![]() ![]() A special mention for the deadpan humor and colorful expletives that are present throughout the game. Of course, Geralt’s own story continues to unfold in the background, resolving several mysteries from the first game. At no time does the plot of the game show any signs of weaknesses, and despite the choices I made, The Witcher 2 kept me hooked from start to finish. Often, in hindsight, you may regret your previous decisions, even though they appeared to be the right ones at the time.ĭespite the incredibly fluid and dynamic nature of the narrative system, The Witcher 2 displays a remarkable poise and expression all the way through. There are no silly “good” or “bad” choices to make it is all about the “lesser evil,” and in a recurring theme of the game, even the concept of “lesser evil” is proven to be completely relative and subjective. The Witcher 2 shatters any expectations for the clichés of “character sympathy” we are conditioned to see so often in games and movies. Yet, somehow, everyone’s actions are justified. Everyone is deceiving each other, even the best of friends. It is a cruel world where everyone has their own agenda, no one can be trusted, and everyone is just out for themselves or their communities. In The Witcher 2, there are no “heroes” or “villains”. The Witcher featured one of the finest ending cutscenes in gaming, teasing an intriguing narrative for its successor. So, the narrative system is so complex, the game engine itself gets confused! Hopefully, these will be fixed in future patches. For example, you may be shown the odd cutscene, which should really have been shown if you had chosen a different dialogue. Through the course of The Witcher 2, well-executed flashbacks partially resolve one of the continuing mysteries from The Witcher. There is a vast amount of history to the game world, with clear and precise detail. While the gamer’s present actions will decide the future course the game takes, the past is set in stone. ![]() Based on your choices, you could play a completely different game, with different characters, and land up in different locations. Indeed, The Witcher 2 must be played multiple times to see the magic of the narrative system at work. In fact, one of the most significant responses in the game must be made in a matter of seconds, in the heat of a battle, and based on this choice, you play a different game altogether. Unlike other games which hype up and dramatize the moments of major choice (many of whose consequences are largely insignificant), The Witcher 2 never tells the gamer, “Think carefully, this will change the course of the game dramatically.” The occasional choice happens in tough situations with strict time limits. And that is the beauty of it: the dynamic narrative system never calls attention to itself. Sometimes, the seemingly most banal and casual responses can ultimately lead to major turns in the narrative. Every choice, every answer, can have consequences. Depending on your actions and choices, the game can branch out into completely different strands of narrative. Like a traditional RPG, The Witcher 2 lets the gamer select from a variety of responses in conversations, and this forms the basis of the choice and consequence system. Few games since, especially Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas, have successfully built upon it, but The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings takes the idea of a dynamic narrative to completely uncharted levels, never seen before in any medium of entertainment. The Witcher wowed gamers with its groundbreaking delayed consequence system, back in 2007. ![]()
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