Przez tyle lat od wydania gry nigdy nie użyłem tego zakończenia bo skoro cesarz Emhyr przez długi czas miał Citi gdzieś to uważam że nie zasłużył na jej powrót
He wasn't forcing her to be empress. If you choose to take her to see her father she will say that her father is planning to abdicate the throne and pass it down to her. And her let's her leave to decide if she wants the throne. Ciri deciding to be empress is entirely her decision. And she sees that during her time hunting monsters that the monarchies neglect their subjects.
I got the Empress ending once, and my biggest surprise was seeing snowy White Orchard, it looks so serene. Then my biggest let-down was that it did not stay snowy after the credits.
@@manukeotoko5408 And the thing is, it looks so much better than Skellige snows. They made a unique map and atmosphere for just one ending. Talk about dedication and commitment to an idea. I just love CDPR!
It was the last game secret that was just recently discovered that Ciri also survived in the last ending, but she was so heartbroken with the way Geralt treated her with his choices, the only one who truly cared for her without thinking to use her and her powers in any way, that she decided to cut all ties to everyone( like she just vanished or died) including Geralt.
@@Synthia17 Since geralt was the most prominent figure in her life. Yen was there but Geralt alot of times was her Father and Friend she always says secrets first to him and her plans also.
The flashbacks Ciri has just before she goes into the portal show all the decision points in the game where your choices would have affected the outcome.
The bad ending is my favourite bc it fits the overall theme and tone of the game whereas i feel like the 2 “good” endings cheapen the game and gives it more of a cheesy superhero movie feelgood vibe that flies directly in the face of everything the TW3 was about.
@@AntiChris84 absolutely true, people that arent able to distinguish between a good ending and a happy ending make me angry, in terms of writing, the sad ending is the best ones. The one in which ciri becomes an empress is also quite good, but the one in which ciri becomes a witcher is the worst imo, just a stereotypical good ending. On the other hand, the bad ending is the best one, how geralt is absolutely destroyed inside, and just gives up and lets the monsters end whith his life, brilliant.
@@Instead2 He's right though? The bad ending is incredibly written. It refers back to the opening comic when you open the game "So called 'Witchers,' Sent to fight monsters, though they could not distinguish good from evil! The flicker of humanity long extinguished within them..." Geralt loses his humanity to grief and goes to fight the crone simply to kill her as he would another monster, for a reward, namely Ciri/vesemirs medallion. Once his final "contract" is complete, Geralt lets himself be killed by the monsters storming the hut, knowing that his purpose as a witcher is complete. It fits with the themes of the story, Geralt fails as a father and becomes what everyone believed witchers to be.
For me, the worst part of the Empress ending is seeing how Ciri refers to/acknowledges Emyhr as her father and not Geralt. Everytime its mentioned in the dialogue you can see how much it hurts Geralt, like it legitimately breaks his heart every time to hear that.😢💔
I got the Ciri becomes an empress ending on my first playthrough, and I cried for 2 days afterward because it made me realize that the choices I made to reach this particular ending really showed how insecure, overprotective, and terrified of loss and failure I really am in real life. It also highlighted how much I am trapped by the fact that I always try to please others and play the roles that I think others want me to play. I felt like the worst person in the world for that, and it seems unreasonable how much it actually affected me given it is "only" a game, but yeah, it really did. Thankfully, the DLCs picked me up a bit after that, especially the Blood and Wine. I'm so grateful I got to play this game. I'll always come back to it. I just love it so much. Best game ever.
I got the bad, bad ending, it was only two choices that locked me out of any of the good ones, i gave ciri the necklace, and didn't do the snowball fight, to be fair I didn't realize there was clearly a bad option because the way the choices are worded they both seemed like trying to uplift her, i didn't catch on until I noticed she was always looking sad after the choices and course corrected too late.
Played through for the very first time and got bad ending 🥴🥴 didn’t cry, didn’t feel sad, but I was so mad that I had to sleep it off (couldn’t for a while because I was mad as hell). Reloaded a save but I still have a problem with the logic; no game can be perfect, but good story-writing usually means an accumulation of choices, like RDR2. But, the difference between the most miserable ending for me and the most positive ending, was: - Letting Ciri speak to mages alone - Messing up Avallach’s room … that’s literally it. I’m grateful that I didn’t have to go back very far, I did all the side missions first and then played through story so I returned to a checkpoint. But, seriously? I literally wanted to let her be independent, but because I didn’t trust the mages the entire 70 odd hours prior became redundant? In the battle I wanted her to fight, got no choice for that. How would that potential choice be less impactful than a meeting with mages? I never took her to the emperor, never turned down her requests, but do you know what tipped the balance?? I said: “You don’t have to be good at everything” WHAT?? IS THE LIFE LESSON TO PROMOTE NARCISSISM?? NEXT TIME ILL SAY SHES GOD , MY BAD Idk, feel like I’m forced to just look up the right choices every single time no matter the game because I can NEVER anticipate what the developers want to teach, and then I end up with miserable endings.
Same I was so surprised I got the worst ending because I thought I did everything right but I wanted more of the game. I started playing the dlcs and am gonna do new game plus to try to get the best ending. A blind first play through is always a good idea
I feel you. I got the Empress ending on a first playthrough, almost got the worst ending, but it brought forth so many negative parallels to my own life that I cried for 2 days. I'm only just now starting to accept it. Actually, the ending I got isn't bad at all, definitely not as bad as 'the worst ending,' but it's more that it became a mirror for me, and a picture I didn't want to see. It was so unexpected. Here are my choices: - I took Ciri to the emperor but didn't accept the reward. At that point, I hadn't read the books or played The Witcher 1 and 2, only watched the Netflix show until the second season. So, I guess I didn't fully comprehend how bad Emhyr is, though in the books I read later, I was left with mixed feelings about him. - I didn't let Ciri trash Avallac'h's laboratory because I thought self-control is important, as I had none for a long time and really regretted some of my outbursts. I also gave her the necklace because I didn't realize yet that it was a burden to her, being special. I suppose it's because I wish I were a bit more 'special' instead of mediocre. - I didn't trust the sorceresses. Again, I think at that point, I didn't know enough about them, almost nothing, so I was overprotective. - In fact, I would've gotten the worst ending if I hadn't immediately gone back and changed my choice at Kaer Morhen when I saw the 'you don't have to be good at everything' led to excessive drinking. Initially, I chose it because I thought having all that weight on her shoulders is really tough, and I wanted to comfort her. But it seems it was considered bad timing for such statements. I didn't know that choice was one of the impactful ones when I decided to change it, but yeah, I guess you could say I cheated in a sense. So here I am. The text of the choices is sometimes misleading, and I agree with you. I was angry and frustrated too, especially when I learned that only that one change of choice saved me from getting the worst ending. I absolutely love the game, though, and thankfully DLCs saved me from utter depression. I'll always return to it.
My favorite one is the second ending because... In a way it comes full circle with geralt always believing in ciri and her decisions while always presenting them to her. So when she decides to become empress he has done everything as a supporting father, but the little swallow has to leave the nest 🥺
When she becomes empress, she's damned to live in unhappiness without the freedom she desired. The little swallow was always meant to become the witcheress.
@@iliboxic7586 that would still have been her choice to make, to become empress or not. And without spoiling I think she could still make her own decision to leave if she were to feel unhappy... Ergo the "you'll find me" from geralt
The worst one is the ,,best" one. Even when Ciri was child she didnt like to stay neutral (travelling with Triss after Kear Morhen training) so i dont buy ending when she choses not to become an empress instead of being witcher. Im sure shed rather have influence on big scale where she could make living easier and happier for many people and other races.
Good father = believing in your daughter and her decisions = good ending. Bad father = controlling you daughter and forcing certain behaviours on her = bad ending.
There's a theory that all three endings happen but in succession (if you ignore the "X weeks after" ofc, it's just a headcanon). First is the "dead" Ciri ending, Geralt hunts the last crone and gets the medallion back as he really thinks she's dead. Then the Witcher Ciri ending, she comes back, Geralt tells Emhyr she's dead and no one can find her, and she sets on the path. And finally, she decides to settle down, as she says, to make a difference from a position she can actually do it, and returns from "Exile" (i.e. The Path) and ascends to the throne as Empress, specially since this is the ending we see the most development in every one (and also seeing Zoltan and Dandelion)
Be aware the post game syndrome hits you really hard after a game like this... there arent many games that are cappable of doing this type of effect, only a few games and TV shows, it really hits you... so far i only felt like this with this game and the mass effect trilogy, i think its mostly related with the character development, you kinda feel immersed into the world almost like you know persoanly the characters, its really tricky... I wonder how hard this will become a in a few years when gamas of this quality of writting become as realistic as the current unreal engine 5 allready is cappable off, then you will be really hit like truck everytime someone dies, or feel even seriously atracted into a piece of 3d modeling... as insane as the world goes, i do love to watch how people unleash their emotions under this sitatuons and this game is an autentic master piece... it goes further than a simple RPG in my opinion.
True. I finished this game in 2016 and I still sometimes listen to the kaer morhen soundtrack and get nostalgic. Im not considered a sentimental guy but this game really left is mark on me
2:58 I took Ciri to see Emyr because I wanted to uncover more story information. I did not know that choosing that option will cause me to get the Empress ending because the game did not explicitly tell me so.
yeah I dont think Ciri died in the bad ending. The white frost would have destroyed the world if Ciri had failed to stop it and just died. She most likely survived and just left because she didnt want to see Geralt anymore because in that particular ending he was a bad father and didnt let her make her own decisions :
Triss, Yen or both? I like all 3 options. But I never could let Geralt send Ciri to Emhyr. Geralt would always put the happiness of Ciri above anything else. The life as the witcheress is perfect for Ciri.
You dont think the being an empress of a nation doesnt give Ciri more power to help all of the people potentially? I got this ending and for me this was the perfect way to end the trilogy since at some point as a parent you have to let go of your child and let her or him experience the life in his or her way.
For me, Empress Ciri is the best ending... It just seems better for everyone. Granted, Ciri probably would choose the Witcher ending for herself, but it's sort of a "with great power comes great responsibility" thing. She could do so much good, so for me that's the best one.
Witcher Ending for Ciri is the best.. we saw to an extent that even Geralt as a Witcher still got some involvement to some politics and even involve in genocide that killed radovid.. Ciri as a Witcher will got the same experiance about politics like Geralt and she still could became an emperor willingly if she didn't like how Nilfgaard govern and all.. i prefer her decide to become emperor herself than force Ciri to take responsibility by choosing that ending.. all and all it's just my thought..
Yeah, I feel like and I got this ending on my first playthrough the empress ending is the best for the in-game world. Ciri would make a great ruler, she'd lead to peace. It's heartbreaking but it's what I'd choose in the middle of the night
If Dijkstra became ruler (if you don't kill him after assassinating Radovid) , he will defeat Nilfgaard and restore the north. Ciri can still become a witcher.
I lean towards Ciri becoming empress as I see it as the best possible way CDPR could make a witcher academy game. Ciri sees the future of witchers as bleak as a census confirms their numbers are too small so she sets about to create a new school for the witchers. This school would not be based on random children chosen by witchers but rather those who volunteer to become witchers. They would be trained by some of the best witchers, swordmasters, sorceresses, and scholars so that they could one day serve as the next generation of protectors against monsters. The game could continue the events from the third game but instead of people playing as geralt you forge your own characters with your own story and allies. It could serve as both a single player story driven experience as well as a multiplayer game.
that would be a very stupid and controversial thing to do on Ciri's part. For one, only very young children can go through the trial of the grasses. So forget about volunteering Also 7/10 are destined to die just for the trial of the grasses. Many more die in provings. Thirdly, if I remember it right, there is no way to create more Witchers because the knowledge of the procedure died with the previous generation of Witchers during the Kaer Morhen raid. I believe its the same one that was featured in the Nightmare of the Wolf anime. At this point its just better to train battle mages like Vilgefortz instead of Witchers
@@deutschvanderlinde6900 Technically the canon has left a few loop holes depending on if you go solely with the books or the expended canon in the games. You are basing this solely on the books alone where is the games left a lot of loop holes. For starters, as Kalkstein and azar javed confirmed that witchers do not always have to be made with children. The difference is children take a more organic approach that has a chance of success or failure. By use of magic on the other hand, a witcher mutation can be done without the risk of death. We saw evidence of this with Uma as Yennifer was able to keep him alive long enough that the next stage of the mutation could be carried out. As for what to do at that next stage, there is any number of possible things. We still do not know what javed used on rayla for her mutation though it was not completely successful. As for the kaer morhen raid, if you played the witcher 3 you can actually find the place where the knowledge was stored but the reason why no one is making witchers is not cause they don't know. Even Yennifer knowing about the ingredients for the trial of the grasses confirms that not all the knowledge is lost. It is because no one wants to do it any more. None of the wolf school is too interested in making more hence why the process has been stopped. Then there is the main reason why new witchers are needed. Let us not forget what we saw near the end of the main game. A conjunction has occurred and things have crossed over. Just who or what has crossed over is still uncertain but it leaves some interesting room for a good story or two.
@@nathan3252 well, as enjoyable the games are, they are not canon. They take place between the end of Geralt's story and the time Nimue supposedly met him hundreds of years later.
@@deutschvanderlinde6900 That is part of the point which you are missing. The games follow in a different canon and therefore have a separate universe. You want to constrain it solely within the book canon alone while the games are a separate thing entirely. This is what leaves it open for the games to continue where the books have stopped. Its sort of like game of thrones. The books have gone in one direction while the tv series have gone in another. They still the same subject matter but things have diverged in far different directions.
The bad ending is my favorite. It fits the mood of the book series where it's mostly gloomy and the protagonist doesn't always get the perfect, ideal ending to everything. It also ties up the loose end of the crones, but introduces another loose end of what exactly happened to Ciri (did she die or did she survive and just didn't want to deal with Geralt anymore?), so it is fully in line with Sapkowski's favorite line "something ends, something begins." The "empress" ending was the ending in my playthrough. I thought it was somewhat contrived, but I appreciated how CDPR made it emotional and also managed to arguably fit something so drastic with Sapkowski's lore. In the books, one of the future snippets (in Lady of the Lake, I believe) states that Movran Voorhis succeeded Emhyr as emperor, and in the game, Movran stated that Ciri would need a suitable husband if she becomes empress, which I thought was a nice attention to detail on part of the developers.
In the bad ending, Ciri doesnt actually die and thats been essentially confirmed by Philip Weber. You can check Xletalis video on the whole thing and how community tried to figure out what Philip Weber and Pawel Sasko meant that there is still one secret that wasnt discovered.
The best thing about the endings in that game is the fact, that all three endings are consisted in one. You can notice the timelines between the endings, and this make that game perfect.
@@IndigoDesert6 Interesting! It looks like a recent discovery just a few months ago, and it makes a lot of sense. Amazing that people are still discovering stuff in this game. When I first saw the ending, my interpretation was that she probably did survive, since there was no way they would kill her off like that, at least not definitively.
I got that ending on First really think It is the best ending. Athough to play the DLCs i went back and got the empress ending. For story perspective I really like the bad ending.
Why do people that have read the books act superior about it. I'm now never going to read the books. I don't want to have the Game's or the show ruined for me.
I can understand someone being content with that ending, but only just as long as they hadn’t read the books, haha. After reading the books, I could never bring myself to do the Empress ending
@@ericsantucci6934 Geralt never would deny Ciri the freedom and happiness she desires. It's totally out of character. He would never put the people of Nilfgaard over his child of surprise. (and in the end she'll anyway save more people as the witcheress than she would as vegetating Empress)
@@GamerFish99 So you're saying that game Geralt, with all his memories, would put anything else above Ciri? Be serious 😒, it's so out of character for him to do, books or games. Geralt loves Ciri the most, and he would put her happines above his or anybody elses for that matter. And so would Yennefer.
@@GamerFish99 I did. I had one blind play through choosing Roche's path. And then other play throughs with guide spoilers just to see the alternative endings.
the depressing ending is straight from 10/10 movie. It's the best and most memorable in my opinion 🖤 soo atmospheric and dramatic. killing the last crone felt so satisfying specially when the werewolf helping and fighting besides you... and when geralt entered and desperately trying to find ciri's medallion my heart shattered so bad 😭😭😭💔 this game inspired me to become a loving father but scares me at the same time. what if something happened to my future daughter or I let her down without knowing it 😢
Looking forward to your reaction of both yen and triss romance at the same time (i don't think there is any spoiler there, since it's connected to main game, not dlc).
idk what that Ephysjig was on about, you dont need to spare anyone to get the empress ending. Kill Radovid, Take Ciri to Emhyr, if you refuse the coin, she becomes Witcher, if you take the coin, she becomes Empress. Simple
The bad ending was my ending. And it wasn't bad parenting at all. It came down to 5 choices and none were bad parenting at all. I was really upset with this ending and my friend was like: wow you made some shitty decisions then. And I was like...um no, I didn't. I felt personally offended but then I googled it and found out it I made three choices I wasn't supposed to make, like drinking instead of the snowball fight and not letting her wreck a laboratory in her anger. I mean....that wasn't bad parenting.
@Etrius0023 oh yeah, you're right. Drinking with your adult daughter is bad. And not letting her destroy stuff that's not hers because she's angry are really bad choices. Shame on me
@@Etrius0023 I can se how dealing your problem with alcohol is bad parenting, But venting your anger this way ? I agree that bottling your feeling is mentaly damaging, but there are other way to vent than destroying everything around you (that's actually called anger issues, not really a healthy way to cope with your emotions), especially stuff that belongs to your allys/friends, I found the scene quite unfair towards Av'Allach, like he was betraying her. Nothing about his laboratory was remotely surprising to find, It's plain that he had an interest in Zirael because of her lineage and it was about work and duty, That doesn't mean he doesn't gueninely cares for her, Ciri's relationship with Yen started exactly the same way.
Btw. You should react to the video of Geralt selling Ciri to Emhyr. Its painful to watch 😬 Henry Cavill said that during his first playthrough he accidentally sold Ciri and had to reload the game loool HC - „I was like - Im going to take the gold and take Ciri with me” and then „wait no! I dont want to leave her behind! Thats not what I have intended, now I come across as a terrible human being!” And he reloaded the game every time he made a wrong decision regarding Ciri 😂 he really is one of us and really cares about these characters. The show has a lot of problems but Henry isnt one of them.
All 3 endings are canon. First geralt thought ciri is dead then ciri appeared. She decided to become a witcher. Geralt gave her a witcher sword. Geralt and Citi spent time together tackling monsters. Then Ciri decided to become empress and gave witcher sword back to geralt.
I like the witcher Ciri ending. Ciri is a free spirit, she can travel through dimensions. Bound her to a throne for all her life is just cruel, even if that what she wants.
If she'd do what she wants for herself, she'd abdicate within a second. But she's too selfless. Geralt on the other hand would always put the happiness of Ciri above the people of Nilfgaard.
Y missed Hjalmars ending and Triss one too. Also there should be mension that Geralt is missing at the end of bad end but for some reason author did not included it. Also I suggest checking Gwent. Card arts present many characters from past that were not in games and they are cannon on games level. For exampe Bonhart, Vilgefortz or how other witcher schools looked like.
I hate how they presented war and politics in this game. Radovid, Geralt, Ves and Roche are kinda ruined a little during the assassination quests... The whole pro nilfgaard side that witcher 3 showed us is too simple. Spoilers for witcher 1 and 2: In the 1 game: Redania and Temeria could have been united, Radovid could marry Foltest's daughter. In the 2 game killing monarchs was handled so much better. Henselt: during Roche's path when we have a choice to kill Henselt the game tells us that it's not that simple and morally good. Kaedwen would fall apart without a king, Roche would become a kingslayer like the one he chases. While Henselt was outright racist and an invader, the game still showed us that killing him may not be the best solution. Stennis: if we kill him, the game showes us how Aedirn falls apart, despite people being free, they're poor and hungry, they will probably choose a new king who can lead them because they can't handle it on their own. Radovid: It never says that Radovid has anything against nonhumans, he only had a problem with mages, which is understandable. During Roche's path we can even make him the king of Temeria with Roche by his side. So this doesn't fit the 3rd game at all. Why would Roche betray the north for so-called freedom (false one because temeria is surrounded by nilfgaard so they can't do anything without their permission). Why would he betray temeria's rightful king (if we gave Anais to Radovid). Why wouldn't Radovid let Temeria be a separate country under his protectorate, why would he hunt nonhumans? I feel like they just wanted to make him the baddie so that players will choose nilfgaard for sure. And the funniest thing, why would Geralt participate in this dumb assassination, he was already accused and tried to clear his name through all 2nd game storyline. Nilfgaard: they failed to show us how occupation looks like. Nilfaard is the most cruel country which caused so many tragic events, and yet here they're shown as a normal military, no cruelty, no lawless actions...
I have one big problem with the Witcher Ciri ending, it is simply unrealistic for a long term. Sooner or later she will be discovered by someone important, especially because there are so many factors which work against her anonimity, At this point she will have to make a hard choice, either to leave the world forever or try to play the game if she get the chance at all.
Did Meg kill Djikstra ? What happened to him in her play through? Djikstra coming to power is the best thing that can happen to the ending politically speaking .
Ciri becoming the Empress, is the most tolerated endings in whole series. The way that the story is going on, makes this game feel more valuable when it comes play the player emotions. Especially when Geralt ends the story with Triss or Yen but not alone, makes this ending the best among the other options.
Nah. If you have any history with the books it flat out doesn't make sense. She would never choose to be Empress for any reason. She only chooses it in the game because the player decides to push her towards it. She's always hated it with a passion.
@@StopReadingMyNameOrElse i mean that game storytelling is convincing me more than books. i didn't like character's behaviours in books, so i don't care about them. The game is different, and some sort of stories are lead in a way which is fine to me and i prefer game storytelling more, but that's only my statement.
@@S0LAVELLANHELL Every game, series or movie doesn't need to follow the content in the books and particular producers, developers or writers can release to us their own version of the story, that is OBVIOUS. It is the same example as you can tell that Netflix series is not followed by books, and who really cares about books? Nobody is gonna tell you that everything must be accordance.
there's a theory that all the 3 main endings are indeed one, in just a correct chronology... and it makes sense if you think about it! (watch some xLetalis)
mine is almost the exact same as yours but i had hjalmar as king and Dijkstra as ruler. i also chose triss but before you get mad i was young and dumb and know that i replay the series i understand that yenn is clearly the only option. but if we could i would have romanced Dijkstra and Gerelt.
Whoever wrote the empress ending deserved a big raise, as much as I love witcher ending but the storytelling of empress ending is truly well done.
It absolutely broke my heart! Totally agree
as far as bittersweet endings go, it hits all the notes perfectly
No offence but I prefer the empress ending over the wither one, even if I can't stand Emyr, it was really well written 😍😍
Yes, the Empress ending is the best one, most people prefer the Witcher ending because it's the feelgood ending.
Przez tyle lat od wydania gry nigdy nie użyłem tego zakończenia bo skoro cesarz Emhyr przez długi czas miał Citi gdzieś to uważam że nie zasłużył na jej powrót
In the Ciri is dead ending there is no Geralt epilogue, meaning his journey 'ended' at that hut
He wasn't forcing her to be empress. If you choose to take her to see her father she will say that her father is planning to abdicate the throne and pass it down to her. And her let's her leave to decide if she wants the throne. Ciri deciding to be empress is entirely her decision. And she sees that during her time hunting monsters that the monarchies neglect their subjects.
I got the Empress ending once, and my biggest surprise was seeing snowy White Orchard, it looks so serene. Then my biggest let-down was that it did not stay snowy after the credits.
Same! I came out of the tavern and just stood there speechless
@@manukeotoko5408 And the thing is, it looks so much better than Skellige snows. They made a unique map and atmosphere for just one ending. Talk about dedication and commitment to an idea. I just love CDPR!
It was the last game secret that was just recently discovered that Ciri also survived in the last ending, but she was so heartbroken with the way Geralt treated her with his choices, the only one who truly cared for her without thinking to use her and her powers in any way, that she decided to cut all ties to everyone( like she just vanished or died) including Geralt.
If you think about it, it was never said 100% that Ciri died. People just assumed it for some reason.
Its Gaunter who reveals that shes not dead right?
But why would she cut ties with Yennefer though? She's her mom and had no impact on Geralts decisions.
@@Synthia17 Since geralt was the most prominent figure in her life. Yen was there but Geralt alot of times was her Father and Friend she always says secrets first to him and her plans also.
@@OdenDChad Yennefer was equally important but the games don't really show it like they should
The flashbacks Ciri has just before she goes into the portal show all the decision points in the game where your choices would have affected the outcome.
I would hate to get it myself, but I love the bad ending so much in terms of writing. It is just brilliantly executed.
had it on my first playthrough... fuckin broke me
The bad ending is my favourite bc it fits the overall theme and tone of the game whereas i feel like the 2 “good” endings cheapen the game and gives it more of a cheesy superhero movie feelgood vibe that flies directly in the face of everything the TW3 was about.
@@AntiChris84 absolutely true, people that arent able to distinguish between a good ending and a happy ending make me angry, in terms of writing, the sad ending is the best ones. The one in which ciri becomes an empress is also quite good, but the one in which ciri becomes a witcher is the worst imo, just a stereotypical good ending. On the other hand, the bad ending is the best one, how geralt is absolutely destroyed inside, and just gives up and lets the monsters end whith his life, brilliant.
@@frooskys22dude wants to be different so bad it’s so tiring
@@Instead2 He's right though? The bad ending is incredibly written. It refers back to the opening comic when you open the game "So called 'Witchers,' Sent to fight monsters, though they could not distinguish good from evil! The flicker of humanity long extinguished within them..." Geralt loses his humanity to grief and goes to fight the crone simply to kill her as he would another monster, for a reward, namely Ciri/vesemirs medallion. Once his final "contract" is complete, Geralt lets himself be killed by the monsters storming the hut, knowing that his purpose as a witcher is complete. It fits with the themes of the story, Geralt fails as a father and becomes what everyone believed witchers to be.
For me, the worst part of the Empress ending is seeing how Ciri refers to/acknowledges Emyhr as her father and not Geralt. Everytime its mentioned in the dialogue you can see how much it hurts Geralt, like it legitimately breaks his heart every time to hear that.😢💔
I got the Ciri becomes an empress ending on my first playthrough, and I cried for 2 days afterward because it made me realize that the choices I made to reach this particular ending really showed how insecure, overprotective, and terrified of loss and failure I really am in real life. It also highlighted how much I am trapped by the fact that I always try to please others and play the roles that I think others want me to play. I felt like the worst person in the world for that, and it seems unreasonable how much it actually affected me given it is "only" a game, but yeah, it really did. Thankfully, the DLCs picked me up a bit after that, especially the Blood and Wine. I'm so grateful I got to play this game. I'll always come back to it. I just love it so much. Best game ever.
But why ban people just for saying there is a true ending? Kinda ridiculous imo
I got the bad, bad ending, it was only two choices that locked me out of any of the good ones, i gave ciri the necklace, and didn't do the snowball fight, to be fair I didn't realize there was clearly a bad option because the way the choices are worded they both seemed like trying to uplift her, i didn't catch on until I noticed she was always looking sad after the choices and course corrected too late.
so did I, because I'd never think the ending is dependant on such stupid things as snowball fight or not joining her talks with filippa and margarita
Played through for the very first time and got bad ending 🥴🥴 didn’t cry, didn’t feel sad, but I was so mad that I had to sleep it off (couldn’t for a while because I was mad as hell).
Reloaded a save but I still have a problem with the logic; no game can be perfect, but good story-writing usually means an accumulation of choices, like RDR2. But, the difference between the most miserable ending for me and the most positive ending, was:
- Letting Ciri speak to mages alone
- Messing up Avallach’s room
… that’s literally it. I’m grateful that I didn’t have to go back very far, I did all the side missions first and then played through story so I returned to a checkpoint. But, seriously? I literally wanted to let her be independent, but because I didn’t trust the mages the entire 70 odd hours prior became redundant? In the battle I wanted her to fight, got no choice for that. How would that potential choice be less impactful than a meeting with mages? I never took her to the emperor, never turned down her requests, but do you know what tipped the balance?? I said:
“You don’t have to be good at everything”
WHAT?? IS THE LIFE LESSON TO PROMOTE NARCISSISM?? NEXT TIME ILL SAY SHES GOD , MY BAD
Idk, feel like I’m forced to just look up the right choices every single time no matter the game because I can NEVER anticipate what the developers want to teach, and then I end up with miserable endings.
Same I was so surprised I got the worst ending because I thought I did everything right but I wanted more of the game. I started playing the dlcs and am gonna do new game plus to try to get the best ending. A blind first play through is always a good idea
I feel you. I got the Empress ending on a first playthrough, almost got the worst ending, but it brought forth so many negative parallels to my own life that I cried for 2 days. I'm only just now starting to accept it. Actually, the ending I got isn't bad at all, definitely not as bad as 'the worst ending,' but it's more that it became a mirror for me, and a picture I didn't want to see. It was so unexpected.
Here are my choices:
- I took Ciri to the emperor but didn't accept the reward. At that point, I hadn't read the books or played The Witcher 1 and 2, only watched the Netflix show until the second season. So, I guess I didn't fully comprehend how bad Emhyr is, though in the books I read later, I was left with mixed feelings about him.
- I didn't let Ciri trash Avallac'h's laboratory because I thought self-control is important, as I had none for a long time and really regretted some of my outbursts. I also gave her the necklace because I didn't realize yet that it was a burden to her, being special. I suppose it's because I wish I were a bit more 'special' instead of mediocre.
- I didn't trust the sorceresses. Again, I think at that point, I didn't know enough about them, almost nothing, so I was overprotective.
- In fact, I would've gotten the worst ending if I hadn't immediately gone back and changed my choice at Kaer Morhen when I saw the 'you don't have to be good at everything' led to excessive drinking. Initially, I chose it because I thought having all that weight on her shoulders is really tough, and I wanted to comfort her. But it seems it was considered bad timing for such statements. I didn't know that choice was one of the impactful ones when I decided to change it, but yeah, I guess you could say I cheated in a sense.
So here I am. The text of the choices is sometimes misleading, and I agree with you. I was angry and frustrated too, especially when I learned that only that one change of choice saved me from getting the worst ending.
I absolutely love the game, though, and thankfully DLCs saved me from utter depression. I'll always return to it.
My favorite one is the second ending because... In a way it comes full circle with geralt always believing in ciri and her decisions while always presenting them to her.
So when she decides to become empress he has done everything as a supporting father, but the little swallow has to leave the nest 🥺
When she becomes empress, she's damned to live in unhappiness without the freedom she desired. The little swallow was always meant to become the witcheress.
@@iliboxic7586 that would still have been her choice to make, to become empress or not. And without spoiling I think she could still make her own decision to leave if she were to feel unhappy... Ergo the "you'll find me" from geralt
The worst one is the ,,best" one. Even when Ciri was child she didnt like to stay neutral (travelling with Triss after Kear Morhen training) so i dont buy ending when she choses not to become an empress instead of being witcher. Im sure shed rather have influence on big scale where she could make living easier and happier for many people and other races.
I swear the worst ending destroys me everytime i see it
Good father = believing in your daughter and her decisions = good ending. Bad father = controlling you daughter and forcing certain behaviours on her = bad ending.
There's a theory that all three endings happen but in succession (if you ignore the "X weeks after" ofc, it's just a headcanon).
First is the "dead" Ciri ending, Geralt hunts the last crone and gets the medallion back as he really thinks she's dead.
Then the Witcher Ciri ending, she comes back, Geralt tells Emhyr she's dead and no one can find her, and she sets on the path.
And finally, she decides to settle down, as she says, to make a difference from a position she can actually do it, and returns from "Exile" (i.e. The Path) and ascends to the throne as Empress, specially since this is the ending we see the most development in every one (and also seeing Zoltan and Dandelion)
Be aware the post game syndrome hits you really hard after a game like this...
there arent many games that are cappable of doing this type of effect, only a few games and TV shows, it really hits you...
so far i only felt like this with this game and the mass effect trilogy, i think its mostly related with the character development, you kinda feel immersed into the world almost like you know persoanly the characters, its really tricky...
I wonder how hard this will become a in a few years when gamas of this quality of writting become as realistic as the current unreal engine 5 allready is cappable off, then you will be really hit like truck everytime someone dies, or feel even seriously atracted into a piece of 3d modeling...
as insane as the world goes, i do love to watch how people unleash their emotions under this sitatuons and this game is an autentic master piece... it goes further than a simple RPG in my opinion.
True. I finished this game in 2016 and I still sometimes listen to the kaer morhen soundtrack and get nostalgic. Im not considered a sentimental guy but this game really left is mark on me
It is Ciri's duty to be Empress, just like it is Alistairs duty to marry Anora and be King.
2:58 I took Ciri to see Emyr because I wanted to uncover more story information. I did not know that choosing that option will cause me to get the Empress ending because the game did not explicitly tell me so.
yeah I dont think Ciri died in the bad ending. The white frost would have destroyed the world if Ciri had failed to stop it and just died. She most likely survived and just left because she didnt want to see Geralt anymore because in that particular ending he was a bad father and didnt let her make her own decisions :
Is like she won on her own.
"why would anyone go see emyr?"
BECAUSE I WANT THE BLACK HORSE
He didnt die in the bad ending, blood and wine continues the story and mentions ciri being dead.
Cannot wait for you to compleye both the DLCs and then watch the 10 year anniversary video!
honestly, the CGI geralt can emote better than henry cavill ever did
Triss, Yen or both? I like all 3 options. But I never could let Geralt send Ciri to Emhyr. Geralt would always put the happiness of Ciri above anything else. The life as the witcheress is perfect for Ciri.
But Ciri doesn't need to become the head of Nilfgaard after all, she still can stay with Geralt, Emhyr is fair guy, he's a prick but he is honest
I wish people would talk after the endings not during. Could barely hear the game dialogue.
You dont think the being an empress of a nation doesnt give Ciri more power to help all of the people potentially? I got this ending and for me this was the perfect way to end the trilogy since at some point as a parent you have to let go of your child and let her or him experience the life in his or her way.
For me, Empress Ciri is the best ending... It just seems better for everyone. Granted, Ciri probably would choose the Witcher ending for herself, but it's sort of a "with great power comes great responsibility" thing. She could do so much good, so for me that's the best one.
Witcher Ending for Ciri is the best.. we saw to an extent that even Geralt as a Witcher still got some involvement to some politics and even involve in genocide that killed radovid.. Ciri as a Witcher will got the same experiance about politics like Geralt and she still could became an emperor willingly if she didn't like how Nilfgaard govern and all.. i prefer her decide to become emperor herself than force Ciri to take responsibility by choosing that ending.. all and all it's just my thought..
Yeah, I feel like and I got this ending on my first playthrough the empress ending is the best for the in-game world. Ciri would make a great ruler, she'd lead to peace.
It's heartbreaking but it's what I'd choose in the middle of the night
And with Ceris accross the sea it would make a great match.
If Dijkstra became ruler (if you don't kill him after assassinating Radovid) , he will defeat Nilfgaard and restore the north. Ciri can still become a witcher.
I lean towards Ciri becoming empress as I see it as the best possible way CDPR could make a witcher academy game. Ciri sees the future of witchers as bleak as a census confirms their numbers are too small so she sets about to create a new school for the witchers. This school would not be based on random children chosen by witchers but rather those who volunteer to become witchers. They would be trained by some of the best witchers, swordmasters, sorceresses, and scholars so that they could one day serve as the next generation of protectors against monsters. The game could continue the events from the third game but instead of people playing as geralt you forge your own characters with your own story and allies. It could serve as both a single player story driven experience as well as a multiplayer game.
that would be a very stupid and controversial thing to do on Ciri's part.
For one, only very young children can go through the trial of the grasses. So forget about volunteering
Also 7/10 are destined to die just for the trial of the grasses. Many more die in provings.
Thirdly, if I remember it right, there is no way to create more Witchers because the knowledge of the procedure died with the previous generation of Witchers during the Kaer Morhen raid. I believe its the same one that was featured in the Nightmare of the Wolf anime.
At this point its just better to train battle mages like Vilgefortz instead of Witchers
@@deutschvanderlinde6900 Technically the canon has left a few loop holes depending on if you go solely with the books or the expended canon in the games. You are basing this solely on the books alone where is the games left a lot of loop holes.
For starters, as Kalkstein and azar javed confirmed that witchers do not always have to be made with children. The difference is children take a more organic approach that has a chance of success or failure. By use of magic on the other hand, a witcher mutation can be done without the risk of death. We saw evidence of this with Uma as Yennifer was able to keep him alive long enough that the next stage of the mutation could be carried out. As for what to do at that next stage, there is any number of possible things. We still do not know what javed used on rayla for her mutation though it was not completely successful.
As for the kaer morhen raid, if you played the witcher 3 you can actually find the place where the knowledge was stored but the reason why no one is making witchers is not cause they don't know. Even Yennifer knowing about the ingredients for the trial of the grasses confirms that not all the knowledge is lost. It is because no one wants to do it any more. None of the wolf school is too interested in making more hence why the process has been stopped.
Then there is the main reason why new witchers are needed. Let us not forget what we saw near the end of the main game. A conjunction has occurred and things have crossed over. Just who or what has crossed over is still uncertain but it leaves some interesting room for a good story or two.
@@nathan3252 well, as enjoyable the games are, they are not canon. They take place between the end of Geralt's story and the time Nimue supposedly met him hundreds of years later.
@@deutschvanderlinde6900 That is part of the point which you are missing. The games follow in a different canon and therefore have a separate universe. You want to constrain it solely within the book canon alone while the games are a separate thing entirely. This is what leaves it open for the games to continue where the books have stopped. Its sort of like game of thrones. The books have gone in one direction while the tv series have gone in another. They still the same subject matter but things have diverged in far different directions.
On my second playthrough I did the bad ending and I cried my eyes out and threw my controller on the ground I couldn't handle it
I would only accept Ciri as Empress if Emyr was dead and the Temerian friends were alive.
If emyr is dead, most likely others will violently fill the power vacuum
The bad ending is my favorite. It fits the mood of the book series where it's mostly gloomy and the protagonist doesn't always get the perfect, ideal ending to everything. It also ties up the loose end of the crones, but introduces another loose end of what exactly happened to Ciri (did she die or did she survive and just didn't want to deal with Geralt anymore?), so it is fully in line with Sapkowski's favorite line "something ends, something begins." The "empress" ending was the ending in my playthrough. I thought it was somewhat contrived, but I appreciated how CDPR made it emotional and also managed to arguably fit something so drastic with Sapkowski's lore. In the books, one of the future snippets (in Lady of the Lake, I believe) states that Movran Voorhis succeeded Emhyr as emperor, and in the game, Movran stated that Ciri would need a suitable husband if she becomes empress, which I thought was a nice attention to detail on part of the developers.
In the bad ending, Ciri doesnt actually die and thats been essentially confirmed by Philip Weber. You can check Xletalis video on the whole thing and how community tried to figure out what Philip Weber and Pawel Sasko meant that there is still one secret that wasnt discovered.
The best thing about the endings in that game is the fact, that all three endings are consisted in one. You can notice the timelines between the endings, and this make that game perfect.
I get that ending the first time, was pretty sad for a while but looking at the other endings it seems the best written ending imo
@@IndigoDesert6 Interesting! It looks like a recent discovery just a few months ago, and it makes a lot of sense. Amazing that people are still discovering stuff in this game. When I first saw the ending, my interpretation was that she probably did survive, since there was no way they would kill her off like that, at least not definitively.
I got that ending on First really think It is the best ending. Athough to play the DLCs i went back and got the empress ending. For story perspective I really like the bad ending.
Why do people that have read the books act superior about it. I'm now never going to read the books. I don't want to have the Game's or the show ruined for me.
No one cares
you gotta finish Blood and Wine DLC. that's the true end.
i gor the ending where ciri becomes empress and i am very happy with it!
I can understand someone being content with that ending, but only just as long as they hadn’t read the books, haha. After reading the books, I could never bring myself to do the Empress ending
@@ericsantucci6934 Geralt never would deny Ciri the freedom and happiness she desires. It's totally out of character. He would never put the people of Nilfgaard over his child of surprise. (and in the end she'll anyway save more people as the witcheress than she would as vegetating Empress)
@@ericsantucci6934 If you have read the books you know Geralt of the game is not the Geralt of the books. Its not the same, and its not meant to be.
@@GamerFish99 So you're saying that game Geralt, with all his memories, would put anything else above Ciri?
Be serious 😒, it's so out of character for him to do, books or games.
Geralt loves Ciri the most, and he would put her happines above his or anybody elses for that matter.
And so would Yennefer.
In law of surprise geralt demanded a witcher so the destiny isn't fulfilled so that's not the good ending
Twitch is going crazy, thank god meg is here
Got the ending and i don't want to eat for 2 hours
My favorite ending is always Ciri becoming a witcher and Dijkstra becoming the ruler. Don't see Roche after anyway
Damn, letting down Roche after what he did for you in the second game. Dint know Geralt let down his friends like that
@@GamerFish99 Roche has many alternative ending in the 2nd game tho. He could become a witch hunter by some of your choices
@@manofsesame3024 What?? Thats not true at all. Have you even played the game?
@@GamerFish99 I did. I had one blind play through choosing Roche's path. And then other play throughs with guide spoilers just to see the alternative endings.
King Radovid unified the North and punished sorceresses and mages the source of all evil
the depressing ending is straight from 10/10 movie. It's the best and most memorable in my opinion 🖤
soo atmospheric and dramatic. killing the last crone felt so satisfying specially when the werewolf helping and fighting besides you... and when geralt entered and desperately trying to find ciri's medallion my heart shattered so bad 😭😭😭💔
this game inspired me to become a loving father but scares me at the same time. what if something happened to my future daughter or I let her down without knowing it 😢
35:58 well technically you done have your worst by choosing the worst possible choices on purpose😉.. poor Geralt... it's a thug life🤣🤣
I got myself the third ending, i didnt touch the game for a year..
"No witcher has ever died in bed"
Looking forward to your reaction of both yen and triss romance at the same time (i don't think there is any spoiler there, since it's connected to main game, not dlc).
idk what that Ephysjig was on about, you dont need to spare anyone to get the empress ending. Kill Radovid, Take Ciri to Emhyr, if you refuse the coin, she becomes Witcher, if you take the coin, she becomes Empress. Simple
The bad ending was my ending. And it wasn't bad parenting at all. It came down to 5 choices and none were bad parenting at all. I was really upset with this ending and my friend was like: wow you made some shitty decisions then. And I was like...um no, I didn't. I felt personally offended but then I googled it and found out it I made three choices I wasn't supposed to make, like drinking instead of the snowball fight and not letting her wreck a laboratory in her anger. I mean....that wasn't bad parenting.
Teaching your kid to bottle up their anger and abuse booze to deal with their failings is not good parenting, lol.
@Etrius0023 oh yeah, you're right. Drinking with your adult daughter is bad. And not letting her destroy stuff that's not hers because she's angry are really bad choices. Shame on me
@@Etrius0023 I can se how dealing your problem with alcohol is bad parenting, But venting your anger this way ?
I agree that bottling your feeling is mentaly damaging, but there are other way to vent than destroying everything around you (that's actually called anger issues, not really a healthy way to cope with your emotions), especially stuff that belongs to your allys/friends,
I found the scene quite unfair towards Av'Allach, like he was betraying her.
Nothing about his laboratory was remotely surprising to find, It's plain that he had an interest in Zirael because of her lineage and it was about work and duty, That doesn't mean he doesn't gueninely cares for her, Ciri's relationship with Yen started exactly the same way.
I feel like someone is squeezing my throat...
Btw. You should react to the video of Geralt selling Ciri to Emhyr. Its painful to watch 😬 Henry Cavill said that during his first playthrough he accidentally sold Ciri and had to reload the game loool
HC - „I was like - Im going to take the gold and take Ciri with me” and then „wait no! I dont want to leave her behind! Thats not what I have intended, now I come across as a terrible human being!”
And he reloaded the game every time he made a wrong decision regarding Ciri 😂 he really is one of us and really cares about these characters. The show has a lot of problems but Henry isnt one of them.
Unfortunately Henry is the only person who seems to care about the franchise on that show.
witcher 3 has 36 endings and combination of different outcomes
The Empress ending makes me feel worse than the "bad" ending.
I agree. Can't have read the books & STILL think that's a "good" ending...
All 3 endings are canon. First geralt thought ciri is dead then ciri appeared. She decided to become a witcher. Geralt gave her a witcher sword. Geralt and Citi spent time together tackling monsters. Then Ciri decided to become empress and gave witcher sword back to geralt.
No, lmao
I like the witcher Ciri ending. Ciri is a free spirit, she can travel through dimensions. Bound her to a throne for all her life is just cruel, even if that what she wants.
Ciri could abdicate if she ever wanted to pursue being a witcher.
If she'd do what she wants for herself, she'd abdicate within a second. But she's too selfless. Geralt on the other hand would always put the happiness of Ciri above the people of Nilfgaard.
Y missed Hjalmars ending and Triss one too. Also there should be mension that Geralt is missing at the end of bad end but for some reason author did not included it. Also I suggest checking Gwent. Card arts present many characters from past that were not in games and they are cannon on games level. For exampe Bonhart, Vilgefortz or how other witcher schools looked like.
bad ending is the best one lol, the other too are too cheesy and stereotypical good endings, the bad one is original and raw
I hate how they presented war and politics in this game. Radovid, Geralt, Ves and Roche are kinda ruined a little during the assassination quests... The whole pro nilfgaard side that witcher 3 showed us is too simple. Spoilers for witcher 1 and 2:
In the 1 game: Redania and Temeria could have been united, Radovid could marry Foltest's daughter.
In the 2 game killing monarchs was handled so much better.
Henselt: during Roche's path when we have a choice to kill Henselt the game tells us that it's not that simple and morally good. Kaedwen would fall apart without a king, Roche would become a kingslayer like the one he chases. While Henselt was outright racist and an invader, the game still showed us that killing him may not be the best solution.
Stennis: if we kill him, the game showes us how Aedirn falls apart, despite people being free, they're poor and hungry, they will probably choose a new king who can lead them because they can't handle it on their own.
Radovid: It never says that Radovid has anything against nonhumans, he only had a problem with mages, which is understandable. During Roche's path we can even make him the king of Temeria with Roche by his side.
So this doesn't fit the 3rd game at all. Why would Roche betray the north for so-called freedom (false one because temeria is surrounded by nilfgaard so they can't do anything without their permission). Why would he betray temeria's rightful king (if we gave Anais to Radovid). Why wouldn't Radovid let Temeria be a separate country under his protectorate, why would he hunt nonhumans? I feel like they just wanted to make him the baddie so that players will choose nilfgaard for sure. And the funniest thing, why would Geralt participate in this dumb assassination, he was already accused and tried to clear his name through all 2nd game storyline.
Nilfgaard: they failed to show us how occupation looks like. Nilfaard is the most cruel country which caused so many tragic events, and yet here they're shown as a normal military, no cruelty, no lawless actions...
Well take solace in the fact that you got the best ending, haha
I unlocked the best ending"she-witcher" in my first try!!!
The Ciri dies ending is the canon ending to the game. Its mentioned in the blood and wine expansion following this.
WDM? From what I've heard if you neither romanced Triss nor Yennefer, Ciri comes to visit you at the end of B&W.
I have one big problem with the Witcher Ciri ending, it is simply unrealistic for a long term. Sooner or later she will be discovered by someone important, especially because there are so many factors which work against her anonimity, At this point she will have to make a hard choice, either to leave the world forever or try to play the game if she get the chance at all.
I don't think book Geralt would visit Emhyr with Ciri so the witcheress ending is canon in my eyes
oh i was waiting for this :) i actually got the "bad" ending on my first playthrough.
Did Meg kill Djikstra ? What happened to him in her play through? Djikstra coming to power is the best thing that can happen to the ending politically speaking .
But you have to let him kill Roche
If there is one thing Geralt could do to be out of character then it would be abandoning roche and ves and let them be slaughtered
I actually think the ending with ciri dying is the best ending.
Can i play as geralt after the bad ending or he’s dead?!!
Ciri becoming the Empress, is the most tolerated endings in whole series. The way that the story is going on, makes this game feel more valuable when it comes play the player emotions. Especially when Geralt ends the story with Triss or Yen but not alone, makes this ending the best among the other options.
Nah. If you have any history with the books it flat out doesn't make sense. She would never choose to be Empress for any reason. She only chooses it in the game because the player decides to push her towards it. She's always hated it with a passion.
@@StopReadingMyNameOrElse i mean that game storytelling is convincing me more than books. i didn't like character's behaviours in books, so i don't care about them. The game is different, and some sort of stories are lead in a way which is fine to me and i prefer game storytelling more, but that's only my statement.
@@Szwedamu12 just bc you don’t like their behaviors doesn’t mean they aren’t canon or applied to the game lol.
@@S0LAVELLANHELL Every game, series or movie doesn't need to follow the content in the books and particular producers, developers or writers can release to us their own version of the story, that is OBVIOUS. It is the same example as you can tell that Netflix series is not followed by books, and who really cares about books? Nobody is gonna tell you that everything must be accordance.
the dlc are fun no need to rush them
there's a theory that all the 3 main endings are indeed one, in just a correct chronology... and it makes sense if you think about it! (watch some xLetalis)
But there is a true canon ending
mine is almost the exact same as yours but i had hjalmar as king and Dijkstra as ruler. i also chose triss but before you get mad i was young and dumb and know that i replay the series i understand that yenn is clearly the only option. but if we could i would have romanced Dijkstra and Gerelt.
Never feel bad for choosing Triss.
Single Geralt is the best Geralt. Sorceress are just the worse. I like the romance from the heart of stone DLC better.
The worst ending
ref