PixlBit

But that's the appeal of open world games. You explore and discover at your own pace. 

Yeah. I think I prefer the semi-open world design more. Sandboxes are way too empty for my liking.

Deadly Premonition is one of my favorite games, but it too has that GTA open world design that wasn't well implemented. Most of the drives are tedious and act like more of an obstacle than immersion. Although the humorous dialog that goes on during the drives make things easier, but still. Silent Hill 2 had somewhat of an open world too, and it was atmospheric and quite empty, but it wasn't so massive that I'd get bored.

Yep. I'm not saying these open world games are bad for being sprawling, or that they don't have good writing or combat, like the slow-mo action in fallout for example, but the fact that you have to explore a lot of empty space to access the content is what turns me off from them, or more specifically backtracking through empty space. The open world space in Witcher 3 is very pretty to look at, and there are enemies around every corner, so I'd say it's somewhere in-between. 

Yeah, but if you over level past enemies, you don't really have to do any of that oil stuff. So if you're level 4-5 and fighting a spectre lower lvl than you, then you can just hack away-- usually. That's been the case for me so far and I think I should raise the difficulty I guess. I would say the combat is much easier and accessible than it was in 2 honestly. Using oils was necessary in that game.

I'm approaching it more like an MMO. I push through the main story then level up through Contracts when I'm under level. I don't think the combat out on the field outside of quests is that impressive honestly. Contracts, Main Story and side missions are boss though.

While it is possible to hack through most enemies in the game without use of potions, oils or simply by over leveling, I still found the use of these things beneficial in certain instances. I was fighting a werewolf guarding a cave entrance, and I couldn't seem to do much damage to it and it kept running away and healing itself which really pissed me off. I had to shut the game off and try it again. The second time I used oils, magic and buffs, alos bit more dodging/evading and wore him down. Sometimes combat is super easy, other times it feels like hitting a wall. Combat could have evolved a bit more honestly, but maybe playing on harder modes is the way to go. 

it's also that there's been a recurring conspiaracy theory online where 'next-gen' games are being deliberately held back for console parity, thus the PC version even in Ultra settings or whatever, still looks closer to PS4 and XBOX console versions. I think CD is a smaller dev company so yeah, I think they get cut some slack for this reason, considering what they've achieved with this game compared to bigger studios like the ones who make Assassins Creed, Dragon Age, or that GTA/hacker game that came out recently but I forget what it's called. 

I listened to the Axe of the Blood God podcast on Witcher and their pretty divided on it. Basically, the open world fan loves that it's open world and the customizable char w/ tactical turn-based combat fan don't like the action, but the hunts and narrative are great-- according to them.

I think the game looks colorful and gorgeous, on PC at least. At this point I just don't care too much about photorealism in games. It's nice to have them, but I also like having a nice pleasing visual design and aesthetic which this game also has. I love the weather and color hues of the sky, the way the rain hits the screen as if you were following Geralt with a camera. I love the way the wind rustles the trees and grass and leaves float about in the air, and I also love the way you are traveling through dark woods, one minute, then swampy bogs the next, then through a little village while people go about their business. 

The graphics issue is also partly CD Projekt REDs fault for releasing that trailer early on and then not being able to acheive the same graphics fidelity on launch, but that's true of a lot of games nowadays and it's a reality. I love Witcher 3 and think it's beautiful. So, so pretty!

I'm also playing on PC so keep that in mind. Can't describe PS4 or XBOXOne visuals.