I think this is probably more a copy of various East Asian social media services than anything Reddit-like. Pretty sure TikTok and a bunch of Chinese video streaming services already do this. I think the whole Money -> Gifts -> Rubies -> Money chain is intended to dance around money laundering legislation. The same way that Pachinko machines aren’t technically considered gambling in Japan.
I really enjoyed the Witcher 1. What really sealed it for me was the questline
Vizima Confidential
The whole detective arc was very staisfying, and even if it got a little tedious, I felt like a real flatfoot running around the city chasing down leads.
Hell, you can’t even solve the mystery by following the quest. IIRC it’s only by talking to the undertaker at the right time that you discover Raymond is a fake.
It beat the pants off of anything from Witcher 2. I also prefer the alchemy system from TW1.
I dislike that TW2 is basically half a game until you replay it. I’m all for branching paths, but compared to TW1 and TW3, TW2 felt way too short.