It’s been over 10 years sinceThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntwas released, and when it boils down to it, there’s still no other role-playing game quite like it out there. A number of factors setWitcher 3apart, from its iconic main character to the rich lore derived from a well-established and beloved fantasy novel series.
While there are plenty of RPGs that do similar things asThe Witcher3, none of them nail all the elements simultaneously or have quite as big an impact. There’s something aboutThe Witcher 3’sbalance between its freedom of gameplay and deeply impactful narrative and story elements that set it apart. It’s simply no easy task to compete head-on with atitan ofWitcher 3’scaliber.
The Witcher 3 Is A Totally Different Type Of RPG
Witcher 3 Features A Single Playable Character In A Fully Realized Fantasy World
The Witcher 3: Wild Huntstands out as a role-playing experience in that it primarilyfocuseson a distinct single playable character,the iconic Geralt of Rivia. Further, it is built around a fully realized world with pre-established lore thanks to thefantasy novel seriesby Andrzej Sapkowski.
The strongly written main characters and NPCs inThe Witcher 3drive the narrative, whilethe gameplay is completely open and unrestrained. Again, these aren’t unique features of a role-playing game necessarily, but are ones that theWitcher 3combines with other RPG elements in a masterful and unparalleled way.
Many RPGs that incorporate vast open worlds tend to have a sandbox structure, such as Bethesda’s various RPGs that are undoubtedly successful, just not on the same level asTheWitcher 3. Modern RPGs often featurenon-specific, avatar-style main charactersas well, which add plenty of customization but lack the emotional depth of a character like Geralt. Character-based RPGs, on the other hand, tend to focus more on larger parties and less on single protagonists as compelling as Geralt.
The setting inWitcher 3is a further complement to these various elements as well, withvast landscapes that add a dynamic backdropto the experience and act as characters themselves. It’s the fact that all these moving parts come together in such a satisfying way that makesWitcher 3so outstanding.
Witcher Games Balance Story & Freedom Perfectly
The Story Is As Compelling As Witcher’s Massive World
Witchergames do an incredible job at balancing their story with a sense of freedom for players, allowing you to experience the narrative in your own unique way and still feel in control of the protagonist. TheNPCs you come across feel like a natural part of the world,not like guideposts placed along your path to keep you on track.
The Witcher 3in particular masterfully balances player freedom with a rich, narrative-driven experience. While the game offers an expansive open world teeming with side quests, exploration, and decision-making, it never sacrifices the depth of its central storyline.Players can roam freely across vast regions, choosing when and how to engage with the main quest.
However, choices are incredibly impactful, even in minor side quests.Your decisions often ripple into the narrative, affecting characters, political landscapes, and even characters' fates. This design ensures that players have meaningful agency as they play.
Dialogue options, moral dilemmas, andbranching paths make Geralt’s journey feel personalwithout breaking the flow of the story. Further, the game encourages exploration but always gently pulls players back to its central story arcs, such as the search for Ciri or Geralt’s complex relationships with various NPCs.
Nailing Every Element That The Witcher Does Is No Easy Feat
The Witcher 3really is a standout RPG on various levels, and competing with it or even trying to emulate something similar is a major ask. It’s no wonder that, even after all this time, the game is still thereigning champ in the RPG space.
Games likeRed Dead Redemption 2with an open world and a strong main protagonist still don’t compare to thedepth of lore established in theWitcheruniverse. Conversely, games that give players a compelling and vast open world with a rich lore, such asSkyrim, tend to lack the same depth of playable-character development.
Not only doesThe Witcher 3have a leg up because of its origins in a fully realized fictional universe,a core set of incredible characters, and amazing overall gameplay, but it also has the advantage of a decade’s worth of establishing a massive and dedicated fanbase.
Games attempting to do the same thing, like theupcoming dark-fantasy vampire gameBlood of Dawnwalker,will be hard-pressed to escapeThe Witcher 3’sshadow. The Witcher 3has becomea benchmark for RPGs across the board,and even its own successor,The Witcher 4,will have a hard time outdoing what CD Projekt Red pulled off inThe Witcher 3.
That said,The Witcher 3is by no means a flawless game, and there are many areas where contemporary RPGs do things much better and future RPGs can improve upon. But it’s the fact thatThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntdoes what it does so well that makes it hard to compete with, and it remains an all-time favorite among players for a reason.
