Well, I did not get any XP when pyres of novigrad ended, and it was still in my level range. I assume I should have gotten something, for such huge quest.
It really saddens me because I want to play it so much. I did, just for a test, the next quest (broken flowers) and it just stuns me how amazing it is, how connected to the books it is, how touching that song by Priscilla was (I teared up, actually). But knowing my leveling is fucked ATM makes me want to wait till monday. Which is hard.
I’m overleveled anyway, so I’m going to drive on. Fuck wasting a whole weekend without The Witcher 3.
Meh, I’m leveling up just fine, bug or no bug (indeed I’m probably leveling up a bit faster than I’d like, given the amount of content there is.)
I suspect there’s way more XP in the game than you need to hit cap. So I wouldn’t worry too much about it.
I thought RPS might give the game a positive review. They’re always so smiling-but-cranky about stuff, though that I was having a hard time grasping how they really felt about it.
So wow. That’s one hell of a review right there. I believe they’re the first big PC version review to hit, although I’m sure there are some smaller sites with reviews up. Poor Cobbett. It sounds like he basically had to race through the game to get a review posted today. Sucks to be him, but glad so eloquent a writer was given the assignment.
robc04
3607
There’s one more minor quibble I didn’t mention and I’m not sure what would be better. I kinda don’t like how everyone has the talk icon, but there are so few people that say anything worth listening to. I don’t mind that there are so few people that have interesting things to say (the ones that do have something to say are great though), but that since they have the talk icon I want to activate them all. It’s like being compulsive with collecting resources - I see people and want to talk.
So, I wish the inconsequential people didn’t have talk icons so I would know to skip them. I’m embarrassed to say that I haven’t even noticed if the only people worth talking to are the ones with icons on the mini map, so maybe the problem is my lack of paying attention.
Yeah I will not be able to not play. I might try going to Skellige for the first time, see if I level there.
Cobbett is awesome. Since Rossignol stopped writing, I only read Cobbett’s pieces on RPS. I would not be surprised if Walker hated it for example.
Allow me to blow everyone’s mind about something else: there’s not a whole lot to do in the dialogue either. There are only a few meaningful decision points. We’re really just listening to people talk.
And it’s still great.
I’ve always been a little cranky about Cobbett for his Witcher 2 review. He acknowledged what an amazing game it was, but then he got to Chapter 3 and thought it was too short. 87/100! Yeah, they ran out of development time, but let’s not be greedy.
He nailed this one though. He sees it almost exactly the same way I do: the greatness sneaks up on you.
The Witcher 2 feels like more of a mind-blowing revelation. After so many Bioware games, I didn’t realize a character-driven RPG could be so grounded in adult themes and real people. But this game does that part just as well, and oh by the way, there’s a huge open world to let it all breathe. It’s amazing when you think about it.
And yet:
The catch is that being surrounded by so much great stuff makes the dodgier moments all the more noticeable – often unfairly.
Exactly right. We all know it’s unfair to compare the combat to Dark Souls, but the care and craft everywhere else makes it stand out. When the world and its inhabitants feel so natural, anything that feels janky and gamey feels like a shock.
No matter!
None of it stopped it being one of the most exciting, varied, warmest, funniest RPGs that I’ve ever played, where I wanted to do every mission that came along just to see what it wanted.
olaf
3610
That’s great. Goddamn candles.
Yeah. I am torn though. Last night I seemed to not get xp from main and secondary quests only. So I am gonna try and explore ?s and do treasure hunts and contracts over the weekend. And collect Gwent cards and missing herbs.
Regarding the quest levels themselves, they are kind of jacked up. A lot of times completing a Level X quest will unlock a quest that a level below X. I don’t like that. Also, in order to stay with ‘green con’ quests, I was just doing the lowest level quests available to me. This lead me to doing Triss’ quest line not early but, after the fact clearly before the intended progression of quests and I think a few quests have been locked out for me. Strangely they just disappeared from my log, they are not showing up in the failed tab.
So I was bit by the XP bug. Now I must decide if I press on or wait until Monday. Sigh.
Not sure if this has been mentioned, and I haven’t tested it, but apparently you can roll to reduce fall damage by pressing ‘jump’ twice just before hitting the ground.
This is true, Geralt does a forward roll which avoids damage.
This game needs a Sigfried figure, someone to show that the Order of Sacred Fire (was that the name?) aren’t 100% fanatic, ignorant, evil people, and give it more nuance, more moral relativism. More grey as the rest of the game, instead of black.
That said, it seems things has gotten worse since Witcher 1, and an increase of fanaticism and the problems that that brings are understandable.
Bateau
3615
I tried not playing around lvl 13 when I got the infamous Pyres of Novigrad bug that stopped the main quest progression for me there. The ‘not playing’ part lasted for about 6 hours after which I went to Skellige and continue questing there. Ten levels later I don’t regret a thing.
As for the XP bug - I honestly don’t know if I have it or not. But considering that XP rewards for quests are ~300-400 XP for the larger ones, couldn’t you just kill several groups of enemies in your level range to compensate for the loss?
I’ve been fortunate enough to not run into any real bugs or crashes and I’m level 14 now, but when I was level 13 and needed to get to 14 without doing main quests it really took a long long time. A ton of those “question mark” events give next to no xp. Money wise I’m swimming in it with 4000+ crowns and nothing I want to spend it on right now.
The game has serious annoyances such as jerky movement when out of combat and locked doors everywhere but it is still, without a doubt, the most ambitious game I’ve ever played.
I’ve just left White Orchard and saved at the first opportunity (“The Gentleman must choose an outfit”). Do I need to worry about the XP bug, or should I power on? I’m level 4 I think.
Power on, and make sure to choose the correct outfit!
You’ve just doomed me to at least an hour of indecision.
Yeah I hear that the outfit choice is important if you want to get the good ending. Not to Witcher 3, but to actual life.
Also, got xp bug? Play Gwent all weekend!
One of the important quests in the Skellige islands isn’t very well explained. They say “go help my daughter, she is trying to lift this person’s curse! that’s nonsense, it isn’t a curse, maybe hearing from a Witcher she will listen”. All said in weird tone, like if you would know that person or the curse (or why it isn’t a curse).
I noticed that I can do some side quests and leave them almost finished (I just need to talk to the quest giver for the reward). That way I can play some quests and in Monday turn them back for the xp. That, and discover question marks, play gwent, treasure hunts, etc.
An hour of Gwent per day, keeps the Wraiths away. :)
