The Witcher catch-all

I bought the UK version but I don't have the heart to use the patch for the swedish voices, I love the English ones too much.

DrunkenSleipnir wrote:

Got the demo working, and put a few hours into it. I'm pretty pleased with the gameplay thus far - my only real complaint is that during cut-scenes the game ignores my video settings and drops to 2FPS. Anyone have this problem in retail?

One more question: Would the international version be the one to get, or are the patches for the US version satisfactory for translation/uncensoring?

Turn off "Depth of Field". For some people that seems to be what's killing the cutscene framerate.

Also, the UK version has exactly the same dialogue. The only difference is nipples, absolutely nothing else.

kuddles wrote:
DrunkenSleipnir wrote:

Got the demo working, and put a few hours into it. I'm pretty pleased with the gameplay thus far - my only real complaint is that during cut-scenes the game ignores my video settings and drops to 2FPS. Anyone have this problem in retail?

One more question: Would the international version be the one to get, or are the patches for the US version satisfactory for translation/uncensoring?

Turn off "Depth of Field". For some people that seems to be what's killing the cutscene framerate.

Also, the UK version has exactly the same dialogue. The only difference is nipples, absolutely nothing else.

Fighting nude vampiresses is a bit strange. Especially because they float. I, too, like the english voices. They're also pretty smart about the dialogue. I've only heard the word "f*ck" in the slums, from villain toadies, and from swarthy dwarves who chafe under human oppression. I don't think I've heard it once in the trade sector or farmlands.

kuddles wrote:
DrunkenSleipnir wrote:

Got the demo working, and put a few hours into it. I'm pretty pleased with the gameplay thus far - my only real complaint is that during cut-scenes the game ignores my video settings and drops to 2FPS. Anyone have this problem in retail?

One more question: Would the international version be the one to get, or are the patches for the US version satisfactory for translation/uncensoring?

Turn off "Depth of Field". For some people that seems to be what's killing the cutscene framerate.

Also, the UK version has exactly the same dialogue. The only difference is nipples, absolutely nothing else.

Exactly.
We need a patch for that.

boogle wrote:

Exactly.
We need a patch for that.

Well, I personally released a "patch" for that for another forum I frequent, so if anyone with a US copy wants it, just PM me and I'll send you the link.

Well, I finished the Witcher and loved it. It was not without its problems - the patch got rid of the slow loading times for me but replaced them with frequent crashes and lowest texture quality setting. I mean, how am I supposed to enjoy stabbing a cemetaur to death when I can't even see its gross shiny skin texture properly? Ok, maybe it helps in that case. But, I thought the story and ending were great.

I especially liked how the story handles the decisions Geralt has to make. I think because of the way the story is framed (Geralt having amnesia and trying to figure out who he is), it makes it easier for me to roleplay the character and try to figure him out. Somehow it felt more effective to me than a lot of other games that attempt this kind of thing. Maybe the fact that nothing was black and white helped too - I seem to be sucker for shades of gray in my games/books.

I made a point of never replaying a scene once I'd made a decision, sticking with the consequences once I made a choice, and I think that really enhanced the experience. (Ok, I may have given in once or twice!) This resulted in one of the most affecting moments of the game for me,

spoiler wrote:

[color=white]
when I killed Berengar kinda by accident! Throughout the game I generally spared the monsters, taking the attitude that perhaps not all monsters deserve to die. I even let that weirdo talking ghoul live. When I got to Berengar, I didn't feel that Geralt would let him off with a simply "I won't judge you" or whatever. But my answer led to a fight to the death, and when it was over, I felt like I'd really done something awful (though perhaps unavoidable).
[/color]

As far as the ending, I'll post my choices and ending below if anyone's interested to compare:

spoiler wrote:

[color=white]
I supported the Scoiatel and chose Triss.
My ending was this:

Foltest pardons the non-humans, but the peace is only temporary because people go back to their old hatreds.
The Order is more or less destroyed.
Sorceresses fail in their attempt to influence politics (whatever that means - the story never revisited what Triss was suspiciously doing with that mirror)
Eventually the troubles die down again, and no one knows what happens to the Witcher.
Nothing about Triss at the end.

At first I was wondering how they could possibly get away with not telling us what happened to Alvin!? I didn't make the Grandmaster connection since I had forgotten about Alvin's time travel ability. But now it seems so obvious - I can't imagine that the writers didn't mean for us to make the connection, based on all the hints.

I loved how all the characters returned near the end and helped/fought you/just showed up depending on how you treated them in the earlier part of the game. Nice way of tying things together. The ending was very satisfying, I thought.

I think the hooded assassin in the ending movie is meant to be a sign that there are other, unknown witchers out there, setting up for a sequel. Definitely not anyone we've seen yet...
[/color]

DrunkenSleipnir wrote:

I'm pretty pleased with the gameplay thus far - my only real complaint is that during cut-scenes the game ignores my video settings and drops to 2FPS. Anyone have this problem in retail?

Drunk, I've read positive comments about disabling the depth-of-field effect. Try that and see if things are better.

EDIT: Whoops, looks like I'm way late to the party! I swear Drunken's 2fps post was the newest one when I checked just now.

Thanks for the Depth of Field comments - they fixed me up nicely. Now that I'm able to get into the game, I'm really enjoying it. I'll be sure to pick this up when I get the chance. Props to devs who realize a 10 minute demo isn't going to sell their game - if I'd only had the Prologue, I wouldn't haven't given it a second look.

So I had just finished Act 2 when the new patch came out so I restarted the game so I could do some quests I didn't get (Like the trophy quests so I can get the best silver sword). I missed Shani's party the first time too. Thank god I got it this time because Shani's party has to be the funniest thing in the game sofar. I tried with all 3 people you could invite (Zoltan, Carmen and Sigfriend) and it was great. The songs (they were different songs depending on the guest) were altogether hilarious.

AROOOOO AROOOOOOOO AROOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Mordiceius wrote:

So I had just finished Act 2 when the new patch came out so I restarted the game so I could do some quests I didn't get (Like the trophy quests so I can get the best silver sword). I missed Shani's party the first time too. Thank god I got it this time because Shani's party has to be the funniest thing in the game sofar. I tried with all 3 people you could invite (Zoltan, Carmen and Sigfriend) and it was great. The songs (they were different songs depending on the guest) were altogether hilarious.

AROOOOO AROOOOOOOO AROOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Yep. I also particularly enjoyed Geralt's reaction with the old lady after the party: "You're drunk!" "Not truuuuue...."

Mordiceius wrote:

So I had just finished Act 2 when the new patch came out so I restarted the game so I could do some quests I didn't get (Like the trophy quests so I can get the best silver sword). I missed Shani's party the first time too. Thank god I got it this time because Shani's party has to be the funniest thing in the game sofar. I tried with all 3 people you could invite (Zoltan, Carmen and Sigfriend) and it was great. The songs (they were different songs depending on the guest) were altogether hilarious.

AROOOOO AROOOOOOOO AROOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Shani's party? I take it you had to take Alvin to her instead of Triss to get this?
Meh, I'll take Triss any day of the week.

Dysplastic wrote:

Shani's party? I take it you had to take Alvin to her instead of Triss to get this?
Meh, I'll take Triss any day of the week.

Nah, Shani's party happens before you make that choice. It's right after you do a series of quests involving Shani, and then your quest log says something like "Maybe I should spend some more time with Shani..." or something similar.

I guess it's possible to lose the Shani party if you do the quests in a different order?

rolanberry wrote:
Dysplastic wrote:

Shani's party? I take it you had to take Alvin to her instead of Triss to get this?
Meh, I'll take Triss any day of the week.

Nah, Shani's party happens before you make that choice. It's right after you do a series of quests involving Shani, and then your quest log says something like "Maybe I should spend some more time with Shani..." or something similar.

I guess it's possible to lose the Shani party if you do the quests in a different order?

Wierd...I saw that entry in my quest log, and I visited her at all different times of the day - nothing happened.
Kinda frustrating that I missed something that fun.

EDIT: Oh...apparently I had to go visit her at night AFTER the autopsy. Well then. That wasn't clear at all - something this game has been guilty of on more than one occasion.

So the UK "18+" version is different from the US ESRB "M" rated game?

So I have a new favorite quote based on something said in act 3.

Whited out due to foul language wrote:

[color=white]Power, sex. Sex, power. They both come down to one thing - f*cking others.[/color]

Draco wrote:

So the UK "18+" version is different from the US ESRB "M" rated game?

Yes. Fighting vampiresses and speaking with dryads are very different in the UK version.

The important question is: In act three...

Act 3 Spoilers wrote:

[color=white]Did you pick triss or shani?[/color]

Actually, I

[color=white]picked both and saved it after I got to a certain point. I'm currently following the Choose Triss storyline in Act 5. I'll probably be burned out on Witcher after I finish, but it'll be nice to not have to start again to follow the Choose Shani storyline.[/color]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW.

The kikimore queen pissed me right off.

Took me a good 40 minutes to complete that fight.

fight spoilers wrote:

[color=white]For the first 15 minutes, I was just trying to figure out how to kill the Female Doggo and then after I realized, I spent a good 10 minutes failing at knocking the pillars down and usually just killing myself instead [/color]

I kept trapping myself instead. So I wouldn't die, but also couldn't leave the level either.

MoonDragon wrote:

I kept trapping myself instead. So I wouldn't die, but also couldn't leave the level either. :P

I had the same problem! I kept trying to run backwards to see if there was another exit I had missed; but alas, all I found was a mob of resurrecting spiders. Finally I gave up and searched online for tips.

here's the tip if anyone needs it wrote:

[color=white]You have to start running down the exit hallway before you kill the queen. If you're in the main room with her, her body will block your only way out when she dies. [/color]

Oh, and while we are on the kikimore queen topic:

loot spoiler wrote:

[color=white]In the first tunnel outside of her starting room, on the left, under some rocks, is a dead body with some nice loot on it. I missed it the first time around, but found it when I got trapped in the cave by the dead queen. There is plenty of time to empty the corpse after you blow the second support.[/color]

A heads up for those who are on the fence about Witcher. Gogamer has the US version of the game for $29.90!

lethial wrote:

A heads up for those who are on the fence about Witcher. Gogamer has the US version of the game for $29.90!

I've been vacillating on that offer all day. I bet it would need a hardware upgrade on my part, so the 360 rumors would indicate a possible cheaper option. How sure are we about that port?

I jumped on that. I've been wanting it for a while, but am still in a post-holiday gaming recovery mode, in which I can't justify spending more money on games. I was on the verge of breaking. They discounted it just in time.

wordsmythe wrote:
lethial wrote:

A heads up for those who are on the fence about Witcher. Gogamer has the US version of the game for $29.90!

I've been vacillating on that offer all day. I bet it would need a hardware upgrade on my part, so the 360 rumors would indicate a possible cheaper option. How sure are we about that port?

Not sure at all as far as I know. I say get a pc, witcher and TF2 and come play with the boogle-san.

There's a patch to change the game to the UK version if you live here in the States and got it retail.

By the by, I finally am a bit into Act 3. I'm hoping the rest of the game isn't nearly as long as Act 2. Ugh.

Vrikk wrote:

There's a patch to change the game to the UK version if you live here in the States and got it retail.

By the by, I finally am a bit into Act 3. I'm hoping the rest of the game isn't nearly as long as Act 2. Ugh.

Doesn't seem to be. Act 2 was definitely the most brutal - 3 and so far 4 are more fun.

I'm just about to finish act 4 and for each act here's about the amount of time it took me:

Act 1 - about 10-12 hours.
Act 2 - about 14-16 hours.
Act 3 - about 10-12 hours.
Act 4 - about 8-10 hours.

wordsmythe wrote:
lethial wrote:

A heads up for those who are on the fence about Witcher. Gogamer has the US version of the game for $29.90!

I've been vacillating on that offer all day. I bet it would need a hardware upgrade on my part, so the 360 rumors would indicate a possible cheaper option. How sure are we about that port?

Why not download the demo first so you know if you can get it to run on your current rig?