I wouldn't go so far as calling some one the "scum of the earth" for voicing their opinion, but I agree with the op for the most part. Got TW3 on release and beat the main quest line two-three months later by playing it 2-4 hours a day. Started a second play through, but NG+ came out and since I was still in Velen I scrapped that file and started over. The problem these journalists have is the same problem most of the Western world has. The internet has made us (not me but you know what I mean) too impatient for our own good. We expect everything to have an immediate payoff instead of letting ideas linger and go on tangents. TW3 is a classic game in more than one sense. If you're looking for "McDonald's" this isn't the game for you.
I want it all but can't chose
I think Witcher 3 fulfills it's purpose as a 'game' more than you realise.
You would like to enjoy this game, but you also want to browse adult sites, watch the news and the latest release of your favourite TV soap. You also want to have a partner and children, a car, a good eductaion and job, go on vacation twice a year, visit your family and spend time friends, attend to the commuity sessions, exercise and... and... and...
Exactly. The modern digital technology spoils us. And it also stresses.
It spoils us to adjust to a higher level of perfection and expectations. We also demand responses here and now (yesterday is even better).
"I don't know what to do. I have to many choices." That's something you hear more often. But at the same time you have learned not to accept the second best. Go for the very best or nothing, because you're a special individual and only have one life. Intolerance has - despite the globalisation - exceeded which for many people is equal to annonymity.
Actually I think we have just exchanged former evils with other evils.
Fifty years ago we did not expect as much as we do today. And we didn't expect more from our selves either. Things were more calm and steady. But we didn't have the technology to prevent diseases, or create machines releaving us or entertaining us.
Sometimes I think previous simple life was better. At least for your mental wellfare. You didn't have many choices to make or options to evaluate. Life was caln and more simple. Stress was not the major death factor.
Today your physical wellfare is very high, but you gave away your mental in exchange. And we don't handle it very well.
As for Witcher 3 I also have this unpleasant subconscious feeling I try to ignore: I want to play every single part of it but I can't wait. I have to get to the end. I want to see how it all works out. I poke my self for not being able to relax. I feel stressed, but it's not The Witcher 3's fault. It's the effect of my culture and learning that causes it. I have learned to go for it all knowing I only have about 90 years to expreience it all.
I think the most happy people in this world are those who never really thinks about anything, and also grab one day as is comes by.
When I was young I went to school in a larger city. We drove from my little town into the city and had to wait for the busses to or from the gymnasium.
We were not the only ones waiting for transport. There were also those who waited for transport to others shools. Amongst them mentally handicapped young people. They went to a special school with expertise fitting their needs. They were almost always happy. If they were pissed off about something they showed it at once. But a second later they would probably smile again.
These mentallt handicapped people didn't think about politics or career. One thing is they didn't have the means to it, but their world was very simple. And that is the code word: SIMPLE
Our lives are basically still pretty simple. Our fundamental needs are the same. But the way we have chosen to do things have changed.
When people complain about a game being to big and good it's actually their own lack of priority they can't handle. We all have a free choice. At least in those countries were democracy is rules and prosperity is high.
So, when someone says he can't handle a good thing because it's prevents him from doing other things I see it as a luxury. He should actually grab his bike and go somewhere remote, to watch the sun go down or enjoy the world around him, and realise he has just been blessed with a bit of wisdom and self-consciousness.