The Witcher 2 Emphasis On Story, Prison Break Demo
The Witcher 2
CD Projekt, developer of The Witcher 2, has created a new engine solely for this RPG sequel, TSOOD, and displayed a prison break demo to show off some new elements. Senior producer, Tomasz Gop also goes on to talk about the improvements and emphasis on story-driven content in this video game.
At the Eurogamer Expo 2010 developer session, Tomasz Gop showcased a prison break demo video showing off how far the game has come.
The first thing you notice is that the engine renders the game beautifully. The Witcher 2 will feature some insane detail in the graphics, along with beautiful lighting effects. Just taking a look at the main character in chains and seeing all the cuts across his body or taking a look at the environment he’s in and all the normal mapping technology taking place will allow you to see how detailed this game really is.
The animation is smooth and and very fluid. In the beginning, when escaping from the cell, you see the main character, Geralt, in combat with a prison guard. The way you fluidly hop into your punches and elbows or grapple with the enemy is fairly impressive.
Gop emphasizes the importance of story-driven content. He says that fans of the first game will certainly not be disappointed in the second game; the principles that they designed the first game under were carried to the sequel. A non-linear storyline is where The Witcher 2 will shine.
CD Projekt has managed to increase the scale in basically everything. Creating a new engine has allowed them to design a tool with their game in mind. This means that the size of the map and the scale of the encounters have been increased dramatically. This can be seen in the “cursed battlefield” demo where hundreds of ghost soldiers are roaming around the screen in real time.
CD Projekt is considering releasing mod tools, but only after the game has launched.
Gop did not give a specific release date for the PC version, but he did confirm that the developer wants to expand to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. That would certainly be a great way to see if their engine works as well on the consoles as it does on the PC.
This is great news for fans who were worried that The Witcher 2 would stray from its story-centric basis.