Rise of the White Wolf

I was preparing to purchase a certain heavily-promoted, medieval fantasy RPG sequel, when I decided to play the demo beforehand; I was completely underwhelmed with the trim-bearded man's adventures. Then I recalled another demo I had played some time ago, of a game which is about to release its very own sequel; it was that of The Witcher.

The now classic PC game grabs you right from the start, with excellent presentation and gameplay that matches it. This is by no means an undiscovered gem, though not as much of a bestseller as better marketed RPGs. The Witcher clearly owes its well-deserved success to word of mouth. Is there anything in gaming quite like a rainfall over the outskirts of Vizima?


The Witcher employs a modified version of Bioware's Aurora Engine, so in a sense, CD Projekt's creation is closely related to Dragon Age: Origins, though that game runs on Eclipse. However, the former behaves more like the latter's big brother. Scanning the forums, it is quite remarkable how even non-gamers have been attracted to this title. The Witcher is riddled with glitches, yet its fanbase is resolute in their support.

Partially based on the book series of the same title by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, the amnesiac Geralt of Rivia and the other Witchers are genetically mutated hunters, in a quest to fight their foe, the Salamandra. Gone is the morality system employed by many games, as the lines are less clear cut. Considering that The Witcher preceedes DA:O, then the treatment of racism, here less thinly veiled, reinforces the excellent execution. Minorities were blamed for everything then as they are now; the human animal has changed little.

The game can be played in two isometric views or over the shoulder, all of which function marvelously. There are different fighting styles suited for differing enemies, as well as alchemy, or potions, and levelling up, while Geralt goes to meditate by a fireplace. The Witcher can be upgraded to an Enhanced Edition, with graphical updates and side-missions. At this juncture, european-based developers CD Projekt and Starbreeze have clearly become forces to be reckoned with. Here's hoping the sequel makes it to consoles.