity is quite rewarding once you get your head around it. The second is a far better game though.
@AhmadMetallic said:
No. You will either think it's "boring" and get a bad impression of the franchise, or think it's great and be disappointed by how stripped down Witcher 2 is. I loved the Witcher universe and gameplay and atmosphere and camera control so much in the first game, a love that didn't last when I played Mass Witcher 2. Skip the first game, play the second only (like most people have) and call it an amazing RPG. Ignorance is bliss.
I like the first game but it feels kind of tacky and dated after playing the second game. Didn't really feel that 2 was that stripped down compared to 1 either.
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