Witcher 3

pcslookout

Lifer
Mar 18, 2007
11,926
146
106
Why can't I get into this game? Every time I tried I am bored to tears. Maybe I am just not right for this game ?

I don't like having to listen to a long intro I know I can skip it but it takes forever.
 

alcoholbob

Diamond Member
May 24, 2005
6,271
323
126
I've beaten the game twice, played it for almost 350 hours...and I've never listened to the intro either.
 

alcoholbob

Diamond Member
May 24, 2005
6,271
323
126
The game is a throwback to oldschool text based RPGs which were very popular in Europe back in the day. If you prefer open world adventure games without the roleplaying, Skyrim, Far Cry, Fallout, all can fill that void.
 

you2

Diamond Member
Apr 2, 2002
5,678
917
126
Cant' really say why you are bored. No clue what kind of game you like. My suggestion is that give it a few hours and if you still don't like it then move on; life is short do what you enjoy. Btw I find a lot of consolitious stupidity in this game so it is hardly perfect but I'm still enjoying it (level 13 - first play).
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Here are a few of the stupidity:
can't put notes on the map
can only place 10 custom markers
context for getting item is super sensitive and often just plain broken
combat is centered around joystick (could be so much better for us kb/m folks)
rotation is difficult for small degree of movement (10 degree for example) (this is important because the stupid context mention above for picking things up or mounting horse).
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Anyway they haven't had a great interface since witcher 1 (which was strictly a pc game) but they do at least try. I thought waiting this long to play most of the bugs would be fix (they did change the stilly height damage thing that existed when the game first launched) but there is a bug when playing gwent that will prevent you from passing - then again gwent is fun :)
 

Sho'Nuff

Diamond Member
Jul 12, 2007
6,211
121
106
I feel you OP. It took me quite a few tries to get into W3. Get past the intro section and everything opens up A LOT. There is still a lot of dialog in places, but if you want you can completely ignore the story and spend hours upon hours exploring all the sites of interest. And things get particularly better once you get into novigrad proper.

If you really want to give it a whirl, I'd say you need about 10 hours of gameplay until the game really starts to hit its stride.

Also FWIW - I hate the gwent game - if you don't like it either it is entirely possible to skip it (you might have to play the intro match).

Finally re: the controls - the game is a LOT better with the xbox controller.
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
14,006
12,075
146
I'd say you need about 10 hours of gameplay until the game really starts to hit its stride.

I really hate this part. Tons of games have this issue, it was the same damn reason I couldn't ever get into Baldur's Gate 2. Each time I tried I could never get out of the starting city because "Quests! Dialog! More quests! Underground! Dialog!". And they never give you the option that you'd really take in a given situation.. it's always 'be a paladin' or 'be a jerk'. How about I skin them all alive and pike their annoying heads around my new town? Can I do that one?
Blergh. I prefer when a game plops me down somewhere with a relatively straight path forward (at least for a while, to be clear I love open worlds) and skip with the town/kingdom lore/non-intrigue/problems with the crown garbage.

Oh and for the Witcher games specifically, I always found the 'sexy time' stuff to be incredibly forced... like cringe-worthy forced.
 

thejunglegod

Golden Member
Feb 12, 2012
1,358
36
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I really don't understand what some of you guys are talking about. W3 was interesting to me right from the start. The only problem I had with it was Geralt getting to ask every Tom, Dick and Harry for a game of Gwent when Ciri is being held captive somewhere.
It is a very good game and I was never bored of it even a single moment. In fact, this is the most I've invested in side-quests in the past 3 years. I mean, just look at that Bloody Baron questline.

I though it was a general understanding that W3 is a very good game. To each his own I guess.
 
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ControlD

Diamond Member
Apr 25, 2005
5,440
44
91
It took me a little bit to get into simply because the combat is different from anything I have played before and frankly I sucked at it for the first several hours. Once I learned how to fight the game became quite fun.

I never did get into Gwent at all. I completely skipped that part after trying a couple of games.
 

BSim500

Golden Member
Jun 5, 2013
1,480
216
106
Why can't I get into this game? Every time I tried I am bored to tears. Maybe I am just not right for this game ?
I tried it but Witcher 3 just felt too consoley for me. I also tried twice to get into the original and just gave up. The general style of combat just didn't "click" with me for some reason. Sometimes you simply won't like the feel of a popular game without necessarily being able to nail down exactly why.
 

ControlD

Diamond Member
Apr 25, 2005
5,440
44
91
Another thing that really got me hooked on TW3 was the quality of the quest writing. I'm not sure I have ever played a game with this many well written quests. Even simple side quests were well written and surprising. I was willing to forgive the combat in the beginning simply to keep doing quests. Then once I had the combat down the game really took off for me.
 

CrowDog

Golden Member
Jun 7, 2001
1,709
8
81
I've tried to play this game twice and both times I have quit once I get to Novigrad and start doing the Dandelion stuff....Novigrad bored me to death. Chances are good I won't try to play it a 3rd time......
 

zerocool84

Lifer
Nov 11, 2004
36,041
472
126
Another thing that really got me hooked on TW3 was the quality of the quest writing. I'm not sure I have ever played a game with this many well written quests. Even simple side quests were well written and surprising. I was willing to forgive the combat in the beginning simply to keep doing quests. Then once I had the combat down the game really took off for me.

This x 100000000

Bethesda games like Elder Scrolls and Fallout to me get boring because of how shitty the side quests are and how shitty the voice acting and story for the side missions. Witcher 3 actually had side quests that made you care about them.
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
14,006
12,075
146
I loved the quests that I did in TW3, I also loved the locales, the combat, the environmental stuff going on, I just really hate going through the 'kingdom of somethingorother with crisis involving someguy that did badthings! and otherguy with badthings is now doing stuff! more names you won't remember! places you don't get to explore! someguy and otherguy are fighting, pick a side even though you don't really know anything about them! yay you're the hero because you sided with someguy, otherguy, or neitherguy (secret conversation tree requirements!)'.

Maybe because I've done it in like 50 other games, so all the names and faces blur together. But like, after what, 2-5 hours into W3 I have no idea who the antagonist is, or WHY my protagonist is doing anything he's doing. I played W1/2 but if it wasn't for sex scenes and wikipedia I wouldn't really know why Geralt is after Triss. So far I've been dealing with local garbage and killed a gryphon. Mind you that was fun, but W1 at least gave you a BadGuy(tm) within a few minutes. I don't know WHY i'm gathering herbs and fighting drowners and punching arsons and whatnot. Where I left off I was playing dress-up so I could meet with SomeGuy(1) in the kingdom of wherever that doesn't appear to matter to my character, or to the story. I was just sent there because I got sent there (wasn't even done where I was!). Nothing memorable about what I've played so far except the Gryphon fight which was mostly scripted anyhow.
 

Sho'Nuff

Diamond Member
Jul 12, 2007
6,211
121
106
I loved the quests that I did in TW3, I also loved the locales, the combat, the environmental stuff going on, I just really hate going through the 'kingdom of somethingorother with crisis involving someguy that did badthings! and otherguy with badthings is now doing stuff! more names you won't remember! places you don't get to explore! someguy and otherguy are fighting, pick a side even though you don't really know anything about them! yay you're the hero because you sided with someguy, otherguy, or neitherguy (secret conversation tree requirements!)'.

Maybe because I've done it in like 50 other games, so all the names and faces blur together. But like, after what, 2-5 hours into W3 I have no idea who the antagonist is, or WHY my protagonist is doing anything he's doing. I played W1/2 but if it wasn't for sex scenes and wikipedia I wouldn't really know why Geralt is after Triss. So far I've been dealing with local garbage and killed a gryphon. Mind you that was fun, but W1 at least gave you a BadGuy(tm) within a few minutes. I don't know WHY i'm gathering herbs and fighting drowners and punching arsons and whatnot. Where I left off I was playing dress-up so I could meet with SomeGuy(1) in the kingdom of wherever that doesn't appear to matter to my character, or to the story. I was just sent there because I got sent there (wasn't even done where I was!). Nothing memorable about what I've played so far except the Gryphon fight which was mostly scripted anyhow.

Yeah you are still wicked early in the game. All of the witcher games unfold as though a story is being read to you. Witcher 2 was more explicit in this with Geralt sitting at a table explaining things to vernon roche. W3 is much more vague in that style until you get past the starting area, which you are still in. The starting are is basically an extended tutorial into the gameplay mechanics. As you play quests the backstory unfolds. That said

The point of W3 is that Geralt is initially searching for Yennefer, his lost love. When he finds Yennefer (early in the game), she and the king set him to searching for a woman named Ciri (http://witcher.wikia.com/wiki/Ciri) - a child/descendant of the elder blood and the last heir to an ancient elven bloodline who was trained by the witchers of Caer Morhen (including Geralt) and Yenneffer. She is being hunted by a group of evil specters called the wild hunt (http://witcher.wikia.com/wiki/Wild_Hunt). The wild hunt wants her because of her lineage and because she has the ability to warp through space and time
 

pashbe1

Member
May 5, 2009
93
2
71
I recently bought the steam pack on one of the sales and started to play W1. After several hours trying to get past the stupid hound boss fight I got into city whatever. Started exploring a bit and just got bored and forgot about the game. The combat is so incredibly boring, like a "simon says" game with only one color. The idea of left clicking whenever the pointer turned yellow for countless more hours actually put me off gaming for the last couple of months. I'm not even kidding.

So my question is: Should I trudge through W1? Are W2 and W3 the same combat system? Or should I just start with one of the later games and which one?
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
14,006
12,075
146
I recently bought the steam pack on one of the sales and started to play W1. After several hours trying to get past the stupid hound boss fight I got into city whatever. Started exploring a bit and just got bored and forgot about the game. The combat is so incredibly boring, like a "simon says" game with only one color. The idea of left clicking whenever the pointer turned yellow for countless more hours actually put me off gaming for the last couple of months. I'm not even kidding.

So my question is: Should I trudge through W1? Are W2 and W3 the same combat system? Or should I just start with one of the later games and which one?

I'd honestly say skip W1/2, which is a shame because I know there's a good story in there, damned if I could get into it enough to find it though.

W3 has better combat but it's still kinda similar-ish. I didn't find it particularly thrilling (and it's *very* easy to go godmode during the tutorial for the rest of the game, i did it by accident), so if the story cannot draw you in, it might fall flat as well.
 
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pashbe1

Member
May 5, 2009
93
2
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I'd honestly say skip W1/2, which is a shame because I know there's a good story in there, damned if I could get into it enough to find it though.

W3 has better combat but it's still kinda similar-ish. I didn't find it particularly thrilling (and it's *very* easy to go godmode during the tutorial for the rest of the game, i did it by accident), so if the story cannot draw you in, it might fall flat as well.

Damn that's sad. Generally I much prefer story driven games, which anecdotally is this series strength, so I really wanted to like them. Thanks for the reply. Too bad Steam won't let you even gift games you don't want anymore.
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
14,006
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146
Damn that's sad. Generally I much prefer story driven games, which anecdotally is this series strength, so I really wanted to like them. Thanks for the reply. Too bad Steam won't let you even gift games you don't want anymore.

I prefer story driven as well, which this does have, I just tended to find the story(stories) tedious (as my previous rants may reveal). There's too much chewy gristly bits, not enough beef and veggies.
 

WhiteNoise

Golden Member
Jun 22, 2016
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Witcher 3 is one of the best games out there. But if you don't like RPG's then skip it.
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
14,006
12,075
146
Witcher 3 is one of the best games out there. But if you don't like RPG's then skip it.

Serious question:
How much 'floofy kingdom stuff' exists in the story? I'm just past the 'tutorial' on my current save of it, and I've entered some ridiculous part where I'm dressing Geralt and getting a haircut and presenting myself to a king or lord or something. How much more of this kind of garbage is there? This part literally made me stop playing and go back to Skyrim.

Edit: Geralt, not Garrett... Wrong game.
 
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EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
3,979
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I don't think I even got past the tutorial phase. Ahh, takes me back to Demon's Souls on PS3. There's a whole bunch of afternoons I'll never get back...
 

bystander36

Diamond Member
Apr 1, 2013
5,154
132
106
I really hate this part. Tons of games have this issue, it was the same damn reason I couldn't ever get into Baldur's Gate 2. Each time I tried I could never get out of the starting city because "Quests! Dialog! More quests! Underground! Dialog!". And they never give you the option that you'd really take in a given situation.. it's always 'be a paladin' or 'be a jerk'. How about I skin them all alive and pike their annoying heads around my new town? Can I do that one?
Blergh. I prefer when a game plops me down somewhere with a relatively straight path forward (at least for a while, to be clear I love open worlds) and skip with the town/kingdom lore/non-intrigue/problems with the crown garbage.

Oh and for the Witcher games specifically, I always found the 'sexy time' stuff to be incredibly forced... like cringe-worthy forced.

One of the reasons the Witcher games are a little slow at the start, and take a few hours to really get interesting is that they are giving you a lot of context and really build the characters history. Their combat is also a bit different than your typical game, so they also give you a little time to get adjusted to it.

I found the game got a lot more interesting around level 8, after you leave White Orchard, but even that wasn't all that bad. RPG's in general tend to be a little less fun at the start due to not having a developed character. Anyways, I found around level 8 to be where it got fun, and level 12-14 when it really got fun.

If you want to skip ahead, do the Main story quests, they give a lot of experience and are more interesting.

And to those who mention how this games quests are so much better than most games, part of it is due to the game being built around a pre-existing novel. That tends to make the story stronger.
 

KentState

Diamond Member
Oct 19, 2001
8,397
393
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I hated the game when starting with KB/mouse. Switched to the Xbox controller and it got so much better. Might sound counter intuitive, but story without fun combat will ruin a game.
 
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Red Storm

Lifer
Oct 2, 2005
14,233
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Serious question:
How much 'floofy kingdom stuff' exists in the story? I'm just past the 'tutorial' on my current save of it, and I've entered some ridiculous part where I'm dressing Geralt and getting a haircut and presenting myself to a king or lord or something. How much more of this kind of garbage is there? This part literally made me stop playing and go back to Skyrim.

Edit: Geralt, not Garrett... Wrong game.

It seems like you prefer games like Skyrim, where there's less focused story and more open sandbox. I personally really love the mix of deep story/setting and open worldness that the Witcher 3 offers.