The Witcher 2 can be a challenging experience for many players, especially beginners who are new to the series or RPGs in general. There are times that even experienced players struggle through sections of the game when they have to defeat hard bosses and enemies. Fortunately, the game allows you to choose through different difficulty levels to make the experience easier or harder.
There are five difficulties from the easy to the insane and each difficulty has different rules and ways they are implemented. In this guide, you will learn how many types of difficulties are there in the game, how to change them, and what happens if you change them mid-game in The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings.
How to change difficulty in The Witcher 2
The Witcher 2 has different in-game difficulties but these difficulties are not accessible in the opening menu of the game. If you are starting a new game file, the game will teach you all the mechanics and will test you in the arena.
You can select the difficulty you want after you complete the arena and play the game normally from there. However, if at any time you change your mind, then you can change your choice via the in-game menu.
The Witcher 2 difficulty levels explained
The Witcher 2 has five different in-game difficulty levels. These difficulties are as follows.
Easy
This difficulty is for inexperienced players who are playing the game for the first time. The enemies deal less damage and have less health. You deal more damage to them. Most fights can be won using only swords and they cannot block your attacks. You may select this difficulty if you are more concerned with the story than the overall experience.
Normal
This difficulty is for those players who have experience playing RPGs and want to enjoy a balanced experience. The enemies are tougher than in easy mode but you can still deal with them without struggling too much.
Hard
This difficulty is for more experienced players. The enemies are a lot stronger and they deal even more damage. You will need to use all your knowledge and understanding of the sword fighting system, alchemy, and magic to get you through the game.
Dark
The dark mode is for expert players who want to test their mettle. The opponents are at their strongest and deal the most damage than any other difficulty. However, this mode offers special Dark mode items which are not found in any of the difficulties to make your experience a bit fairer. These items are the strongest in the game and you will still need to grind a bit to get them.
Insane
This difficulty is the hardest experience you can have in The Witcher 2. The opponents aren’t buffed further than that on Dark Mode. However, the game will punish you for each death and reset every time you die. Meaning you will have to start from scratch and you won’t be able to load any of your saves.
Does it matter if you change difficulty levels mid-game?
You can switch your chosen difficulty at any time during your playthrough at any given time. For difficulties ranging from Easy to Hard, it will have no effect on your game, it’s ending, or any achievements you may get.
However, changing your difficulty if you chose to play with the Dark difficulty will lock you out of getting the ‘Madman’ achievement at the end. To get the achievement, you have to beat the game from start to finish on Dark difficulty without changing your difficulty setting and let it remain on Dark difficulty.
