Main Story Too Short

[maniak6767]

I don't think there's problem with length of main story. MS is well paced, if you like game and want to play more quest, side quests waiting for you. Never really rushed main quest always done all possible side quests before visiting Hanako, and never had moment: oh, it's too short. Tbh 60-70 hourse for all quest is enough for me. I've played Divinity 2 OS last month, and gave up after 100 hours, not because it was hard or something, because it was boring after 100 hours of playing it(still in act 2) , combat started to bore me after 50 hours, it was like paying taxes. Even ability to change builds didn't really help.
Witcher 3 had simiar issue, story after battle vs Wild Hunt, was dragged out.

 

[northwold]

I don't think there's problem with length of main story. MS is well paced, if you like game and want to play more quest, side quests waiting for you. Never really rushed main quest always done all possible side quests before visiting Hanako, and never had moment: oh, it's too short. Tbh 60-70 hourse for all quest is enough for me. I've played Divinity 2 OS last month, and gave up after 100 hours, not because it was hard or something, because it was boring after 100 hours of playing it(still in act 2) , combat started to bore me after 50 hours, it was like paying taxes. Even ability to change builds didn't really help.
Witcher 3 had simiar issue, story after battle vs Wild Hunt, was dragged out.

Yes Witcher 3 had a really quite peculiar story structure with at least two separate act 1s (in traditional story terms) -- White Orchard and Bloody Baron -- a prologue that seemed more interested in displaying Yennefer with no clothes on for the male adolescent audience than properly establishing the plot, and two Act 3s, one of which, the White Frost, felt like it had been plucked like a rabbit out of a hat to pad the running time. The Bloody Baron felt particularly odd since Geralt would, in-world, have no idea it would become relevant later, so at the time you play it it just feels like a random time sink.

I love the game but the story does feel rather chaotic with a shaky hold on where the beginning, middle and end lie.

 

[Audi82]

This main quest needs about 5 to 10 more hours

10..at least

 

[EMT-Fields]

When I first heard the main story was going to be short, I didn't take it so well. But after playing through it and having to endure Johnny Silverhand's "edginess" If the main story was even 10min longer I would have put my head through my monitor.

 

[DonLuzolvaz]

Witcher 3 had simiar issue, story after battle vs Wild Hunt, was dragged out.

Yeah, TW3's third act wasn't as engaging as the other two.

 

[kofeiiniturpa]

I never thought the main story was too short (Witcher 3’s story was too long, but that’s not the topic).

I did, however, think the way it was built up to lead towards the conclusion could’ve (should’ve) been more open. The story felt too directed and the protagonist too pre-set.

I think the drive of the story should’ve been more like such that in (for example) chapter 1 you have a goal to reach, how you reach it, is up to you, making contacts and gigs and what not along the way or if you knew the ”where and how to”, just beeline there. And the game takes that into account.

Rather than these specific setpieces.

 

[Feline_Witcher]

Yeah, TW3's third act (after the battle of kaer morhen) wasn't as engaging as the other two.

I thought Bald Mountain was the single best part of the entire game

 

[Guest 3847602]

I think the drive of the story should’ve been more like such that in (for example) chapter 1 you have a goal to reach, how you reach it, is up to you, making contacts and gigs and what not along the way or if you knew the ”where and how to”, just beeline there. And the game takes that into account.

Rather than these specific setpieces.

How would this work in practice? All I can think of is "gather enough money to unlock chapter-closing quest" or "increase reputation to unlock chapter-closing quest". Doesn't look particularity interesting...

 

[RikiWolf]

Ciao... il gioco è meraviglioso, ma la quest principale è davvero troppo breve rispetto a Witcher 3... lo adoro davvero perché era davvero lungo per tutte le quest e la quest principale era davvero molto più lunga e preferisco davvero così. .. anche l'altra quest era più lunga e con molta storia... tutte le quest in questo gioco sono troppo brevi per me, non mi piace molto... preferisco la modalità witcher 3 per questo...

I hope that story will be seen as a prologue and then expand it with expansions and dlc

 

[medion_no]

The game has a weird structure and treats some quests as side quests that should always have been part of the main story like all of Johnny's quests. They didn't want the game to be too long for casual gamers i guess.

 

[outy]

While I agree that the main story is a little short, the game itself isn’t. I hit 65 hours per play through twice whilst only going over the main story and side missions as I never bothered with the gigs or bounty hunter quests.

Post automatically merged: Jan 21, 2022

This game needs to be double length in the main quest line. Whoever came up with the re release idea “samurai edition” or whatever, has the right idea. Whatever was cut- put it back. Give us Witcher 3 completionists the game we deserve and the game you owe yourself for working on for so long. Then let the casuals play what’s out. Why the heck do your real fans and followers get punished cause the casuals complain? Cmon CDPR… give us the goods. You made my favorite game of all time with Cyberpunk and ended it all too quickly on me. Seriously made me super sad and disappointed you made this large of a city, for this short of a story.

That’s not going to happen. The story was altered and made shorter which means the cut-content will no longer fit into the storyline. I am fine with that as all games end up on the chopping block at some point as stories are shortened and amended.

The DLC will be set during the main story but I doubt it’ll be related to it. Either way, I am just looking forward to more story content.

 

[kofeiiniturpa]

How would this work in practice? All I can think of is "gather enough money to unlock chapter-closing quest" or "increase reputation to unlock chapter-closing quest". Doesn't look particularity interesting...

Well, yeah. It could be that - obtaining enough money or renown. Or it could be finding a certain item or person or a piece of information, or a specific level of a specific ability. All of whch require some detective- and legwork. Or it could be all of those interchanged as per the players decision.

And I get it, that premise might not sound the most exciting at face value, but that happens if you don’t give it the benefit of further thinking beyond the base concept.

Lets take a bit of an analogy to illustrate a point.

The game starts, you have the first important thing told to you being that in order to get where you are going for, you must get past that wall in the distance. Beyond that lies what you seek.

You go then to the wall and look at it. How would you cross it?

You could climb over it. But it’s a slick and tall face that requires special tools and adept climbing gear. You can’t just throw a grapplehook over and vault with it. So you need to find the tools and get adept at climbing.

You could also dig under it. But you need to remember, it isn’t like digging a crawlspace under a picket fence like a dog. You need special tools and ability to pull that off. So you need to find the tools and get adept.

You could also get around the wall. But that’d require a long trip through a dangerous territory that would task a lot of your skills. So you need to find the tools and get adept.

The most obvious way would be through the gate. But its
locked and guarded. You need a keypass.

You could blast through with brute force, but you’d need high combat skills and expensive gear. Do you’d need to work for it.

Now how does one get a keypass, then?

- You could earn it, by doing enough tasks to a certain facet. But you need to work for it.
- You could steal it. But you need to build the ability and get the tools for it.
- You could forge it, but you need to build the ability and get the tools for it.
- You could bribe to get one, but you need the ability and the funds to get it done.

All of that requires work. Get in the city and start working for it.

So what do you need to do to get beyond the wall? Work and detective work.

Now, time has passed and you’ve gotten beyond the wall by what ever means you’ve chosen. What has happened?

- You’ve started the next chapter in the story. Ok.
- You’ve also created a multitude of connections to important NPC’s. Started and finished stories. Opened ones that still go on…
- Your character has grown
- You’ve created a name for yourself for what ever it is that you excell at.
- Some of the characters you’ve met carry on to the next chapter.
- And most importantly:
— You did it all by yourself. Nobody told you to go talk this guy and do what he wants. It was all you who decided what to do and how to get there.

You had a simple starting point that built up into a fairly complex whole.


For example.

 

[Guest 3847602]

The game starts, you have the first important thing told to you being that in order to get where you are going for, you must get past that wall in the distance. Beyond that lies what you seek.

You go then to the wall and look at it. How would you cross it?

You could climb over it. But it’s a slick and tall face that requires special tools and adept climbing gear. You can’t just throw a grapplehook over and vault with it. So you need to find the tools and get adept at climbing.

You could also dig under it. But you need to remember, it isn’t like digging a crawlspace under a picket fence like a dog. You need special tools and ability to pull that off. So you need to find the tools and get adept.

You could also get around the wall. But that’d require a long trip through a dangerous territory that would task a lot of your skills. So you need to find the tools and get adept.

The most obvious way would be through the gate. But its
locked and guarded. You need a keypass.

You could blast through with brute force, but you’d need high combat skills and expensive gear. Do you’d need to work for it.

Now how does one get a keypass, then?

- You could earn it, by doing enough tasks to a certain facet. But you need to work for it.
- You could steal it. But you need to build the ability and get the tools for it.
- You could forge it, but you need to build the ability and get the tools for it.
- You could bribe to get one, but you need the ability and the funds to get it done.

All of that requires work. Get in the city and start working for it.

So what do you need to do to get beyond the wall? Work and detective work.

So, like a Deus Ex mission, but on a huuuge scale. Well, that does sound a lot better than what came to my mind when I read your first post.

 

[BabaBooey88]

The game has a weird structure and treats some quests as side quests that should always have been part of the main story like all of Johnny's quests. They didn't want the game to be too long for casual gamers i guess.

I agree, and they did say as much. That would have added more weight to how the game ends. I feel if acquiring a fancy car, being one of V's naive dreams, turned into a dying wish quest it would have worked out much better than being paged every ten minutes by uncle/aunt fixer trying to sell you their used rides.

 

[DarthasBinar]

Main story is definietly too short and it creates many big problems:

- characters don't get enough time in spotlight and are underutilized, they appear and disappear to quickly (Jackie, Dex, Yorinobu, T-Bug, Hellman and many more)

- story is linear beacuse there is no room to fit long term consequences (there is barely any meaningful choice in main story outside the ending), it is the poorest choice and cosequences system that CDPR ever made

- the game lacks spine and structure ( main story always works as a spine of the game for example in W3 it gives you final goals of finding Ciri and killing WH and quest levels structure the game narratively - CP2077 lacks that completely)

- CP2077 genrally feels like a small fraction of W3

HOW LONG TO BEAT:
W3: 52.5 hrs

How long is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt? | HowLongToBeat

How long is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt? HowLongToBeat has the answer. Create a backlog, submit your game times and compete with your friends!

howlongtobeat.com

CP2077: 23 hrs

How long is Cyberpunk 2077? | HowLongToBeat

How long is Cyberpunk 2077? HowLongToBeat has the answer. Create a backlog, submit your game times and compete with your friends!

howlongtobeat.com

 

[Didacgomez]

Well, yeah. It could be that - obtaining enough money or renown. Or it could be finding a certain item or person or a piece of information, or a specific level of a specific ability. All of whch require some detective- and legwork. Or it could be all of those interchanged as per the players decision.

And I get it, that premise might not sound the most exciting at face value, but that happens if you don’t give it the benefit of further thinking beyond the base concept.

Lets take a bit of an analogy to illustrate a point.

The game starts, you have the first important thing told to you being that in order to get where you are going for, you must get past that wall in the distance. Beyond that lies what you seek.

You go then to the wall and look at it. How would you cross it?

You could climb over it. But it’s a slick and tall face that requires special tools and adept climbing gear. You can’t just throw a grapplehook over and vault with it. So you need to find the tools and get adept at climbing.

You could also dig under it. But you need to remember, it isn’t like digging a crawlspace under a picket fence like a dog. You need special tools and ability to pull that off. So you need to find the tools and get adept.

You could also get around the wall. But that’d require a long trip through a dangerous territory that would task a lot of your skills. So you need to find the tools and get adept.

The most obvious way would be through the gate. But its
locked and guarded. You need a keypass.

You could blast through with brute force, but you’d need high combat skills and expensive gear. Do you’d need to work for it.

Now how does one get a keypass, then?

- You could earn it, by doing enough tasks to a certain facet. But you need to work for it.
- You could steal it. But you need to build the ability and get the tools for it.
- You could forge it, but you need to build the ability and get the tools for it.
- You could bribe to get one, but you need the ability and the funds to get it done.

All of that requires work. Get in the city and start working for it.

So what do you need to do to get beyond the wall? Work and detective work.

Now, time has passed and you’ve gotten beyond the wall by what ever means you’ve chosen. What has happened?

- You’ve started the next chapter in the story. Ok.
- You’ve also created a multitude of connections to important NPC’s. Started and finished stories. Opened ones that still go on…
- Your character has grown
- You’ve created a name for yourself for what ever it is that you excell at.
- Some of the characters you’ve met carry on to the next chapter.
- And most importantly:
— You did it all by yourself. Nobody told you to go talk this guy and do what he wants. It was all you who decided what to do and how to get there.

You had a simple starting point that built up into a fairly complex whole.

When I was reading i was thinking in Arcanum,not sure if its what you had in mind:

Spoiler

It seems Lukan and his half-ogre comrades are charging a toll from anyone who wants to cross the bridge. There are five ways to get past them:

a) You can pay the toll (1000 gold), although it's probably more than you can afford.

b) You can circle around Lukan and steal his key to the gate.

c) If you didn't accept a quest from Constable Owens to get rid of the thieves, you can get a quest from Lukan to destroy the bridge materials down the coast to the south (#13). If you do that and return, you'll earn 1000 experience but lose alignment, and Lukan will give you the key to the gate blocking the bridge. Lukan will also tell you about the Thieves Underground and suggest you might be able to learn more about it in the taverns of Tarant.

d) If you have at least 1 rank of persuasion, you'll get the dialogue option, "I may be able to persuade you otherwise." Then pretend to be with the Thieves Underground, but avoid talking about leaders and handbooks. You'll be able to convince Lukan that he's encroaching on someone else's territory, and he'll be so anxious to leave that he'll give you 200 gold. You'll also earn 800 experience and a fate point. Now if you want, you can kill him before he leaves (see below) and earn another fate point that way.

e) You can kill the thieves. If you're a pure melee character, you can probably defeat the thieves without any problem. For other characters, it's probably easiest to use some of the explosives found in the Crash Site Cave. Even if you have no throwing skill, you can still use the grenades, but you might completely miss the thieves. So save first and then try attacking them, and load if necessary. If you can hit Lukan with an explosive grenade and one of the half-ogres with a stun grenade, you should have an easier time with the battle. You should definitely kill the thieves if you're a half-ogre, or if you're planning to add one to your group. Both half-ogre thieves have large leather armor, and there aren't many places where you can find large armor.

f) If you have the Unlocking Cantrip spell from the Conveyance college, you can stand a good distance away (at least 8 tiles) from Lukan and his gang and cast it on the gate. It will be unlocked, the gang will not turn hostile and you will be able to pass freely.

It would have been much better, but would have required a complete change of storytelling,mechanics and even the game journal/minimap/objectives...I'm not sure we are going to see something like that in a AAA game.