Alright, so I never played the first Witcher.

Tried to play The Witcher 2, put a couple days into it but it never grabbed me...I didn't enjoy the combat, something was missing for me I guess....

So when it comes to the new game, will the same thing happen to me or will I get sucked in? I have no idea....what y'all think??

Jump in and try again or sit this one out?

i've watched enough on twitch to know that the things i didn't like about the first two - the jank, the awkward run/walk, the constant stopping and starting with menus and cut scenes etc etc, are still present in the third.

maybe watch some and see how it compares with what you remember?

The Witcher jank which I adore is still present, the game is the perfect combination of the essences of the first two games. So if the Witcher 2 didn't grab you, especially the combat which was built upon in Witcher 3, then this game is not for you.

Yeh the combat wont grab you if it didnt grab you in Witcher 2 but just like Brad you might get sucked in anyway becouse there is a ton more to the game than the combat.

I would say the same about Witcher 2 aswell so who knows.

I don't think that's true my friend, Witcher 3 is all about combat. Meaty loot is always guarded by bandits or monsters, the crafting is all about weapons and armor, the alchemy is all about bombs, combat potions/oils and combat decoctions, and the skill trees mostly consist of sword, sign and adrenaline skills. Even when I try to run away from combat and explore I keep running into bears, bandits, drowners and level "??" legendary monsters.

Then again OP can put it on "Just the Story!" difficulty and play for the amazing story-driven quests, but is that a way to play an open world game?

@terminatorz: It sure is. I have yet to hear someone playing the Witcher games for the awesome combat but theres alot playing for the story and world.

I had trouble playing Witcher 2 for some reason; it just didn't grab me like the first game did. Something about it just felt off control wise. However Witcher 3 has remedied that feeling for me and is much more open than the previous two games so I'd say give it a shot. The combat is better, it's open world, and there's a lot more side things to do than Witcher 2.

Ah, we agree to disagree then :) I personally play the Witcher games for the awesome combat and using the different tactics against different foes, after I study their traits. I get a hard-on when I combine all the weapons/potions/signs/etc at my disposal during a single fight and mess up the enemies in twenty different ways.

Needless to say I adore the story, and watching Geralt speak is an adventure of its own, but the gameplay is what I'm after, and I'm so pleased with the Witcher 3 gameplay!

The combat isn't drastically different from The Witcher 2; it is greatly improved though. The game does a very good job of encouraging you to use all the tools at your disposal, from the various types of potions and oils to the different Signs. This, in my opinion, makes the gameplay a lot more engaging. Still, I personally don't play these games for the combat; the story and the world is the main reason why I'm enjoying this game and did the previous one. It's just good enough for me that I don't dread each combat encounter.

I like the combat, and i liked the combat in the second game. I played 100's of hours of elder scroll games, and those games have way worse combat than any of the witcher games. And the movement is just as awkward as any of the Arkham or Assassins creed games IMO.

Only thing i don't like is that you can't lock onto bosses, which I hope is a glitch.

Yes you should buy this.

I thought that at first too, but then I tried locking on a boss when its name showed over its head and voila, the camera locked on it! (though nothing changes visibly because there's no over-the-head healthbar to indicate that you're locked on, just the unchanged name).

Really? I'll have to try and pay more attention, but i try every fight and it seems like the camera just pans around. It's really noticeable in fights with bosses who have henchmen.

Yeh sure i like the combat just the way it is aswell and i liked the combat of Witcher 1 and 2.

I just havnt herd anyone that plays Witcher for the combat gameplay alone and doesnt care about the rest of the game but the opposite i have herd many times.

Take what you will from this.

I read the collection of short stories of The Witcher and fell in love with the fiction, was always intimidated by the way people talked about the first two games, and found myself loving this one. Yes there is a lot to manage, and combat can eat you alive if you go in unprepared. Also I got Wild Hunt for free with my new gtx 970 and have it running on ultra to my tv. So in all honesty, half of my love may be justification for dropping $300 into my computer.

I didn't enjoy Witcher 2 and I'm not a fan of Geralt at all. But the world of this game interests me. So I'm picking it up used. That way I can return it if I dislike it as much as the last one.

I didn't like the combat in Witcher 2 but it's fine here. I wouldn't say it's great, but it gets the job done and it's not why I'm playing the game.

I think you should buy this game, the combat is much better than 2. I absolutley loved Witcher 1 and hated Witcher 2, so far im enjoying 3.

The combat is good if you don't just play like an imbecile, use the bombs, use your signs, dodge and roll use the parry and its great and for the love of god don't spam, hit and move. The one thing that is a huge drag is the Targeting and target switching is pretty bad at times, sometimes you have to deselect and reselect to get to a new target very aggravating when your fighting 6+ Wolves or Bandits.

I dunno, as someone who didn't really care about anything in 2, Wild Hunt is more engaging in pretty much every way for me so far, especially the combat.

@edgekasey, wait until it drops in price if you don't want to risk getting burned, but I was in the same position as you, dropped the cash and I'm enjoying it quite a lot. It feels a fair bit different than 2 with the open world stuff, aka you're not in the same 10 foot swamp running back and forth for the first 20 hours of the game, and the combat is touched up enough that I've been making the effort to engage with it this time around.

I can't really speak to how much more interesting you'll find the story, but it's all at least well written and I've been paying attention more than I ever did in 2. Not enough to sit around reading all the lore books and random notes or anything, but still.

Probably wait for a price drop as mentioned above.

What I might suggest oddly enough, is give the Witcher 1 ago (pretty cheap). It's a slightly different animal than 2, and then perhaps maybe give 2 one more shot, perhaps try and get past Flotsom.

Action is a large part of the series, but the world at large and the underpinning story thread is quite compelling.

The Witcher 3 is basically the perfect union of it's of processors, born at a time when it could be technically and artistically realized.

And hey, if it's not for you, that's alright too :) Plenty of great games coming out this year, not point in wasting your time with something your not enjoying!

@chu52: I am in need of a video card upgrade actually......lol

Thanks for all the input everyone.....

Went and bought a 980 so I'll be taking the Witcher out for a spin! :)

It's not that similar in structure or gameplay to the other two. Hope you like it!

@evilsbane: Yeah, that's why it's only good to do the targeting on a select amount of enemies, like an individual boss, and sometimes flying enemies, otherwise I'd recommend not doing it.

Sounds like you'll be getting it, or playing the previous ones? You just said you're going to play Witcher, I don't know which one exactly. Anyways, I would say the only thing you'll really be losing out on is the characters, so jumping into three first you won't really get the satisfaction of knowing who they were, and what they did first hand; for me it would have taken some of the excitement out of it. I prefer and recommend playing the first two because of that reason. There are also a several minutes in places you've been in the first game so far, and it's interesting to see them back again, but it's minor.

@ntm: Sorry, Nvidia is doing the "buy a new 970 or 980 and get the current big hot release" thing....It's the Witcher 3....and Arkham Knight too, I believe

@edgekasey: Alright, sweet. That's awesome! Have fun. Is it a choose a game kind of thing, or you get both? Oh, and to answer your question better, The Witcher 3 is better than both the first two. I liked both two and one (the first more than a lot that had played it, it seems, and liked the second less than most, but both are great overall), but three is superior in every way to the first and second. I can't tell you if you'd like the combat or not, but it's totally fine once you get into it and understand how it all works.

@ntm: Says both on the amazon link.