Note: At the time of this review I have completed both The Witcher 1 & 2, but not 3. This review, to some extent, assumes you have only played TW1 and contains minor spoilers for it.

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition is an outstanding return to the world of The Witcher. It improves upon nearly every aspect of its predecessor, most importantly where gameplay is concerned. To analyze The Witcher 2, I'll be giving an in depth description of its graphics/optimization, gameplay/mechanics, as well as its story, and then conclude with my personal final thoughts.

The graphics of The Witcher 2 are simply spectacular. It was released in 2011, but if it were released now, 5 years later, I wouldn't bat an eye at its visuals. The developers, CD Project Red, accomplished this by displaying a dark and moody artistic style, and then compounding that design with their own game engine, which allowed them to present the highest level of fidelity possible textures, modeling, and especially lighting, as well as many stunning visual effects. An explanation of Assassins of King's aesthetic makeup would also not be complete without mentioning its impressive environs, so let me do so. Your journey through TW2 as Geralt will take you to many different places. From cities to dungeons and forests to battlegrounds, in all of its settings, an extreme, near compulsive amount of attention to detail can be observed. The only con I can think of as far as the graphics go is that the anti-aliasing is pretty poor, which can only be fixed by enabling the uber-sampling setting, but this is a huge resource drain and you'll get much worse FPS, so I didn't use it. Moving on to the optimization, I'd say it's above average. I run a middling gaming PC, and I easily achieved 50-60 FPS at nearly all times on high/ultra settings. I did experience the semi-rare yet consistent large frame drop when loading a new area however, as many times when a loading screen may be used in most games, the engine just renders a new world chunk on the fly. However on the whole, I am thoroughly impressed by The Witcher 2's graphics and performance.

The first thing to mention when explaining TW2's gameplay is it's combat. I cannot tell you how relieved I am, after playing the first Witcher, that they vastly refined the games fighting systems. The Witcher 2 is much more in the moment and dynamic, giving you options to attack, defend, and dodge at your own pace and of your own volition, a stark contrast when compared to the previous game in the series. Geralt's attacks with both his steel and silver swords are more entertaining and skill-taxing than ever before. There's also no "The Witcher" without a robust RPG mechanic, and I can happily say that the role-playing is just as good as ever; you'll have many chances to make Geralt your own Geralt. The one instance where I think a game mechanic may have regressed since the original game though, is the potions. I think not letting you drink your potions in combat near destroyed the entire system. I'd never drink a potion on a whim because the previous game conditioned me to see them as an important resource, so only allowing me to use them before I know of any threat made me hardly even using the blasted things. The only reason to use a potion in TW2 is if you have been killed repeatedly, and thus know to use a potion before a particular battle. However, do not fret, because the game has also progressed in an array of other ways, whether it be the secondary weapons system, leveling system, or even the UI arrangement; but the new and improved Signs are the most apparent advancement. Where as in TW1 nearly all the Signs were quite useless because of the poorly designed combat, in TW2 nearly every Sign is great, the nearly being because the Axii Sign is still boring and not useful. All said, other than just a few miss steps, the gameplay and mechanics of The Witcher have become greatly enhanced in almost every way through this sequel.

I'm going to have to be careful dissecting the narrative of The Witcher 2, because, while it's absolutely stellar, I'm not sure it's up to the par of its forerunner, TW1. I'll come back to this in a second though, first I'll give a quick, spoiler free examination of the plot. The Witcher 2 has you carry on the story of Geralt of Rivia, the ever infamous Witcher. Since salvaging the Kingdom of Temeria and protecting the life of King Foltest against a mysterious assassin in The Witcher: Enhanced Edition, the game begins with Geralt as Foltest's glorified bodyguard, in order to protect him from the dangers of the new Temeria following the many recent crises in Vizima. Eventually one thing leads to another, namely events I will not mention because spoilers, and Geralt's name becomes tarnished for a crime he did not commit. This launches you, as Geralt, on a journey of redemption and political endeavors. Now, before I tell all on my qualms with the personality of the story, let me focus on one thing that was implemented wonderfully; choices. They REALLY matter, even more than they did in TW1. As a little example, pretty much all of Chapter II can be different depending on a decision in Chapter I, and there’s a host of other game-changing decisions like this riddled throughout The Witcher 2's 30-35 hour runtime. Now, let's move on to my feelings on the story as a whole. As I said before, I think it's marvelous, but it's lacking a key element that the previous game had. Characters are still wonderfully complex and morally grey, so that's not it. The inherent journey of redemption is just as good as the previous games, so that's not it either. No sense being coy though, so I’ll just say it. The narrative contains far too little human struggle, making it a much less grandiose story telling adventure. The Witcher 1 had a great feeling of Geralt being one small part of a large, complex and indifferent world, while The Witcher 2 does too much to make Geralt feel like the hero of the story, which just isn't the way The Witcher is meant to be. The Witcher 2 replaces the aforementioned element with politics (that of the Northern Kingdoms), which is great, but it doesn't compare to the feeling of being swamped by human misery, with Geralt trying valiantly yet somewhat uselessly to make the world a better place for those he holds dear. Anyway, sorry if that was a bit rant-like, but it was my main issue with this game as I looked at it from every angle. All taken under consideration, the story of The Witcher 2 is one of significant choices and politics on a huge scale, which blends perfectly, but sadly misses a very important aspect that makes The Witcher, The Witcher.

Please, do not think that due to my harsh criticism of a single aspect of this game that I dislike it, because as an entire gaming experience, I prefer The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings to the first Witcher. Its stunning visuals and well-built gameplay and mechanics, paired with its solid story-telling make The Witcher 2 a journey any fan of RPG's should take, especially if they enjoy mature-fantasy. The ending, while not as dramatic as the ending to The Witcher 1, seemed to be a perfect segway into the next chapter of Geralt of Rivia's adventures. And yes, if anyone's wondering, I'm extremely excited to play The Witcher 3, because if the legends are true, politics, human struggle, and complex writing are all aspects of that game, which sounds like the perfect Witcher experience to me.

Story - Remarkable.
Characters - Eloquent.
Gameplay - Powerful.
Roleplaying - Deep.
Immersion - Profound.
Environment - Magnificent.
Graphics - Excellent.
Sound - Great.
Music - Splendid.

Overall - Monumental.

I bought this game along with The Witcher 1 and 3 so that I could play them all and get the full experience of the trilogy. I played this game having played the first game and I have to say I was impressed by this game as well as the first.


Graphically this game is a huge leap forward from The Witcher , even in 2016 the graphics of The Witcher 2 still look really good and could still compete with some AAA games today. As for the story, well I won't spoil anything but I will say that it's just magnificent and carries on beautifully from the first game. There are so many characters to talk to and find out about all with unique personalities. The combat is much better than in The Witcher as it requires the use of proper combat mechanics instead of just clicking at a specific time (basically the combat in the witcher), you have to use signs (magical spells), parry and dodge to defeat your enemies as well as make potions with ingredients found around the map or bought from shops. There is also a rich leveling system which works well as you spend your talents each time you level up on things such as increasing your health, making your signs stronger or improving potions/swordsmanship. There is also a large variety of monsters to fight whether it be in the main quests or side quests, for which there are a huge amount of. The decisions you make really affect the story and lead it on different paths making the replay value huge.


There is not much I can say about this game that isn't positive. Sometimes in combat you are unable to damage enemies while they're in animations but that is a minor bug that barely affects gameplay at all. I'd say it can be a little frustrating at times when the game just throws you into a fight without you knowing and you've had no time to prepare i.e drink potions and enhance your weapons.


The Witcher 2 is a spectacular RPG with a great story, pretty graphics, intriguing characters and mighty decisions to make. I recommend playing the first game as you will enjoy the experience of playing all 3 games, I guarantee it.

Firstly, if you seek to play the Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, I recommend getting the Witcher 2 first.
I have never bought the first game in the series, with outdated graphics and combat, but I am really glad to have played this.
The highlights of the game are quite definitely the graphics and the story. For a 2011 game, the world looks beautiful. Textures can look a bit grainy at times, but they are so colourful and vibrant you'll end up loving them.
As for the story, what the Witcher series does best (at least the 2 games I've played), is make you feel like you're the main character, you ARE Geralt, his friends are your friends. This is what makes the franchise special.
The plot is about Geralt trying to get his memory back, him getting framed for a crime, and all this is intertwined with a political plot. It might get a tad confusing at times though.
The game is a lot about decisions. Remember, a single line of dialogue can change your whole journey.
As far as combat goes, it's fun, but I HIGHLY recommend playing on normal or hard, as easy mode makes fighting human enemies a joke. I figured this after having played easy for a while, and I got rekt.
Onto the caveats.
The ui is a bit hard to understand, and not too user friendly. Alchemy is not too fun, although it might be me hating consumables (which is another reason why I love Wild Hunt!).
The world is not exactly open world. The game is divided into three main zones, through which you can progress by doing the main quests. You can freely explore one area, but you can't go back to previous ones. And you really have no reason to explore much other than doing quests or destroy monster nests.
The most frustrating part about the game for me are the invisible walls. 98% of the time you can't even fall off a ledge or go in water. The Flotsam Forest is actually a maze, because you can't go through bushes. Still, I did play this game just after playing 2 "wall-less" RPGs, so maybe it's just me.
Anyway, definitely recommended, will help to understand the Witcher 3's story (you might wanna look up The Witcher 1's story before playing this, it will help you with your initial interrogation).
8/10

100 hours in this game? Well I guess it's time to write a review:
"Hey, that's pretty good"
Idubbbztv - 1945

I started this game right after finishing The Witcher and the biggest improvement between the two is definitely the gameplay, namely combat. I have very little bad to say about it other than that some of the strategies you can abuse (namely always have Quen up when fighting) make some of the fights a little dumb, but really any monster can kill you if you aren't paying attention and I really like that. It makes the world feel very real that all monsters pose at least some threat throughout the entire game.

I suppose the only other gripe I have is how poorly optimized the game is. I should be able to run this maxed out with no frame drops at all, but there are times when I get pretty poor FPS and it has nothing to do with my system and everything to do with the game itself. That said, there are some pretty fantastic sights to be seen in all the different locations the game takes you. For a game that's about 5 years old, it has aged surprisingly well graphically.

All the small negatives aside, this series is seriously one of my favorite of all time now. The story telling is top notch. The way the world and Geralt evolve as the story progresses is superbly done. All progression feels extremely organic, especially from one game to another (where you can import saves that will keep your decisions intact ala Mass Effect so you can have YOUR Geralt through the entire series if you so wish). In addition to feeling organic...it just makes sense. The way the politics change with your decisions or the decisions of other characters in the game...nothing feels contrived or silly because t's all justified by the world that has been crafted here.

I can't recommend this game enough. At times it gets frustrating because there are definitely some fights that will take a few tries to beat, but it is also rewarding in the sense of accomplishment, but also in the sense of story telling. Any fan of RPGs where your decisions actual matter worth a damn should already be playing this, and if you have the stomach for it make sure to pick up the first game as well. Both games took me just around 30 hours to beat (all quests for the given paths I had chosen completed) with a fair amount of exploration (which you should always take advantage of because you never know what cool weapons you'll find)...the ability to transfer saves from one game to the next (and even into The Witcher 3), really sells me on the idea that it's the right way to go if you're going to really get into the series.

"The Witcher 2" was inspired by a polish book series called "Wiedźmin". The game tells the story of Geralt of Rivia, a Witcher who is trying to recover his lost memories. Witchers are basically superhumans who can also cast spells and work as mercenaries, who can work as bodyguards, monster hunters, etc.
In the beginning he is blamed for the murder of King Foltest (who he was working for at the moment) and went to jail. While there, he is given a chance prove his innocence and goes after the King Slayer while still trying to get his memories back.
It's good story overall. I might not be the best but it's certainly good, especially due to the fact that your choices can completly change the Storyline and it has around 4 major endings.

Many people keep complaining about the battle system, but I actually enjoyed it. However, it takes some time until you get used to it.
Geralt has 2 different swords: one is made of steel and the other is made of silver. The steel sword it's used against enemies such humans and elves and the silver one it's used against monsters. He can perform a quick and a heavy attack.
Geralt can cast 5 different spells, a.k.a. signs:
-Aard: Knocks back the enemies, preventing them from blocking your next attacks. There's also a chance of stunning the enemies, which allows you to kill them with just one hit;
Yrden: Creates a trap which stuns the enemies and prevent them from defending themselves;
Ignis: Geralt casts a fire ball;
Quen: Provides full damage protection for a short period of time against a few hits;
Axii: Used to turn an enemy against their allies and to persuade NPCs during some dialogues

His health regenerates very slowly even when you are not in combat, but he can speed it up through potions. However he only drink potions by meditating (which can't be done in combat) and he can't drink too many because they're also toxic.

The game still looks pretty good, especially considering that it was released back in 2011. To make things even better the soundtrack was also very well produced. Combining both elements you can get easily immerse in this fantasy world.

Now it's time for the cons:
-It's not an easy game, but that's not a problem by itself. The real problem are the difficulty spkies, which can be really frustating and some enemies that might seem cheap;
-The lack of a fast travel mechanic or even a vehicle or an animal to walk around the map can be annoying at times. It might feel good to walk around exploring the world, but when you pass multiple times through the same area it can get a bit annoying;
-The game doesn't explain certain parts such as mutagens and alchemy.



Overall it's really solid title and I recommend it to every RPG fan.

Solid game here, much better then the first witcher with a great story that really makes you think about each choice you make. Every choice isnt black or white, good or bad, but has its advantages and disadvantages and helps to build your personal version of geralt. cant recommend this game enough

Great game, held up great given the time it was released. A must have for any fan of the witcher series!

The Witcher 2 EE is like your neighborhood cougar. A fine woman who's grown wise through her experiences. Seductive in her gaze, can treat you to a good time then read you a bedtime story. (Compares a computer game to an attractive woman.... descending ever deeper and deeper, are we?)

Right, Right...... The Witcher 2.

An essential chapter in The Witcher video game trilogy. Unlike the original game from 2007, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings is an absolute must for those interested in playing it's sequel, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The state of the Northern Realms in the third game is a direct outcome of major events that transpired over the course of Assassins of Kings. The Witcher 2 continues the tale of an amnesia-struck Geralt of Rivia. After foiling an assassination attempt on King Foltest's life, the legendary monster slayer turned royal bodyguard must accompany Temeria's king into battle against traitors of the realm. As stated, a player need not play the original for an enjoyable experience, but for those who prefer complete participation, emotional investment, and absolute understanding of its references and characters, it is advised.


Positives:
- Stellar choice-driven narrative.
- Immersive gameplay mechanics.
- Soundtrack is brilliantly enveloped around a player's every action; electrifying during combat yet sentimental when required.
- Believable fictional world brimming with interesting interactable characters.
- Stunning visuals. (Dem textures doe!!!!)
- Punishing difficulty that forces players to use all the tools at their disposal.
- Pixilated tittays! ...in your face literally a few minutes after you start the game.


Negatives (More like knit-picks):
- Conversation persists even when paused by the player.
- Geralt's Grayish silver hair rather than the lore-appropriate milky white. (Easily corrected with a mod)
- Glitch where unlooted items from fallen enemies disappear after reloading a save.
- Geralt's movement constantly interrupted by invisible surfaces belonging to furniture and vegetation.

So F*ckn good, y'all don't even know.