The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

The Witcher 2 reviewed by Doc D Strange

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings was a huge surprise for me because I knew about this game and the Witcher franchise and heard such great things about them but I never had a PC capable of playing them. So when I heard that CD Projekt Red (the Polish developers of the Witcher series) were talking about making a port of Witcher 2 for the Xbox 360 I was hyped to say the least. After CD Projekt Red kept saying they were still working on a port for the Witcher 2 for a long ass time just as rumors then, I had my doubts that the game would ever come out on 360 because they didn't have a publisher to help sell it. Warner Brothers games came and decided to publish the game in America. I was happy that I could finally play this game that I have heard nothing but good stuff about.

Story/Gameplay

The Witcher series is based on short stories and several books from Polish writer Andrjez Sapkowski which depict the adventures of Geralt of Rivia, Witcher and know as "The White Wolf". Witcher's are human's that have been mutated and enhanced to become perfect hunters of all types of monsters in the world of Temeria.

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings story starts with Geralt locked up in a prison for allegedly killing King Foltest. Vernon Roche is part of King Foltest's secret police and decides to interrogate Geralt to hear what he has to say for his crime. Geralt tells of the battle at the La Valettes (a waring faction against Foltest) castle before the King was slain and how he was there to protect the King while King Foltest was battling to take back his two children from the La Valettes. Geralt and Foltest find his children and a blind monk on the top floor of the castle, where the king is assassinated by this blind monk who Geralt has found out to be another Witcher. Vernon Roche believes Geralt's story and decides to free The White Wolf only if he can find this assassin and bring him to justice. The Witcher 2 is a long game full of dark fantasy tropes and political espionage with twist and turns at every corner. Choose what you say wisely in the game because the game's story will change dramatically from your choices.

The Witcher 2 has a very unique combat system which can be very challenging if you are not prepared for the battle's you face through the game. This game is not a button masher or a combo heavy God of War like game. To combat your enemies you will have to prepare by drinking potion's that will range from making Geralt weaker in health but stronger in damage and vice versa boosting certain skills or making you immune to certain hazards also by coating Geralt's sword's with what the game calls oils will make his sword's stronger in damage against his enemies. It's alot to take in at first and you will die often but playing through the game these battle preparations will become second nature. The combat is a ton of fun once you get it down, you'll feel like a total badass... Not like that Prototype 2 guy, he just felt like he was forcing it. The game has a day/night cycle and CD Projekt Red makes good use of it, where certain story beats only happen during specific times of the day and it's a nice touch.

Graphics/Sound

One word....BEAUTIFUL! The Witcher 2 is an amazing looking game and I bet it looks even better on the PC with the graphic's cranked up to high. There is so much going on in this game from the characters and the gear they have on to the design of the creatures you fight. The backgrounds of the forests you see look dense and lush with fantastic lighting of the sun through the trees, Huge expansive bustling cities with people walking around or doing jobs. This game just screams with detail.

I need a good sounds system, I have been telling myself to go get a real nice surround sound system because my TV doesn't have great audio. The voice acting is very well done and has hours of fully voiced dialog, The voice of Geralt has a scratchy but sincere sound to it like you wouldn't want to fuck with him and the other stand out is the Kingslayer Letho. The creatures sounds creepy especially the Nekkers they have a gut wrenching scream when they see Geralt. The audio is very well produced. The Witcher 2 has a orchestral sound track that sets the mood of the game perfectly. As a bonus the enhanced edition of the game comes with the sound track.

Multiplayer

None. The game is around a 50 hour singleplayer experience. With ton's of replay value.

Is this game any fun

The Witcher 2 Assassins of Kings is the best game I have played all year so far. Everything about this game is just well made. The combat gets some taking use to but once you really know what your doing its just straight fun! If your a fan of the HBO series Game of Thrones then you will dig right in to the story. Like I was saying above, a second playthrough is a must because this game will be totally different from the first time through when making different choices, you will see areas that you didn't see the first time and I know what your thinking....Ya, like the choices you have to make in Mass Effect I get it, the story changes. NO! its way crazier than that, you meet different characters, places, mission and loot that you wouldn't have by the choices you made the first time. I loved this game and was surprised by how much investment I put into it. After playing the game I would have dream's about the game and its world. The Witcher 2 is well worth the 60 bucks, if your looking for something a little different than the norm of video games then this is a must buy.

Beer of the Review

I find myself trying to think of the brew the characters might be drinking in the games I play, like I was drinking some of this same brew when I played through Skyrim because I thought this beer seems like an old fashion dark ages style beer that I could see the town folk in the tavern drinking. I know Im a fucking nerd but so what? I do weird shit. This brew comes from the New Belgium brewing company, the same guys that make the Ranger IPA but this beer taste like I said above "an old fashion beer" which New Belgium calls "Enlightened black ale". The beer is "1554" and taste kinda like if coffee and beer made sweet sweet love. 1554 is a very dark beer but not like a stout making you feel like you just had a meal when your drinking it, the brew has a very clean finish and I could see Geralt and crew knockin' back a few of these after killing some monsters. Check them out at www.newbelgium.com PEACE!