Video points to Witcher console release

By Tom Bramwell Published 30 November, 2008

Game designer discussing improvements.

As CD Projekt continues to tease its next game, a user-posted video on Gametrailers may have let the cat out of the bag, in the shape of a 6-minute, cinematic-backed interview with game designer Jakob Stilinsky discussing console versions.

The Witcher: Rise of the Wolf is the name, allegedly, and Stilinsky said on the undated video that the Xbox 360 and PS3 "adaptation" benefits from "a completely new combat system that is more dynamic and more engaging", along with sharper visuals and other console-specific improvements.

"There are hundreds of new mocap animations in the console version. We also wanted movement of the character, the main hero and the enemies, to be more realistic and fluent, so we are mocapping a lot of new movements," he explained, adding that Geralt, certain story characters and enemies also benefit from many more polygons than the previous PC releases, presumably including the Enhanced Edition.

Enemies also have updated AI including more dynamic movement, Stilinsky said, while the engine itself now has dynamic lighting and shadowing, normal mapping and new vegetation. "We will have full support for the Achievement and Trophy systems and the Sixaxis on PS3," he concluded.

CD Projekt has yet to comment on the video, which was posted by a fan rather than the site's moderators, although the fact Stilinsky's on it and it's topped by an Atari logo suggests it's genuine, even though die-hard Witcher fans hold vigil for some sort of confirmation or denial on the official forums.

The Witcher is an action-RPG based on the fantasy books by Andrzej Sapkowski that recently enjoyed a spectacular update in The Witcher: Enhanced Edition for PC, which picked up 8/10 from us. "There are still some rough edges, and moments of genuine drama are still undercut by how they're performed, but this is an agreeably driven RPG in an agreeably ornate package," PC gaming's very own sword-swinging womaniser Kieron Gillen asserted.

We'll let you know about confirmation, or a prospective release date, as soon as CD Projekt and/or Atari get back to us.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (13) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Chufty #1 3 years ago

    I remember going back to The Witcher after having played through Mass Effect a couple of times. It made me realise just how awful the character animation, voice acting, camera work and cut scene direction were.

    So maybe this is good news, because there's a pretty decent RPG underneath it all

  • Roamer #2 3 years ago

    This is great news! I never buy PC-games any more, I'm too worried about SecuRom, DRM, malware etc.

  • qoobah #3 3 years ago

    Well said Chufty. Coming back to the Witcher after Mass Effect seems like moving back in time an era.

    The Witcher was fun, which was somewhat diminished by technical issues. I have my own gripe with the game (for making the combat too simplistic and "MMO like" and choosing from the books the plot premise I dislike the most) but there is unquestionable potential here. If they can make dialogues and the world more immersive and the combat more along the lines of "master fencer" rather than iChop with this new tech then it's certainly a step in the right direction.

    Another thing is will they patch the PC game again to be on par with consoles. The Witcher: Enchanced Edition: Enchanced ? I'd much rather play it on my PC rather than the console. Same was with Mass Effect, I enjoyed it a lot more on PC. I guess RPG's are just too personal games for me to be enjoyed on the living room coach with all the family around;)
    Edited by 1 at 30/11/08 @ 11:23

  • ZuluHero #4 3 years ago

    ohh.. so no more click, click, clickity, click?

    I wonder what these enhancements mean? I hope its more than hack and slash...

  • UncleLou #5 3 years ago

    Weird, I am playing through the EE right now having finished it once before), and I still find it's an enormously attractive game. It doesn't have the polish of Mass Effect's presentation, but then it's also a much longer game (and a deeper RPG - as much as I loved Mass Effect, I saw it more as a glorified shooter).

    Fallout 3 felt much more like a "presentational" step back compared to Mass Effect to me.

  • kangarootoo #6 3 years ago

    I love this sort of game, but I stopped buying PC games year ago so I miss stuff like Gothic and The Witcher. So good news for me. Even if its a bit rough at the edges, more PC stylee RPGs on consoles means more choice for me.

    BTW, on the subject of RPG type fare, if anyone is interested I found that gamestation.co.uk are selling Fable 2 for £19.57.

    Link to follow.

  • kangarootoo #7 3 years ago

    [link url=http://www.gamestation.co.uk/Xbox360/~r410289/Fable-2/
    ]http://ww w.gamestation.co.uk/Xbox360/~r4...[/link]

    I don't know if direct sales links like this break some obscure EG posting rule, so I stuck this in a different comment. So if this one gets pulled the info will still be present in my previous post (ooh, aren't I organised).

  • kangarootoo #8 3 years ago

    Ah, its now out of stock :(

  • ZuluHero #9 3 years ago

    in 10 minutes too ;)

    gotta be quick when you see that sort of thing :)

    EDIT: Maybe you're the reason? :)
    Edited by 1 at 01/12/08 @ 09:40

  • kangarootoo #10 3 years ago

    I didn't actually check when I posted the link to see if it was in stock (I bought my copy last thing on Friday). Oops.

  • _LarZen_ #11 3 years ago

    Finaly!! I bought this on pc buy I realised fast that this game would be so much more fun to play on a console that I did not want to play the pc version. Seams I finaly can play this great game on a great console soon then.

  • metalangel #12 3 years ago

    To paraphrase PC Gamer, Albino Viggo Mortensen goes around boning redhead chicks and being a decidedly average game.

  • UncleLou #13 3 years ago

    I want to live in a world where The Witcher is only "average" - now that would be awesome. :p

    I so far thought it was a bit of a gamer's rather than a critic's game, and that it has an average readers' score of 8,8 here on EG speaks volumes - bit surprised at the negativity in this thread, really.