A man with two swords strapped to his back stands before a village notice board. Someone searches for missing family, while someone else pleads for help hunting a monster that appears every night. He negotiates the reward, tracks the clues, and draws his blade. Yet by the end of the contract, a different question remains than at the start. Did he pick the right target to slay? How much of the caller's story should he have believed?
In 'The Witcher' series, monster hunting often leads to understanding human nature. Geralt of Rivia faces threats with exceptional swordsmanship, superhuman senses, and the dark fantasy equivalent of energy drinks, yet he cannot easily find answers when confronted with people's desires and fears. Players, too, hesitate alongside him, making choices amidst incomplete information.
'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered' provides ample reason to look back on this journey from the very beginning. The charm of the third installment, which represents the series today, took shape through the two preceding titles: 'The Witcher', a rough first step; 'The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings', which delivered a political drama with bold branching paths; and 'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt', which expanded Geralt's journey into a vast world. Each of the three games confronted players with the weight of choice in its own way.
'The Witcher' An amnesiac hunter, an unforgettable world
In 'The Witcher', released in 2007, Geralt cannot fully remember his past. This starting point serves as a natural gateway even for players encountering the series for the first time. As Geralt retraces his relationships with those around him, players come to understand what a Witcher is and learn about the world they inhabit.
While recovering at Kaer Morhen, the stronghold of the School of the Wolf witchers, the amnesiac Geralt suffers an attack. His quest to hunt down those behind the assault leads him to Vizima and its surroundings. What awaits him there is not just monsters. Hostility between humans and non-humans, religious fanaticism, and factions pushing competing agendas erode everyday life in the city. The deeper he dives to resolve the situation, the more he must decide whose words to trust and how far to get involved.
The distinct identity of the first game lies in the distance between choices and their consequences. An action that seemed best at the moment of decision yields unexpected results as time passes. Showing kindness to someone does not mean everyone ends up happy either. Rather than revealing the right answer right after a decision, the game prompts players to reflect on their choices later on.
Combat is also quite different from the sequels. The system of timing keypresses to chain attacks and switching combat stances based on opponents may feel unfamiliar to gamers used to modern action RPGs. On top of that, frequent zone transitions and clunky controls show the game's age. It is a title that requires time to adjust to if played for the first time today.
Even so, the gloomy streets and swamps of Vizima, alongside the secret stories behind each contract, linger long in memory. The uneasy feeling that remains even after slaying a monster, the lingering suspicion that goodwill might have ended up hurting someone—that signature atmosphere unique to 'The Witcher', which would come to define the entire series, was already vivid in its very first game.
'The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings' A story reshaped by whose side you choose
Released in 2011, 'The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings' throws Geralt directly into the center of a power struggle. Framed for assassinating a king, he tracks down the real killer and the mastermind behind the plot to clear his name, entangling the monster hunter's personal troubles with the conflicting interests of kingdoms and factions.
The defining feature that makes the second game so memorable is its story branching. Deciding whom to accompany near the end of Chapter 1 dramatically changes the primary stage and quests of Chapter 2. By viewing the same conflict from opposing factions, secret motivations that could never be uncovered in a single playthrough come to light.
This structure meshes exceptionally well with the theme of political drama. Each faction justifies its cause from its own perspective, and depending on who Geralt aligns with, the arguments players hear and the realities they witness change entirely. Ultimately, making a choice becomes a matter of deciding not just who to help, but through which lens to interpret events.
The presentation also saw major improvements. Character expressions and dialogue scenes became far more detailed, while combat shifted toward real-time action focused on active movement, dodging attacks, and seizing openings. Utilizing swordsmanship, Signs, and alchemy required both prior preparation and split-second reactions.
Of course, a dense political drama comes with a learning curve. Missing the intricate webs of relationships between kingdoms and characters makes dialogue hard to follow, and early combat poses a steep challenge until mastered. On the flip side, paying close attention to the world's affairs clearly reveals how events connect, deepening the weight of every choice.
The second game stands as a title well worth revisiting on its own merits. Its structure, which lets players experience a single event from vastly different vantage points, remains unique across the trilogy. In a way distinct from the expansive world of the third game, it crafted a realm that could never be fully grasped in a single playthrough.
'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt' An expanded continent filled with human stories
In 'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt', released in 2015, Geralt's quest expands into an open world. War-torn Velen, the bustling city of Novigrad, and the Skellige Isles surrounded by rough seas each leave distinct impressions, from scenery to lifestyle. The objective driving him across this world is clear: Geralt must find Ciri, who is pursued by the Wild Hunt.
Geralt's personal motivation to find Ciri anchors the narrative even within this vast world. To Geralt, Ciri is as dear as a daughter, while also being a person who acts on her own thoughts and willpower. As he reunites with old companions and follows Ciri's trail, players encounter the worry and affection the legendary monster hunter displays through his relationships.
The contracts encountered along the way give the world a tangible face. While tracking a monster terrorizing a village, one might uncover secrets hidden by the locals, or delve into ancient grudges to lift a curse. This is why investigating scenes and holding conversations to grasp circumstances is just as crucial as combat itself.
The story involving the Bloody Baron in Velen during the early game captures this defining trait well. In seeking clues about Ciri, Geralt becomes entangled in the painful history and violence of a broken family. Understanding a character's past is entirely separate from forgiving the acts they committed, and players must weigh their judgment between the two. As the story deepens, it becomes impossible to judge someone solely on initial impressions.
The freedom of the open world reshaped the space between these stories. Players can set urgent tasks aside to fulfill a contract in a small hamlet, or follow tracks along the road to get wrapped up in unplanned events. There are moments when the journey to a destination itself feels like Geralt's everyday life.
Yet the expanded scale does not guarantee perfection in every area. Repetitive exploration and loot gathering can induce fatigue, creating a disconnect between the urgency of the main story and the freedom of side activities. Still, the fact that compelling characters and stories wait around every corner gives players a reason to pause and explore again.
The expansion packs, 'Hearts of Stone' and 'Blood and Wine', are also impossible to leave out of any retrospective. One relentlessly delves into desire and its price, while the other takes players on an adventure through secrets hidden beneath vibrant landscapes, expanding Geralt's world with tones distinct from the base game. Both expansions demonstrate how vastly different atmospheres can be forged using the exact same protagonist and universe.
Once again, following Geralt's path The same journey, different choices to come
Placing the three games side by side illustrates the evolution of graphics, combat, and world scale. Distinct traits also emerge in how choices are experienced. In the first game, facing consequences long after decisions prompted reflection; in the second, who you sided with reshaped your perspective on events; and in the third, players felt the weight of choice through the personal stories and relationships of countless characters.
Geralt was always a formidable hunter, yet he was never capable of resolving every problem to his liking. While some threats could be eliminated with a sword, other conflicts offered no solution where everyone escaped unscathed. Remaining in players' memories alongside moments of defeating foes are the pauses before dialogue options, and villages that were hard to leave behind even after completing a contract.
The arrival of 'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered' provides an opportunity to confront those choices once again. With time having passed, one's perspective on familiar stories may have evolved. By paying attention to dialogue passed over the first time or sympathizing with a character's plight that was once hard to grasp, players might just choose different answers than before.
For those taking up Geralt's sword for the first time, an adventure searching for Ciri awaits; for returning players, a journey to reflect on their past choices lies ahead. Starting simply by reading a contract on a notice board in Velen would be a fine beginning. Uncovering the story that waits at the end, and experiencing how a single minor contract leads to an unexpected narrative—such an experience remains thoroughly captivating, even on a journey embarked upon once more.
