Fallout 4 Vs The Witcher 3: Which Is The Best RPG Of 2015?

5. Combat

With their focus on building an entire convincing world to explore, RPG developers can be forgiven for having traditionally been found wanting in the combat department. Ever since games have gone 3D, western RPGs have mostly featured real-time combat mechanics, which have often proved tricky to implement, with previous games from both Bethesda and CD Projekt RED demonstrating this point. In Fallout 4 and The Witcher 3, these hurdles have been overcome, with both games making huge advancements on their predecessors. In Fallout 4, combat finally feels fluid, and I didn't feel like I had to essentially pause the game and rely on VATS all the time to get those impactful shots in. Sprinting helps a great deal in getting to cover and making combat feel dynamic, while switching between the new slo-mo VATS and real-time combat feels flowing and seamless. Enemies actually use cover too. The melee combat still feels quite primitive, and the opposition are way too accurate with their grenade throws, but these are minor gripes. The Witcher 3's combat system takes certain cues from Dark Souls, in that it relies heavily on dodges, stamina, and timing. It's a huge jump on The Witcher 2, which often felt messy with its targeting system, though still risks slipping into confusion at times. It's not an easy learning curve (certainly tougher than Fallout), but extremely rewarding once you get the hang of it; cleaving apart a bunch of enemies with your adrenaline maxed out feels not only stylish, but a real achievement. The quick-select radial menu for spell-casting and ranged weapons works brilliantly too, slowing down time to keep the combat flowing and the pressure on while also letting you get your attacks together. Both games' combat systems differ completely from one another, and feel perfectly suited to their respective games. That doesn't mean I couldn't pick a winner if I tried, but both systems are really top-end, and among the best employed in RPGs to date.