Witcher 3

jooka · Apr 22, 2015

I am ready, my PC is not. Really don't want to go ps4 on this one tho.

mixtilplix · Apr 22, 2015

Tuco_sl said:
Thinking about it more, I'm a little surprised that Witcher isn't trying to leverage the GoT popularity to sell itself. The themes in the Witcher and the ASoIAF universe are very similar. Lots of sex, cynicism, bigotry, peasantry-getting-wrekt, violence and political posturing.

I think that's what they are doing by having Dancer voice the king of Nilfgard. CD Projekt seem to have a down to earth marketing department so I think they strive not to make direct comparisons but anyone who likes GOT is going to dig the witcher although there is a lot more magic in the witcherverse. Too bad they didn't get it out sooner while Dancer's character was still alive in GOT. And there are definitely similarieties to GOT and the witcher novels. Ciri is pretty much a jon snow/araya character.

Pyksel · Apr 22, 2015

Tuco_sl said:
He's such a good actor that he can just be handed a script and be directed into delivering a top notch performance. He's a real professional in that sense which is why he has such a prolific record. I'm surprised he hadn't done games before.

Couldn't agree more!

Zaphid · Apr 22, 2015

You guys know that the Witcher books precede GoT by more than a decade, right ?

They are well known in Europe, with a lot of people looking at the new wave of "mature" fantasy slightly amused.

Vorph · Apr 22, 2015

Tuco_sl said:
It gets me worried when games start bringing up their difficulty next to the Dark Souls games. Dark Souls isn't just difficult, but the gameplay is also balanced on the head of a pin. The entire game is designed around the player being consistently challenged in ways that other RPGs aren't. Specifically when you suck you have to repeat the same sequence many times, increasing your levels as you learn the content. By the time you learn the content and get by, you'll be overleveled. When you're good, you'll cut through the content quickly and be underleveled.

So when game companies see Dark Souls' success and think it's only because the game is hard, it can be a dangerous road. We've all played games that basically break down on a hard difficulty setting, giving rise to strategies that are completely outside the design.

That was the biggest problem with Witcher 2. The combat system simply wasn't up to the task of making a hard game fun and rewarding. With a Souls game I will resist the temptation to switch to ranged magic, hide behind a shield like a pussy, etc. and just force myself to get better. Witcher 2? Nah, just load up Aard (pre-nerf) or Quen and cheese to victory.

I'm sure TW3 will have mechanics that can be abused, I just hope the combat system is tight enough this time that I can ignore that stuff.

Droigan · Apr 22, 2015

MSI is ready for Windows 10, are you? | MSI Gaming Series

Windows 10 is coming, what does that mean for gaming?The most exciting part of Windows 10 for gamers is the introduction of DirectX 12. You are likely to start seeing the benefits of the new graphics technology already in The Witcher 3, Batman: Arkham Knight and more games released later this year. Some CPU-bound games like MMO?s are able get a performance bump of up to 50% according to Microsoft, which just sounds epic to us!

So, DirectX 12 is coming with Windows 10, allowing for even smoother gameplay and richer game worlds. Phil Spencer from Microsoft also revealed that Unity, the most popular open-source game development engine, will also support DirectX 12, so anyone can create games that are optimized for the upcoming Windows 10 platform.

Below you see an example of the API optimizations DirectX12 yields compared to Direct11. In this particular benchmark, DirectX12 actually doubles the FPS. This looks very promising! So how does it work?

So most likely a patch coming after Win 10 hits. If they have internal DX 12 builds, that could also explain the earlier disparity between the look of some gameplay trailers/screenshots compared to now where the graphics seem to have taken a little bump down.

Tuco · Apr 22, 2015

Zaphid_sl said:
You guys know that the Witcher books precede GoT by more than a decade, right ?

They are well known in Europe, with a lot of people looking at the new wave of "mature" fantasy slightly amused.

GoT's first book came out in '96 and The Last Wish came out in 93 (The english version in 2007), so they were released around the same time and in somewhat different markets.

However, all that doesn't matter. 8 million people watched the premeire of season 5 of GoT. Witcher2 sold 1.7 million copies total. GoT is a much larger market and has many people who were introduced to mature fantasy through it.

Zaphid · Apr 22, 2015

Tuco_sl said:
GoT's first book came out in '96 and The Last Wish came out in 93 (The english version in 2007), so they were released around the same time and in somewhat different markets.

However, all that doesn't matter. 8 million people watched the premeire of season 5 of GoT. Witcher2 sold 1.7 million copies total. GoT is a much larger market and has many people who were introduced to mature fantasy through it.

Witcher actually started as short stories and the first one came out in polish in 1986, but you have a fair point, GoT is definitely accessible to much bigger part of the population, in no small part thanks to the series.

Burren · Apr 22, 2015

Zaphid_sl said:
Witcher actually started as short stories and the first one came out in polish in 1986, but you have a fair point, GoT is definitely accessible to much bigger part of the population, 100% thanks to the HBO series.

FTFY

Fogel · Apr 22, 2015

Well we know the obvious answer to all of this. Live action witcher series!

Knytestorme_sl · Apr 22, 2015

And Gamespot have posted the 3rd video, this time the gameplay. Am sure it will be up on YT in a few hours but in case you can't wait

Unveiling the Gameplay of The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt - GameSpot

Quaid · Apr 22, 2015

One of the few games I'd even consider pre-ordering, and the bonuses are shite.

Funny, that.

Kedwyn · Apr 22, 2015

Knytestorme_sl said:
And Gamespot have posted the 3rd video, this time the gameplay. Am sure it will be up on YT in a few hours but in case you can't wait

Unveiling the Gameplay of The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt - GameSpot

One thing I like from that video is they seem to portray the quests as being actual QUESTS. Not just tasks or bull shit to do. 8-10 main quests with each of those bringing with it 2 or 3 side quests. Side quests easily taking an hour or more each which means the main quests will be super long and involved. Plus the option to continue down the side quest path and those having an impact on an area.

I'm not super crazy about the MMO style leveling and progression.

Sounds amazing overall. We'll see.

Droigan · Apr 23, 2015

Quaid_sl said:
One of the few games I'd even consider pre-ordering, and the bonuses are shite.

Funny, that.

What do you consider good bonuses? Really curious, as people like different things.

Usual bonuses are

1) Extra dlc for free (recently Mortal Kombat did this with free dlc that cost $5 after release).
--- The Witcher 3 has no paid DLC. All of it, even stuff released later, will be free of charge. They would only consider charging for full fledged expansions. The developer also talks about this in part 1 of the gamespot videos.

2) Pre-order weapons/armor
--- Stuff like that is in my opinion bad as they are usually powerful and severely limit / remove early level loot progression.

3) Lower cost for pre-orders
--- The Witcher 3 has this.

What other pre-order bonuses are there? Considering the current price of The Witcher 3 is lower than any other AAA title I've seen in ages, and all DLC is free, I can't think of anything else I would want from the title pre-release.

EDIT: Little video regarding a youtubers trip to Poland. Apparently the NDA is released on the 28th.

Kirun · Apr 23, 2015

In the digital age, pre-ordering and all the bonuses associated with it is the most retarded thing since people startedpayingto be game testers (early access). It used to just be a few (sometimes one) perks that publishes/devs would offer for jumping on the train/pledging support early and was put in place toensureyou'd receive a copy, back when everything was tied to physical discs. Nowadays? It's completely pointless. I'm fine with them offering you a cheaper pricepoint for jumping in early and showing the studios you support them. But, tying content integral to the game/experience to pre-order "bonuses", as some sort of protection racket (pre-order, or else!)? That shit needs to stop and the only way it will is if people stop doing it.

Utnayan · Apr 23, 2015

Quaid_sl said:
One of the few games I'd even consider pre-ordering, and the bonuses are shite.

Funny, that.

It's because they don't believe in it. So just buy it on launch day and reap the benefits

Actually, there is a hard cover comic that comes with the preorder for Witcher 3 on Amazon. That's pretty cool of them to do. Something of actual substance and not something they are pulling from the game to put back in.

I love this company.

Zaphid · Apr 23, 2015

Fogel_sl said:
Well we know the obvious answer to all of this. Live action witcher series!

The Hexer (TV series) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Yes, thank god the western world wasn't subjected to the one they made originally

I don't know if you can actually find it anywhere anymore

Quaid · Apr 23, 2015

Just saw the discount on the PS4 digital pre-order that includes expansion pass. Ignore my comment above. Bomb ass pre-order bonus.

Not only will I be uncharacteristically pre-ordering this game, but it will be my first digital console purchase ever. Neat.

Vorph · Apr 23, 2015

Quaid_sl said:
Bomb ass pre-order bonus.

-$2.50? What am I missing here?

I do find it kind of odd that there's no bundle on GOG that includes the expansion pass with a discount.

Quaid · Apr 23, 2015

Vorph_sl said:
-$2.50? What am I missing here?

I do find it kind of odd that there's no bundle on GOG that includes the expansion pass with a discount.

I'm in Canada. Physical copy is $69.99 + $25 for expansion pass. Both are $81 on PSN.

$14 is pretty significant IMO.

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