Steam currently has deep discounts going on the entire Witcher franchise. If you've been seeing the hype about The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and its expansions and prequels, there's never been a better time to jump in. You can get the entire trilogy, minus the expansions for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, for only $22.02.
Here are the deals
If you just want to get in on the latest in the franchise and check out the definitive edition of the game that everybody's been talking incessantly about since it released in 2016, you can grab The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's Game of the Year edition for only $19.99, which includes the Blood and Wine and Hearts of Stone expansion packs.
If you already have the base game, an expansion pass that covers both of those is only $12.49 right now. If you don't want to commit, you can dip a toe into the franchise for less than the cost of a latte with The Witcher: Enhanced Edition Director's Cut at only $1.49. If you like it, another $2.99 will get you The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition. On the other hand, if you'd like to go whole-hog and snap up all three games with expansions, you'll be able to do so for only $24.47 during the run of this sale.
Here are some details about the games
The entire Witcher series has seen gross acclaim and for good reason. They follow the plot of a line of books bearing the same name. The whole franchise centers on the adventures of Geralt of Rivia.
Geralt is a Witcher, essentially a genetically modified super-warrior with magical powers whose job is to hunt down monsters in order to keep the people safe. The games are all chock-full of soulfully realized characters and vast environments teeming with detail, life, and of course, lots of monsters and unruly bandits just waiting for Geralt to slice, roast, and telekinetically blow them away.
Real-time, action RPG combat is the order of the day, though it differs from game to game. The first game is widely panned as having combat that's dynamic, but a bit on the clunky side. The second game, meanwhile, brings in a variety of new options and makes things feel fresher. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt sees the franchise's combat perfected at long last, making you really feel the power of the Witcher as you turn monsters and ill-meaning louts into marks on the ground in your quest to save towns, attractive maidens, and your adoptive daughter.
Here is the info you probably came for
This is the best deal going on the entire "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt" package, and if you're reading this article, you're probably doing so because of the hype that the gaming news sphere has fed you about that game. The base game sees you chasing down the legendary and notorious Wild Hunt to save your adopted daughter Ciri after she's kidnapped during a training session. You can also play as her for some parts of the game, as a side note. The story is rife with all sorts of detail, side stories, and lively folk, but the focus is set squarely on Geralt and Ciri's relationship. On the side, you can participate in all sorts of sidequests, romance one of two love interests, and play the popular collectible card game Gwent, which is good enough that it's now its own standalone game, complete with a competitive scene.
This warning applies to all the games, but the third especially; these games are not for kids. The combat is brutal and deadly, the storylines are nuanced and mature, and the virtual nudity, which pops up surprisingly often, is extremely well-rendered and realistic. Other caveats regard the computing equipment necessary to enjoy the games. Sadly, Mac users are out of luck on the latest game in the trilogy, and those who have forsaken Windows to embrace Linux, or happen to be gaming on a SteamOS machine, can only get their hands on the second title in the trilogy. Even if you're running Windows, you must be mindful of the system requirements. A fairly modern PC is needed to run the first two games, preferably something from 2012 or newer at the very least.
For the third game, you'll simply need a powerful graphics card to play it out of the box. There are workarounds to lower the graphic detail and fidelity to accommodate less powerful systems, but they make for a far less beautiful game.
Bearing all of that in mind, if you'd like to give the franchise a try or just want to scoop up a good deal on the complete The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt package, head over to Steam before April 15!