Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Twitch
    Game on Aus
    • News
      What’s coming to PlayStation Plus in April 2023?

      What’s coming to PlayStation Plus in April 2023?

      March 30, 2023

      PlayStation Australia is pleased to reveal the PlayStation Plus Essential, Extra, and Deluxe Monthly Games for April. Available to PlayStation…

      Tears Of The Kingdom Gameplay Trailer Releases!

      Tears Of The Kingdom Gameplay Trailer Releases!

      March 28, 2023

      Only months away from its release, Nintendo have dropped a Tears Of The Kingdom gameplay trailer for us to fawn over.

      D&D Direct scheduled for March 29 – Australian time

      D&D Direct scheduled for March 29 – Australian time

      March 23, 2023

      [This announcement has been provided by Wizards Of The Coast’s PR people and is presented by GOA for your information]…

      Ghostwire Tokyo and more come to Xbox Gamepass

      Ghostwire Tokyo and more come to Xbox Gamepass

      March 22, 2023

      As we approach the end of March, Xbox shows no sign of stopping. With their consistent release of amazing titles…

      PlayStation Plus Deluxe And Extras Drops for March 2023

      PlayStation Plus Deluxe And Extras Drops for March 2023

      March 17, 2023

      PlayStation Australia is happy to reveal the PlayStation Plus Game Catalogue additions for March. The Game Catalogue lineup will be…

      View All
    • Reviews
      Dredge Review – We’re going to need a bigger boat

      Dredge Review – We’re going to need a bigger boat

      March 30, 2023

      Dredge, the latest fishing adventure game from developer Black Salt Games, is a harrowing and immersive experience that taps into…

      Terra Nil Review – Ecelogically enjoyable

      Terra Nil Review – Ecelogically enjoyable

      March 28, 2023

      Terra Nil is an incredibly unique city-building ‘puzzle’ game developed by Free Lives and published by Devolver Digital. The game’s…

      Bayonetta Origins Key Art

      Bayonetta Origins Cereza And The Lost Demon Review: The Duality Of Bayonetta

      March 28, 2023

      Bayonetta fans expect certain things. That’s why it was a surprise to see the launch trailer for Bayonetta Origins depart from those norms.

      Phantom Brigade Review – Mechs are always cool

      Phantom Brigade Review – Mechs are always cool

      March 27, 2023

      I’VE had the opportunity to play a variety of tactical RPGs over the years, but few have left an impression…

      Barotrauma review – thalassophobia with friends

      Barotrauma review – thalassophobia with friends

      March 27, 2023

      Barotrauma is a fascinating and immersive survival game that takes place in the depths of an alien ocean, that’s sure…

      View All
    • Podcasts
      Nuts & Bolts Ep 78 Hero Card

      Nuts & Bolts Ep 78: Mr LCO Goes To PCS

      March 25, 2023

      Bliss & Chiefs claim the top two spots as the LCO heads to PCS to see who will qualify for…

      Weekly Show Ep 275 Hero Card

      The Weekly Show Ep 275: AI Wrote This Episode Title

      March 24, 2023

      Doomcutie joins Stormie and Jim as they talk through mods, leaks and so much more! Plus our Bloody Good Game Of The Week thanks to Aussie Broadband.

      Nuts & Bolts Ep 77 Hero Card

      Nuts & Bolts Ep 77: A Wild Mercury Appears!

      March 11, 2023

      Jim is joined by Mercury live in the GOA studio! Jim gets excited over the World Of Tanks ANZPL draft…

      Weekly Show Ep 274 Hero Card

      The Weekly Show Ep 274: Shame Nintendo, Shame!

      March 10, 2023

      Doomcutie joins Stormie and Jim as they talk through mods, leaks and so much more! Plus our Bloody Good Game Of The Week thanks to Aussie Broadband.

      Nuts & Bolts Ep 76 Hero Card

      Nuts & Bolts Ep 76: LCO Drama-Rama

      March 4, 2023

      Peace finally get what’s coming to them as the LCO starts the group stage while a team suffers a tech…

      View All
    • Categories
      • BY PLATFORM
        • Playstation
        • Xbox
        • Nintendo
        • PC
        • Mobile
        • VR
        • Retro
      • BY GENRE
        • Action
        • Action-Adventure
        • Battle Royale
        • Fighting
        • FPS
        • Horror Games
        • RPG
        • Simulation
        • Sports
        • MMORPG
        • MOBA
        • Platformer
        • Strategy
        • Survival
        • Indie
      • GOA ESSENTIALS
        • Esports
        • Conventions
        • Tabletop
        • Hardware
        • Funny
        • Streaming
        • Win
        • Podcast
        • Video
    • More
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
    Game on Aus
    Home » Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales Review
    game on aus logo
    GAMING REVIEWS

    Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales Review

    Chris InglisBy Chris InglisNovember 11, 2018
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    Score: 8/10           |         RPG         |         CARD GAME         |           FANTASY

    “Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a fantastic RPG and card game set in the Witcher world with classic Witcher storytelling being its greatest strength. The compelling main story quest and plentiful side quests and puzzles are backed up by outstanding voice acting and decisions that affect the world around you.”

    Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a single-player RPG and card game set in the Witcher universe, developed and published by CD Projekt Red. The game was released on October 23, 2018 for PC via GOG.com. Initially an exclusive to this platform, I am usually hesitant to buy anything that isn’t on Steam (Gaben has got me well and truly hooked!). However, given this was a Witcher game, I just had to have it. Though I found out yesterday that the game can now be bought through Steam which was a little disappointing to hear given it was advertised as exclusive to GOG, however that doesn’t detract from how good the game is.

     

    The main character Meve is a war-veteran queen of the lands of Lyria and Rivia. Rivia is familiar to Witcher fans via Geralt of Rivia. Set in the year 1267, tensions between the power-hungry Nilfgaardian Empire and proud Northern Realms grow. Although stern and formidable at times, she is respected and loved by her people. You get this sense through interactions not only with her closest allies, but the townsfolk of Lyria, who look to Meve for guidance and leadership. The voice acting is brilliant, perfectly setting the tone and conveying the emotion of each key scene, whether it be rallying the troops pre-battle, or emotive at the tough decisions Meve must face.

     

    I was thankful to have a tutorial which introduces you to the main story as well as the RPG elements of the game, searching for loot, letters and sometimes treasure maps, and fighting battles utilising the Gwent card game from the Witcher series. Key story conversations, and private conversations with each main character as you meet them, gives dialogue choices like the main Witcher games. When conversing with townsfolk or the enemy, your dialogue choices have a direct affect on the story and those that choose to follow you or fight you.

    As you progress through the game, your choices will either earn you allies and their corresponding Gwent cards, or turn them against you as an enemy, removing their card from your deck. In some instance, and often as quest rewards, you can unlock cards for the actual separate multiplayer Gwent: The Witcher Card Game, which comes free with the purchase of Thronebreaker. Along with cards, you can also unlock additional multiplayer avatars, borders, and titles.

     

    You traverse the lands on an overworld map in an isometric view. Holding down the left mouse button will move your character and right click interacts with objects when you’re close enough. Spread across the lands will be wood piles, tree logs and other stashes to loot gold and wood, puzzle challenges, fast travel sign posts, message boards that will unlock loot locations, side quests and the main quest. Some puzzles and side quests are off to the main path and therefore optional, however others block the road. Its worth completing as many puzzles and side quests as you can as they reap good rewards of card fragments and treasure maps.

     

    These puzzles can be quite challenging, and many of them have a restricted number and type of cards to suit the enemy and situation. They start off relatively simple, giving you an opportunity to learn how best to use your card decks in as many situations as possible. It was a bit of a steep learning curve for me as I’m not the biggest fan of these hearthstone-style card games, however this was offset by the balance of RPG and story elements.

     

    Each standard game is played over three rounds, and you must win 2 of the 3 rounds to win. Early on I lost a lot of battles, mainly due to not understanding the effect of all my cards and it took time learning the enemy’s cards. You really do need to plan a few moves ahead, but even then, that could all be thwarted when the enemy drops a card you didn’t expect. You can reload the battle as many times as required but you can’t change cards in your deck. You need to reload the previous save if your current deck is just not working for you. I never had to do this thankfully, though some battles took me up to 10 times to finally get the right cards dropped at the right times to counter the enemy’s moves.

    I’m not ashamed to admit that I had to look up youtube videos on some of the harder puzzle battles as they only last 1 round and most utilise a specific set of cards with limited number of moves to utilise them perfectly. Some of these battles were frustrating to figure out, but once you nailed it you got a sense of achievement for mastering that deck of cards. Deck building plays a big part in the standard side quests and main story quests. Thankfully this set up was much simpler to understand than the likes of Hearthstone, at least for me anyway.

     

    As you travel through the lands of Lyria, Aedirn (about 6 hours each), the game loop started to get a little boring for me partway through the dwarven lands of Mahakam. As you explore each map and find more gold and wood, these resources enable you to upgrade your camp and craft more cards for your deck. There is a training ground where you can practice your card battles, and a mess hall where you can have personal dialogue with the heroes you’ve met along the way which gives some great backstories.

     

    There is triumph, there is deceipt, there is love, there is betrayal and there is humour. The story telling and dialogue from this game could be ripped out and penned Witcher 3.5, it’s that good. Even though I was playing an isometric RPG and a card game, it did feel like I was playing in one of the main Witcher games completing side quests (there’s 75 in total if you find them all), trying to recruit soldiers and cities to my cause, slaying evil monsters, finding treasure maps, using fast travel sign posts, right down to the overhead map looking similar to that in Witcher 3. Indeed I was getting a little tired of the card gameplay loop towards the end, however CD Projekt Red have done a great job in capturing that gritty Witcher feeling in Thronebreaker.

    Overall, I gave this game a 8/10. Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a fantastic RPG and card game set in the Witcher world with classic Witcher storytelling being its greatest strength. The compelling main story quest and plentiful side quests and puzzles are backed up by outstanding voice acting and decisions that affect the world around you. The Gwent card game is at the core of the gameplay, and I did struggle a few times with some puzzle challenges. In general, the card battles got a little repetitive and monotonous after reaching the third land, however the sense of achievement at finally nailing a difficult puzzle quest and completing the main story quests kept driving me forward.

    This review utilised the GOG.com version of the game with 20 hours of gameplay. Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is available now on GOG.com and Steam and is coming soon to Xbox and Playstation.

    #gameonAUS

    Like Game On AUS on Facebook

    Join Game On AUS on Discord

    Follow Game On AUS on Twitch

    Subscribe to Game On AUS on Youtube

    Follow Game On AUS on Instagram

    Follow Game On AUS on Twitter

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Previous ArticleRed Dead Redemption 2 Review
    Next Article Resurgence of Classic MMORPG Experiences

    Related Posts

    Dredge Review – We’re going to need a bigger boat
    GAMING REVIEWS March 30, 2023

    Dredge Review – We’re going to need a bigger boat

    Dredge, the latest fishing adventure game from developer Black Salt Games, is a harrowing and immersive experience that taps into…

    Terra Nil Review – Ecelogically enjoyable
    GAMING REVIEWS March 28, 2023

    Terra Nil Review – Ecelogically enjoyable

    Terra Nil is an incredibly unique city-building ‘puzzle’ game developed by Free Lives and published by Devolver Digital. The game’s…

    Subscribe

    Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

    Ads

    Categories
    • ACTION
    • ACTION-ADVENTURE
    • APPLE
    • BATTLE ROYALE
    • CLOUD GAMING
    • CONVENTIONS
    • DLC
    • ESPORTS
    • Events
    • FEATURE
    • FIGHTING
    • FPS
    • FUNNY
    • GAMING HARDWARE
    • GAMING NEWS
    • GAMING REVIEWS
    • GIFT GUIDE
    • GOA
    • GOA PODCAST
    • HORROR GAMES
    • INDIE GAMING
    • Industry
    • MMORPG
    • MOBA
    • MOBILE
    • NINTENDO
    • Open-World
    • OPINION
    • PC
    • PLATFORMER
    • PLAYSTATION
    • Press Release
    • PREVIEW
    • RACING
    • RETRO
    • RPG
    • SIMULATION
    • SPORTS
    • STRATEGY
    • STREAMING
    • SUBSCRIPTION GAMES SERVICE UPDATES
    • SURVIVAL
    • TABLETOP GAMING
    • TECH
    • VIDEO
    • VR
    • XBOX
    Related Article
    What’s coming to PlayStation Plus in April 2023?
    GAMING NEWS

    What’s coming to PlayStation Plus in April 2023?

    March 30, 2023Gabriel ArmstongBy Gabriel Armstong

    PlayStation Australia is pleased to reveal the PlayStation Plus Essential, Extra, and Deluxe Monthly Games for April. Available to PlayStation Plus members from Tuesday,…

    ANZPL Split 2 2023 Header
    ESPORTS

    World Of Tanks Returns with ANZPL Split 1 2023

    March 30, 2023Darren 'Str8JaktJim' MacneallBy Darren 'Str8JaktJim' Macneall

    There’s be a few changes to the league and teams to make ANZPL Split 1 2023 the most exciting season yet! I’m excited!

    Dredge Review – We’re going to need a bigger boat
    GAMING REVIEWS

    Dredge Review – We’re going to need a bigger boat

    March 30, 2023ArlentricBy Arlentric

    Dredge, the latest fishing adventure game from developer Black Salt Games, is a harrowing and immersive experience that taps into our primal fear of…

    Game on Australia Logo

    Game On Aus is an Australian games publication working across written, video and podcast, and supported by an ever-growing community of content creators and fans!

    Copyright GameOnAus 2023. Privacy Policy. Website by Digital Hitmen

    CONTENT
    • News
    • Gaming Reviews
    • Podcast
    • Tech
    • Indie
    ABOUT GOA
    • About Us
    • Contact

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.