I normally don't do this but given certain circumstances I've felt that this is a must.

2011 was a hell of a year for gaming in general. We had major blockbusters from the likes of Portal 2 and Batman to the long awaited Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The list of great games is much much larger but these are just a few of the ones that really stand out to me. But as much as a year it was for gaming, for me an avid fan of RPG's 2011 was one of the most memorable ones in recent memory. This year developers gave us Deus Ex, Skyrim, Dark Souls, Dragon Age II, and The Witche 2. And as the year comes to an end so comes the Game of the Year awards. Looking at IGN's selection Skyrim was voted hands down across all platforms save for the PS3, RPG of the year. And I don't disagree but at the same time I am torn. Skyrim is by no doubt in my mind one of the single best RPG experiences ever made. On that same token The Witcher 2 gave me something that Skyrim didn't and that is one of the most fleshed out, realistic, and downright captivating stories I've ever experienced in an RPG. This post isn't so much a review nor an argument as to whether Skyrim or TW2 deserved RPG of the year or not but rather bringing some limelight to one of the best RPG's I've ever played.

First things first, The Witcher 2 isn't quite like anything that is the gargantuan Skyrim. Skyrim has a sprawling world, a world that you can actually almost live in. It has towns that feel real, environments that take the breath out of you. I'm being quite literal when I say that you can actually live in Skyrim. The Witcher 2 on the other hand is anything but another world you can escape to but rather it's a world already crafted, designed, and one that has it's ownl politics, issues, and wars. You don't live in the world of The Witcher but instead you experience it. You take control of the main character Geralt and you follow him on an adventure that involves dirty politics, racism, murder, and war. This bleak, and bloody but beautiful world has a story, one that any RPG fan should take the time to play.

I don't want to give a summary or a synopsis of the story as the tiniest detail can ruin everything and in reality thats what The Witcher 2 that sets it apart from any RPG that i've ever played. The little details that CD Projekt paid attention to is really what makes this game worthwhile. In a lot of today's RPG's the newest feature is the power of choice. You can choose to kill a merchant or let him go. You can choose to turn in a convict or you can take his money and not say a word. But while many games give you the power choice, few really carry any weight....except when it comes to The Witcher 2. Like I said earlier the world of TW2 is unlike any game world I've ever seen crafted. It's dark, it's mature, but most of all it's believable. What makes the choices in TW2 feel so powerful is the fact that at times you find yourself confused as to what choice you want to make. It doesn't take the Dragon Age 2 approach giving you little symbols next the options showing which choice is bad, good, or neutral. All the choices that I encountered in The Witcher 2 felt like they all had a bit of evilness to them but at the same time they all felt like the right thing to do. In TW2 there is no good evil or neutral, everything in it exists in the realm of gray. But asides from the types of choices you have more importantly is the impact of those choices. The choices you make have consequences that not only affect the world but affects the way the story is told. One decision can take you in a whole different direction.

But that's enough of it already, like I said this isn't to make a case for TW2 for the RPG of the year award. It's simply an applause, an encore for CD Projekt and the wonderful team that made this game, but most of all it's a thank you, for crafting a story and a game so finely detailed that it remain in my mind as one of the greatest RPG's ever made.