Joystiq

The Witcher 3 DRM-free on PC; 'gamer-friendly' solution sought on consoles

Ludwig Kietzmann — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:30:00 EST

The Witcher series of action role-playing games is reaching further than ever before, with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt launching simultaneously on PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in 2014. The new consoles have been mired in discussion over DRM (digital rights management) recently, with Microsoft instituting connectivity requirements to play games, and PlayStation leaving publishers to decide how to control the sale and resale of their content. The Polish developer behind The Witcher, CD Projekt RED, now tries to find an ideal incarnation for its publicly asserted values, which are staunchly opposed to DRM of any kind.

"I can only talk about our intentions; we don't have any agreement finalized yet," CD Projekt co-founder Marcin Iwiński tells me, carefully choosing his words. "It's all quite early and we're finding out about it this week, at the conference. But our intention, obviously, is to choose the most gamer-friendly solution." In CD Projekt's perfect world, those solutions would be aligned with their PC- and Mac-based digital distribution platform, GOG.com, where games are 100 percent DRM-free. "Whatever the solutions will be for our partners, we choose something ideally as close to what we have on GOG as possible."

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The Witcher 3 DRM-free on PC; 'gamer-friendly' solution sought on consoles originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CD Projekt Red reveals The Witcher 3 for Xbox One [Update: Trailer]

Danny Cowan — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 13:41:00 EST

CD Projekt Red revealed that its open-world RPG The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is coming to the Xbox One.

The Xbox One version of The Witcher 3 is bolstered by unique hardware-driven features. Kinect voice commands for allow quick weapon-switching and magic, and players can use SmartGlass to customize characters and manage their inventory during gameplay.

CD Projekt Red reveals The Witcher 3 for Xbox One [Update: Trailer] originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 Jun 2013 13:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Witcher 3 skipping quick-time events and multiplayer

Mike Schramm — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:30:00 EST

Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, project lead on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, has confirmed multiplayer modes, quick-time events, and DRM are not part of the plan for the third entry in the role-playing game series.

The "final saga of Geralt" will maintain a focus on single-player content, Tomaszkiewicz told Forbes, though multiplayer had been considered for the game at one point.

Quick-time events found in previous Witcher games have also been abandoned. The lead designer noted that QTEs "didn't fit" the experience and often leads to frustration for players. "There is a small number of games where it is fun, like, for example, in the Uncharted series, where you don't even realize that you've just finished a QTE sequence. And I think that only this way of using QTE has any kind of future in games."

Calling digital rights management "the worst thing in the gaming industry," Tomaszkiewicz confirmed The Witcher 3 will not have such restrictions. Though the decision against using DRM applies to retail copies and CD Projekt's GOG.com platform, other digital distributors such as Steam would still feature its own form of DRM. Distribution channels for The Witcher 3 have not been announced.

The Witcher 3 is coming to the PC, PS4, and "high-end platforms" next year.

Witcher 3 skipping quick-time events and multiplayer originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Witcher 3 features more than 300 small variations in its endings

Jessica Conditt — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 21:00:00 EST

The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt features 36 separate "world-states" at the end of the game, leading to three disparate, playable epilogues. The game tracks player choices to such a minute degree that each of these 36 "endings" contain hundreds of smaller changes unique to each player - CD Projekt Red stopped counting once it reached 300, Managing Director Adam Badowski tells Polygon.

"The game is quite complex," Badowski says. "We didn't mean to develop something special for the endings; it's a natural consequence of the storyline. The story has hundreds of different branches and sub-plots. We have to just sum all of those elements up in the epilogues. Some of those elements are taken from the very beginning and some from other moments of the storyline. All of them will connect in the epilogue."

We already know The Witcher 3 will clock in around 50 hours, may support previous save files and that CD Projekt has "something" cooking for multiplayer.

The Witcher 3 features more than 300 small variations in its endings originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 01 Apr 2013 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer confirmed, in consideration for Witcher 3

Sinan Kubba — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 10:30:00 EST

You and other cyberpunks can play together in CD Projekt Red's upcoming-ish near-future RPG. Speaking to Eurogamer, managing director Adam Badowski said Cyberpunk 2077 "will be a story-based RPG experience with amazing single-player playthroughs, but we're going to add multiplayer features."

As Eurogamer notes, Cyberpunk 2077 doesn't have a pre-defined hero, which maybe makes the game more suitable for multiplayer than CD Projekt's The Witcher series. However, when CD Projekt advertised last year it was looking for a multiplayer programmer, it wasn't clear if that was just for its cyber-RPG and not also for the now revealed Witcher 3.

CD Projekt's Badowski was coy enough to keep multiplayer a fair possibility for Geralt's third adventure, telling Eurogamer "we're thinking about something."

Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer confirmed, in consideration for Witcher 3 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 13 Mar 2013 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Witcher 3 around 50 hours, may import saves from previous games

Richard Mitchell — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST

New details regarding The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt have emerged on the website of German magazine GameStar. The game will last for approximately 50 hours. Throughout those hours, the world can reach a total of 36 different states, depending on the player's choices. As previously revealed, these choices will also lead to one of three different epilogues.

The article also notes that The Witcher 3 may import save files from previous Witcher games. Developer CD Projekt Red tells Joystiq that it would like to implement such a feature, though the challenges presented by new hardware could make it difficult. Specifically, considering the game will debut on entirely new consoles, including the PS4 and presumably the next Xbox, such a transfer could be impossible. Still, the developer is looking into the possibility.

The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt is slated to arrive next year.

The Witcher 3 around 50 hours, may import saves from previous games originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 28 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Witcher 3 confirmed for PS4

Sinan Kubba — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 08:30:00 EST

This isn't too surprising considering The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was announced for PC and "high-end platforms," but CD Projekt's confirmed this morning it's coming to the just announced PS4, making it the first Witcher game on a PlayStation console.

As CD Projekt managing director Adam Badowski indicates, Geralt's third adventure is expected on the next Xbox too when the game arrives next year.

"The Witcher 3 will be released in 2014 simultaneously on all high-end platforms available," said Badowski. "We know that our fans are looking forward to that date already, but we want to make it clear that this story is a standalone, and we will be sure [to] introduce newcomers fully to the world so that they don't miss a beat."

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The Witcher 3 confirmed for PS4 originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 21 Feb 2013 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Witcher 3 may not be the last Witcher after all

Richard Mitchell — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST

CD Projekt Red seems to be backpedaling faster than Geralt fending off a bruxa, now declaring that The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt may not be the final game in the series. In yesterday's announcement press release, studio head Adam Badowski made what seemed like a pretty definitive statement: "People may ask if this is really going to be the last Witcher game. Yes, it is. Why? Because we believe that we should end the series on a high note."

Eurogamer, however, recently updated its story on The Witcher 3 to say that what Badowski meant was that The Wild Hunt will be the last game in the current Witcher trilogy. Furthermore, CEO Adam Kicinski has stated that the "franchise will be continued."

We contacted CD Projekt Red for clarification on the issue. A spokesperson tells Joystiq, "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will wrap up the saga of Geralt of Rivia, but we do leave open the possibility of returning to the Witcher world." So there you have it, nothing can kill the Witcher, not even the monster of errant marketing.

The Witcher 3 may not be the last Witcher after all originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 06 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Witcher franchise up to 5 million sold

Sinan Kubba — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 09:00:00 EST

CD Projekt's The Witcher games continue to enchant gamers into buying them, with the franchise now over the 5 million mark for copies sold. The figure represents a combined total for The Witcher and The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, and with both games on sale this week, it could be on the rise quicker than you can say Gwynbleidd.

A few months after The Wither 2 arrived on Xbox 360, CD Projekt announced the franchise was up to 4 million copies sold. With a further million sold in the six or so months since, it's not surprising to hear CD Projekt SA CEO Adam Kiciński say the console port "largely contributed" to the franchise's new milestone.

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Witcher franchise up to 5 million sold originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 06 Feb 2013 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will be the last Witcher game

David Hinkle — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST

"People may ask if this is really going to be the last Witcher game. Yes, it is," CD Projekt Red boss Adam Badowski says in the announcement press release for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. This final entry in the series is being slated for launch in 2014, a simultaneous launch on "all high-end platforms."

In regards to the open world, Badowski says players should expect a game world that is "30 times bigger than The Witcher 2" and its world. "Players will freely travel through woods, lakes, mountains, cities, and villages. Each region is inhabited by distinct populations with their own customs, legends and problems." Geralt will have his steed to get around or he can hop on a boat and set sail for his destination.

CD Projekt Red also promises an improved combat system this time around, though nothing specific is mentioned in the press release past the break.

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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will be the last Witcher game originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 05 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt revealed as 'next generation' RPG

David Hinkle — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 23:29:00 EST

CD Projekt Red appears to be working on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, a new open-world entry in the studio's dark RPG series. Game Informer digital subscribers through Zinio can now access the March issue (seen here), which promises The Witcher 3 will take place in a world rivaling Skyrim and larger than any environments featured in the first two games.

CD Projekt's REDengine 3, which the company has said is built for the next wave of systems, will power The Witcher 3 and Geralt's distinguishing beard. According to the digital preview, The Witcher 3 is "for those wild dreamers who want it all."

We've requested further information from CD Projekt Red and will let you know when we hear (and see) more.

Update: Game Informer has published a quick video touching on the development team and the game's direction. Watch it after the break - and marvel at some truly breathtaking hair.

Update 2: The game's due in 2014, says CD Projekt, for PC and "high-end platforms."

Continue reading The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt revealed as 'next generation' RPG

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt revealed as 'next generation' RPG originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 04 Feb 2013 23:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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