10 Most Rewarding Open-World Video Games
8. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Although Cyberpunk 2077’s multitude of missteps severely hurt CD Projekt Red’s reputation, it’s hard to completely turn against them due to the excellence of 2015’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
Let’s start with its leading recreational activity, Gwent, a dynamic card game whose addictiveness yielded a separate free-to-play spin-off (Gwent: The Witcher Card Game). Yes, fist fighting and horse racing are cool, but there’s no denying that Gwent is the chief auxiliary draw.
It’s also got an encyclopedic level of lore to digest, with heaps of idiosyncratic people, places, and precedents to learn about.
Whether you’re traversing the dense metropolis Novigrad or the dark swampland Velen – and/or partaking in romances with sorceresses such as Yennefer and Keira Metz – you’re consistently enamored by the title’s novelistic aspirations. (That’s doubly true once you dive into all the enticing DLC.)
Equally important is the fact that star Geralt – and most of his friends and foes – are morally questionable, so there are few outright heroes or villains in the Continent.
It's no wonder why The Witcher 3 became the cornerstone of the franchise. After all, its monumentally satisfying offerings sparked newfound interest in both the preceding games and books and the subsequent Netflix show.