The Witcher® 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is an RPG following the adventures of the famous monster hunter Geralt, a witcher, one of the few remaining pros in the medieval fantasy world. If you expected more from the show on Netflix, download The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt for Windows,  PS4 or Xbox One, and wear the skin of the White Wolf.

Graphics 5/5

It still looks stunning, with all the dark forests and deep rivers, burning castles in the night and hungry monsters, brutal heroes and pretty heroines beautifully dressed… or undressed as well. The voicing is just as perfect, making the impression complete. It’s a third-person RPG, with environment almost fully interactive, and sounds contributing to the perception, so connect your best acoustics. And prepare about 50GB on your drive to place all this splendor.

Gameplay 5/5

This game is a non-linear adventure RPG that combines solid storytelling and an open world. Your character, the famous witcher Geralt, is on his quest for Ciri, a young princess with a magical gift. The Emperor himself (who once nearly condemned Geralt and his love, Yennefer) now needs them both to find the girl. There is a big war going on, and the witcher will have a hard time doing his job.

The witcher’s quest is never easy. Fight with swords, empower yourself with meditation and potions for healing, and use elixirs for night vision, detoxication, recovery, and other superpowers. There are also books to read, trade and crafting to master, and – last but not least – Gwent, a built-in card game that is now available separately.

Along with the search for Ciri, Geralt takes side missions – extinguish monsters, investigate on crimes and mysteries, find lost people and animals, and so on. And almost every time it brings a moral dilemma. Should you select the easy or the risky way? Will you help people with your kind motivation, or cause even more trouble? Should you reveal the crimes committed by your current client? The answers are never clear, and it makes the game one of the greatest stories ever told in the gaming industry.

Controls 5/5

The game works equally well with a keyboard and mouse and a gamepad. No wonder, as it’s an adventure RPG designed for consoles with their conventional inputs. It feels more dynamic with a gamepad even on PC, though in some situations keyboard setup provides more options. Overall, it’s a matter of taste.

Replay Value 5/5

It takes over 48 hours to follow just the core storyline, if you ignore all the numerous side quests. Even when you finish, you always have lots of choices unmade, and they affect the ending, so you will want to try it all over. Side quests tell their own stories, completing the world. Two expansions change the overall game experience, adding missions, lands, and witchcraft.

The Bottom Line

Though released in 2015, The Witcher 3 is still a thing. The developer, CD Projekt, has told there will be no sequel (even after the show on Netflix), so it’s still worth attention. But it’s full of blood and gore, human and inhuman monsters, nudity, obscene words, and cynical philosophy. You’ve been warned.

If you like dark fantasy, download The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and you won’t be disappointed, regardless of what you think of the Netflix show or the books.

• Graphics 5
• Gameplay 5
• Controls 5
• Replay Value 5

Pros

One of the best stories in the gaming industry;
Great visuals with mystical medieval atmosphere;
Hundreds of gameplay hours;
Various controls supported;
Gwent!

Cons

The game still requires powerful hardware;
It can’t be played casually;
Violence, gore, nudity and profanity (unless that’s a pro for you).