Interview The Witcher 2 Interview with Tomasz Gop

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Tags: CD Projekt; Witcher 2, The

<p>Tomasz Gop, Senior Producer at CD Projekt RED was kind enough to answer me a couple of questions regarding their upcoming <span style="text-decoration: line-through;">action-Adventure</span> cRPG <strong>The Witcher 2</strong>. I got these answers a month ago to be honest, but I had some follow-up questions and wanted to wait until I received those answers before I'd publish the interview. Unfortunately the CDProjekt guys seem to be too busy to respond and with the release date drawing near I decided to show you now what I have. I'll also take this opportunity to show off some huge ass screenshots which might or might not have been already shown elsewhere. I even created a <a href="http://www.rpgcodex.net/gallery.php?album=179" target="_blank">Witcher 2 screenshot gallery</a>. Of course I had to downsize those images because, frankly, the Codex is too l33t for images bigger than 1,444 444 bytes. The whole point of this screenshot business is obviously to make the interview appear more meaty than it actually is.</p>

 

[Arcanoix]

I have a 'journalist' copy. Beat that.

 

[Mrowak]

Wow :shock:

You really went all Codex on his arse Ventilator. I think by the end of it all Gop realised what mess he landed in. No wonder devs stay away from this place.

Unfortunately, nothing new was revealed. Shame

 

[Phelot]

Very nice interview VoD!

you chose locations where you go (there are locations that some players will only see after a second playthrough).

This sounds promising.

 

[Elwro]

Well, I love the game and all, but

the next thing we’ve changed is getting rid of that turn-based feeling

may be the most retarded thing I read this week since TW was completely devoid of any turn-based feeling whatsoever.

 

[made]

Cut him some slack. You know his English ain't the best and he's still getting the hang of proper PR speak.
What he meant to say was "BUTTON - AWESOME: now connected in The Witcher 2!"

 

[MMXI]

Well, I love the game and all, but

the next thing we’ve changed is getting rid of that turn-based feeling

may be the most retarded thing I read this week since TW was completely devoid of any turn-based feeling whatsoever.

Of course The Witcher was turn-based. You have to click once in each of three consecutive turns to win combat.

 

[Raapys]

A picture says more than a thousand words.

 

[Excidium]

Are polack women so bad that Playboy publishes videogame characters?

 

[Bigot_]

You’re advertising The Witcher 2 as being less linear than the original, in what way is it more non-linear? There are no bite-sized chapters this time?
In The Witcher there were pretty much three main paths you could have taken throughout the game storyline. Interconnecting, yes, but still three paths and three different endings. In The Witcher 2 you can load up a savegame from the previous game’s end and start in three different ways. And you can also end up with one of the sixteen endings.

 

[MapMan]

Good interview. I stay optimistic.

 

[Micmu]

That playboy issue was real? :shock: I thought it was just shopped.
Man, that's LAME. I would be ashamed buying that magazine, people would think I'm some kind of basement dwelling dork.

 

[.Sigurd]

people would think I'm some kind of basement dwelling dork.

But you are like everyone here.

 

[Crooked Bee]

Unfortunately, nothing new was revealed. Shame

 

[CrunchyHemorrhoids]

So where are the other pages?

 

[Sergiu64]

Are polack women so bad that Playboy publishes videogame characters?

Actually they're f***ing HOT.

 

[Roguey]

Nice interview, shame about the answers.

Well, I love the game and all, but

the next thing we’ve changed is getting rid of that turn-based feeling

may be the most retarded thing I read this week since TW was completely devoid of any turn-based feeling whatsoever.

It did feel a bit round-based, like NWN. Sometimes I'd click on an enemy and Geralt would just stand there and it'd take him a second or more for him to start the first combo (this is most noticeable at the very beginning, at first I was wondering if something was broken). The aggravating shuffling (particularly the backwards shuffling) when performing finishers would also likely make it feel "turn based" for some people.

 

[DraQ]

So, I'm not up to date:

What's with this dragon fighting thing? Geralt going dragonslayer would be massively out of character and massive decline? I suppose there will be some unexpected (from the typical fantasy PoV) options here like there were in the vampiric brothel quest, is there any info?

 

[Raapys]

It'd be stupid to make a game without dragons in it these days. You'd get no sales.

 

[Phelot]

A picture says more than a thousand words.

How embarrassing.

 

[Baron]

What a uniquely embarrassing interview, belligerent to the developer, classy. So, the Codex actually found a developer who would still talk to them and they were complete dicks to them? :thumbsup;

Another detail that bothered me in The Witcher was the inventory. It’s a well known fact that RPGs are about killing all hostiles and then selling their loot to buy even better loot. But somehow Geralt wasn’t able to carry more than 1 additional weapon so it doesn’t come as a surprise that he was in dire need of more gold most of the time…

Sure sucks not having 29 Diablo swords on you, doesn't it? I never understood the focus in RPGs on the importance of 'loot' above all other things, but RPG is an overly broad category. Some people like story and an atmospheric gameworld to explore, others like to click on moving sprites and to jerk off every time they increase a gold piece integer.

The Witcher inventory system was a little clumsy, but appropriately limited; it certainly wasn't bad (I played the enhanced edition). I know I was still walking around with 2 swords, a club and a woodaxe. I didn't feel 'vulnerable' or underequipped for the mean streets of Vizima. TW's strength was that you WERE always struggling for coin, which fit the character and gameworld perfectly. You still pursued the enjoyable mini-games of gambling and pummelling drunks to earn extra coin, and used it to buy the odd trinket (drowner bracelet). I used my spare coin for books, being the academic kind of scarred albino who was genuinely interested in the gameworld lore (as opposed to Dragon Age's which left me in a deep coma I was unable to be woken from. Fucking Tranquils wrote that game.) The Witcher's economy was the best I'd ever seen, given it was the only game I could recall where I couldn't have purchased the nation I was traversing midway through the game.

Shit interview. Witcher 2 will be added to Civ VI as one of the Wonders of the World.*

(screenshots still looking amazing. Love the one with Geralt sitting at the table of midgets, my choice of drinking companion.)


* The Greeks have built the The Witcher PC games!

 

[made]

What a uniquely embarrassing interview, belligerent to the developer, classy. So, the Codex actually found a developer who would still talk to them and they were complete dicks to them? :thumbsup;

Obviously, VoD had to make up for sucking true underground developer Larian's cock, so he conjured up all his biting wit for this interview. It's the kind of questions the Codex would like to throw at Bioware, but since they'd just laugh it off, CDPR has to substitute.

 

[BelisariuS.F]

So, I'm not up to date:

What's with this dragon fighting thing? Geralt going dragonslayer would be massively out of character and massive decline? I suppose there will be some unexpected (from the typical fantasy PoV) options here like there were in the vampiric brothel quest, is there any info?

What we currently know:
- there is sequence in the prologue (during a castle siege) where a dragon is chasing Geralt;
- it ends with Geralt stabbing the dragon in the face;
- if you enable QTEs you will be mashing buttons;
- if you disable QTEs you will be watching a cutscene.

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

What a uniquely embarrassing interview, belligerent to the developer, classy. So, the Codex actually found a developer who would still talk to them and they were complete dicks to them? :thumbsup;

Obviously, VoD had to make up for sucking true underground developer Larian's cock, so he conjured up all his biting wit for this interview. It's the kind of questions the Codex would like to throw at Bioware, but since they'd just laugh it off, CDPR has to substitute.

Except I was berated for being too hostile/belligerent in the Larian interview too. Seems like some retards here will always interprete it as hostility or belligerence when some critique comes up. Let's hope the developers understand that there's no hostility involved on my part.

 

[visions]

Good questions, honest and critical.