The Witcher Review
When it comes to popular fantasy these days, Harry Potter is usually what comes to mind in most people when thinking about more recent works. Going back a little bit further, some could argue that the world hadn't seen any truly great fantasy epics since the Lord of the Rings books by J.R.R. Tolkien. To my surprise, it turns out that for the past 20 years, the people of Poland have had access to an author who has been compared to the likes of J.R.R. Tolkien - a man named Andrzej Sapkowski. For all these years which have passed since then, Sapkowski has been writing award-winning and massively popular fantasy novels based on a universe that follows a genetically-engineered monster hunter named Geralt. Sadly, the English speaking communities of the world have had limited or no access to The Witcher series as translations simply didn't exist in any format - until now.
Luckily for fantasy and RPG buffs everywhere, the Polish PC game developer and publisher CD Projekt secured the rights to develop a Witcher PC game with the goal of providing it to countries around the world in multiple languages. What is most unique about this situation is that the game is hitting shelves even before the very first English translation of Sapkowski's book set in the Witcher universe entitled The Last Wish. Our introduction to the world created by Sapkowski first comes in the form of a game, with his books beginning to be released in English beginning in May 2008.
Geralt, the main character of The Witcher and Andrzej Sapkowski's popular fantasy books.
So why is all of this book mumbo jumbo relevant? The truth is, the developers of the game relied very heavily on retaining the lore of the Witcher book series and have presented it in an RPG form that seems like a bit of a mashup from the great RPGs of old, such as the Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights series, and even the odd but fantastic Planescape: Torment (CD Projekt was responsible for each of the Polish translations of all of those titles). Played purely from a top down perspective which gives a solid nod to the games mentioned above, The Witcher takes you through five fantastic chapters and a final epilogue. Each and every chapter is said to remain true to the books, including the characters and the lore in each.
So what's the story on this Geralt guy? Geralt is literally a genetically modified, unfertile monster hunter who can be summed up as a guy with very little charm but lots of killing ability. Instead of dealing with things in a typically diplomatic way, Geralt typically is very blunt and to the point and has no qualms with using violence to solve a problem or to complete a job. Unfortunately, you've been the victim of major memory loss after what was perceived to be your death, which you soon find out after starting the game. Fortunately, you have a handful of "friends," or should I say former colleagues, enemies, and lovers, who will help try to guide your way as you go along the story after getting over the fact that you are indeed not dead. While the memory loss does offer the player many opportunities to learn more about Geralt, it is not absolutely bound to the story like it was for the Nameless One in Planescape: Torment. Instead, investigating Geralt's history is more of an option more than anything else. What is important is determining who and what you are now in the present, because world is full of conflict and disease.
The Witcher features a traditional overhead view that RPGs will be familiar with.
In terms of conflict and disease, the unnamed continent where The Witcher takes place is currently afflicted by a war between humans and non-humans such as dwarves and elves. To further complicate things, there are monsters like werewolves, vampires, and wraiths among many others. To add insult to injury, there is also a devastating plague sweeping the country that is killing civilians in large numbers. The major city nearby, Vizima, is under a complete lockdown due to the plague and the issues with the non-humans, but they are not immune to the presence of monsters. Due to the lockdown, you're initially bound to the nearby village areas of the region. As the story progresses, you do indeed make your way from the outskirts, into the very urban city and then back out again. You'll see environments like swamps, druidic enclaves, caverns, dungeons, crypts, country-sides and even houses and castles, which are all very rich and populated.
Players explore the world as Geralt, and it becomes evident that eventually the player has to make decisions that affect the lives of many. While Geralt is a monster hunter and typically does jobs for coin, he is also a major force that can operate in a grey area of the law; he is not bound to the procedures or morale code of the law or that of any other groups. Geralt is a mercenary of sorts. As the game progresses, the choices that are made by the player do indeed matter, and often times has Geralt choosing between the lesser of two evils. Despite having been created by humans specifically to slay all monsters without prejudice, Geralt also has the ability to try to find alternate methods to deal with monsters, which is probably one of the most unique things I've seen in an RPG. The truth is, The Witcher offers more opportunities to make a real decision which affects the outcome of a situation than any RPG I've seen for the past 10 years, and this is a good thing.
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