Video Game Vintage Title: The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings

The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings is an action role-playing hack and slash video game developed by Polish studio CD Projekt RED for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and OS X. It is a sequel to the 2007 video game The Witcher, and was released internationally on May 17, 2011 for Microsoft Windows, and on April 17, 2012 for Xbox 360. Like its predecessor, the game is based on the book series of the same name by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The game has been a critical and commercial success selling more than 1.7 million units for the PC and Xbox 360 as of May 2012.

The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings Plot

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings contains many different paths and storylines, along with multiple endings. As in the first game, the player takes control of Geralt of Rivia, one of the few remaining witchers. Witchers are humans that have been genetically enhanced and trained to fight monsters from a young age. They have special powers, differing for each witcher. These include alchemy, magic, and sword handling.

The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings Gameplay

The gameplay of The Witcher 2 on the PC takes a marked departure from that of its predecessor as movement is solely through the keyboard and combat moves from the rhythmic mini-game style of the original game to a more fast paced style. The left mouse button is used for fast but weak attacks and the right mouse button for slower but more damaging ones.

The abilities to lay traps and to aim and throw ranged weapons were added to the combat system. Geralt also has an improved offensive and defensive arsenal, with a wide range of melee and ranged weapons, armor, bombs, traps and secondary weapons such as hatchets and shovels. Upgrades are divided into four distinct paths: Training, which includes generalized upgrades for various abilities and must be invested in before the others can be started; Swordsmanship, which improves Geralt's sword fighting abilities; Alchemy, which includes perks such as reducing the negative effects of potions; and Magic, which improves Witcher Signs.

The Witcher 2 also sees the inclusion of a stealth mode in certain parts of the game, where the player must remain undetected as they make their way to a certain objective. Players have the option of stunning enemies if Geralt manages to get behind them, but the player may choose to take a less subtle approach and simply engage the guards in combat. Several new minigames were introduced including fist fighting, arm wrestling and a modified version of dice poker.

Reception
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings received generally favorable reviews. Critics generally praised combat mechanics, customization, graphics, environments, immersion, and storytelling. PC Gamer felt that combat mechanics and the game's ending were the weaker point of the game. 1UP's Tom Chick gave the game a glowing 'A' rating and cited it's "rich graphics that don't have to be flashy, complex challenging combat, and superlative low-fantasy writing". The game garnered a number of perfect scores, with GamePro saying that "The Witcher 2 embodies everything that's good about PC development, and everything that makes it, in my mind, the best platform out there." Game Informer gave the game a "platinum score" and mentioned that "The Brilliant Dark Fantasy Adventure Is Just As Good On Console" as it was on PC.

A major source of contention about the game is the difficulty of the combat, especially during the game's first few hours. Some sources such as Eurogamer have praised the difficulty of the prologue, explaining " treats you not as a player...but as an adult, free to make your own mistakes and suffer a plot in which not everyone gets what they deserve".

It has won over 50 awards for best graphics, best adaptation or use of a license, best story, best PC game, best RPG, and Game of the Year.