The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

[ImpulsE69]

The Witcher 3 is an exceptional game. Those don't come around often.

But so is GTA V. People might have forgotten, because the xbox and ps3 versions have been out for years. But GTA V is awesome. Even though lots of people seem to find stuff that is not up to their standards. Yeah, right. Always complaining. But like I wrote before, GTA V is more impressive than anything we've seen since Skyrim.

It's weird. GTA V and The Witcher 3 were released less than a month apart. They are both the best we've seen since the last milestone-game (November 2011, Skyrim). Imho both games deserve to be game of the year. And I can't remember even a single game that I would have given goty of 2012, 2013 or 2014. (Mmmm, Dishonored in 2012 maybe. But it doesn't even come close in quality to GTAV and TW3).

If you are only basing games on graphics, then maybe, otherwise there are lots of 'better' options (in the 2012-2014 range). A:I was amazing, Shovel Knight was as well, Bioshock Infinite, Shadows of Mordor (was awesome)....etc. It's still all personal preference. The only thing that made Skyrim great was mods. Out of the box it was just...so so. I haven't played GTAV, but I would tend to put Saints Row above GTA for gameplay. Never cared for GTA series.

Besides that, tons of other games that still have yet to be played/or never played.

So far W3 is definitely a top contender on scale and flexibility.

 

[Artorias]

Any tips on how to approach the main quest line? I want to do as many side quests as possible, I heard some side quests can be missed if you progress the story far enough.

So far this is looking like my Skyrim play through where I did everything possible.

I also just reached Velen and picked up 3 side quests from the first two small settlements. What's with the odd high level 33 contract? I'm only level 4 so its kind of weird to get one of those right off the bat.

 

[sze5003]

Any tips on how to approach the main quest line? I want to do as many side quests as possible, I heard some side quests can be missed if you progress the story far enough.

So far this is looking like my Skyrim play through where I did everything possible.

I also just reached Velen and picked up 3 side quests from the first two small settlements. What's with the odd high level 33 contract? I'm only level 4 so its kind of weird to get one of those right off the bat.

You can do the main quests at anytime. You can pick up side quests in velen by traveling and exploring the ? Areas. Make sure to go through as many of them as you want. In white orchard if you just breeze through without exploring the ? Areas and go to the main quest you can't go back and do some of those side quests. But that's only for the beginning, for the most part you can complete story quests and still have the ability to do side quests.

Also, contracts and quests don't go with your level, they are whatever level available. So you should wait until you are closer to the suggested level to do them.

 

[Madia]

Game of the year?

Most likely but Fallout 4 and Metal Gear V will give it a run for the money.

 

[sze5003]

Most likely but Fallout 4 and Metal Gear V will give it a run for the money.

I played ground zero since its free on psn and its decent, so I'm going expecting full game to be good too but it seems repetitive from that pre demo.

 

[Carfax83]

So far W3 is definitely a top contender on scale and flexibility.

I agree, but I'm still a bit miffed how the PC version got screwed over in the graphics department because of the consoles..

Now that I'm in Skellige, I'm noticing a lot more the draw distance (for non organic objects) and polygon density downgrade..

 

[amittalkin]

Game of the year?

movement glitches,combat glitches everywhere! I would say Game of the month atleast!

 

[Fire&Blood]

I agree, but I'm still a bit miffed how the PC version got screwed over in the graphics department because of the consoles..

Now that I'm in Skellige, I'm noticing a lot more the draw distance (for non organic objects) and polygon density downgrade..

Try hunter's config? I traded ~5fps for killing pop in and better draw distance.

 

[Carfax83]

Try hunter's config? I traded ~5fps for killing pop in and better draw distance.

Is that for inorganic stuff as well like buildings? I'm pretty sure those are hard coded and can't be changed courtesy of Umbra.. To me it's inexcusable that the PC version shares the same exact draw distance for buildings, mountains, cliffs etcetera as the console version.

This game doesn't even use 3GB of VRAM on ultra quality. The draw distance could be pushed out a LOT further than it currently is..

I've also played around with the ini. settings myself, and it seems that only a few of them ever stick. Many of them are ignored by the game and don't work..

 

[Fire&Blood]

Is that for inorganic stuff as well like buildings? I'm pretty sure those are hard coded and can't be changed courtesy of Umbra.. To me it's inexcusable that the PC version shares the same exact draw distance for buildings, mountains, cliffs etcetera as the console version.

This game doesn't even use 3GB of VRAM on ultra quality. The draw distance could be pushed out a LOT further than it currently is..

I've also played around with the ini. settings myself, and it seems that only a few of them ever stick. Many of them are ignored by the game and don't work..

It worked well for me but I'm on 1.05 and I wouldn't dare patch now, had to reinstall the game after going 1.04 to 1.05 under Cine FX.

I eliminated object and NPC pop in by upping texture budget values, messing with the texture streaming distance and decals distance made "landmark" distance objects appear sooner so I no longer see them pop in and the detail on them is now appearing more gradual as I near them.

I do agree with what you said. As I move around, I notice that the game has predefined distances for how detailed the objects appear and while tweaking has made more detail available at greater distances, it's not perfect and certainly not ideal that I have to resort to fan community solutions and refrain from patching to keep the game running.

I want games that aren't afraid to tank my frame rate as long as I'm getting something in return. I'll worry about the horsepower, just give me the option to bring whichever GPU('s) I have to it's knees as long as the slideshow is worth it.

Still think it's a great looking game but I can't help but wonder what could have been.

Next gen is in it's 2nd year but 9xx and Fury cards are really leaving them in the dust, maybe the ever increasing performance difference will be incentive for devs to pay more attention to PC versions but it seems the only game unaffected by weak consoles is the one that's never released on them.

 

[Zanovar]

I think it looks great too.i was admiring the night sky(was looking beautiful btw)and saw a shooting star haha.obviously scripted but no less impressive.maybe random?doubt it.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I really think people are looking for issues. I do not see any of what is being talked about above. I have draw distance at 1 tick higher than middle setting and I can see for eons. Most times I'm looking at my character or the map...not 30 miles away. On top of a large hill at sunset, looking out..it does look amazing.

My biggest issues with the game are the crashes and the unneeded amount of loot.

 

[sze5003]

I really think people are looking for issues. I do not see any of what is being talked about above. I have draw distance at 1 tick higher than middle setting and I can see for eons. Most times I'm looking at my character or the map...not 30 miles away. On top of a large hill at sunset, looking out..it does look amazing.

My biggest issues with the game are the crashes and the unneeded amount of loot.

I haven't had any crashes yet. You find as much loot as you explore. I've just gotten to novigrad main quests so I'll probably have to start one of them to kick off that area. I also want to level up before I go collect the cat school diagrams.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I wonder what level the wolf school gear will be and whether it will be heavy, medium, or light armor. That dlc is supposed to be the next one.

 

[Carfax83]

I eliminated object and NPC pop in by upping texture budget values, messing with the texture streaming distance and decals distance made "landmark" distance objects appear sooner so I no longer see them pop in and the detail on them is now appearing more gradual as I near them.

I tried that manually, but the game seems to ignore it.

Still think it's a great looking game but I can't help but wonder what could have been.

Exactly, I'm not denying it's a beautiful looking game. But it could have been so much better if the consoles hadn't screwed things up. Just watch the E3 2014 gameplay. The draw distance is much better compared to the release version.

Oh well, there's still hope. It's possible that the game might receive a DX12 update and then CDPR will hopefully re-implement all of the stuff they removed because of the consoles..

 

[Carfax83]

I wonder what level the wolf school gear will be and whether it will be heavy, medium, or light armor. That dlc is supposed to be the next one.

Here are the stats. It's level 14 and medium armor.

Getting it looks like a pain though, and a bit nonsensical given that you have to go to Kaer Morhen. By the time you can go there, you will be a much higher level than level 14.

*Edit* It might be upgradeable though..

 

[Carfax83]

I really think people are looking for issues. I do not see any of what is being talked about above. I have draw distance at 1 tick higher than middle setting and I can see for eons. Most times I'm looking at my character or the map...not 30 miles away. On top of a large hill at sunset, looking out..it does look amazing.

E3 2014 gameplay

Look how much better the draw distance is. The mountains in the background of Novigrad are actually visible and aren't hidden behind some ridiculous fog or haze. The tower of Eternal Fire also has much better LoD when viewed from long distances. Also, SSR is of much higher quality in that demo than in the retail build.

That E3 video was running on the original Titan. There are GPUs which are much faster now and could easily handle those settings, yet they were removed because of the consoles D:

 

[sze5003]

Is it even worth getting the cat school gear? I'm not even leveled up enough to wear any of that stuff.

 

[zinfamous]

Is it even worth getting the cat school gear? I'm not even leveled up enough to wear any of that stuff.

absolutely. The Witcher sets are probably the best in the game. It depends on if you prefer light, medium or heavy, which is determined by your playstyle and the character ability skill tree in your character panel (the abilities in with the yellow color, that are one-pointers).

Decide if you you prefer the light, medium, or heavy trait the best, then choose your armor that way. I feel that the light armor trait is the best overall, because the damage stacking is insane. Combat is more or less designed around damage avoidance, based on two dodges and a counterattack mechanic, quen, trap, all of that. So, consider that you really shouldn't be getting hit all that often.

I'm all light armor with Cat school, on the highest difficulty...and the game is still kinda "easy." It's still a two-hit affair to bring me down in some encounters, but I like that challenge.

If you are still low level and have the free DLC installed, try out the Temerian set from the first NPC you encounter in the game (the merchant in White Orchard that is being attacked by that griffen). He settles in just outside that main town, and sells the Temerian armor set as well as horse gear. That level 5 set lasted me ~level 10 or so, on the 2nd-highest difficulty.

 

[Carfax83]

Personally I prefer Medium armor. The bonuses to sign intensity and stamina regeneration are insane with the Griffin school talent and gear!

BTW, I just loaded up the game to see the alternate version of Triss Merigold, and man, she looks smoking hot!

Totally out of place, but smoking hot nonetheless. The cloth physics on her new dress is already really well done..

 

[sze5003]

absolutely. The Witcher sets are probably the best in the game. It depends on if you prefer light, medium or heavy, which is determined by your playstyle and the character ability skill tree in your character panel (the abilities in with the yellow color, that are one-pointers).

Decide if you you prefer the light, medium, or heavy trait the best, then choose your armor that way. I feel that the light armor trait is the best overall, because the damage stacking is insane. Combat is more or less designed around damage avoidance, based on two dodges and a counterattack mechanic, quen, trap, all of that. So, consider that you really shouldn't be getting hit all that often.

I'm all light armor with Cat school, on the highest difficulty...and the game is still kinda "easy." It's still a two-hit affair to bring me down in some encounters, but I like that challenge.

If you are still low level and have the free DLC installed, try out the Temerian set from the first NPC you encounter in the game (the merchant in White Orchard that is being attacked by that griffen). He settles in just outside that main town, and sells the Temerian armor set as well as horse gear. That level 5 set lasted me ~level 10 or so, on the 2nd-highest difficulty.

I think I should go get the light armor feline set now but I'm only level 13 now and the guy I need to fight at the end for the last piece of crafting recipe is level 17.

 

[escrow4]

I only used Heavy Armour. Mastercrafted turned Geralt into a tank.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Cat gear is a ton more damaging than anything else I've found in the game and when you look at the way combat is, you are meant to dodge. If you stand there and take hits you're gonna get stunned, burned, poisoned, cursed etc. You gonna move. So stamina regeneration is important.

 

[sze5003]

I think I'll do the main novigrad quest then some more side quests to level myself up more before going after the cat gear. I've found good stuff just exploring.

 

[Gryz]

I think I should go get the light armor feline set now but I'm only level 13 now and the guy I need to fight at the end for the last piece of crafting recipe is level 17.

Is that the golem ? He's not that tough. I got the sword-recipes at level-13 and made them at level-13. Then went to get the 4 pieces of leather gear. And got those at level-14. Wasn't that hard. And I'm not a very good player. I play at B&BB-difficulty.

Make the swords first. They are only level-13. Then use them while getting the other recipes. They help.