Choice and Combat in The Witcher 2

As Geralt of Rivia, the ghost-haired, sword-swinging protagonist of The Witcher 2, I enter a sprawling dwarven city I'm told only a percentage of players will ever see. CD Projekt RED's sequel to the 2007 original is a choice and consequence style of role-playing game, meaning decisions made will have lasting effects throughout. A key example of this is the city I've described, which without a certain combination of choices, the entire thing, side-quests and all, might not be accessible until a second playthrough.
In addition to expanding the repercussions of choice, a lot's being changed for the sequel. The Witcher 2 is being built using all new technology developed at CD Projekt RED, and it looks and animates significantly better. The armor system has also been totally reworked, and Geralt will be far more customizable as multiple pieces of equipment can be slotted in to affect statistical values and appearance.

Perhaps most noticeably different is the combat, which has been completely redone. Gone are the times of squinting at an onscreen icon to determine when to trigger follow up attacks for combos. The Witcher 2 plays more like an action game than an action-turn based hybrid -- which is a good thing. Geralt can be customized with a mix of sword, magical and alchemy skills. You can't acquire every skill, though, so you have to either take a balanced approach and spread out upgrade points across each category, or dump a majority into one. If you happen to max out the sword skill line, for instance, group finishing moves can be unlocked. For magic a new magical sign is unlocked that lets you slow time. And for alchemists who'd rather quaff potions than slash swords or discharge magic, a berserk skill is unlocked toward the end of the tree. According to CD Projekt, pursuing only one tree is a viable way to get through the story, though I would assume doing so would leave Geralt particularly vulnerable in a few key areas.

In combat Geralt can utilize magic signs, bombs and swords to survive against groups of enemies. Sword strikes come in fast and strong varieties that can be strung together using mouse clicks to hack apart the opposition. Since there isn't a rigid timing aspect like in the original, it feels fast and responsive, playing just like an action game. Blocking is also important from time to time, since if well timed it can knock an enemy off balance and open them up for a counter attack. Enemy types range from humans to magic casters to more monstrous varieties. In the parts I played they attacked in packs and required fast reflexes and intelligent use of magic signs and bombs to stun, stagger and damage. Depending on the enemy type, it was also useful to switch between sword types: silver blades for going up against magical creatures and steel for punishing humans.

Combat won't occur only out in the field against bloodthirsty enemies but also in city pubs. One of the mini-games in The Witcher 2 will let you brawl with drunks, which uses a timing-based system to exchange punches. Poker dice and an arm wrestling challenge will also be included in case you're looking for a break from the questing and combat.


From the cramped cities to green forests to dusty catacombs The Witcher 2 looks especially pretty. It's clear from the improved animations, increased level of detail, and better combat that CD Projekt RED has put a lot of work into its sequel. The interface for gear and conversing with NPCs also appears to be cleaner and easier to interact with. I can't be sure about performance and general stability at this point, but I have a hard time imagining issues on the scale of the preposterously long loading times of the original game would crop up considering how obsessed CD Projekt RED seems to be with getting everything right.

For now I'm cautiously optimistic, placing The Witcher 2 right up there with Dragon Age 2 and Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim in terms of potential for greatness. It's scheduled for a May 17th release date on PC.

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