It's inferior to the first game, but it's not useless. The main books you'll be buying are crafting diagrams and alchemical formulae, which you need in your inventory at all times anyway - they're not something you 'read' and then can dispose of while keeping the knowledge.

I admit this whole system is not nearly as good as the first game, where reading something adds it to your journal.

I couldn 't have expressed it more accurately myself. "It's inferior to the first game". "I admit this whole system is not nearly as good as the first game". Alas, this is not the only thing that is inferior to the first game. Same goes for "system"... A pity though, for any game, for players to miss, or find better mechanisms, in previous games of same title. A pity indeed.

Just finished Witcher 2EE, after playing WitcherEE. For me, Witcher 2 is better in every aspect, particularly the branching story, highly meaningful choices that deeply impact the entire world and aren't rolled back in the end (siding with Yaevinn all the way effectively preserves the status quo, as any concessions to non-humans are quickly taken back by Foltest), better reactivity in combat, a more focused, fluid gameplay... But really, it's the choices and lack of an "optimal" path that make it better. In Roche's path you ultimately choose between an united Temeria and massive witch hunts or prospering magic practitioners but a fractured, broken domain that used to be Foltest's.

One big flaw in WitcherEE will only be understood by people who read the entire saga, from Last Wish to Lady of the Lake. WitcherEE is highly derivative, borrowing plots, quotes, characters from Sapkowski's work en masse. It's understandable as an introduction to the universe, but the amount of copy/pasting done is jarring to anyone who read the original series. It's as if the developers held back, afraid to step outside Sapkowski's work. With Witcher 2 they're much more confident and take it in new, bold directions.

Witcher 2 <3

TW1
+ Triss sounds and looks better.
+ Incredibly long while remaining fairly focused
+ Good inventory system
+ Lots of little choices that influence the story
+ A few great quests
+ Music is more memorable
- Music ultimately gets irritating from same few tracks repeated
- Dungeons are almost all identical
- Quite easy to feel lost and not sure why you are here
+ Good story
- Story feels like its ripping a bit too much off the blood of elves saga

TW2
+ Zoltan, Dandelion and most NPCs look great.
+ Great pacing
+ Story is more original, yet feels more rooted in the witcher universe because of it
+ Two diverse sides of the story (TW1's 3 choices are all the same)
+ Satisfying combat
+ No loading when I enter a house
+ Good boss fights
- QTE in boss fights
- Bad journal and inventory. Clucky GUI.
- Simple lip syncing and lack of facial emotional animation (for a modern title)
- Some choices in TW1 ignored


I think TW2 is better. Both are excellent games though.

Before I write my comments I must say that I liked both Witcher games a lot. Compliments to CD Projekt. Here are my thoughts about games:

User Interface (Witcher + / Witcher 2 -)
Inventory, Journal in W1 was much better (of course I understand it's because W2 UI decision based for consoles). But also map is also better in W1. W2 map interface was good for locating important NPCs. otherwise it is useless.

Graphic (Visuals) (W1 +/ W2 +)
While W2 is much better on technical aspect and better character models, but I must say that I was skeptical for W2 fantasy enhancements : over shininess everywhere (Witcher's hair looks unnatural), bloom effect is too near. Also day/night cycle visuals I like better in W1, sunsets were fantastical.

NPCs and Cut-scenes (W2++)
Cut-scenes in Witcher 2 are great. Very good work.

Dialogs (Even)
There are some annoyance in dialog system in both games, for example when complete several quests for NPCs and return to them, you choose to complete quest dialog option, NPC acknowledges it and exits dialog, you have again to click NPC to play intro and choose other options. This happens also when you played Poker, if you want to play again, again click NPC.

Gameplay (Even)
Combat system is better in W2 (though I miss group style in early game stages), you can dodge, jump, run, throw grenades and knives (great new idea).
Poker game is better in W1. I liked when you have 3 or 2 stages to win a poker game.
Drinking a potions. W1+. I almost never used potions in W2, because you never know before fight what potions would be used best. Why to not let drink potions through the fight. You can prepare them on meditation and drink them whenever you like.
Difficulty settings. I have a mixed feeling about difficulty in W2. Seems like there is missing one difficulty level between easy and normal. While easy game-play is easy, on normal play boss fights and some other parts in game are too hard. Boss fights with QTE are annoying and Quest with Wrights in forest is too hard (single fight should not take longer than 15 minutes).

Quests and Monsters (W1++/W2+)
Monster variety is better in W1. I missed more monster related quests in W2. I also liked romantic quests in W1.

I hope Witcher 3 will improve on these comments.
Good gaming.

TW2, no doubt. The storyline, combat, characters, storyline, writing, storyline and writing were just improved upon to an exponential extent.

Never have i seen a plot weaved together so well. The choices and consequences, essentially the most important parts of any RPG, are by far the best done in the genre.

Both games are some of my favorite rpgs of all time but if forced to choose, TW2 is miles beyond the first game in terms of combat, enemies, character design (yes, TW1 is limited by Bioware's shitawful engine), story and choices.

Witcher 2 is butt ugly, horrible coloring and annoying screen shadow. Looks and feels like a console game. It's also horribly optimized.

Witcher 1 has better voice acting (english) IMO.

1 for me. I did not like some of 2's changes, like balance/nerf; especially in the number and combination of potions consumed. I also did not like the inability to see which books you read like in 1; because in 2, you have to keep the books to compare them with merchant's, you cannot sell them all and still see whether you read them or not like in 1. Also 2 was too small, TOO console like, big-boss events reminded heavily influenced by consoles gameplay, and some other things, like the jokingly short monster list, the lack of entry for tougher creatures (like drowned dead/drowners) etc.

Do not get me wrong though, on the long run 2 was an excellent game. But i still liked 1 better.

Did two playthroughs of the Witcher 1, each clocking in at 70hrs.

I got about 3/4 of the way through my pre-order Witcher 2 and have yet to finish, though I plan to over the lead up to the Third Game.

Just hated the consolish "hack and slash" style combat (I must be one of those rare breed who enjoyed W1 Combat), the inability to drink potions on the fly (I have to "sleep" to quaff a healing/buff...sure ok makes sense.../sarcasm), Despite a PC orientated Dev - the UI with it's constantly expanding and shrinking menu selections, Horrible Inventory Management, No "sell all Junk" button, A few "BIOWARE" radial dialogue choices here and there as opposed to spelling out word for word what Geralt was planning to say which caused me a few reloads on undesired outcomes, a small gripe - but I hated the awkward "walking through door" transitions crossing town/wilderness zones in places.

I hear some of the inventory management has been cleaned up in the latest "enhanced edition" of the Witcher 2, maybe I'll give it another look and see if my Inventory still looks like a poor console port or a proper PC UI.

I gave up with Witcher 1 during Act 2 when there too many fetch quests. I had to get some stones and insert them into some pillars to open a mage's tower if I remembered correctly. I got a new computer, attempted to finish the game before I start Witcher 2, but got stuck at the same point.

In the end, I started to play Witcher 2 without beating Witcher 1. I found Witcher 2 much better, with a more engaging battle system and less repetitive fetch quests. I managed to finish Witcher 2 and like it every much.

The combat was technically better in 2 but the problem was the difficulty. The enemies never really got stronger but you did. That meant the game just got easier and easier as you went on and the tutorial prologue was the hardest part of the game!!!

Plot wise it started out promising but it got smaller and smaller in scope as it went on, felt like it was going backwards.

And what happened to Geralt the rockstar? In Witcher 2 only a small fraction of women in the world will sleep with you and you have to turn to prostitutes for the rest? Man, I play games to ESCAPE the real world.