Witcher 3 is way better than 2. I couldn’t finish 2 because I thought the mechanics were bad.
3 still has semi mediocre combat, but it’s serviceable and way better than in 2.
Personally I just set it down to the easiest level and plowed through it, because the story and how it is told is really the strength
Unfortunately I’ve never played the first Nier or any of the drakengard games, but Nier Automata has 1) a crazy story that will surprise you and make you think and 2) good platinum (if somewhat simplified from their best) gameplay.
If you like Platinum, it might be worth it to track down their transformers game. I really liked it, even though it basically has combat that is a ripoff of Bayonetta, it scratches an itch for fans of 80s Transformers. It has like 4 or 5 playable characters that at least 3 or so are meaningfully different and a pseudo Diablo loot system. It’s better than it deserves to be for something clearly made on a budget.