RPGHQ

Mandatory 'you must explain your reasoning'

No it's a P*lski dating sim and it is too cool for school to be an RPG.

yes because it's a Game where you Role-Play. A Role-Playing Game, if you will

If there's character building and customization and a reactive narrative, it's a role-playing game.

Not really, It's more of an adventure game where you follow the story of Geralt. You can't customize things that much.

I know Skyrim get criticized for not being an rpg enough but for me it's more of an rpg than a game like TW3.

No it's an ARPG.

It is a hybrid RPG by my own evaluation and standards.

I never even considered this would be thought of as an RPG game. When I played it it felt like the typical funneled narrative with multiple endings action game. There are different choices more than I would expect, but it lacks character building in a way that I would "play my own Geralt", if it makes sense. Witcher 1 felt more like an RPG to me, Witcher 3 and 2 are that same genre whatever that genre might be called, in my eyes (I myself call it "action adventure").

People think that RPGs must have character customisation, so many were claiming that the Witcher 3 was not one because you are forced to play as Grealt.

In my opinion it doesn't matter. I've always attributed open world games with dragons, vampires, demons, monsters, sword fighting, etc, with "RPG". I think the term is used rather loosely now anyway.

Most of the people who complained about the character customisation were probably ******* who wanted obese women and pink hair.

I know I'm probably in the minority here but I dont really consider action games (real time) with RPG characteristics true RPGs, obviously excluding VTMB, AP and at most KCD just because I like them. I never played the Witcher series so I really shouldn't opine but here I am...

I've been playing this obsessively over the last week or so. There's almost no character building. You're incredibly limited with what you can do when you level up - the majority of levels you literally do nothing except put points into filler skills that literally do nothing because you don't have a slot to put them into to make them active. Gear upgrades are rare and unexciting every time. Many hours will pass before you find a new pair of gloves which give you 13 armor instead of 12. Speaking of gear, most of my time is spent unlocking new armor and weapon recipes that are level restricted to the point where it could be 20+ hours before I get the chance to make them, and even when I do it'll just be to maintain an even playing field with the world that levels with you (I have scaling enemies disabled and they very obviously still scale) and keep dodgy slashing.

It's kind of shocking how restrictive it is when it comes to building Geralt. You're free to swap out your active skills whenever you want, but you can only have 12 total at max level. Are you really going to replace the +30% damage skill with a fun novelty option like being able to parry arrows or slowing down time slightly when aiming a crossbow? Probably not! It definitely would have been more fun to slowly gain more abilities over the course of the game. I'm playing on the highest difficulty and fights are decided by 1% character preparation and 99% slamming the dodge key.

It's less of an RPG than something like Far Cry 3 or Assassin's Creed Valhalla, but numbers do sort of occasionally go up. It wouldn't feel any different if the gear and leveling were absent from the start and minor tweaks were made to the world to accommodate.

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:06

I've been playing this obsessively over the last week or so.

It's carried by the world and Geralt. Both of witch will be absent from 4 also Gwent

While you play as Geralt (mostly) you can spec him quite differently into three main archetypes or a hybrid of two or all three of them, which has downsides.
Additionally, while your choices don't have an immense effect on the game world as you play, they do control aspects of them and potential endings may change as a result. Similar to the true Fallout games.
Thief is not an RPG, while System Shock and Deus Ex are. The latter two are extremely similar to The Witcher 3, so calling it an RPG is a no-brainer. So if you said no...

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:06

You're incredibly limited with what you can do when you level up - the majority of levels you literally do nothing except put points into filler skills that literally do nothing because you don't have a slot to put them into to make them active

You can definately do a lot with those skill upgrades. Theres different combos you can find on YouTube to equip that will make you a god. My favourite was an alchemist-slayer build. It was very OP.

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:06

I'm playing on the highest difficulty and fights are decided by 1% character preparation and 99% slamming the dodge key.

While I don't actively dislike the Witcher 3's combat, this is a common flaw I find in these action games where optimal player reactions can trivialize an otherwise meaningful challenge. And I do like action games, but if I can roll or parry my way out of most encounters with 0 consequence (large stamina pool or no weapon deterioration), whatever skill, gear or stat system the game's got going on is going to feel a lot less impactful.

Witcher 1 had a... unique combat system but it was no rollslop.

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:59

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:06

You're incredibly limited with what you can do when you level up - the majority of levels you literally do nothing except put points into filler skills that literally do nothing because you don't have a slot to put them into to make them active

Theres different combos you can find on YouTube

worst thing you've ever said

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:05

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:59

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:06

You're incredibly limited with what you can do when you level up - the majority of levels you literally do nothing except put points into filler skills that literally do nothing because you don't have a slot to put them into to make them active

Theres different combos you can find on YouTube

worst thing you've ever said

No, the worst thing ever said is by you. You clearly have not played the game enough if you can't figure it out.

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:06

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:05

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 19:59

Theres different combos you can find on YouTube

worst thing you've ever said

No, the worst thing ever said is by you. You clearly have not played the game enough if you can't figure it out.

I beat skull leveled enemies that are more than twice my level by pirouetting and using the invincibility spell that has a 3 second cooldown. The only skills that matter are ones that increase damage to reduce the monotony of chipping away at health bars. Boring!

For this reason, I also recommend FNV mods that let you get perks past the default level cap. The gimmicky fun ones become something you look forward to instead of something you skip 100% of the time on all characters.

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:12

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:06

Oyster Sauce wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:05

worst thing you've ever said

No, the worst thing ever said is by you. You clearly have not played the game enough if you can't figure it out.

I beat skull leveled enemies that are more than twice my level by pirouetting and using the invincibility spell that has a 3 second cooldown.

Turns out they changed the game around three years ago, making red-skull enemies have no buffs and are easier to defeat. Back when I played you were not able to defeat them unless you levelled up. Some people recommend turning on Enemy Upscaling in options but I have no idea if it will fix it. Pretty dumb update tbh. I don't know if there is some mod that can change it back or something?

No, it's not an RPG.

You don't roleplay, and it's barely a game.

It's rollslop where you control Geralt.

It's as much of an RPG as Tomb Raider is. Which is to say, not at all. Geralt is also a horribly unlikeable whiny *****.

TKVNC wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:29

No, it's not an RPG.

You don't roleplay, and it's barely a game.

It's rollslop, where you control Geralt.

It's as much of an RPG as Tomb Raider is.

Tomb Raider is more linear really, and is more of an action game like Uncharted. I never thought of it as an RPG. It's just a linear campaign game.

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:29

TKVNC wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:29

No, it's not an RPG.

You don't roleplay, and it's barely a game.

It's rollslop, where you control Geralt.

It's as much of an RPG as Tomb Raider is.

Tomb Raider is more linear really, and is more of an action game like Uncharted. I never thought of it as an RPG. It's just a linear campaign game.

You're Indian, but I'll reply just once.

The only difference is that The Witcher 3 is open world. It's otherwise the same thing, with light dress-up elements.

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 17:45

People think that RPGs must have character customisation, so many were claiming that the Witcher 3 was not one because you are forced to play as Grealt.

In my opinion it doesn't matter. I've always attributed open world games with dragons, vampires, demons, monsters, sword fighting, etc, with "RPG". I think the term is used rather loosely now anyway.

Most of the people who complained about the character customisation were probably ******* who wanted obese women and pink hair.

If TW3 was an RPG, I would have prefered to play as a full Redania supporter rather than Geralt and his ****** friends.

Crusader wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:37

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 17:45

People think that RPGs must have character customisation, so many were claiming that the Witcher 3 was not one because you are forced to play as Grealt.

In my opinion it doesn't matter. I've always attributed open world games with dragons, vampires, demons, monsters, sword fighting, etc, with "RPG". I think the term is used rather loosely now anyway.

Most of the people who complained about the character customisation were probably ******* who wanted obese women and pink hair.

If TW3 was an RPG, I would have prefered to play as a full Redania supporter rather than Geralt and his ****** friends.

The only ****** I remember is Dandelion. The rest of them are ok?

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 21:24

Crusader wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:37

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 17:45

People think that RPGs must have character customisation, so many were claiming that the Witcher 3 was not one because you are forced to play as Grealt.

In my opinion it doesn't matter. I've always attributed open world games with dragons, vampires, demons, monsters, sword fighting, etc, with "RPG". I think the term is used rather loosely now anyway.

Most of the people who complained about the character customisation were probably ******* who wanted obese women and pink hair.

If TW3 was an RPG, I would have prefered to play as a full Redania supporter rather than Geralt and his ****** friends.

The only ****** I remember is Dandelion. The rest of them are ok?

One is already too much and there is also another friend of Geralt, Keira that looks like a disgusting *****.

This game is very woke by polish standards. CD Projekt is trash.

Crusader wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 21:38

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 21:24

Crusader wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 20:37

If TW3 was an RPG, I would have prefered to play as a full Redania supporter rather than Geralt and his ****** friends.

The only ****** I remember is Dandelion. The rest of them are ok?

One is already too much and there is also another friend of Geralt, Keira that looks like a disgusting *****.

This game is very woke by polish standards. CD Projekt is trash.

To be honest when I first played the game I didn't even realise Keira looked like a ***** but yeah looking now I guess she kind of does. Apparently Dandelion in the books was more of a "womenizer" than gay. I guess it's pretty gay but the game is still very good. You can also 'mod the gay away' using some stuff from https://basedmods.eth.limo/ and https://laxmods.su/

I'd say The Witcher 3 is like the Skyrim of Bethesda but for CD Projekt Red.

Newer games from CD Projekt Red are trash, like CyberTrans 2077. The Witcher 4 looks really troony as well.

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 22:58

Crusader wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 21:38

DecadeRiptide wrote: ↑ November 3rd, 2025, 21:24

The only ****** I remember is Dandelion. The rest of them are ok?

One is already too much and there is also another friend of Geralt, Keira that looks like a disgusting *****.

This game is very woke by polish standards. CD Projekt is trash.

To be honest when I first played the game I didn't even realise Keira looked like a ***** but yeah looking now I guess she kind of does. Apparently Dandelion in the books was more of a "womenizer" than gay. I guess it's pretty gay but the game is still very good. You can also 'mod the gay away' using some stuff from https://basedmods.eth.limo/ and https://laxmods.su/

I'd say The Witcher 3 is like the Skyrim of Bethesda but for CD Projekt Red.

Newer games from CD Projekt Red are trash, like CyberTrans 2077. The Witcher 4 looks really troony as well.

I learned about Keira a long time ago from this image, it's a disgusting ***** creature that self-inserted himself into the game.

I also remember that there was a disgusting cross dressing scene in that game.

And I prefer Skyrim to TW3 actually. In Skyrim there is no ****** npcs (there is the marriage thing but it is easily avoidable and badly made, i don't even know if there are custom voice lines for that), you can do a full based stormcloak RP and you can choose your companions. There are way more mods to fix the game also.

Witcher 3 is an open world adventure game
like The Elder Scrolls: Redguard

Its just a card collecting game really, with maybe a few memorable quests in the maingame. And like Oyster said already itemization and char progression is ***. Especially with lvl requirements on really bad gear. The 2nd and last time I played through it I installed a mod to remove lvl requirements and also to get more mutagen slots or what ever it was you specced into after leveling up. Best armor were witcher school armors anyway and you got quests to find them easiely so exploration also was kinda meaning less. No dragonbone cuirass in an underwater cave or something cool like that.
Combat is also *** wave your sword arround occasionally and dodge, if you get hit refresh quen and repeat until the enemy is dead and listen to only one combat music through the whole game.

Witcher 2 was more of an rpg than Witcher 3, just speaking in terms of how your decisions can affect the game. Witcher 2 also presents you with choices that you aren't sure are "the good ones" from the get go. Witcher 3 lacks that and between most of the choices you are given it's very obvious for the player which one is the right one and which isn't.

In terms of making choices it's a really watered down RPG. It aims more at telling and concluding a fantasy epos that started with books all the way back in the 1990s, rather than letting the player do as he please. But in terms of immersion W3 is an RPG through and through. It's so easy to get lost in the forests, swamps, beaches, mountains and everything else that even getting randomly attacked by wolves doesn't feel tedious but rather something natural that's part of the world you are in. Or just getting sucked into the stories of random hermits or mythical creatures, or a treasure hunt. The world is filled with life and it feels adventurous and alive.

Yeah, when you boil it all down The Witcher 3 is an RPG. It might be watered down in some areas but you do get to make choices and affect the world around you, you've got the immersive world, the lore, rich and vibrant characters too.

For people that play rpg's on pc this might be more of an action rpg game, and in theory they would be right, but for console tards this would be considered peak RPG gaming. I'm thinking it's the difference between these two game design philosophies (pc/consoles) that create such a dissonance between gamers.