@hystavito: I think it's a little bit like the first Assassin's Creed. It was a huge open world but there were only a handful of mission types that got boring far before the game was over. AC2 & subsequent sequels added more mission types & filled out the game a bit better. I suspect WD2 will have a few more mission types but it's easy to run out in an 80-100 hour game.

Where games really shine over other media is when you can tell a story through the gameplay. Cutscenes imitate film & TV but uncovering narrative elements or defying danger with some skillful flicks of the finger allow the player to create & experience the story in a way that could never be done purely in video. If the writers have some control over how missions play out rather than writing some cutscene dialogue & leaving someone else to drop in a car chase or shooting sequence then we might get something special.

It's always a risk in open world games because the publisher doesn't want to put too much time & money into a part of the game that only a handful of people will play. The good stuff often gets frontloaded while side missions or even later main story missions get budget cuts. Just look at MGS V where the several late game missions were clearly missing but they pushed it out the door anyway. I have to credit The Witcher series again for including significant story & missions that the player literally cannot experience in a single playthrough due to narrative decisions.

So many haters in the comments. The first WD had limited mission variety & a protagonist without much of a personality but overall I think it was still a great game & I really enjoyed it.

I think it's interesting that they're moving away from the narrative being about some old white guys who remember life before the mass surveillance & who have kept up with the tech. Now we're seeing a younger protagonist where tech is his native language. It looks like overall a lighter tone than the last game which is probably good because there was a dissonance between the underground human trafficking & Aiden getting sidetracked by VR games. It was an open world that didn't fit with the revenge fueled motivations for the main character. Plus the dark story never really paid off, taking down the human trafficking ring ended up with just following some cars & didn't feel satisfying.

I don't know too much about SF but it seems like there are some interesting stories to be told with the social climate over there & I hope they can tell them with the right sensitivity. I think Far Cry 3 & 4 had pretty cool stories, or at least some interesting characters that drove the player to find out more. It's hard to have a strong narrative in an open world game but perhaps they could take some cues from The Witcher 3 where every side mission tells it's own little story & in turn reveals more about the kind of world you're living in. Let's hope that Soulban has done a good job with this one.

@battlestreak: I was more agreeing & expanding on what you said. Only I find reading/watching multiple reviews can be useful in conjunction with gameplay etc. I wouldn't say reviews hold no weight but they shouldn't be taken as scripture either.

@brn-dn: In San Francisco you can buy the version where they sell you the Golden Gate Bridge.

@battlestreak: Reviews, unedited gameplay videos, port reports... all useful tools.

If you pre-order 5 months out from a release date that will probably be delayed, based on a couple of teaser trailers then don't come complaining when the game disappoints you in any way.

@brn-dn: Except last time round when you had to buy at least three different copies of the game to get all the available content (see the graph posted in a comment above).

Choice is good but it still sucks to fork out full price for a game & still feel like you got a lesser version.

@elheber: They don't learn, do they?

At least there are slightly fewer editions this time round. I do have high hopes for WD2 but pre-orders are for suckers.

I loved that movie so much! I remember waking up one Saturday morning as a kid & finding this playing on TV, I was so awestruck.

It's definitely a product of it's time but I would by far prefer to watch that again than any of the Michael Bay filth. "You've got the touch..."

@nikon133: Apparently there's a strong element of gentrification in San Fran so his race/background might play a meaningful part rather than just being a marketing point of difference. Danny was talking about it on The Lobby a couple of days ago.

I guess it's a bit like GTA4, Niko was Russian (Eastern European?) & him being an imigrant gave a different point of view than someone who was a native to the city. All the normal GTA stuff was there but there was an extra element to the story involving his disillusionment compared to the version of the city his cousin sold him. I don't know much about the situation in SF but perhaps this game will tell a unique story where the setting plays a real part rather than just being set dressing. ...Or maybe it will suck. Here's hoping it doesn't.

@Gelugon_baat: It often pays to get into Paradox games a while after they release. When a new expansion comes out, the base game & any older expansions usually go on sale plus there's usually a free patch that adds to the game, even if you don't buy the new expansion.

I don't mind giving them a bit of cash for real updates to the game but things like player portraits or unit models should just be free in my opinion.