Bought a Windows Tablet - a few thoughts

[rygD]

Witcher II is totally awesome. I've just completed the main story and completed every ppossible quest (two I can't do due to bugs) and one I failed, but it's a massive game and hugely enjoyable throughout - the world never feels empty and there's always something to do and somewhere to go. Nine months after starting it I was still finding new things and places to visit. I've now started on the first DLC installment. Definitely my game of the decade, not just GOTY.

However you can get Witcher III, get it!

This makes it sound like something I would enjoy. Is there a good amount of freedom as to what you are doing at a given time (it sounds like it based on what you said). I will look into it and give it more serious consideration. Like many here, I have plenty of games I need to complete, like Omicron, which I started in the early 00s and never completed. And Shenmue.

 

[PowerGod]

This makes it sound like something I would enjoy. Is there a good amount of freedom as to what you are doing at a given time (it sounds like it based on what you said).

TW2 gives freedom, but it's mainly story driven, so you just have a main quest (that you must follow to proceed) with different choices/roads and some sub-quests (that can be broken by proceeding with the main quest), it is also divided in chapters that moves you to other areas where you can't go back anymore, so nothing comparable to the freedom of The Elder Scrolls games, but the narration is more enjoyable and polished.

 

[iprice]

The Witcher III is much more open than Witcher 2 - while there are indeed main quests (not just one), they do branch off and there are hundreds (literally) of optional side-quests including treasure hunts, raids and fetch quests. These are all optional, but they are generally so enjoyable you just want to do more.

There are no chapters and you can always go back to the main story - you can't fail this, but you can fail some quests, but even then, you are probably only losing a bonus item or card (see more about this later, in the form of Gwent) or money really.

As expected, there is repetition to a degree (especially the treasure hunts out at sea), but even so, you are likely to be exploring new areas, finding new things and gaining experience and items along the way. You don't have to follow the main quest at all, it'll just always be waiting for you. Just going out looking for monsters (of which there are a huge variety from small to pretty big) is fun in itself and you never know when you're going to run into a troll, cyclops or giant spider etc.

The story is also very well written and acted, with a huge amount of dark humour throughout. There are several sex scenes in the game, so if you want to play it, make sure your Mum isn't visiting/around - they pop up a number of times. Some are optional though.

The world itself is also bustling and very interesting, even in quiet moments - watching the grass, bushes and trees blow as the sun sets and rain picks up is a wonder to behold and really makes the world feel very real.

Be aware - there is a fair bit of Windwaker style sailing between lands (sometimes) which could be seen as boring to some, but it's pretty optional as most placces can be quick travelled to once road-signs are located.

Honestly I can't sell this game enough. It won Best Game Of The Year awards across the boards and deservedly so.

Then there's a mini card game called Gwent - collecting all those cards is an achievement in itself and the game really is excellent - very deep, with only a few very simple rules.

 

[Mr_Loon]

Just received the Case & Keyboard combo I ordered when buying the Chuwi Hi10, not quite as elegant a solution as an MS type cover but at approx £15 delivered it's excellent value and really does make the tablet feel like a netbook.

Like the tablet itself the build quality of the case/keyboard is a pleasant surprise.

The whole package is well worth looking at if you're after a Windows netbook for under £165.

 

[Klumpen]

I've bought mine as a comic book reader and it perfectly fits this purpose since you need an easily rotatable big screen for this.
In addition to that, it has proven to be a very handy electronic map thanks to Osmand (OpenStreetMaps-Android), because a big screen, easy scolling and a few gigs of space is all you need there.
Some games that are designed for a touch interface work pretty well too, although I didn't get it for those.

Since I've got so many musical scores to play by now and it would take ages to find a single sheet by hand and my instrument case couldn't hold all of those at the same time anyway, I'm now using my 10inch tablet for musical scores (pdf and png) I don't yet know by heart or people are asking me about and several musicians I've played together with seem to love the idea since it's extremely convenient thanks to finding what you need fast, switching pages in a second and having backlighting which makes it more easy to read although it's smaller than A4. For people that can't read scores or want to hear the rhythm I can just open a sound or video file too.
It's the best use for a tablet I've found so far, I'd buy a bigger tablet just for this if there were any available. Are there cheap 14inch tablets?

 

[Mr_Loon]

Are there cheap 14inch tablets?

Not that I could find.

If a 12.1" tablet would do it the the soon to be released Chuwi Hi12 might be worth a look. Seems to be similar spec to the Hi10 but with a higher resolution screen, bigger battery and a more premium style finish. Looks like a good bit of kit, not sure if it will feature dual OS at launch or when it will be available.

 

[Swordfish II]

Anybody have refs for getting Linux (debian) going on a Mediacom winpad w700... saw it for about $45 out the door and thought might as well.