Because of this you could be forgiven for assuming at first that Geralt is a flat character with an equally flat voice actor, but it quickly becomes apparent that Geralt isn’t an emotionless bastard, rather he’s battle-hardened and world-weary. He remains incredibly calm no matter what the situation, his voice rarely betraying his emotions even in the most heated of moments. In many of todays RPGs the lead character is usually a voiceless husk, left empty so that you can sort of jam your own personality into his or her body, but in the Witcher 2 Geralt is a fully formed personality, and as such is perhaps one of the most interesting lead characters I’ve ever played as in an RPG. The star of the game’s story is Geralt of Rivia, a man who strikes an imposing figure with his pale skin, white hair and golden eyes. It may not be as vast as Skyrim and it’s combat may not be as brilliant as Amalur’s, but this is one RPG you shouldn’t miss out on. Instead of a sprawling landscape, the ability to create your characters face and the promise of crafting a virtual life for yourself in a virtual world, the Witcher 2 is a linear game driven by its narrative, characters and beautifully crafted world.

In this post Skyrim land, many gamers find it nigh on impossible to play another RPG without comparing it to Bethesda’s massive open-world adventure, and that’s fundamentally wrong, because the Witcher 2, a port of the PC title, proves that you don’t need a massive open-world full of things to do to be a good game. Thanks to CDProjekt and Namco Bandai for providing this game for review.

Witcher 2 tutorial riposte