Topic: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt thread

You can't start this DLC intill you finish the main story. You have to at least be a level 30. You can however start it with a default prepared character developed to level 32 but I don't see the fun in that.

I haven't even completed the game yet, but I got the retail copy because it came with Qwuent cards

Hearts of Stone is awesome. It's what DLC should be...

Quick Q: Just before the 'Isle of Mists' quest, it recommends to save your game and that some side quests will not be available afterwards. At the moment I am lvl 27 (with the quest recommended at lvl 22) and still have 5 or 6 witcher contracts to do. Will I still be able to fulfill these contracts if I do the Isle quest now?
Only I don't want to come back later when I'm massively overlevelled for the quest and for it to be way too easy (I like a challenge).

So I finally finished the main game, all the side quests, and I have to say, I actually had real boy feelings during the epilogue scene.. What did you guys think?

@xX_RiscazZ_Xx: In truth I can't remember the finer details of my ending sequence. It was around 2-3 weeks after the game released but I do remember the majority of the journey towards that point and the majority ofthe consequences of my choices along the way.
I will probably start a new game+ at some point and chase down a few of the achievements I missed on my first run. I certainly think its worthy of the 'Game of the Year' and for me its the best game of 'Generation 8' - at least so far.

I bought the game but probably not playing it till next year just got into ESO

I was hoping to play this tonight until....

17.9gb download - it ended up taking just over 3 hours. Needless to say I didn't play much of it.

So I started playing this game again on Sunday. Last time I got to around what I suspect was 2/3 the way through and got a bit bored. Plus lots of technical problems, in particular choppy frame rate. I was running on 1.7 when I finished and I'd been putting each update on top of this save since launch.

I gotta say they've done a great job with the updates. Running a fresh save with the latest patch and it's much smoother, perhaps it will get worse but I'm currently in Velen in the rain with misty areas to boot and the frame rate is excellent, what I'd expect from a "next gen" console. I'm also enjoying the story a lot more too now that I know who the characters are and understand a bit more about what's happening in the world. It probably helps that the launch hype has gone and I can enjoy it a bit more for what it is instead of trying to rush through it a bit.

So yeah, great work CPR

@kyleforrester87: I played this constantly for the first 3-4weeks on release. In that time I managed to complete all but the Gwent, Racing and fist fighting Side quests and reached around 35. I guess I was at a slight advantage after playing the Witcher 2 so I knew the characters as well as the general world and the political landscape. I know its not vital that you play the previous game(s) but it may have helped in my case.

The game itself though is very different from its predecessor. That was very much more linear although it did have 'elements' of 'open-world play - I guess its probably easier to say it was more like 'mini-hubs' although not small but you had a number of side-quests/challenges etc you could do alongside the main story path in these areas - I can't remember now though if you had an opportunity to go back to these areas after progressing on through the story but I didn't as I tried to achieve everything possible before moving on.

The point is though, that CD:PR have really opened up the world and yet not lost the importance of its Story. I know you can argue that the game is more like multiple Hubs than a truly open world but these are accessible via quick-travel just like you could get from point A to Point B within these hubs - the difference is of course you can also get to Point B by any or combination of foot/horse/boat/swim. Its great to go back to certain places - like once abandoned settlements as well as seeing the impact of certain decisions and how they affected the characters as well as the area. I am not going to give any spoilers at all though! All I will say is that it helps create the feeling of a dynamic, living, breathing world. Some side quests will impact on the main quests too so its not like other RPG's where these Side Quests are just used to give players more things to do.

@BAMozzy: I'm absolutely fine with the hub style world, who cares if it's "true open world" or not?!

More than anything though the frame rate issues really annoyed me before. It's nice to see it running so well now.

About to start this... Any recommendations on difficulty level?

I would go with 'Blood and Broken Bones' difficulty. It increases the need to prepare for combat (making sure you have the best bombs to deal with the enemy type) rather than just slashing with either sword to kill. It also requires a bit more thought and you will need to evade as well. You can alter the difficulty if you want at any time though so if this is too easy or hard, you can also raise or lower it.

Thanks - "one above normal" is where I usually start, but I was thrown off by the not being able to rest to heal thing. Don't know how annoying that is

Blood and Wine pre-loaded and new patch installed. I can't wait till it unlocks...

@Mega-Gazz: Food is great for regaining your health after fights so it's a good idea to always be stocked up. Most bandits drop grub that's great for vitality which is handy.

Screwing around with the new options now that the new patch is installed.......

Is it just me or are the water effects improved? Slightly on the surface and mostly underwater.

The new menu looks really nice and clean......

Some of the graphics have been tweaked.......I don't remember downers looking that good.

So, I am just now picking up this game...I feel a bit overwhelmed by just the beginning area alone. Is there a recommended path to take for a first time play through? I know it is a huge open world, but my goodness it is massive!! Also, the controls and menus, I know they have been updated, still seem overwhelming with all that is involved...maybe I just need to play around with it a bit. But anyways, any beginner advice would be welcome!