New Blog post: Tough choices

[Marcin Momot]

New Blog post: Tough choices

Check out the newest blog entry where CD Projekt REDs Lead Gameplay Designer, Maciej Szcześnik talks about the importance of choices and decisions when designing gameplay mechanisms.

 

[KnightofPhoenix]

Interesting read, thanks.

I'm glad you didn't go with dual wielding, and that you kept it in finisher animations only (which looks cool).

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Interesting read.

Dual wielding two handed swords doesn't even sound realistic (even if the steel sword is lighter, since it's from the meteorite ore). Silver sword is heavy. It's simply not practical at all to dual wield when using a long heavy sword.

 

[Garrison72]

I would hope the 'like it' method is only a means of group input and not stuff getting automatically voted in.

 

[drowranger87]

For dual wielding, swords have to be shorter (less cool) targeting will be much harder for example of you fight mixed group of beastly creatures and humans . Personaly I will like to have some upgraded sword with mystic powers and looks like this My link imagine this on Geralt and swinging with finishers will look definitely great but if you considered to implement this visual upgrade to not overate it like this My link
wielding 500 kg heavy sword doesent make sence

 

[goopit]

That crawford table thing looks great

It'd be cool if the Wishlist threads gets a section in there as well. We never get any love. We don't even know if our suggestions are being read by CDPR or we're just circlejerking each other.

Ah well

 

[GuyNwah]

Geralt's a practical man; he has to be able to get his swords serviced wherever he goes. Elaborate, fanciful swords of any kind would be a heavy, useless waste of his scarce coin. That's an example of the consequences the blog was about.

It'd be cool if the Wishlist threads gets a section in there as well. We never get any love. We don't even know if our suggestions are being read by CDPR or we're just circlejerking each other.

The Crawford table votes currently go to people who have a full-time commitment to the game. Putting Wishlist entries on the same footing would not work. Furthermore, notifying members that certain Wishlist entries (say, the ones getting the most vote-ups) would get considered would lead to forum misbehavior that would put a Chicago election to shame.

Better the way it is. Developers who take the Wishlist seriously are free to do so and to advocate for the good ideas that emerge from it.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Personaly I will like to have some upgraded sword with mystic powers and looks like this My link

Actually I never understood an idea of such swords. They look horrifically unbalanced with such shaped blades and all kind of stuff sticking out. Just my 2 cents.

 

[FoggyFishburne]

Awesome blog post!

I agree, the dual wielding swords idea does sound incredibly cool at first! As you start to deconstruct what that implies, it gets less cool by the minute. Glad you decided not to implement it, the game works fantastic without it. Besides, you do have that sync kill animation thingy where Geralt finishes of an enemy with both swords. It does look great but I suspect it'd be incredibly impractical from a realism standpoint.

Still, cool idea. Maybe in future games you could let us equip two knives or two steel short swords. That way some consistency will be maintained while allowing for some freedom and variety in gameplay. Nothing I personally crave to see though, I'm in love with the current combat mechanics but I keep an open mind to the possibility of dual wielding might be awesome

Question: Is bows/crossbows something you're interested in experimenting with? Taking out a guard silently from a distance with an arrow or poisoning a monster with a poison arrow would be interesting to see and offer some more complexity and open up new avenues of strategy to the player.

 

[Garrison72]

That crawford table thing looks great

It'd be cool if the Wishlist threads gets a section in there as well. We never get any love. We don't even know if our suggestions are being read by CDPR or we're just circlejerking each other.

Ah well

They implemented lots of fan requests, they just don't let fans design their game. It's the way it should be.

 

[gab961111.59]

Do you think we can uncover the blurry effect on the picture to see CDPR secret choices?

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

To see that CDPR are talking about unrelated to the Witcher fantasy game? Just teasing.

 

[goopit]

They implemented lots of fan requests, they just don't let fans design their game. It's the way it should be.

I know man! They did that whole changing Geralts face for us and yeah they should filter our requests because some of it are dumb ideas. I just want a little shout out or know if they're actually reading our posts.

 

[GuyNwah]

I know man! They did that whole changing Geralts face for us and yeah they should filter our requests because some of it are dumb ideas. I just want a little shout out or know if they're actually reading our posts.

Too easy for developer posts to be misread as promises, leading to hurt feelings when a dev writes "thanks for the idea" and then it doesn't get implemented. Smart developers are sparing in what they say and careful about how they say it.

 

[Blothulfur]

Yep I like it the way we have it, the devs are obviously listening as Slim says and implementing logical fixes to the game, but they don't feel beholden to us, need to confront our every issue or compromise their vision. If you remember what your first playthrough was like when compared to the latest version, well the changes are mammoth, and all for free, any other company'd need a shitstorm like the Mass Effect 3 ending to treat their customers so well.

Sod it i'm doing another Witcher playthrough this weekend.

 

[Garrison72]

I understand where Guipit's coming from. I've given them a hard time about not responding to these forums very much. The response:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XErftbBE_5Q

But when it actually came down to features I'd requested or bitched about, they delivered to a scary degree. So I quit harping about it. Those from the old forums will remember I was probably the first to recommend an arena mode, and when I saw it come out...

Pure chance I know, but I was surprised as hell.

 

[Chewin3]

Interesting read, as always.

Nice to see some polls are involved in the devs mindset.

 

[chromie92]

Geralt's a practical man; he has to be able to get his swords serviced wherever he goes.

Was that a euphemism?

 

[goopit]

a general response would be good like "great thread guys" or some shit like that.

I'd be happy just to see reds viewing the thread in the viewer counter thing just to let me know that all our posts and discussions aren't for naught. It's really fun doing that stuff though.

 

[GuyNwah]

Was that a euphemism?

Wasn't meant to be, but now that you mention it...