The enormous popularity they currently enjoy forest obras de Andrzej Sapkowski It is mainly due to the third installment of the video game saga based on them. We can argue that Without the excellent reception of that title, the Netflix series would not exist, nor would the novels have been released in so many languages.. The second game was very good, but it wasn’t that relevant and the less we talk about the first, the better. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt it is the cornerstone of the franchise and that is why its relaunch in the form of an improved version for PS5, Xbox Series X | S and PC is so important.
We feel it’s a bit absurd to sing the praises of this game more than seven years after its original release. The high quality of its gameplay, narrative and game mechanics is well known and we we gave it one of the few perfect grades we’ve assigned to a video game. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have anything to say about this new version.
The improved version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC is much more than just a remaster. As soon as we begin to travel the familiar paths of Huerto Blanco on the back of Sardinilla, we are amazed at the beautiful landscapes and how vibrant this world looks. The Witcher 3 it looked great when it came out in 2015, but this is a considerable improvement thanks to the high-resolution textures and the performance at 60 fps (frames of animation per second).
Since this is a free update, we know that many owners of the original game lucky enough to have a good PC or a current generation console are asking the same question…
Is it worth playing again The Witcher 3 taking advantage of the improved version for PS5, Xbox Series X | S and PC?
The relaunch of the novels and the popularity of the Netflix series starring Henry Cavill have made many fans of the game want to return to this world, but its long duration —reaching the end can take us more than 50 hours, double if we get distracted by optional activities—it can get us down.
While the story, gameplay pace, and development haven’t changed at all, small quality-of-life improvements, increased performance, and higher resolution make for a smoother, more enjoyable experience.. Even the slow loading times can cut a considerable amount of time out of matches. This makes you go back to The Witcher 3 is a great way to continue experiencing the world created by Sapkowski as the fourth game or third season of the series rolls around.
But the most benefited will be those who have left the adventure started or have not experienced its additional content. The game makes it easy to pick up the story where we left off, even allowing you to migrate your game from any platform. In addition, we can directly access the content of the DLC expansions Hearts of Stone (Stone hearts) y Blood and Wine (blood and wine) and the game “gifts” us a Geralt with the level necessary to survive in them.
But there is a third group made up of those who have never played The Witcher 3 and they want to. This is of course the best way to enjoy this title.. If you already have the full edition in your backlog, you can upgrade to the enhanced version at no cost. If you are just going to buy it, it is at a reduced price.
Are the other improvements in this edition worth it?
as we already said when we announce the arrival of this improved version, The Witcher 3 You will not only receive technical improvements for PS5, Xbox Series X | S and PC, but also some extra content. It is possible to think that it is only about aesthetic content that will make fans of the Netflix series smile, but it is much more than that: there is a new complete mission where we unlock the armors that Geralt wears in the series.
This new mission is not very long, but it has new lines of dialogue from the protagonist and even a new enemy. It is worth coming back to this game even if it is only an hour to live this new and short adventure.
The rest of the additions, like the new skin for Dandelion/Dandelion and the new Nilfgaard armor, are purely cosmetic. The good thing is that You don’t need to own a PS5 or Xbox Series X|S to enjoy this new content, as it’s also available for free on PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
60 fps or ray tracing
Like many other games on the current generation of consoles, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete edition It has two graphics options on PS5 and Xbox Series that allow us to prioritize performance or graphics quality improvements.
The default option is the performance option and it allows you to play at 60 fps (frames of animation per second) in a fairly stable way, with minimal fluctuations. Thus, the game looks and plays very smoothly. The other option is to enable ray tracing. Although it is true that it improves the lighting and quality of the reflections – you only have to see what the river of Huerto Blanco looks like at the beginning of the game to notice the difference – the performance is reduced to 30 fps.
Although it looks good, we believe that the performance improvement is not worth losing. It’s not that the game runs poorly at 30fps, but after experiencing it twice that we don’t really feel like going back, no matter how good it looks otherwise.
The improvements that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete edition was missing for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC
There is no doubt that this is the best existing version of Geralt’s best adventure, but we also feel that it is a missed opportunity in that they did not add changes and improvements that it needed. To start, the game continues without dubbing into Spanish, although the translation of the texts and subtitles is quite decent.
We also would have liked to see improvements to the combat system. It does have a few that make it easier to select Signs, but this is still the weakest element in the game. Changing targets and controlling the camera in the middle of combat is still frustrating and hits lack impact, causing the confrontations to lose immersion. This is strange because this version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt It takes great advantage of the haptic vibration of the PS5 DualSense controls when performing actions such as galloping on the horse, but sword strikes have no effect.
Inventory management is another element that deserved some extra changes to make it easier and more intuitive. Photo mode is a welcome addition, but it doesn’t have many tools. There is no way to change Geralt’s expression and it’s amazing that he doesn’t have filters with different effects.
In conclusion…
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is rightfully considered one of the best RPGs of all time and this upgraded version accentuates its strengths to make it shine even brighter.. Although it still has some flaws, its world is worth getting lost in for dozens of hours. If you have never played it, this is your best chance to do so.
Impressions based on a digital copy de The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition with PS5 enhancements provided by CD Projekt Red.
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