I played the first Witcher back when it came out and loved it. I found it great and interesting to play with a compelling story. So I was excited when I got to play the second game. Now, that I have finished it, I feel a bit off. 
You see, for me, the most memorable thing of the first game was its story. Especially the part, when you had to choose: Humans or Elves. I chose the Elves. That choice was somewhere in the middle of the game, more leaning to the second half of the game. By that time you got to know both sides very well. What do they stand for, what are their goals and nature. The game succeeded in telling a story about racial tension and how, with every day, that conflict grew bigger. And Gerald himself was not willing to take part in it, but he got dragged in it and had to make a choice. That choice felt full of impact since the player had to decide the faith of lots of people. Of-course, it later grew into saving the world form a mad templar, but at the time of the choice, it was all about the inner conflict of that land and what role you would take in it. Though the future was not clear, at-least you knew what your choice means.

With that in mind, the big choice in the sequel is not that grand or great. At-least it felt like it for me. When Triss is kidnapped and I had to choose with whom I will go and find her, Iorweth or Roche, I did not feel like I knew what I was choosing. it was apparent, that there was more than saving Triss, but what? The racial conflict was not at the center anymore, since the story was about power in the region. But, at the end of chapter one, your goals were to find the King-slayer and Triss. So there was no real difference between those two. I chose Iorwith, because he spoke about Saskia and her goal to unite everyone. That was something I could get behind, but what would happen, if I had chosen Roche was not apparent to me. Now, after looking it up on the internet, I know, that I would spend the whole second chapter in the Kings camp, but I just think, that the game did a poor job in telling me about the differences when choosing one or another. I was left there to take a blind guess, since no one could be really trusted that early into the game.

And that is my biggest problem with it it that it was to early. If the player could know both of them better by talking with them more and taking quest for/with them, then it would add more weight to the decision, since you would spoil the relationship with one of them. But, most of the quest you take do not involve directly them, and, while you can get a feel for what kind of people these both men are, you don't really know them. For a game, which world is dark and full of betrayal, making a player choose a partner with too little information is a flaw.

Then there are all the loose ends with some of the characters. What happened with Iorwith, when I was searching for Triss in chapter three. Or what happened with Philippa after her eyes got burned out and I left her in the dungeon. Or with the town Flotsam and its ruler? Or Saskia? Or Roche? Or Sheala? While I did feel like a peace in a bigger puzzle, the story wasn't tightly raped up as in the first game. To many questions felt unanswered. And the romance side of the game felt a bit weak.

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the game. I like the setting, the humor (the joke about lesbian magic still cracks me up), the mature tone of the game. It explores a lot of gray areas, and doesn't shy away from the themes it talks about. It is just the story felt somewhat...odd.