# The Witcher...*rocks*



## Steel_Wind (Oct 28, 2007)

I've been playing the UK edition all weekend now, which I got through digital download of this new single player PC RPG.

It is, without a doubt, the best single player CRPG I have played since KotOR 1. And yes - it's for the PC.  Graphics are State of the Art and the writing is very enjoyable. Gameplay is challenging and the game is LONG @ 50-60 hours.

It will be in stores this Tuesday/Wednesday, but can be purchased via digital download now off of Atari's UK website. Note: if you want all the rated M nudity and "romance", you'll want the UK digital version, not the US one on disc.

This game is the one I've been looking forward to all year - and so far, it is delivering on the hype.


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## Blastin (Oct 28, 2007)

ok....this looks pretty cool.
  I have looked all over the UK site and can't find a spot for digital download. Could ya link to where you bought this from?


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## Steel_Wind (Oct 28, 2007)

Blastin said:
			
		

> ok....this looks pretty cool.
> I have looked all over the UK site and can't find a spot for digital download. Could ya link to where you bought this from?




Here you go:

http://boutique.gamesplanet.com/campagne/promo.html?partenaire=15&jeu=TheWitcher&affilie=AtariUK


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## Blastin (Oct 28, 2007)

thanks.
  49.99 Euros= $72.
Humm.....don't know if the wife would let me live long enough to play the game if she found out I paid that much......
  Will have to watch this.


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## passon16 (Oct 28, 2007)

*How??*

That site won't accept my american credit card.... what do i do?


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## Steel_Wind (Oct 29, 2007)

passon16 said:
			
		

> That site won't accept my american credit card.... what do i do?




What flavor card?


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## Hammerhead (Oct 29, 2007)

Cherry.


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## Whizbang Dustyboots (Oct 29, 2007)

Still the silliest name for a videogame in a very long time.


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## Thanee (Oct 29, 2007)

Blame the novels it is based on. 

Bye
Thanee


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## trancejeremy (Oct 29, 2007)

Whizbang Dustyboots said:
			
		

> Still the silliest name for a videogame in a very long time.




For an adult game, maybe. Some of the kiddie games have sillier names. The whole "Z" line of games - Hamsterz, Horsez, Catz, etc; I Did It Mum! (Boy & Girl editions) (Apparently a DS training game, for what, I really don't want to know);  Homies Rollerz; My Horse and Me; Dolphin Friends


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## mmu1 (Oct 29, 2007)

Whizbang Dustyboots said:
			
		

> Still the silliest name for a videogame in a very long time.




There's really no other good way to translate the name into English. "Hexer" was used in one translation at some point, but it doesn't convey the same meaning.

In the fiction the game's based on "Witcher" originally came about as a derogatory name that wizards used for people who they felt only clumsily dabbled in magic. The Polish word "wiedzma" is most closely translated as "witch" or "hedge witch" (it's a feminine noun, there's normally no male equivalent) and "Wiedzmin" (Witcher) was derived from it.

And yes, the game is pretty damn good. I actually was really worried about it - I didn't want it to be yet another mediocre / unfinished title from Eastern Europe.


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## Thanee (Oct 29, 2007)

Warlock is usually used as the equivalent term, but it's a bit too common by now, I guess. 

Bye
Thanee


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## mmu1 (Oct 29, 2007)

Thanee said:
			
		

> Warlock is usually used as the equivalent term, but it's a bit too common by now, I guess.
> 
> Bye
> Thanee




Gah... 

Ok, let me try it again. "Wiedzmin" (or "Witcher") is a neologism in Polish - it's a word the author of the novels came up with, so there is no set, conventional way to translate it into English.

If he wanted to call the character a "warlock", he could have done that - there's an existing word for it. He didn't, though, because the whole point was - since Polish is a language in which nouns have gender - to create a new one, derived specifically from "wiedzma" or "witch", which is a feminine noun. It's an intentional bastardization of the language intended to emphasize their outsider status (and an insult, in a male-dominated society), not an indication that the people responsible didn't know how to translate "warlock".

Still, it does sound a lot better in Polish than in English.


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## GlassJaw (Oct 29, 2007)

Just watched some of the gameplay movies at GameSpot.  Looks really cool.  I've been taking a break from gaming but I might be in the mood for a good single-player RPG pretty soon.  This might be it.


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## Rl'Halsinor (Oct 29, 2007)

Steel Wind, out of curiosity what are your PC specs and how is it playing for you?  This game is certainly demanding of both the graphics card and cpu.   When the _recommendation_ is a dual core cpu you know it is demanding.


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## mmu1 (Oct 29, 2007)

Rl'Halsinor said:
			
		

> Steel Wind, out of curiosity what are your PC specs and how is it playing for you?  This game is certainly demanding of both the graphics card and cpu.   When the _recommendation_ is a dual core cpu you know it is demanding.




I've been playing it without any problems (on the Medium quality setting at 1024x768) on a P4 3.0 with 1GB of RAM and a GeForce 7800GS. I could definitely fiddle around with the details and go higher than that, but the game looks quite good and I haven't felt the need, too busy playing. 

Those really high recommended specs are only necessary if you play at the highest detail setting, want to use anti-aliasing, etc. If you have a PC that you can, for example, run NWN2, you're fine.


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## Steel_Wind (Oct 29, 2007)

Rl'Halsinor said:
			
		

> Steel Wind, out of curiosity what are your PC specs and how is it playing for you?  This game is certainly demanding of both the graphics card and cpu.   When the _recommendation_ is a dual core cpu you know it is demanding.




Essentitally the same as NWN2. If you could play NWN2 - you should be able to play the Witcher.

If you could not play NWN2 on your hardware - than you won't be able to play the Witcher.

Which is not to say that Witcher uses the Electron engine; it does not. It's graphic engine is custom (though some underlying RPG elements incorporate a heavily modified version of the BioWare Aurora engine)

I have a E6600, 2 gigs of ram and a 7950GX2. I have tried the game in both SLI and single GPU mode. Single GPU has turned out to be fine for me so I have not gone much at it in SLI mode. I run at 1600 x 1050, widescreen, all eye candy on. 4xAA.  My machine was bleeding edge when I got it a year ago - but it is now just "upper end".

It's a shader 3 game which supports a fallback to shader2. If you want full SM 3.0 eye candy on, you'll need power to run it.

The nice thing is that the environmental graphics are particularly spectacular and make good use of your hardware.  This game is a feast for the eyes if you want it to be.


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## Banshee16 (Oct 31, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> Essentitally the same as NWN2. If you could play NWN2 - you should be able to play the Witcher.
> 
> If you could not play NWN2 on your hardware - than you won't be able to play the Witcher.
> 
> ...




Oh, that's awesome then.  I'm running an Athlon 64 3800+ with 1 Gig RAM and an nVidia Geforce 7600 GT card.  NWN 2 ran perfectly fine on my PC when the patch was installed.  I'd heard on message boards about people complaining about the high specs on the Witcher, and figured that was going to mean I wouldn't be able to play it. 

Glad to hear it's still in range.  This one looks awesome.

Banshee


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## Rl'Halsinor (Oct 31, 2007)

Well I got 2 gigs of RAM, an Athlon 64 3200+ an an X800 GTO 256 meg, DDR 3 vid card which should be okay.

I need to install my X2 3800 +.

I went to their main sight and the music is awsome.  I hope a patch will straighten out the camera issues.  Overall, though, this game looks like oit will be taking up a lot of my time.


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## Steel_Wind (Oct 31, 2007)

Rl'Halsinor said:
			
		

> Well I got 2 gigs of RAM, an Athlon 64 3200+ an an X800 GTO 256 meg, DDR 3 vid card which should be okay.
> 
> I need to install my X2 3800 +.
> 
> I went to their main sight and the music is awsome.  I hope a patch will straighten out the camera issues.  Overall, though, this game looks like oit will be taking up a lot of my time.




I didn't really experience any "camera issues".  There are some point in the game where your top down perspectivie needs adjustment.  You do so by pressing the middle mouse button and rotating it  - or occasioanlyl by hitting the "w" key on the keyboard if you are too close to an object. It's something you just get used to. No biggie.

Effect on gameplay? Marginal to none, imo.


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## Steel_Wind (Nov 1, 2007)

Please note that I have posted an extensive First Impression/Review of _The Witcher_ on our home page. You can read it here:

http://www.dladventures.com


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## Lockridge (Nov 1, 2007)

Can you tell me the following:

1. Is it an open quest like Oblivion or is it narrow like FEAR?
2. Does it penalize you for morality like Oblivion did?  I absolutely hate this because I would mistakenly pick up some of the many items laying around only to be arrested or given a time-wasting task by my guild.
3. When you install the software, does it require you to register the installation like Bioshock?  This annoys me because I may want to re-install and play the game in a few years but if the company has gone under or is hard to find I may not be able to in spite of owning the disks.

Thanks.


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## mmu1 (Nov 1, 2007)

1. It's actually more like Neverwinter Nights or NWN2, Knights of the Old Republic, Baldur's Gate, etc. It's a lot smaller than Oblivion, but vastly bigger than a short FPS game like FEAR.

2. It's pretty hard to get screwed over by accident. (Unless you're someone who "accidentally" attacks the city guard, or badly insults important NPCs) For the most part, whatever items you find are yours for the taking.

3. Don't think so. I didn't notice anything that'd indicate it, and no one is complaining about the copy protection on the official boards.


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## Lockridge (Nov 1, 2007)

mmu1 said:
			
		

> 1. It's actually more like Neverwinter Nights or NWN2, Knights of the Old Republic, Baldur's Gate, etc. It's a lot smaller than Oblivion, but vastly bigger than a short FPS game like FEAR.
> 
> 2. It's pretty hard to get screwed over by accident. (Unless you're someone who "accidentally" attacks the city guard, or badly insults important NPCs) For the most part, whatever items you find are yours for the taking.
> 
> 3. Don't think so. I didn't notice anything that'd indicate it, and no one is complaining about the copy protection on the official boards.




Thanks, thats exactly what I needed.  I'll be downloading shortly.


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## Rodrigo Istalindir (Nov 1, 2007)

I don't buy anything without a demo first.  Especially for something they had to patch before it hit the shelves.


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## Banshee16 (Nov 1, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> I didn't really experience any "camera issues".  There are some point in the game where your top down perspectivie needs adjustment.  You do so by pressing the middle mouse button and rotating it  - or occasioanlyl by hitting the "w" key on the keyboard if you are too close to an object. It's something you just get used to. No biggie.
> 
> Effect on gameplay? Marginal to none, imo.




I read your review.  Some good observations there.  I'm in Canada, so unfortunately it sounds like I'll be stuck playing the Canadian release.  It never ceases to amaze me why it's acceptable to have people butchering monsters and killing people, but show a little skin, and "oh no".  Oh well.

Will the Euro version work on computers in North America?  I'm not very experienced at this, but I understand that CD-ROMs or DVDs or whatever from one "Region" don't work on machines in another region.  Is that the case here?  If it's nothing to worry about, are there some good, reliable online retailers in Europe that will ship to Canada?

Banshee


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## mmu1 (Nov 2, 2007)

Banshee16 said:
			
		

> I read your review.  Some good observations there.  I'm in Canada, so unfortunately it sounds like I'll be stuck playing the Canadian release.  It never ceases to amaze me why it's acceptable to have people butchering monsters and killing people, but show a little skin, and "oh no".  Oh well.
> 
> Will the Euro version work on computers in North America?  I'm not very experienced at this, but I understand that CD-ROMs or DVDs or whatever from one "Region" don't work on machines in another region.  Is that the case here?  If it's nothing to worry about, are there some good, reliable online retailers in Europe that will ship to Canada?
> 
> Banshee




IIRC computer games are region-free. You can also download the Euro version from Atari UK.

It's what I did, though it was because I was in a hurry to get my hands on it and not because I cared about what got censored  - and to be honest with you, after seeing some of it I really don't think there's _any_ point in spending more money just to see a few nipples, because that's what it amounts to. Unless you view it as taking a stand against censorship, because the impact on the game is really almost non-existent.


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## Banshee16 (Nov 2, 2007)

mmu1 said:
			
		

> IIRC computer games are region-free. You can also download the Euro version from Atari UK.
> 
> It's what I did, though it was because I was in a hurry to get my hands on it and not because I cared about what got censored  - and to be honest with you, after seeing some of it I really don't think there's _any_ point in spending more money just to see a few nipples, because that's what it amounts to. Unless you view it as taking a stand against censorship, because the impact on the game is really almost non-existent.




So it's not a significant change in the content then....

I thought the intent of the statement was that the whole romance plot etc. was being removed.

Ok, then, no, it doesn't make a lot of sense.  I'm not a fan of downloading software anyways.  There's something about having an instruction manual, a hard copy disk, etc. that I feel can't really be replaced by purchasing downloaded software.

Banshee


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## GlassJaw (Nov 2, 2007)

Rodrigo Istalindir said:
			
		

> I don't buy anything without a demo first.  Especially for something they had to patch before it hit the shelves.




I don't need a demo before I buy a game but I at least want to see a few reviews from a few sources.  This game looks promising though.


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## Thanee (Nov 2, 2007)

mmu1 said:
			
		

> Ok, let me try it again. "Wiedzmin" (or "Witcher") is a neologism in Polish - it's a word the author of the novels came up with, so there is no set, conventional way to translate it into English.




Just meant, that it is the typical word used for a male witch (since a witch is always female). 

Ordered the game and just got the confirmation that it is on the way... should be here by monday. Hope it is as much fun as everyone says. 

Bye
Thanee


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## Thanee (Nov 2, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> I have a E6600, 2 gigs of ram and a 7950GX2. I have tried the game in both SLI and single GPU mode. Single GPU has turned out to be fine for me so I have not gone much at it in SLI mode. I run at 1600 x 1050, widescreen, all eye candy on.




That sounds promising... should have little trouble running it then with all switches on (Athlon X2 2.8 GHz DualCore, 2 GB RAM, GF 8800GTS 640 MB, 1600x1200). 

Bye
Thanee


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## Steel_Wind (Nov 2, 2007)

The big issue is hard drive speed and the video ram on your card (my VRAM is 1 gig, which helps a lot).

Those running on cards with smaller VRam and lower system RAM, or who have non-Serial ATA hard drives are getting hit with longer load times. This is as a result of the incredible environmental texture detail in the game. At full eye candy on - it's a *lot* of 1024 and 512 dds textures that are loading on a per area basis. Add in a fair numbr of autosaves when exiting after a main story quest flag is set, and it adds up to a lot of "loading....saving...' wait times between areas.

My load times are about 20 seconds. Some other people are experiencing much slower load times.  It's the only real tech issue with the game at this stage.

If your hard drive is thrashing and paging on load to deal with texture loading, you will need to turn down the texture detail to improve area load times.

Mine has been fine and those with similar high end systems seem to be doing fine. Those with mid range or low range systems are not so fine. It's not about how many FPS your GPU can push (though that always helps of course)  - but load times are hard drive and vid memory issues, primarily.

Turning down texture detail is the best way to deal with long loadtimes, currently.


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## mmu1 (Nov 2, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> The big issue is hard drive speed and the video ram on your card (my VRAM is 1 gig, which helps a lot).
> 
> Those running on cards with smaller VRam and lower system RAM, or who have non-Serial ATA hard drives are getting hit with longer load times. This is as a result of the incredible environmental texture detail in the game. At full eye candy on - it's a *lot* of 1024 and 512 dds textures that are loading on a per area basis. Add in a fair numbr of autosaves when exiting after a main story quest flag is set, and it adds up.
> 
> ...




Load times are on the long side on my PC, but not so bad as to be a problem. (NWN2 has noticeably longer ones, for example, even if they're usually - though not always - a lot less frequent)  I deal with it the way I deal with long-ish load times in all games I play - I keep a book or a magazine handy.


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## Thanee (Nov 2, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> My load times are about 20 seconds. Some other people are experiencing much slower load times.




I got S-ATA II drives, but can't say much about their performance, since I havn't really put the system on stress yet (the most demanding gfx application so far is Windows Vista DreamScene LOL).

Well, I'll see how it works out next week. 

Bye
Thanee


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## Banshee16 (Nov 4, 2007)

I saw it at Best Buy Canada today, and the box said it was rated Mature....violence, strong language, partial nudity, and strong sexual themes, I think.

I wonder if that's the same as the one in the U.S.?  In any case, the game looks cool...

Unfortunately, there are a few good games coming out right now....Hellgate: London, Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect, Call of Duty 4.....it's going to hurt the pocketbook..

Banshee


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## GlassJaw (Nov 4, 2007)

Banshee16 said:
			
		

> I saw it at Best Buy Canada today, and the box said it was rated Mature....violence, strong language, partial nudity, and strong sexual themes, I think.
> 
> I wonder if that's the same as the one in the U.S.?  In any case, the game looks cool...




I heard the US version is censored more than versions in other countries.  Can anyone confirm that?


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## Thanee (Nov 4, 2007)

GlassJaw said:
			
		

> I heard the US version is censored more than versions in other countries.  Can anyone confirm that?




If you look at earlier posts in this thread it seems so, but not in a fashion that makes the game less fun to play.

The european version seems to be uncensored, while the US version has removed some of the nudity, supposedly.

Bye
Thanee


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## Banshee16 (Nov 4, 2007)

On the official website, some of the devs have indicated that they don't think the Canadian version is the same as the U.S. version.

http://www.thewitcher.com/forum/index.php?topic=1388.120

Posted by "Daerdin" (#123) "OK. I talked to one of PR guys about the Canadian version, and as far as he knows, you'll get your own, not the US one."

Personally, I'm not sure how it matters to me.  I do have an issue if the American ratings boards think they can dictate what a citizen of another sovereign nation can look at.  I think that's what really burns me.

I'd suspect that that the Canadian version would have to be different anyways....it has to be localized for English/French content and instructions etc. whereas the American version is what...English only?  Or English and Spanish?

Banshee


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## Hammerhead (Nov 5, 2007)

Banshee16 said:
			
		

> Personally, I'm not sure how it matters to me.  I do have an issue if the American ratings boards think they can dictate what a citizen of another sovereign nation can look at.  I think that's what really burns me.
> 
> Banshee




It's not so much an issue of a ratings board imposing it's will on another country as it is the simple economic realities of the situation. If you make the same version for both countries, shipping and transactional costs decrease.


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## Banshee16 (Nov 5, 2007)

Hammerhead said:
			
		

> It's not so much an issue of a ratings board imposing it's will on another country as it is the simple economic realities of the situation. If you make the same version for both countries, shipping and transactional costs decrease.




To say nothing of the fact that American companies have bought so many of our retailers, including HBC, which is, I'm pretty sure, one of the oldest stores in the world.....300+ years.  I'd suspect that since many are now owned by American companies, they're using American supply chains, which are getting product that meets U.S. ratings boards requirements.

Still doesn't mean we have to like it. 

Of course, I'm still unsure whether we get the American version.  The Witcher's devs have said that they believe Canada has its own version.  Which is a certain amount of sense, since the U.S. release likely doesn't have French packaging and instructions, or French voiceovers (if those are included)....whereas those are required by law in Canada, from what I understand.

Banshee


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## Steel_Wind (Nov 5, 2007)

The full frontal nudity in _The Witcher _is not really an ESRB issue. It's a Wal-Mart USA issue.


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## Thanee (Nov 5, 2007)

Banshee16 said:
			
		

> I'd suspect that that the Canadian version would have to be different anyways....it has to be localized for English/French content and instructions etc. whereas the American version is what...English only?  Or English and Spanish?




Not sure about the US version, but the european version can be installed in like half a dozen different languages.

Bye
Thanee


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## Banshee16 (Nov 5, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> The full frontal nudity in _The Witcher _is not really an ESRB issue. It's a Wal-Mart USA issue.




Steel Wind...do you happen to know which version we get in Canada?  I was thinking of purchasing through Future Shop or EB Games.  They mention that it's a mature rating...but don't really say what the rating entails.

Banshee


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## Steel_Wind (Nov 5, 2007)

The version on sale in Canada is the Canadian version.  It supports two languages, French and English. I really don't know if we have the censored version here or not - and I have not checked. The manuals in Canada are screwed up and are apparently missing CD keys in most of them - although you do not need the CD key to install or play the game so it's not a significant issue. 

If I had to bet, I would bet that the Canadian one is not censored. Most companies don't bother to dual brand the software in two languages.  The fact that they have done so suggests to me that they probably took advantage of the edgier content for the Canadian market.  Wal-Mart Canada is not Wal-Mart USA. But I don't know what changes were made, if any, for sure.

I have the Canadian ver on DVDit, but I also had the Euro preview version already installed so... I've kept using that one and just patched it. I have not bothered to see what the differences are in the game that I have on the DVD and I never installed from the DVD so I can't be sure. 

I expect the changes in the USA are probably to artwork to expunge all nipples from the art and make sure the Dryads have underwear and aren't standing around with greenish brown pubic hair. 

The Canadian box still warns about partial nudity, so it may be that they did not make any changes here at all.

I'll ask around.


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## Banshee16 (Nov 5, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> The version on sale in Canada is the Canadian version.  It supports two languages, French and English. I really don't know if we have the censored version here or not - and I have not checked. The manuals in Canada are screwed up and are apparently missing CD keys in most of them - although you do not need the CD key to install or play the game so it's not a significant issue.
> 
> If I had to bet, I would bet that the Canadian one is not censored. Most companies don't bother to dual brand the software in two languages.  The fact that they have done so suggests to me that they probably took advantage of the edgier content for the Canadian market.  Wal-Mart Canada is not Wal-Mart USA. But I don't know what changes were made, if any, for sure.
> 
> ...




Let me know if you find out for sure.  I'm definitely getting this one..but I'm holding off a little bit first.  I just bought Hellgate: London, and my wife has asked me to buy her Guitar Hero II for the 360, so I can't blow through all my entertainment money in one shot anyways.

And I recently bought Mask of the Betrayer as well, so I've got stuff to keep me busy.  I'll wait to hear the definitive answer about the Witcher, and that will give me money to regenerate some funds in my wallet 

Too many good games this fall..

Banshee


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## Thanee (Nov 6, 2007)

The Witcher has some crash problems on Vista (game crashed thrice so far), though it's still on the level of bearable (and before anyone asks: yes, I got the patch and the hotfix installed).

Maybe I should tone down the resolution to the recommended 1280x1024 (currently running on the LCD's native 1600x1200, which runs totally smooth otherwise)?

Bye
Thanee


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## mmu1 (Nov 6, 2007)

Thanee said:
			
		

> The Witcher has some crash problems on Vista (game crashed thrice so far), though it's still on the level of bearable (and before anyone asks: yes, I got the patch and the hotfix installed).
> 
> Maybe I should tone down the resolution to the recommended 1280x1024 (currently running on the LCD's native 1600x1200, which runs totally smooth otherwise)?
> 
> ...




I've seen a couple of people on the official boards claim that they were able to solve their Vista crashing problems by running it windowed. Don't know if it's true or just wishful thinking on their part, but...


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## Thanee (Nov 6, 2007)

Probably worth a try. Thanks! 

Bye
Thanee


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## Banshee16 (Nov 8, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> The version on sale in Canada is the Canadian version.  It supports two languages, French and English. I really don't know if we have the censored version here or not - and I have not checked. The manuals in Canada are screwed up and are apparently missing CD keys in most of them - although you do not need the CD key to install or play the game so it's not a significant issue.
> 
> If I had to bet, I would bet that the Canadian one is not censored. Most companies don't bother to dual brand the software in two languages.  The fact that they have done so suggests to me that they probably took advantage of the edgier content for the Canadian market.  Wal-Mart Canada is not Wal-Mart USA. But I don't know what changes were made, if any, for sure.
> 
> ...




Have you heard anything further?  Have you finished the game?

Banshee


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## Thanee (Nov 9, 2007)

If it helps you, this is from the game developers (at least it said so ):



> Consequently, the German version will mainly have to be cut down on the level of graphic violence, most likely by disabling blood and gore during combat. As for the American version, US law requires of us to radically soften or do away with nudity scenes and graphic elements (oh, how I pity the Americans =P). Apart from these two, so far we are not aware of any more censorship requirements in other countries. Naturally, if we do encounter any more of these, which we doubt we will, we'll let you know.




Bye
Thanee


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## Banshee16 (Nov 15, 2007)

Thanee said:
			
		

> If it helps you, this is from the game developers (at least it said so ):
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Not so helpful.  For those in the U.S., www.gogamer.com has the uncensored version available for sale.  However, so far, they've been unhelpful, as they don't ship outside the U.S.  Ordinarily this isn't a problem.....I live fairly close to the border, and many of my Canadian brethren have products shipped to border towns, then we just drive over and pick them up....particularly with the nice valuation on our dollar at the moment.

Go Gamer isn't making it easy though, as they also want credit cards with billing addresses in the U.S.  That I can't do 

Oh well.  I suppose I could buy it via download, but I kind of like having the materials, instructions, and backup disk, etc.

I guess when it was games like Manhunt or Grand Theft Auto getting censored, I didn't really care, as I had no intention to play them.  But it sucks when it's an RPG you're interested in.

I rather think the solution should have less to do with changing the content, than with parents using their brains for a few seconds, and realizing that a game that says M likely won't be suitable for their 11 year old.  I guess that requires too much thinking though.  I've known enough parents who don't really take the time to know what their kids are playing.  

Banshee


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## Steel_Wind (Nov 15, 2007)

The only changes in the US version are to a few textures and some "in game cards".  There is no change to the dialog, plot or gameplay.

Honestly, having finished the game? It's not going to change your play experience very much at all, no matter the version. Grab the version of the game in the local store and be content.


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## Banshee16 (Nov 16, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> The only changes in the US version are to a few textures and some "in game cards".  There is no change to the dialog, plot or gameplay.
> 
> Honestly, having finished the game? It's not going to change your play experience very much at all, no matter the version. Grab the version of the game in the local store and be content.




Well, mine is in the mail.  GoGamer had Google Checkout.  I've never used it before, so I didn't click the link.  That works way easy.  I tried that before I saw your e-mail.  It won't make a difference in any case....I've got Hellgate: London to keep me busy..

Banshee


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## Steel_Wind (Nov 24, 2007)

Banshee16 said:
			
		

> Well, mine is in the mail.  GoGamer had Google Checkout.  I've never used it before, so I didn't click the link.  That works way easy.  I tried that before I saw your e-mail.  It won't make a difference in any case....I've got Hellgate: London to keep me busy..
> 
> Banshee




If there is a problem, the fix on how to uncensor the US version to mod it so that it runs as the "AO" Euro version is here:   http://www.dladventures.com/forum/vB/showthread.php?t=7011


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## Banshee16 (Nov 26, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> If there is a problem, the fix on how to uncensor the US version to mod it so that it runs as the "AO" Euro version is here:   http://www.dladventures.com/forum/vB/showthread.php?t=7011




It's working so far.  Seems a little slow though....at least during the beginning, when I'm in that keep.  During the movie sequences, it's somewhat jerky.  But aside from that, working fine so far.

Banshee


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## Banshee16 (Nov 27, 2007)

Well, I've been playing for a few days.  It was choppy on my system (Athlon 64 3800+, GeForce 7600GT, 1 GIG ram, Sound Blaster Audigy 1).  I just put another gig of RAM in last night, and it's like night and day.  Runs like silk now.  Even the load times *seem* to have improved.  But that's just going in and out of houses etc.

Still a little confused though.  I know that to finish some of the quests, like with the drowners, I need to get an entry in my monster journal.  But I'm not sure how to get an entry.  Do I have to buy the book on drowners and read it?  If that's the case, it kind of sucks, because the books are so expensive.  It's almost like you have to do the quests in certain order, so you can use the proceeds from one quest to pay for the info you need to solve the next one.  Either that, or just spend several nights hunting Barghests.

The game is awesome so far.  I *really* like the journal system, and wish more games had journals like this.  It makes it so easy to keep track of quests, which NPCs know what, who said what, etc. etc.

Banshee


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## mmu1 (Nov 28, 2007)

Banshee16 said:
			
		

> Well, I've been playing for a few days.  It was choppy on my system (Athlon 64 3800+, GeForce 7600GT, 1 GIG ram, Sound Blaster Audigy 1).  I just put another gig of RAM in last night, and it's like night and day.  Runs like silk now.  Even the load times *seem* to have improved.  But that's just going in and out of houses etc.
> 
> Still a little confused though.  I know that to finish some of the quests, like with the drowners, I need to get an entry in my monster journal.  But I'm not sure how to get an entry.  Do I have to buy the book on drowners and read it?  If that's the case, it kind of sucks, because the books are so expensive.  It's almost like you have to do the quests in certain order, so you can use the proceeds from one quest to pay for the info you need to solve the next one.  Either that, or just spend several nights hunting Barghests.
> 
> ...




If the quest says you need an entry in the bestiary, it does mean that you need to buy and read a book in order to be able to harvest the particular monster organ / trophy / squishy bit the quest asks for.

And yeah, they're expensive, but it's generally worth buckling down and buying as many books as you can as early as you can, and holding on to any exotic monster parts, even if you have no contracts asking for them - it'll save you time hunting rare monsters in later chapters to fulfill other contracts.

Killing barghests will let you make some money, but make sure you don't neglect fist-fighting and gambling - they're a good way to make money quickly. That, and also remember to sell the book back right after you read it - you never need them again after that, and though you only get something like 20% of the sticker price, it's better than nothing.


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## Banshee16 (Nov 28, 2007)

mmu1 said:
			
		

> If the quest says you need an entry in the bestiary, it does mean that you need to buy and read a book in order to be able to harvest the particular monster organ / trophy / squishy bit the quest asks for.
> 
> And yeah, they're expensive, but it's generally worth buckling down and buying as many books as you can as early as you can, and holding on to any exotic monster parts, even if you have no contracts asking for them - it'll save you time hunting rare monsters in later chapters to fulfill other contracts.
> 
> Killing barghests will let you make some money, but make sure you don't neglect fist-fighting and gambling - they're a good way to make money quickly. That, and also remember to sell the book back right after you read it - you never need them again after that, and though you only get something like 20% of the sticker price, it's better than nothing.




Well, I can see it works out...monster hunting is lucrative!  It cost me 200gp for the book for the Drowner quest, but I got like 500 gp back for completing it.  Now that gives me enough money to pursue others.

Banshee


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 10, 2007)

For those who may have missed it. PC Gamer in the USA just reviewed The Witcher, giving it a score of 90% and an Editor's Choice award.

If this title has slipped from your radar - you owe it to yourself to get this game.


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## GoodKingJayIII (Dec 10, 2007)

The Escapist had some very different things to say about this game.  You can find their review here.

Folks here have been giving the game such glowing praise (not to mention a number of other very positive reviews out there).  I generally like the Escapist for doing different kinds of articles about games and gamers.  I'm wondering why such a disparity from the rest of the gaming community.


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 11, 2007)

GoodKingJayIII said:
			
		

> The Escapist had some very different things to say about this game.  You can find their review here.
> 
> Folks here have been giving the game such glowing praise (not to mention a number of other very positive reviews out there).  I generally like the Escapist for doing different kinds of articles about games and gamers.  I'm wondering why such a disparity from the rest of the gaming community.




If you dig a little deeper - you'll find that this "reviewer" you have linked to has never reviewed a game before in his life. This was his first.  He never finished the game and didn't even come close.  His blog also indicates he is overwhelmingly predisposed to an Oblivion style RPG experience, and story based games are pooh-poohed by him.

Which is a nice way of saying this guy is a total game review virgin and does not know what the hell he is talking about.

There was a huge thread in late October/early November on this issue on the Quarter to Three Forums  , a gaming site where many (most, probably) of the posters are gaming journalists and developers. Reviewers who stumbled in their "reviews" and gave away, unknowingly, that  they had not actually played the game past Act 1 or 2 were torn apart and savaged. Because of the nature of the game, it was unusually easy to tell where a reviewer stopped playing when it came to the Witcher.  The push to "be first"  with a web review of the Witcher showed that those who claim to have played it through were not likely to have had the time to have ever done so.  But the early reviews still came out, just the same.

Desslock, the main RPG reviewer from _PC Gamer_ along with Jeff Green, editor at _Games for Windows_ (nee _Computer Gaming World_) chimed in and did some savaging of their own over this issue at the time. 

The main reason for the disparity in reviews of _The Witcher_ is simple: game reviewers have been conditioned to review short PC games and console titles with game lengths between 8 and 20 hours. _They get paid on this assumption._ They don't finish 40 hour games - let alone 80 hour games. They tell you they do - or leave you to infer that they do - when in fact, they don't. They lie. In fact, they lie a *LOT.*

The Witcher is a game you need to advance well past the first 5-10 hours to get a true feel for the game. Especially as the end game is so strong, in reality, you need to finish  the game to review it. Most of the reviewers who didn't like it much didn't come even close to finishing it - and their reviews showed it.


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## Thanee (Dec 11, 2007)

You can say quite a bit about a game without finishing it, though. Only the story and higher level abilities are hard to review without knowing them to full extent, but gameplay, graphics, atmosphere, and so on are quite reviewable after only some hours of playing a game.

If the game is an annoyance to play it won't really help when the story is great near the end (_Note:_ this is meant in a general way and does not apply to The Witcher).

I havn't restarted the game yet (have played through the first Act, but want to start new and only then continue, because I left a few things out, which I couldn't get back to, thanks to only using a single save game, which I usually do when playing such games), but it's definitely a good game. Not a 90+% title, but a good 80+% in my eyes and surely worth a look if you like good story-based RPGs and don't mind the maturity level (which seems a little tagged on at times (at least for the little part I have played so far), though most of the mature themes are hopefully there to deliver the story not for maturity's sake alone).

Bye
Thanee


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 11, 2007)

Thanee said:
			
		

> You can say quite a bit about a game without finishing it, though. Only the story and higher level abilities are hard to review without knowing them to full extent, but gameplay, graphics, atmosphere, and so on are quite reviewable after only some hours of playing a game.




No. I disagree. When it comes to the Witcher, you need to get to the end of Act III, not Act I, to form a view of the combat style in the game, the flow and the atmosphere. 

There are far too many changes in how all of those things are impacted later as the game develops. Your assumption, in my view, is very wrong and belies the reason behind the disparity in the "reviews" of the game.

Moreover, a "first impression" is what you write based on a 10 hour gameplay experience of an 80 hour game. Calling it a "review" is lying to the reader.


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## GoodKingJayIII (Dec 11, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> If you dig a little deeper - you'll find that this "reviewer" you have linked to has never reviewed a game before in his life. This was his first.  He never finished the game and didn't even come close.  His blog also indicates he is overwhelmingly predisposed to an Oblivion style RPG experience, and story based games are pooh-poohed by him.




That is interesting in an of itself, because a review should probably not be linking to his personal blog and revealing personal biases towards games.  Young guy, new to the industry I'm sure.  A mistake he's not likely to make again.

However, I've never expected reviewers to actually finish games, at least the games I enjoy, which tend to push into the 30-40 hour range.  There's just too much on their plates to do that.  So the fact that he didn't finish the game doesn't terribly bother me.



			
				Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> No. I disagree. When it comes to the Witcher, you need to get to the end of Act III, not Act I, to form a view of the combat style in the game, the flow and the atmosphere.




Story I can understand.  Sure, some things develop more slowly, I get that.  Atmosphere... I think I should a pretty intuitive grasp about the atmosphere and environment within the first hour of play.  Of course, I get that this can change so it might be important to see the forest for the trees, as it were.

But the combat system, I'm curious why it takes until act 3 (which is how many hours of the game?) to grasp.


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 11, 2007)

GoodKingJayIII said:
			
		

> But the combat system, I'm curious why it takes until act 3 (which is how many hours of the game?) to grasp.




The full combat system takes into account the following:

1 - Steel Sword
2- Silver Sword
3- supplementary weapons
4- Witcher off signs
5- Witcher def signs
5- off and def potions
6 - bombs

The nature of the way the combat abilities in the game evolves is that many of those powers will not be available to you until the mid to two-thirds point of Act III.

In Act 1, you have only a steel word, a few lesser potions and one or two minor offensive signs.  At that stage, your signs are, for the most point, a throw-away ability - akin to cantrips.

And no - a silver sword is not really just a "magic" weapon in D&D terms. The point is that silver needs to be used against some opponents - while steel is used against others. Being forced to switch weapons during a fight and the choices that makes you take during combat in terms of priorities has a significant impact on combat flow by Act III.

The tactical feel of combat in the game is a mix of all 6 developed to their mid-point potential - and not a mere 3 abilities at the low end. Witcher signs, especially, are underpowered in the early part of the game. (Arguably, they can become overpowered by the end game, but that's another point entirely).

End result: the combat in Act 1 flows very differently than it does by the end of Act II - and still more differently than it does in Act III, by which time bombs and developed off and def signs become a major element in combat.

It's like trying to "review" the magic system in 3.5 and its effect on a combat by only looking at level 0 cantrips and ignoring the potential of ranged attacks.  It's just not a remotely fair assessment.


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## LrdApoc (Dec 12, 2007)

Steel Wind, I know I can't add much here to your points because an indepth review of a title would ideally cover all the things you mention, however as you say reviewers are payed to turn things around quickly. This season I've had to churn out a good number of reviews and the approach I take as a professional reviewer is to give the player a feel for if they want to try a game.

Now in both the reviews I wrote of The Witcher I had not completed the game before I wrote them. I had however played into Chapter III. Same with Mass Effect. I'd played most of the way through the games, I'd dallied with subquests, etc. I had a good feel for the systems and what I felt people needed to know to decide if they wanted to invest the time in any of these games.

That is my goal as a reviewer... to explain the experience, to give my insight into the gameplay, the story and how much a game is fun or not. There are some games I will never finish before reviewing.. Kane & Lynch being one. Its not something I enjoyed so I have pushed it off the review plate and moved on.. 

There is a great debate about the value of a review, a debate we see all the time. The reality is that for hardcore fans there is really little impact. Hardcore players do not take just one voice into consideration.. nor should any consumer to be frank - I know I don't and I write professionally about this silly industry. It is the casual player, the occasional consumer that benefits from reviews and often does not have the time or interest to research a purchase.

Its sad to some extent because the expectation of experience and knowledge about games, gameplay and gaming itself is effectively as low as : I can type and almost always spell. The mark of a good review is that is speaks to the reader, unfortunately not every style suits every reader.

Sorry I've ranted - the gist though is I agree that The Witcher received a short shrift from some who did not spend more than 5-8 hours with the game. But I didn't need more than that as a player to know that I was happy with my purchase.


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## Rodrigo Istalindir (Dec 15, 2007)

FYI, there's finally a demo out.


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 16, 2007)

Rodrigo Istalindir said:
			
		

> FYI, there's finally a demo out.




Yes there is. The Demo includes all of the Prologue and ALL of Act 1.

That's 10-12 hours of game play. For free.  And apparently you can move your saved game over to continue on into Act II and beyond to play the rest of the game if you choose to buy the game.

Quite a bargain. Many games these days are only 8-12 hours long in the FULL GAME. That's just the demo length of _The Witcher _


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## Rodrigo Istalindir (Dec 16, 2007)

Hmm.  It keeps ending for me when I talk to the Reverend after lighting the torches, and that was only an hour or two.  Is that the end of Act I, or is it a bug?

Pretty enjoyable, though.  A little buggy -- I had a couple CtDs -- but performance was very good, the voice acting respectable, and the world and graphics are awesome.  The localization is a little rough, and there are some odd parts where it feels like they left bits out.  

Still, this one might have to go on the Christmas list.


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 16, 2007)

Rodrigo Istalindir said:
			
		

> Hmm.  It keeps ending for me when I talk to the Reverend after lighting the torches, and that was only an hour or two.  Is that the end of Act I, or is it a bug?
> 
> Pretty enjoyable, though.  A little buggy -- I had a couple CtDs -- but performance was very good, the voice acting respectable, and the world and graphics are awesome.  The localization is a little rough, and there are some odd parts where it feels like they left bits out.
> 
> Still, this one might have to go on the Christmas list.




Bug.

Are you under XP or Vista?

And you should post any crashes on the www.thewitcher.com forums.


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## Rodrigo Istalindir (Dec 16, 2007)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> Bug.
> 
> Are you under XP or Vista?
> 
> And you should post any crashes on the www.thewitcher.com forums.




Vista.  Found the hotfix for the memory issue, and that at least let me play it.  Before that it wouldn't make it past the first zone load into the laboratory.   After that it settled down, but it was still iffy enough that I was saving more than  I usually like to in RPGs.  I don't mind replaying stuff when I take on something over my head, but after the fourth time replaying the first fight with the barghests, I relented.


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## Steel_Wind (Dec 16, 2007)

Rodrigo Istalindir said:
			
		

> Vista.  Found the hotfix for the memory issue, and that at least let me play it.  Before that it wouldn't make it past the first zone load into the laboratory.   After that it settled down, but it was still iffy enough that I was saving more than  I usually like to in RPGs.  I don't mind replaying stuff when I take on something over my head, but after the fourth time replaying the first fight with the barghests, I relented.




Play it in Windowed mode - not in full screen mode. That should fix most of the problems with Vista.  And no = these problems don't happen under XP.

I'm a Mac. And I'm a PC : "Don't *GIVE UP* ON VISTA


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## Rodrigo Istalindir (Dec 17, 2007)

Well, it's only crashed once today -- while saving, annoyingly enough.  But it still jumps to the 'Buy this game' trailer anytime I turn in a quest to the Reverend.  :\


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## Thanee (Dec 17, 2007)

I even had CtDs in windowed mode under Vista, though it seems to happen less often.

Bye
Thanee


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## Kid Charlemagne (Dec 20, 2007)

Incidentally, the 1.2 patch was just released, so I can try to go back and pick up again at the end of Act I!


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## Thanee (Dec 20, 2007)

Stürzt das Spiel dann wenigstens nicht mehr so oft ab? 

Bye
Thanee


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## Mustrum_Ridcully (Jan 27, 2008)

I guess I'l have to try the windowed variant, because the game crashes (despite several fixes I found on the web) often during saving. 

Otherwise, the game looks interesting.


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## Steel_Wind (Jan 27, 2008)

Mustrum_Ridcully said:
			
		

> I guess I'l have to try the windowed variant, because the game crashes (despite several fixes I found on the web) often during saving.
> 
> Otherwise, the game looks interesting.




Most of the CtD Vista issues were solved with the 1.2 Patch. If yours has not, please advise on the Witcher Forums and send a bug report, if necessary.


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## werk (Jan 28, 2008)

Did anyone else see the ZeroPunctuation review of the witcher?

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/art...punctuation/2831-Zero-Punctuation-The-Witcher

there go.


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## Zarithar (Jan 29, 2008)

When I saw the ad for this game I thought at first it had something to do with the new WoW expansion. The dude looks ALOT like Arthas.


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## Mustrum_Ridcully (Jan 30, 2008)

Steel_Wind said:
			
		

> Most of the CtD Vista issues were solved with the 1.2 Patch. If yours has not, please advise on the Witcher Forums and send a bug report, if necessary.



The patch alone didn'T do it, but the following things in combination seemed to help
- Removing Windows Vista Dreamscene (though I doubt that was an issue, I had it installed, but not in use)
- Increasing the maximum allowed allocated virtual memory via command-line (I think that's what it does)
- the Microsoft Hotfix
- Deactiving Aero-Design during application run (compatibility mode option)

I could try selectively deactivating some of these to figure out if it was only one of these things, but... I prefer playing the game. 

It is pretty good so far. I like that you slowly get to learn all the combat & potion options, but I am worried that I don't have enough time to play with them once I have them all!


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