In defense of the first Witcher game

How many my first witcher game was The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt in 2015. I sunk countless hours into it as I fell madly in love with the characters, but after I finished it I knew I had to go back and play the first one. The former is not uncommon witcher Game that should be quickly disregarded when discussing the trilogy. The 2007 title is often seen as an ugly, dull, clunky hack of Bioware’s Aurora Engine that you can skip in favor of the shinier, newer sequels. But so much of what makes The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Work is set up in The Witcher– it crept like that Wild Hunt could work.

Yes, the animations are weird, character models are repeated, and dialogue is ridiculously stilted at times. but The Witcher is an inspired early work, featuring characters we know and love and all of the components that were better executed and celebrated in its sequels. The strengths and charm of the later witcher Games are original, you can enjoy it if you are willing to try it.

The Witcher is Metallica Ride the Lightning before Master of the Dolls. It is pitch black before The Chronicles of Riddick. It is Bound before The Matrix. It’s season one of The wide before season three. The Witcher is a product of the time, talent and resources at his disposal. And if you can overlook its rust, especially on this one improved version This is available on Steam and GOG, it’s actually an adorable RPG.

Continue reading: The original witcher gets a slick new Unreal 5 Remake

Let’s address the age-old problem in the room: combat. The Witcher‘s combat is barely in the top ten lists of most RPG combat system players. But consider the game’s narrative and how combat actually works: Much of the in-world has a say The Witcher (and its sequels) about the way witchers fight involves discipline and training. It is part of the “path” that witchers walk. If games are to take this material seriously, then there should be a clear resonance between the narrative importance of combat as a witcher and the need to have the right stance, strike at the right time, have the right potions ready, and know when to use them correct signs to cast quick spells in the game. good to fight The Witcher is to master this system, and the game provides a means to live out this fantasy of discipline through one’s combat.

The combat is definitely unique, but by no means bad or difficult to understand – it’s all based on timing. You basically queue up an attack by clicking your mouse when the icon shows the correct symbol, which becomes a kind of metronomic beat that guides you through the fight. The result is an interesting mix of the limitations of turn-based combat and the chaos of real-time combat. Honestly, the timing element is kind of fun. As you chain your attacks together, Geralt will speed up and perform faster punches and spins. It’s a rewarding and fun journey. You just have to commit to it.

After a few rounds of letting the combat dictate a rhythm to me, I found it to be a comfortable and gentle departure from the usual rambling and talking you do in the game, as opposed to a hard left turn into a violent combat sim. While enjoying the changes to combat in The witcher 2 and 3it requires far more real-time reactions, lacks the natural rhythm of the first, and at times feels like a less than desirable pivot of storytelling and dialogue. The WitcherCombat feels less stressful once you get the hang of it, so much so that I wish this system had returned in the later games to improve it.

And as the beloved characters and their voice actors mature and mature in the later games, The Witcher already knows how to bring them to life. It starts with environmental design: there is a dynamic time of day and weather that changes with it. NPCs wake up in the morning to go about their daily chores, bringing a sense of life to these environments. When it rains, they seek shelter and comment on the weather. These feel like cities where people can and seem to live their everyday lives. The world design helps create a vibrant setting for these personalities, which is so important given that much of the narrative revolves around the protagonists, who exist as distinctly separate individuals of this fictional society.

As we step into the lives of the main characters, we see them come to life in a way not always common in medieval fantasy. Much of this character depth is found in the game’s quirky side quests, which expand on the serious, somber personalities so often seen in the narrative’s more mature moments. The best example of this is Old Friend of Mine, a quest where the goal is not to kill a monster but to throw a fun party for a group of friends. It is a symbol of the beauty and tragedy at play The Witcher: beauty because you love to see these characters happy and enjoying life; Tragedy because you know this is an exception to the draconian rule of your daily life.

In Old Friend of Mine, Geralt, Shani, Zoltan and Dandelion are faced with a quest for a nobler cause than trying to throw a stupid ring into a volcano: it’s late, everyone’s drunk and the people are in the mood for it some greetings. How can you possibly save the day and kill the beast that is drunken hunger? By stumbling into Shani’s landlady’s kitchen and, of course, stealing some pickles and lard. You must lead Geralt, who is completely devastated, downstairs to save the day. If you get caught, you will be scolded. But when you are successful, you are a true hero.

If a fantasy game can’t make you laugh and smile, then there’s nothing worth saving in its darker moments. The Witcher Humor pieces are important because they demonstrate and preserve the humanity in Geralt that this society is constantly trying to erase (either violently or through subtle ways of reminding him that he is different from everyone else). It’s no secret that Geralt is an outsider. The fact that he has to carry two swords is symbolic of the sad truth: he has to defend himself against monsters and humans alike, and the boundaries between the two are often blurred.

In early That witcher, Geralt meets an alchemist who asks to examine his body. The mere sight of a witcher whose body is clearly scarred and shows signs of chemically induced alterations arouses an invasive curiosity in this man. When Geralt asks if this man of science is so forthcoming with any body, he says no. Sorcerers, says the alchemist, are incredibly scientifically curious; Among normal people, they are anomalies, so asking such intrusive questions is perfectly acceptable for him. Sorcerers, when not feared or hired for work, are ordinary people’s glasses.

I too have had similar experiences. Sharing my pronouns, even the sight of me, the sound of my voice also result in invasive nudges. Questions about hormones, surgeries, my childhood, all the subject of a curiosity some people aren’t ashamed to say openly. If, like Geralt, I wonder if such a person asks someone such questions, the answers are reflected. Trans people, when not feared or hired for work, are often a spectacle for cis people.

The Witcher tells the story of characters who are marginalized by society and must find a way to accept, challenge and thrive in it – even though society wishes they wouldn’t. The analogies to our world aren’t always perfect, and there’s a lot of room for criticism (especially on the ‘earned’ ‘sex cards’). But at its core The Witcher, starting with the very first game, appeals to me not because it’s an escape from my existing world, but because it’s a recognition of how crappy things can be and why it’s worth stopping for moments of joy and laughter celebrate or fight. That’s what makes memes Geralt as a supporter of queer and trans rights feel so accurate

As a game, it’s a lovable artifact from another time and place, filled with early prototypes of what I’ve come to love assassins of kings and Wild Hunt. There is no witcher 3 without The Witcherand enrich playing itis the narrative experience of the entire trilogy. The Witcher knew back then that Geralt’s story couldn’t just be told with a series of pointless monster-killing quests, but had to give us the role of Geralt that we had to take on, both when he’s wielding some blades and stealing a jar of pickles – but whenever he’s at the edge exists.