It’s hard to believe that it’s been six months since the release of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and even now it’s still in the top picks for RPG of the year. Its memorable characters and well-crafted storylines are chief among the reasons I love this series. So far I’ve been really happy with the 16 pieces of free DLC from CD Projekt RED that reveal a little more of Geralt’s world, but now it’s time to dig deeper into the complex world of Geralt with the release of The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone expansion for PC.
As many of you have already scoured every nook and cranny of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and even gone so far as to replay the story in the New Game + mode your probably wondering where this new expansion fits in to the story as a whole. Luckily this fantastic expansion can be played in one of two ways. Players can start the entire game from the very beginning with Hearts of Stone incorporated seamlessly into the narrative or as a standalone experience within the Witcher 3. You can purchase The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone separately or go all in by picking up the Expansion Pass which will include the upcoming Blood and Wine expansion next year as well as Hearts of Stone.
While I first tried Hearts of Stone with one of my current playthroughs with the story first I instead for the sake of this review decided to play it in its standalone form. Doing this starts you off with an appropriate level 32 Geralt with starting gear, weapons, money and set of items to get you ready for the tasks at hand not far off from the starting area.
No matter which way you start though the starting level for the expansion is around level 30 or higher. Worry not though as you get to spec out your Geralt with a slew of ability points to fit your playstyle be it a powerhouse swordsman, talented scholar or a quick bladed rogue. I still found the combat to be still be a bit sluggish from my initial review of The Witcher 3’s main game but there are some brand new weapons and new ways to aid you in combat with along with some new mechanics via an all new merchant that has taken up residence in Velen.
Playing Hearts of Stone by itself locks out all of the main story arcs to keep you on track to the main event, which is by far one of the most interesting in the series to date. Fear not, or perhaps do, as you can still participate in all the original side quests as well as the new ones for Hearts of Stone to help you gain experience for the tougher challenges that you’ll meet. Seriously though, a few of the quests feature some right terrifyingly difficult fights including the first big boss.
The story starts off like any of Geralt’s endeavors by visiting a notice board which sets you off to perform a monster hunting job by the ruthless bandit captain Olgierd von Everec. Much like the Witcher series as a whole things are not always as they seem in this story that features dark twists on old fairy tales, ghostly excursions and even a touch of matrimonial merriment that if put into detail would spoil the journey.
There are a few mini-games throughout The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone including the ever present Gwent which, while I did play in the core game, I try to avoid like the plague. Seriously you can drop some serious time into just that game. There is one mini-game that drove me up the wall however involving pigs that thanks to Geralt’s awkward turning makes for a bit of immersion breaking frustration. Not a deal breaker as far as the expansion is concerned but an annoyance none the less.
The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone feature some great new characters to Geralt’s world as well some returning characters including Shani, the red haired medic from the very first game. While it was great to see her again it was really the return of Gaunter O’Dimm from The Witcher 3’s main story that intrigued me though the most. Maybe it’s Geralt’s inability to figure out who Gaunter really is or what his plans are or how he seems to show up when things aren’t looking so good that makes him such an intriguing enigma. He’s got wicked charm as a character and the mannerisms and voice actor reminds me a lot of Alfred Molina sans his Hercule Poirot performance. All the voice actors are present for the expansion though I’m sure the actress for Shani has changed since I last heard her.
There are some changes however that are for the good for The Witcher 3 with the release of Hearts of Stone. The biggest is the addition of Runewords which are introduced by an Ofierian merchant that after a sizable monetary investment can completely alter the way you play the entire game if you choose to integrate the DLC into the whole story or even just the expansion. All those runes or glyphs that your probably hording can be combined by using three existing ones to create more powerful and in some cases permanent buffs to items like armorer’s table and grindstone effects.
I personally liked the ability to make armor deflect all arrows as I took so much damage from those during my playthrough. There is also the cool ability to make Igni cast around you in a 360 attack but at the cost of the lingering burn effect. There are some really cool features here that are definitely worth investing crowns into.
Hearts of Stone is the first of two expansions for the already massive narrative that is The Witcher 3 and like the core experience is on point with its wonderful characters and storytelling. While it still poses issues for me while in combat and a few other areas concerning the character movement I still enjoyed Hearts of Stone.
CD Projekt RED continues to show off their craft in ways I never thought I’d see in a Witcher game. Even the merry moments shine through the dark atmosphere that Hearts of Stone breaths as we see a side of Geralt that I didn’t think I’d ever see from the all too serious monster slayer. If you love The Witcher series then this is one expansion you absolutely don’t want to miss out on.
