It's probably going to be a long time before The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is dethroned as the king of modern role-playing games. The open world title is one of the very best releases of the past decade, and has essentially set the bar for similar games going forward. But it's not just the base release that should be swamped in praise, for developer CD Projekt Red launched one of the greatest expansions that we've ever played midway through 2016. More than a year after the third instalment hit the market, the Polish studio saw fit to fully wrap things up with The Witcher 3: Blood and Wine – and for our money, it's quite easily the best slice of downloadable content that we played this year.
Sweeping us off to the stunning Duchy of Toussaint – a vibrant and rich land filled with booze, laughter, and pompous nobility – Blood and Wine sets a unique tone for itself early on. Compared to the war-torn realms that Geralt navigates during the main game, Toussaint is basically a holiday destination. It's untouched by battle, and its people are generally carefree, many of them dedicating their time to the arts and the fanciful lifestyle that comes with owning their own estate. Right from the off, Blood and Wine is like a breathe of fresh air after spending potentially hundreds of hours roaming the muddy countrysides of the North.
Toussaint is also rather large, offering up a whole new map to explore – and this is really where you start to realise that Blood and Wine's greatness doesn't just stem from its overall quality. Indeed, this is an expansion that houses 40 or so hours of content, and it's going for less than half the price of your usual retail title. Bargain, anyone?
This isn't just a new map stuffed with throwaway quests for the sake of padding, either. A tale of intrigue and ugly vampires sews the whole expansion together as our white-haired hero attempts to uncover Toussaint's most sinister secrets. The main story is unsurprisingly shorter than the one found in the base game, but it's arguably more refined. There's no filler here, meaning that player choice and consequence play a more immediate role. Naturally, this allows for several different endings depending on your actions – some of which are downright heartbreaking.
When we reviewed Blood and Wine back in May, we gave it a 10/10, and claimed that CD Projekt Red had "released three masterpieces within the space of a year", and we still stand by that statement. Geralt's last hurrah is DLC done absolutely right; it's less icing on the cake and more... Well, it's basically a whole new cake – and an equally delicious one at that. It stands tall and proud next to the likes of Red Dead Redemption's Undead Nightmare and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion's Shivering Isles. It's one of those depressingly rare expansions that sweeps aside most full games and utterly shames those stingy DLC packs that many titles crank out just days after release.
We could go on and on for hours about the glory of Blood and Wine, but we've been heaping praise on The Witcher 3 for what feels like an age. The bottom line is that the White Wolf's final adventure is the developer's crowning achievement.
What do you think of Blood and Wine? Is it 2016's best DLC? Does anything else come close? Grin like Geralt in the comments section below.
Comments 21
Awesome game just started playing it for the first time.
Not a fan of it being given RPG of the year given its not a new release, it is still an expansion regardless of depth to an existing already released product.
Thats probably my most egregious point with this. It not a new game, its an add on and given that product criteria should be treated as such. Yes it makes Witcher 3 better but thats what it is, an expansion.
Then again that Smash DLC. Best fighting game ever amirite? Iunno. Witcher 3, yes, good game so ive been told. Its DLC? Still DLC guys, cant see it.
And one of the best examples of an RPG in the last decade? Well ive heard its good but...the all encompassing dominance of PS doesnt mean every other console and its games are crap.
Wait...this is the internet. Probably pick this up on Steam when its dirt cheap.
I think the complete edition is $25 or $30 on PSN right now. Sorry, I'm all messed up about Carrie Fisher to think straight.
@rjejr yeah,know how you feel,devastating news RIP
Received the GOTY edition for Christmas so looking forward to playing it...which will probably be an age seeing as I have just too many games to count.
Not a single word about gameplay; that sums up perfectly the whole game experience...
@andreoni79 It's an expansion to TW3, so it's probably going to have a gameplay style that's identical to the main retail game.
@BLP_Software
Do you ever stop? I didn't see anywhere that @ShogunRok said other games and consoles suck. This is what he said... "It's probably going to be a long time before The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is dethroned as the king of modern role-playing games. The open world title is one of the very best releases of the past decade, and has essentially set the bar for similar games going forward." I don't know how in the hell you get that he hates other consoles out of that statement. The game is also on Xbox and PC. By your logic, he shouldn't be heaping this much praise on it.
@Ralizah I'm in a troubled relationship with the game: I've recently beaten the main game and I'm still wondering how better it would have been if it was linear as TW2. The gorgeous world is too tempting, so you ignore the story for doing all the extras but then the fighting and the character's build reveal their weakness. You go back to the story, but now the experience is somehow polluted by that feeling of missed opportunity. If Cyberpunk 2077 will offer a solid combat system and less glitter then we'll have a real masterpiece.
@BLP_Software Where does it say RPG of the year?
@Hoodie718
It won RPG at the Game Awards, which I'd actually agree is ridiculous because it is just an expansion. One that's better than many full games, yes, but an expansion none the less. If there were no RPGs that came out this year worthy of the award, I'd say maybe you could make a case but there was Xenoblade Chronicles X and Dark Souls 3 and some people would put Final Fantasy XV in the discussion.
@Gamer83 Thanks. The headline says it's the best DLC of 2016, so I thought he might've misread the headline. Rather than complaining about something outside of the story.
Anyway, I just grabbed this on sale. Looking forward to playing.
Hands down my favorite game this gen. Nothing else has even came close.
@Gamer83
Xenoblade X came out in 2015
I don't think I'll ever be so engrossed by DLC than I have been with the Witcher 3 expansions packs. When you look at the value you get for a season pass, it puts to shame all those £11.99 DLC offerings you get with rather meagre returns (*cough Dragon Age *cough). Witcher 3 is marvellous. Brilliant villains, brilliant settings and a lot of fun, care and detail in everything offered
@Dalifano
I thought it was a January 2016 release in North America, my bad if that's not the case.
I loved the game, It really was an immersive world...it made me read the novel series and really became a big chunk of my life last year.
It really is the game of the generation but it has to be said the battle system is nothing to write home about though. It's really basic, even when playing on death March. Almost nobody acknowledge this. The OST is also subpar compared to most contemporary RPGS.
Still haven't picked up this or Hearts of Stone yet. I really should get on to it but I don't want to ever be finished with The Witcher
Only FFXV was better than Blood Wine this year. Ok it was a mediocre year for games but blood wine is a masterpiece.
@Gamer83 to your credit, I believe xenoblade came out after 2015's Game awards - so it would have technically qualified for 2016's.
@JoeBlogs
There's a group of people who do this constantly on here. Hardcore Nintendo fans who think every website is supposed to kiss Nintendo's backside.
@ztpayne7
That's probably why I thought it was 2016, I checked though and it was a December 2015 release, so technically not this year. Which weakens the 2016 slate of RPGs. I like Deus Ex a lot but it's not for everybody, Final Fantasy XV has received plenty of praise but also a decent amount of dislike and Dark Souls III isn't getting talked about as much as I thought it would considering it was one of the best reviewed games this year. All that taken into consideration, it's no surprise to see Blood and Wine garnering all this attention. Expansion or not, it seems pretty awesome. Not for me, but I know quality when I see and CD Projekt Red really went out of its way for its fans. I can't wait to see how Cyber Punk 2077 turns out as sci-fi is more up my alley.
@BLP_Software haha you haven't even played it? How would you know whether the accolades are appropriate then? B&W is so huge it may as well be it's own game. Plus, it has nothing to do with the base game other than characters.
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