Skyrider

Just finished the game and I absolutely loved it. Some of the "I'll help you but do this for me first" stuff wore on me something fierce towards the end, but I'll let that slide (Although I did yell "FUCK OFF!" at my tv a number of times as a result of this quest structure). I feel like I took my sweet time with the game for the most part, and yet there was so much that I hadn't done by the end of it and although I have the option of going back and checking out all of those missed contracts and points of interest, I actually don't want to. I thought that I'd be chomping at the bit to do so, but the ending I got left me wanting to leave things as they were (a side effect of getting what would probably be my ideal ending on my first try, I guess). Don't get me wrong, I'm not nearly done with this game, but I'll be starting a new game instead with my aim being to do everything. Even gwent this time around, which I did not play a single round of. I'll also try out a different build, probably focusing on the alchemy tree since signs were rather overpowered.

All in all, I'm super glad my PC was able to run this game.

@colourful_hippie: I was the same way. Sat staring at my screen for a good ten minutes trying to think it through.

Can't remember the last time a game enthralled me to this degree. Finally found myself in a convenient position to hop in a boat and subsequently sailed around just in awe of the world, and I'm nowhere near max settings. It's a sign of good art direction if the game can be stunning on just about any settings (Well maybe not low, but any rig meeting the minimum system requirements should run above that, it seems). I won't be upgrading my rig anytime soon, but when I do this will be the game I come back to. Combat feels responsive and satisfying (although I can see how some might think the opposite). There's something lovely about using well-timed dodges to maneuver through a group of badies while chopping them down.

It's not all sunshine and roses, naturally. The movement controls definitely have their quirks, and sometimes can be frustrating. It's quite similar to a game like GTA where the character's momentum will often have you running into objects repeatedly when trying to navigate tight quarters (the price of having natural looking movement, I suppose). Horse combat is neat I suppose, but the fact that I have to hold "A" to canter and need to use another face button to attack is sub-optimal. It would feel better if you could attack using the triggers on horseback since you can't cast signs then anyway. Mounted combat will always feel wonky to me, hell, the only game that it feels good in is the Mount and Blade series.

Not sure I how I feel about having to repair my equipment, but that's largely because I prefer to stay out in the wilderness for as long as possible. I guess it makes sense that I'd have to occasionally head back to civilization for supplies. Also not sure how I feel about potions restocking when I meditate. In theory it encourages less inventory clutter and hoarding as you won't have to hang on to ingredients, but that would require me to actually take inventory of my . . . inventory. Also, the nights are super bright, although I'm assuming that's because you play a witcher and have sweet cat eyes. Interiors can get nice an dark, however, and I do love using torches in caves/dungeons.

Also, the beard growth is awesome. It's such a tiny, insignificant feature and yet it adds so much. But yeah, I love this game.

@localoaf: I've got the GTX660 as well and have texture detail set to high, which according to geforce's tweak guide is optimal for 2GB cards, although it looks like texture detail doesn't have a huge impact on frame rate.

@werewolves: I'd say it's definitely worth picking up. I've played about 6 hours so far and while I'm definitely interested in the story (which I've not found difficult to follow) I've spent most of those 6 hours just running around in the wilderness looking for stuff and having a blast doing so. I didn't think of it until reading your post, but it really does remind me of Red Dead in some ways. I haven't played much of DA:I, but it didn't really grab me either.

My relic of a PC seems to be holding up nicely. An A6-3650 (which is below minimum system requirements) and GTX 660 have me sitting on a mix of medium and high settings at 1080p at around 30fps (yeah it's not 60, but I don't care). Haven't really fiddled with the setting yet though, just let the game auto detect. I must say I'm a bit surprised with how well my system handles it.

Got it pre-ordered on PC (through GOG since you get that sweet discount for owning Witcher 1 and 2). My PC is pretty shit in my opinion, but it runs Witcher 2 quite well and since it is hooked up to a TV I won't be running it above 1080 anyway. I don't expect to run it on max or even high, but I figure if I can manage medium settings and a solid 30fps minimum, I'm probably on par or a bit ahead of the console version.

Quite pleased that I finally found out you can use the bandanna mask without the default hat and glasses that come with it. If this is a legit bug that they`ll patch, I shall no longer be pleased. I'm rocking the military sweater because you can't wear gloves with a vest and non-white shirt. Yup, if you switch the shirt under the vest, gloves can no longer be worn. A darn shame, y'all.

@borklund: There isn't really an official PC specific one, but Giantbombsquad looks to have the most PC players.

I joined GBSQ since it seems to have the highest number of PC players at the moment. I'm Dukeofmeh on PC.