How can you say the "console" gameplay is a detriment but then list recent Bioware "rpgs" which are all console focused? Next time you review something, please don't add your favorite games. I was enjoying, yet not agreeing, until I saw your list.

Off topic but this game is vastly superior to either Mass Effect (absolutely broken combat and uninspired level designs) or Dragon Age (about as generic as a game can get). See what you made me do? :)
Demon's Souls is more RPG than anything Bioware's released lately. What is real RPG play anyways?

Also, oh no the horror no! Fun to watch but completely dull to play.

The combat is hardly twitch. Twitch is Modern Warfare. Bah, another review bitching with console talk. Your review and opinion on games is truly awful.

His opinion is different from yours. That's not the same as awful.

Very good review, I agree almost entirely with it.

Good review, pretty much sums up my own feelings. I'd also add the aspect ratio issue, not because of the black bars (which don't particualrly worry me) but on a 4:3 monitor some of the text is almost unreadable.

Glad to see someone remembers SSI, that takes me back a bit :)

this may sound rude since you bother to type a huge post.

you put mass effect 1 as the number game? jade empire 6? for that I dismiss your entire post and review without even reading it.

While the review has several good points, calling ME the best RPG ever is beyond ridiculous. And there are no F1&2, BG1&2, P:T, in your list at all... sorry, but you actually don't like RPGs, your preferences are obviously lay with action games with levelling aka Hack&Slash. And your love for SSI Gold Box also proves it.

Therefore, this game is just not exactly the genre you like, and it doesn't mean that this is the game's problem at all. It's like you are buying 4WD car and complaining that it eats too much gas compared to your previous Smart car that you loved.

Ahhh trolls, gotta love them

Rather then mature debate when someone has different taste then them they attack the person like they making some amazing point!

Run along little ones, the adults are speaking :)

I don't know that it's possible to have a complete review after having only finished the game once. After all, it takes at least two playthroughs to see the full story and have all the characters fleshed out.

Just nitpicking. Mad props for including Jade Empire on your list, by the way.

What are you talking about? I loved the trolls in TW2

Great review. Regarding combat, I feel it could have been improved. If they'd use a style like Severance: Blade of Darkness, or perhaps Gothic 1/2, or even Mount & Blade: Warband then that would take the cake for me. Then again, fights would last alot longer and perhaps drag the story on too long. As it stands, you're right, sometimes I'm not sure who Geralt is going to smack with the sword when he's in close proximity to a few bad guys.

Ahh yes, that takes me back, I played all the early Wizardry games on an old Apple Europlus, in the end I made up some grids and had them photocopied, I found that easier than graph paper, particularly when I got them done in red so it was easy to see what I'd drawn.

Couple of other games for the list as well:

Bards Tale 1 & 2 (played on Amiga not sure if there was a pc version)
Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines (some may argue is an action game but it does have strong RPG elements to it)

I see a trend of those who are poor at the combat discrediting it. Combat in TW1 was too easy. Both Witcher games are meant to be action RPG's with deep mechanics and strong stories. There never was any turn-based traditional play involved.

I like what they did with combat in TW2 and I don't think its inherently consolish; it's quite realistic actually and is miles apart from God of War style play.

That doesnt really include me scamp!

I didnt think The Witcher 1 was to hard but I did think it was borderline regarding RPG.

See, I should point out I dont buy this action/RPG stuff people saying. Not because I hate either genre but because they are polar opposites of each other!

RPG is ROLE PLAYING Game, you play the role of someone else. You take over that person utilizing that persons skill set and abilities.

Action is just fast reaction based combat that should test the player ability to react to certain situations.

So in my mind, there can be no such thing as Action/RPG hybred because if you go action combat, you are eliminating the ROLE PLAY aspect of the RPG.

Games like ME2, Fall Out 3, and more. They have a story and everything but its really just you, not Sheppard, not (sorry forget the name of Fall Out 3 character) being tested.

Thats not to say Action wrong or bad, just its not RPG.

Take for example the Lethos fight.
I did a write up to a poster having trouble with that fight that you need to approach that fight as the only real RPG style fight in TW2 because you need to use and combine all of Geralts abilities and skills. Not just reflex based combat spaming the same attack and sign over and over.

Thats how I see it anyways.

I hear or read Action RPG and it just strikes me as a statement by someone who doesnt really understand what Action or RPG are in gaming terms.

PS: O btw, its not realistic, not even remotely!
Having swong a 6 foot broad swword before, trust me there is nothing realistic about some guy fliping around doing sumersaults and flips while carring a 6 foot broad sword in hands and having anouther one strapped to back while in hard leather (or harder) armor!

The Witcher 2 combat looks cool (no arguement there) but real swordsmen (not even fencers) try that much acrobatics while doing sword play :)