My current game jam is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. I got it a couple of years ago when I first got my PS4, and was excited to get into it back then, but after grinding through it, I hit a shelf point and set it aside. Since then, I’ve become more aware of my own sensory processing issues when it comes to games, but also more comfortable and capable with the controller.
Recently, I read this article on Kotaku about a player who has put over 1,800 hours into The Witcher. I’ve been looking for a deep play game since Destiny 2 broke my heart, so I decided to load it back up again. I had been really grinding Monster Hunter World, but needed to take a break. So this seemed like a perfect time to start a long, in-depth role-playing game.
Part of what confounded me the first time through The Witcher was the control scheme, but this time things are a lot easier, mostly because the main attack controls are almost the same as in Monster Hunter. I need to learn to block more. Right now, Geralt (the eponymous witcher) is pretty fragile. I’m working on improving the armor, and I almost always use the shielding spell, but if he gets hit too many times, too quickly, he’ll go down. But one thing I learned from Monster Hunter is to dodge a lot, and that has really helped this time around in The Witcher.
I think part of the problem is that, at least early on, the combat doesn’t occur very often. When it does happen, it’s really intense and fast-paced, but you spend a lot of the game riding around, talking to people and looking for things. It actually makes me think of a fantasy-themed Red Dead Redemption, and the game world is gorgeous, so I don’t really mind walking through all this beautiful scenery. But I spend the first few moments of each combat sequence trying to remember how this all works again. It’s gotten better as I’ve gotten further into the game, and I’m getting more and more comfortable with it as I progress.
I’ve actually gotten past where I was before, so everything from here on out is new. I was able to get past my shelf point. There was a key mechanic in the fight that I missed before and this time it was a lot easier than I was expecting. And there is so much to see and do. I know this drum has been beaten time and time again for this game, but if you haven’t played it, I don’t think you can really get what this means. The opening map, White Orchard, is a pretty good size, and has enough quests and side-quests to keep you interested and engaged, as well as serving as a great tutorial on how to do different things in the game world. But then you move on to the second map, Velen, and it’s jaw-dropping the size of it. I think that it’s literally four times the size of White Orchard, and it’s littered with quest markers. Looking at the map, the question goes from being, “how does one spend 1,800 hours in a game” to “how are we not going to spend 1,800 hours on this?”
And then there’s Gwent. There is a collectible card game built in to the main game. This isn’t a card-based mechanic, like card-based combat. This is just a game, like chess, that people in the game world play. It’s completely optional — you could spend the entire game not playing a single hand of Gwent and do just fine. But a match of Gwent doesn’t take very long. The game is easy to pick up and learn, has a bit of strategy to it, and also a decent random component to it. And as you beat other players, you can get new cards. You can also buy cards from different merchants. It’s a whole set of sub-quests unto itself that have nothing to do with the story. And it’s a decent enough game that it’s been broken out into it’s own stand-alone version.
So, if you’re looking for me, check Velen. I need to go investigate the Crookback Bog. The Baron’s wife was dragged off by some monster, and there’s some witches there I need to talk to. Maybe they’ll give me some pointers on my Gwent game as well.