Best Of

:-O My first rare cat memento!!

@Snarkasm The combat gets better come Act 3 in TW1 (there are 5 acts, a prologue and epilogue) You basically become OP, a true Witcher in the sense. As you progress swordsmanship, the actual animations will change as well. The combat becomes almost fun once you also have all your signs upgraded.

TW2 changes all the combat for the better. Everything you learned in TW1 toss out. Do the tutorial, change the keybinds if you want. TW2 is MUCH harder the 1st half of the game then any part of TW1. But once you start to completely have your memory back, the combat becomes very fun the second half of the game.

The combat in TW3 is virtually perfect, but IT IS NOT A HACK N SLASH. If you play on any difficulty above easy you will have to prepare for fights and learn what the monsters do. Luckily there are numerous builds you can do, and there is an item in game to respec if you choose.

Now for the story:
TW1: 6/10 without playing any other Witcher games or having not read the novels. 7.5/10 if you have.
TW2: 8.5/10 both paths are good. I have my preference, but each has very enjoyable parts.
TW3: 11/10 Epic. You will laugh, you will cry. You will hate certain NPCs and love others. And when you finish the story, you will most likely want to start TW1 again with a better understanding of how everything plays out.

Honestly, if you really can't stand the combat in TW1, do what I told Cyclonite to do. Just play it on easy mode (you don't need to use potions at all) and just get through the story. TW2/3 overhaul combat massively and the story really starts to pickup.

edit> the voice acting gets 200% better come TW2 also

Some interesting points I want to make on the trilogy.

In TW1, you start the game with amnesia. Every person who knows Geralt thought he was dead because he has been gone for 5 years. You're also basically a klutz with your swords, in fact you don't become Witcher good until nearly the end of Act 2. A lot of the story is not going to make sense (unless you've read the novels) and you'll probably have more questions than answers.

In TW2 you immediately get thrown in the political BS, but luckily your memory is starting to come back. Now TW2 is very unique, in that once you've nearly completed Act 1, you must decide which path to choose to continue the game. And CDPR did an amazing job about making 1/2 of the game completely different. Yes, if you only play through TW2 once, you will have missed out on 50% of the game. By the end of TW2, Geralt has his memories back and it's time to begin the hunt. #TeamIorveth

In TW3. Well, everything comes together. Every question you had since act 1 of TW1 gets answered. And honestly, playing through TW3 makes TW1 & TW2 even better because you will have a lot of, "oh, that's why that happened"! or "now I understand why I did this then." But the BEST, and I mean the BEST part of TW3 are that even the side/secondary quests are amazing in their own way. Never in a game did I WANT to do every side quest, every Witcher contract, every scavenger hunt. CDPR did an excellent job making every quest, main or side feel special in TW3.

I could say a lot more, but seriously folks, just play this trilogy. IT'S THAT GOOD

I know I am late on this as well, but I have played and beaten 1 & 2 and I am in the middle of TW3. I LOVE the W3. Best game of the year in my opinion.

Hnnnnnnnng

Important note:

As a reminder: If you had access to the Closed Beta before the break, you will continue to have access during this next phase of testing. With so much new content available, we're also looking to recruit more players to help us get an even wider range of perspectives and feedback—so if you're interested in participating, make sure to opt in!