Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales Reviews
Whether or not you are a fan of the Witcher series, or even card games in general, Thronebreaker deserves your attention.
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales features some of the sharpest writing on PS4, and it's all embedded within a superb story stuffed with brilliant characters. Meanwhile, Gwent makes up most of the gameplay, and although the card-based system does have flaws, it's easy enough to look past them when the surrounding journey is so masterfully told. Ultimately, Thronebreaker is an easy recommendation for Witcher enthusiasts and fans of strategic RPGs -- a surprisingly robust and rich tale that shouldn't be overlooked.
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales tells a good story with some fantastic writing. The writing alone is worth the price of admission, but the Gwent combat can get confusing and overwhelming at times.
Thronebreaker struggles as a card game but excels as a Witcher game due to its rich narrative and excellent, if simple, worldbuilding.
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales quickly establishes itself as more or less the paradigm of a genre. The alchemy of its RPG roots, addictive gameplay and wonderful story make it a far more fleshed-out package than many may have expected. While non-series fans may not find too much to write home about in terms of the tale it weaves, what remains in terms of gameplay is a fundamentally worthwhile package and one that one will provide many, many hours of entertainment.
Gwent became a means to an end by the finale, a necessary thing to do to unlock the next story segment, and something I would avoid when possible. Its a shame because Thronebreaker does some good work modifying the familiar Gwent rules, they just get easily overshadowed by the main storyline and the various decisions you can find along the way.
I love that CD Projekt Red's solution to getting more players on board with its free-to-play card game was to produce a massive standalone RPG with all the spellbinding storytelling that's become a signature of The Witcher brand. It's the sort of thoroughness and commitment to quality they've built a reputation on, and Thronebreaker now paves the way for an exciting new genre of card games that incorporate a similar design ethos.
Apart from the fact that combat is resolved by placing cards into rows as opposed to moving units across a map, there's little difference between Thronebreaker and similarly hand-drawn, resource-gathering, unit-upgrading games like Heroes of Might and Magic and The Banner Saga. If anything, Thronebreaker offers a deeper strategic experience, given the distinct feel of these custom-crafted battles, with their special victory conditions and unique cards.
CD Projekt Red have delivered an exceptional adventure in Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales. One that any Witcher fan should not hesitate to experience. While Gwent is undeniably fun, it falls short of its full potential in a single-player only game with AI opponents.
With Thronebreaker : The Witcher Tales, Gwent evolves through an exciting adventure that brilliantly enriches the Witcher universe in video games. We regret, however, the classicism of sometimes painful exploration phases.
Review in French | Read full review
Strong single-player campaign for Gwent, which could inspire even non-card players through its gripping story.
Review in German | Read full review
I'll keep my fingers crossed that the next patch fixes this particularly nasty bug. Don't you worry. I reported pretty much every single one of these. My pain will hopefully be your gain.
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a worthy successor to both The Witcher games and the Gwent collectible card game.
While utilising the ruleset of a more traditional CCG system might put off some players, the on-brand approach to turn-based combat in Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is still a positive addition to the world. Because with such an involved and intricately designed story – and such an interesting world to explore beyond the confines of Geralt – Thronebreaker offers the opportunity to lose yourself in the Continent like never before.
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a spin-off based on a card game featured on The Witcher 3. That said, it's a marvelous work that joins enticing and involving gameplay mechanics, a gorgeous art style and an addictive experience. While certainly not an easy feat to play through, Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is more than welcome on the Nintendo Switch catalogue and opens the way for more spin-offs to come.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a wonderful addition to the Switch. While it may not appeal to all fans, those who enjoyed Gwent in The Witcher 3 will find a lot to love. There's enough nuance and strategy for those hungry for a challenge and it does a great job of adding to the mythology of the world and it's excellent characters.
Thronebreaker is a great solution for players that value amazing story and beautiful graphics over everything else. Despite some minor gameplay issues and unrealized potential of the game, players will have a lot of fun. If you miss the world and lore of The Witcher, it's definitely worth to check this title.
Review in Polish | Read full review
The Thronebreaker is not just an expansion pack of Gwent, but also a brand new RPG in Witcher world. Although some cards might be overpower, the overall impression of this game is magnificent. It is a great present to all Witcher fans.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
Though tainted by a broken difficulty mode, Thronebreaker stands on the shoulders of The Witcher as a morally complex and often harrowing Macbethian tale of royal revenge and revolt.
As to why or how, again, perhaps this is due to the nature of GWENT and trying to balance difficulty once the sheer variety and number of competing strategies and decks come into play. Whatever the reasons though no doubt it comes from creating an RPG story-driven game unlike anything else out there. One that features one of the best interactive bits of fiction this side of The Witcher III – with a flawed, interesting, and awe-inspiring protagonist in the form of Meve. No doubt, we can't wait to check out the next Witcher Tale.