The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Developer(s) CD Projekt RED
Publisher(s) POL cdp.pl
PAL Bandai Namco Entertainment[1]
CIS 1C Company
NA WB Games
JP Spike Chunsoft
SA Megarom Interactive
Director(s) Konrad Tomaszkiewicz[2]
Writer(s) Marcin Blacha (lead)
Borys Pugacz-Muraszkiewicz
Jakub Szamalek
Composer(s) Marcin Przybyłowicz[3]
Mikołaj Stroiński
Series The Witcher
Engine REDengine 3 with Umbra 3, PhysX and SpeedTree
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 4[4]
Xbox One[5]
Release date(s)
  • WW May 19, 2015
Genre(s) Action role-playing
Mode(s) Single-player
Distribution Optical disc, download

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Polish: Wiedźmin 3: Dziki Gon) is an upcoming action role-playing video game set in an open world environment, that is currently in development by Polish video game developer CD Projekt RED.[6] It is scheduled to be released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on May 19, 2015.[7] The game is still not officially confirmed for Linux or OS X; however, it may be possible that the game will be released on these platforms at a later time.[8] The game will be the third in the series, preceded by The Witcher and The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, which are based on the series of fantasy novels of the same title by the Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, but take place after them.

Gameplay

CD Projekt RED has said that it is not necessary to have played the previous games to fully enjoy Wild Hunt.[9] While similar to the previous Witcher games, Wild Hunt has improved on several aspects from past games. Combat revolves around an action role-playing game system combined with the use of magic. The fighting system has been completely revamped.[9] Wild Hunt introduces some new mechanics, such as witcher-sense, combat on horseback, and at sea, swimming underwater, and using a crossbow. Additionally, Geralt can now jump, climb, and vault over smaller obstacles. The climbing mechanics have been described as "not exactly" like Assassin's Creed, but more "similar to what we have in Uncharted."[10] Item creation and potion brewing still remains as in previous games, but has been modified from The Witcher 2. There are 10 witcher signs, 5 original ones, each having 1 alternative form.

Each action the player does will affect the world; every quest has a plethora of options on how to complete it, and every outcome is different each time. CD Projekt RED anticipates approximately 100 hours for the completion of the game,[11] 50 of them belonging to side quests, and 50 belonging to the main story line.[11]

The game features a dynamic day and night system, realistic AI, responsive and dynamic environments. The day and night cycle will influence some monsters and their powers, similar to how a werewolf would gain powers during the night of a full moon.[12] The game also features a dynamic beard growth system, in which the beard of the playable character Geralt will grow when he travels between regions. According to the developer, the beard will grow "in different states". However, this feature will not be available after the player downloaded the free Beard and Hairstyle DLC.[13]

Ciri, an exceptional swordfighter with mythical powers, will be a playable character for part of the game.[14]

Synopsis

Setting

The setting is more than "30 times larger" than previous Witcher games,[15][16] requiring players to use a sailboat to some locations and ride by horseback to others. However, fast travelling around the areas of known locations is also possible.[17] The Witcher 3 has been described as "20% bigger than Skyrim".[18]

Plot

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt concludes the story of the witcher Geralt of Rivia, the series' protagonist, whose story to date has been covered in the previous versions.[17] Continuing from The Witcher 2, the ones who sought to use Geralt are now gone. Geralt seeks to embark on a new and personal mission, whilst the world order itself is coming to a change.[19] Geralt's new mission comes in dark times as the mysterious and otherworldly army known as the Wild Hunt invades the Northern Kingdoms, leaving only blood soaked earth and fiery ruin in its wake; and it seems the Witcher is the key to stopping their cataclysmic rampage.

Development

The game was officially announced on 4 February 2013 via Game Informer, with a 2014 release on PC and "all high-end platforms available".[20] The latter was then clarified to mean the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One on 21 February 2013[21] and 10 June 2013[22] respectively. According to the official information from Microsoft, The Witcher 3 was originally not going to be available on the Xbox One in Poland, the country where the game's development process is taking place. However, this has recently changed as regional restrictions have been entirely removed from the Xbox One.[23]

On 11 March 2014, it was announced that the game's release date was delayed from Autumn 2014 to February 2015. According to an official statement released by the development team, they had successfully created "a story that flows naturally, cinematically, rendered it in amazing sound and visuals, while preserving full freedom of choice" - suggesting that the core game and its main story were practically finished. However, the statement then goes on to cite the main reason for the delay was manual fine-tuning of many details and thorough testing of the final product to bring it up to the desired standard of quality.[24] On December 8, 2014, the developer officially informed about postponing the release date to May 19, 2015.[25]

On April 7, 2015, CD Projekt RED announced two expansion packs for the game titled Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine. Hearts of Stone is expected to release in October 2015, and Blood and Wine is expected to release in early 2016.[26] On April 16, 2015, CD Projekt RED confirmed that the game had been declared gold, indicating it was being prepared for duplication and release.[27]

The PlayStation 4 requires a 50GB installation.[28]

Game engine

See also: REDengine

The Witcher 3 will feature the new REDengine 3 game engine, developed by CD Projekt RED and designed specifically for nonlinear role-playing video games set in vast open world environments.[29] It is supposed to help eliminate many of the game development trade-offs previous developers faced, allowing The Witcher 3 developers to create "an open environment with a complex, multi-thread story."[29] CD Projekt RED has integrated the Umbra 3 Visibility Solution into its engine to handle occlusion culling. Engineers from Umbra and CDP demonstrated the use of the technology at the Game Developers Conference 2014.[30] As in the previous two Witcher games, players are presented with a complex story featuring multiple choices bearing associated consequences. But REDengine allows for a complex story line without sacrificing the design of the virtual world.[29] Consequently, The Witcher 3 features no loading screens, providing players a vast visual environment that allows players to freely explore and roam.[29]

Reception

Pre-release

The Witcher 3 has won several awards at E3 in both 2013 and 2014. The title was voted as 'best role-playing game' at the Best of E3 Awards conducted by IGN consecutively in 2013 and 2014.[31][32] Furthermore, it won IGN's E3 People's Choice Award in 2013 and 2014, and won GameSpot's E3 People's Choice Award in 2014,[33][34] as well as the Most Wanted Award in the 31st and 32nd Golden Joystick Award.[35][36] It also won the Most Anticipated Game during The Game Awards 2014 in Las Vegas.[37]

References

  1. ↑ "NAMCO BANDAI to promote The Witcher 3 in Australia and New Zealand". CD Projekt RED. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 29 March 2014.
  2. ↑ MacDonald, Keza (27 March 2013). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is "The Next Step for RPGs"". IGN. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  3. ↑ Smoszna, Krystian (21 August 2014). ""We don’t define folk" Says The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Composer". GamePressure. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
  4. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (21 February 2013). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt confirmed for PlayStation 4 in 2014". Eurogamer. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  5. ↑ Purchese, Robert (10 June 2013). "The Witcher 3 confirmed for Xbox One, has optional Kinect commands, SmartGlass stuff". Eurogamer. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  6. ↑ "Wiedźmin 3: Dziki Gon, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PC)". GRY-Online.pl. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  7. ↑ Karmali, Luke (8 December 2014). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt release date delayed again". IGN. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  8. ↑ "Interview with Michal Stec - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Gamescom 2014". YouTube.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "What can you expect from The Witcher 3?". dna.
  10. ↑ Purchese, Robert (3 December 2013). "The Witcher 3: The Skyrim debate, the game on PS4, nuggets of clarification and a whiff of multiplayer". Eurogamer. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Karmali, Luke (25 October 2013). "The Witcher 3 to Have Over 100 Hours of Content". IGN. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
  12. ↑ "Why Geralt has cheered up for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt". Official Xbox Magazine. GamesRadar+. 25 February 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  13. ↑ Makuch, Eddie (24 March 2015). "Dynamic Beard Growth Confirmed for Witcher 3". GameSpot. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  14. ↑ Makuch, Eddie. "Meet Ciri, The Witcher 3's Playable Female Character". GameSpot.
  15. ↑ Biessener, Adam (4 February 2013). "March Cover Revealed: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt". Game Informer. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
  16. ↑ Kain, Eric (5 February 2013). "'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt' Bigger Than Skyrim, 30 Times The Size Of 'The Witcher 2". Forbes. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Purchese, Robert (4 February 2013). "Screenshots of next-gen RPG The Witcher 3. Update: It won't be the final Witcher game.". Game Informer. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  18. ↑ "GS News - The Witcher 3 set to be 20% bigger than Skyrim". GameSpot. 5 February 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  19. ↑ WaSaBe (15 June 2013). "The Witcher 3 interview with gameplay producer (E3 2013)". GameOverviews. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
  20. ↑ Biessener, Adam (4 February 2013). "March Cover Revealed: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt". Game Informer. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  21. ↑ Kato, Matthew (21 February 2013). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Confirmed For PlayStation 4". Game Informer. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  22. ↑ Marchiafava, Jeff (10 June 2013). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Coming To Xbox One". Game Informer. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  23. ↑ Usher, William (13 June 2013). "The Witcher 3 not on Xbox One in Poland". Cinemablend. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  24. ↑ The Board of CD Projekt SA (11 March 2014). "Release Date of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – An Open Letter". CD Projekt. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  25. ↑ The Board of CD Projekt SA (8 December 2014). "Release Date of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – An Open Letter". CD Projekt. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  26. ↑ Krupa, Daniel (April 7, 2015). "2 "Massive" Expansions Announced for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  27. ↑ Kato, Matthew (April 16, 2015). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Has Gone Gold". Game Informer. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  28. ↑ http://www.vg247.com/2015/02/02/the-witcher-3-is-at-least-50gb-install-on-ps4/
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 29.3 "Press release posted to IGN forums". Projekt RED. 1 February 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
  30. ↑ Lillah, Sarmad (11 April 2014). "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is using Umbra 3". SegmentNext. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
  31. ↑ "IGN's Best of E3 2013 Awards". IGN.
  32. ↑ "IGN's Best of E3 2014 Awards". IGN.
  33. ↑ "E3 2014: People's Choice Award Winner". IGN.
  34. ↑ Haywald, Justin (25 June 2014). "Best of E3 2014: People's Choice Award Winners Announced". GameSpot. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  35. ↑ "Golden Joysticks 2013: Full list of winners". Computer and Video Games. 25 October 2013. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  36. ↑ Ivan, Tom (24 October 2014). "Golden Joysticks 2014: Full list of winners". Computer and Video Games. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  37. ↑ "Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is Most Anticipated Game, new trailer released!". CD Projekt RED. 6 December 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2014.

External links

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