Elder Scrolls vs The Witcher series

[Arkaign]

If anything, the sandbox style offered by TES 3, 4, and now 5, along with FO3/FONV have spoiled me quite a lot with the options and lack of 'corralling' that I feel with many other games, particularly RPGs. I liked TW2 very much, though the fighting style wasn't too much fun to me.

Anyway, win/win, lots of good stuff out there right now for PC

 

[Cerb]

The Witcher blows TES out of the water for me. The storytelling and characters are far more superior in TW and TW2 than any other recent RPG I've played.

I haven't gotten the TW2, yet, TW was indeed pretty awesome, warts and all. But, it was very different. If you are primarily concerned with story and NPCs, there will never be a TES game for you. The way to play a TES game is to get a couple levels under your belt, and go that way. What way? Who knows. Who cares. There's a forest with scary things, some tombs, some ruins, some raiders, some rebels, some evil cultists, some loot, and maybe even a few puzzles and traps. NPCs and quests are there, and have value, but they are secondary.

TW, OTOH, was a linear narrative masterpiece. Flawed in execution in some ways, but it really doesn't have another worthy game to compare it to, since everything else built remotely like it is Japanese, and as culturally Eastern as TW is Western (I, too, loved the morality).

 

[Monster_Munch]

The best part of TES games is usually the side quests. Anyone remember that quest in Oblivion where you had to go into a painting in some guy's house to kill the painted trolls? Or the dark brotherhood quest where you had to kill people one by one in a locked house and pin the blame on someone else?

 

[Grooveriding]

They're both great games, but different.

If I had to award one the champion title, it would be Witcher 2.

 

[Demo24]

The best part of TES games is usually the side quests. Anyone remember that quest in Oblivion where you had to go into a painting in some guy's house to kill the painted trolls? Or the dark brotherhood quest where you had to kill people one by one in a locked house and pin the blame on someone else?

Ugh, I HATED the painted trolls. I accidentally stumbled into that quest and then realized that I needed 2 turpentine per troll, but I only had enough for 3 out of 5. Biggest problem was the leveling as I hit that quest at a particularly bad time which meant that they were on a magnitude much too high for my person. Thankfully I googled it and learned you could just rock climb up and go around all of them to complete the quest. :thumbsup:

 

[sigurros81]

Any self respecting gamer who appreciates well-crafted RPGs will play both.

With that said, Witcher 2 definitely not as open ended as Skyrim but offers a much better refined cinematic experience and narrative.

 

[LgFriess]

I didn't like Oblivion (level scaling killed it and after that, modding it wasn't even an option for me), but can't remember having as much fun playing a game as I'm having with Skyrim.

 

[The Green Bean]

The Witcher 2 was more polished and involved you in the story. You always wanted to know what would happen next. The themes were dark and morality was grey. Skyrim feels more open-ended and there are more skills and better character development in the skills/weapons department. However, 8 hours in and I haven't really felt sucked into the character. The NPCs companions are dumb compared to the Witcher 2. On the other hand the world seems more interesting and there is more to do and the enemies are far more interesting.

Also, the Skyrim UI sucks for PCs and the Witcher 2 looked much better. The levelling system is better in Skyrim. In the Witcher 2, I would get auto levelled up by 2 or even 3 every new act.

All in all I prefer the Witcher 2 for it's cinematic feeling and engaging grey story.

 

[Gothgar]

I liked Morrowind a LOT, Didnt like Oblivion. Liked FO3, liking FONV (yes, currently playing it finally)

I could NOT get into Witcher one, bought the special edition and just couldnt make myself like it, and I tried, god knows I tried. Never played TW2... because of bad experience with first.

 

[JimmiG]

The Witcher 2 and Skyrim are totally different games. TW2 plays more like a traditional RPG (Neverwinter Nights etc.), while Skyrim, like other TES games, is an open, sandbox-style RPG.

TW2 is linear - some of the quests branch, but it's a linear game. You're taken from one (small-ish) location to another by the game as the story unfolds. While some of the areas you visit are quite big, it's not at all like Skyrim, where the entire game map is open for you to explore from the beginning. I think Skyrim is closer to Fallout 3 than Oblivion in terms of gameplay. Most things have been improved over Oblivion, but the menus are a bit awkward to navigate with a mouse and keyboard. Also, the leveling screen is ridiculous - it basically consists of three options. You can assign a single point to either Health, Magica or Stamina each time you level up. There's just no comparison to the leveling system and character stats of The Witcher 2.

 

[SlitheryDee]

I couldn't get into the witcher or oblivion, but I loved Morrowind and Fallout 3. Seemed like I could run around for hours and not really do anything in the witcher. I suppose the same could be said for the elder scrolls games, but I always had the sense that I was making progress in some discernible direction with FO3 and Morrowind, even if it was some random tangent I had wandered off on. In the witcher I was trying to progress the main story but for some reason I found myself running about aimlessly with no clear idea of where I was supposed to go most of the time. If the Witcher 2 is more of that I'll pass. If Skyrim is too much like Oblivion I'll pass on that too.

 

[Anteaus]

I loved Morrowind but hated Oblivion (mostly because of the scaling difficulty). Skyrim is like a breath of fresh air. It's not perfect, but there are tons of things to do and while overall the world is accesible from the start, it is still possibly to get in over your head. Witcher on the other hand is a different breed entirely. Hated the first one (mostly for the controls, not the story).

If I had one huge strike against Skyrim is that it feels too familer to FO3 in some ways, but I recommend it much for people who liked any of the Elder Scrolls games prior to Oblivion. It's doesn't quite have the depth of earlier games, but it's has the feel and spirit.

 

[MustangSVT]

Let me just say with witcher 2, I slept well. Skyrim is already affecting my work..

 

[PrayForDeath]

I could NOT get into Witcher one, bought the special edition and just couldnt make myself like it, and I tried, god knows I tried. Never played TW2... because of bad experience with first.

Many people hated TW1 but still loved TW2. There's a huge difference between the two games, and you shouldn't miss out on the second one just because you didn't like the first. It also has a new story, so you won't be at a disadvantage if you haven't played the first (aside from a few references.)

I personally loved both. TW1 was much slower, and the combat sucked (imo), but if you stuck with it, it rewarded you greatly in the later chapters. It's like reading a novel.

TW2 improved upon every aspect of the game. It has a completely different combat system (inspired by Demon's Souls), a much more engaging story that grabs you right from the prologue, and very high production values. The writing, dialogue, and voice acting are topnotch.

 

[frozentundra123456]

it's really just going to depend on your style. I hated the last 2 Elder Scrolls games (w/o mods), and loved both Witcher 1 and 2.

And the person that posts after me will probably say just the opposite.

Well, I would sort of have a different preference. I tried Witcher 1, but could never really get into it. Didnt try Witcher 2 yet.

Normally I dont like sandbox games, but I did like Oblivion and am liking Skyrim with certain reservations. Skyrim seems to have a better story than Oblivion, but I really dont like the interface at all, and somehow the sprint command does not work for me. Really had a problem with one puzzle because of this. I am almost tempted to try a controller just to see if sprint works, but I dont want to learn all the controls again.

I have about 12 hours into the game, and just finished act 1 of 3 in the main quest. So if one wanted to focus on that, you could play like a more traditional RPG. However, that kind of defeats the purpose of getting Skyrim. Since there are not many other games I am interested in right now, I plan to put a lot of time into Skyrim.

 

[Demo24]

I couldn't get into the witcher or oblivion, but I loved Morrowind and Fallout 3. Seemed like I could run around for hours and not really do anything in the witcher. I suppose the same could be said for the elder scrolls games, but I always had the sense that I was making progress in some discernible direction with FO3 and Morrowind, even if it was some random tangent I had wandered off on. In the witcher I was trying to progress the main story but for some reason I found myself running about aimlessly with no clear idea of where I was supposed to go most of the time. If the Witcher 2 is more of that I'll pass. If Skyrim is too much like Oblivion I'll pass on that too.

The first part of TW1 I agree with, you seem to be running around kinda aimlessly because it's not overly clear about what you should do. However past like chap1, maybe 2(havent played that one in awhile) it improved significantly. But, don't let this put you off from TW2 because while the story continues from TW1, practically nothing else is the same. Far clearer in objectives, far more interesting story with better presentations, and overall general imrpovements.

I'd say Skyrim is more along the lines of Fallout than Oblivion. You can choose how involved you want to be in the main quest line.

I'd recommend both of these games, but TW2 should go on sale decent this holiday season so I'd suggest waiting and getting it for that kind of price. Definitely worth it imo.

 

[Martimus]

I couldn't get into the witcher or oblivion, but I loved Morrowind and Fallout 3. Seemed like I could run around for hours and not really do anything in the witcher. I suppose the same could be said for the elder scrolls games, but I always had the sense that I was making progress in some discernible direction with FO3 and Morrowind, even if it was some random tangent I had wandered off on. In the witcher I was trying to progress the main story but for some reason I found myself running about aimlessly with no clear idea of where I was supposed to go most of the time. If the Witcher 2 is more of that I'll pass. If Skyrim is too much like Oblivion I'll pass on that too.

The Witcher 2 is actually nothing like that. It is actually somewhat like Oblivion in that it has a minimap with an arrow pointing you toward the quest objective. It is FAR more polished than the original, and is probably the best presentation of a story I have ever seen in an RPG (I consider it better than Mass Effect 1 and 2 in that regard, but those have very good presentation as well). I actually enjoy the combat, although it is much more difficult than the Witcher 1 (You could kill 99% of the enemies in TW1 simply by casting Aard to knock him down, then perform a finishing move while he was on the ground. Not so in TW2).

The side quests in the Witcher 2 are far better and more polished, which really helps the game. But the game is very linear (although it has a lot of branches, that make the game completely different depending on the choices you make) and it isn't one where you can just go do whatever you want like in an Elder Scrolls game.

 

[exar333]

The Witcher 2 is actually nothing like that. It is actually somewhat like Oblivion in that it has a minimap with an arrow pointing you toward the quest objective. It is FAR more polished than the original, and is probably the best presentation of a story I have ever seen in an RPG (I consider it better than Mass Effect 1 and 2 in that regard, but those have very good presentation as well). I actually enjoy the combat, although it is much more difficult than the Witcher 1 (You could kill 99% of the enemies in TW1 simply by casting Aard to knock him down, then perform a finishing move while he was on the ground. Not so in TW2).

The side quests in the Witcher 2 are far better and more polished, which really helps the game. But the game is very linear (although it has a lot of branches, that make the game completely different depending on the choices you make) and it isn't one where you can just go do whatever you want like in an Elder Scrolls game.

Only thing I didn't like about TW2 was the abrupt 'Zelda-like' boss battles. Not a huge fan of the action-RPG games myself, but I tolerated those parts because the game was really good otherwise.

 

[TheSlamma]

Sandbox game vs linear story based. Hmmmmm

 

[Arg Clin]

Very interesting topic - even if the conclusion is that these are completely different types of games.

I highly enjoyed both TW1+2 as well as dragon age and mass effect series. I never could get into neither morrowind nor oblivion at all. Same thing with Fallout and stalker. Open world/sandbox games bore me very quickly. I prefer a strong storyline with multiple paths/choices along the way.

I've been debating with myself whether or not to get skyrim, since it gets so much praise. However I'm fairly certain now that I just wouldn't enjoy it at all if there isn't a strong main storyline to follow.

 

[TheSlamma]

Very interesting topic - even if the conclusion is that these are completely different types of games.

I highly enjoyed both TW1+2 as well as dragon age and mass effect series. I never could get into neither morrowind nor oblivion at all. Same thing with Fallout and stalker. Open world/sandbox games bore me very quickly. I prefer a strong storyline with multiple paths/choices along the way.

I've been debating with myself whether or not to get skyrim, since it gets so much praise. However I'm fairly certain now that I just wouldn't enjoy it at all if there isn't a strong main storyline to follow.

If you were bored with Morrow and Obliv then you should avoid Skyrim.

 

[m33pm33p]

If you were bored with Morrow and Obliv then you should avoid Skyrim.

Completely honest opinion here, I just couldnt get into Oblivion, and I tried a couple times. Skyrim has been the most fun I've had in a video game since I was a kid though. Witcher is more streamlines where you need to do this and that. Skyrim seems more like do whatever the heck you want.

At the same time, there's been a TON of games I've seen that get a lot of praise and there the next best thing, that I couldnt stand, guess it just depends on your taste.