Crossbows. Yay or nay?

[Tar-Aellin]

I think optional use of crossbows could be a good addition, mainly against flying type of opponents. It is logical to use against them. But i did not like the idea of shooting 3 arrows at the same time.

Also i hope it won't shoot simultanously. I dont know how it is in the game, i dont remember seeing simultanous shots from gameplays but i hope and i believe this is not the case. Its reload should take time, bolts being expensive etc., it should have down merits. It is not the main weapon of a witcher after all, it is just an option. From what i heard from the talks during the twitch gameplay, i believe necessary precautions are already taken for that as well.

 

[BigMank]

Yeah there is a reload after each shoot, you see it when he uses it for the first time. Although it is very quick and is done in one motion.

 

[KnightofPhoenix]

Yes, I like the inclusion of the crossbow and I am all for being able to use it in whatever situation if I so desire. The important thing is not to make it too potent, as Geralt should remain primarily a swordsman.

 

[Kinley]

Kinley what have you done!

I.... *looks left and right* ...I'd also like to state that this is entirely Kinley's fault !

Spoiler

 

[Angivare]

Why is there a need for a crossbow when there's already throwing knives?
Also, for the flying monsters thing, just wait till he lands, throw signs, be creative or simply give up. Witcher's can't kill anything they want, just deal with it.

 

[wichat]

@LordCrash, you brought up before that Geralt's use of crossbow isn't lore friendly considering the books. So I have to ask, is there a complete list of hairstyles Geralt wore in the books? Because they obviously shouldn't add new hairstyles if they weren't in the books. Did Geralt have a beard or not in the books? If he didn't, take that out too. Obviously ruins the experience.

No, but in books Geralt cooks and eats and dies, and doesn't deprive a unarmed man to defend himself.... and Uffff! Oh! and yes, he have a beard, and shave himself without soap ... neither water?..... And he wears an expensive black leather jerkin...

Wait... But what am I wrinting all this?

 

[Venethor]

About the crossbow and about "oomph" in combat.

There might have been several other threads on the crossbow but I couldn't find one that's post-E3. I've read opinions on the crossbow in other threads but I thought it'd be a good idea to let the crossbow have a thread of its own.

Personally I hated the crossbow. Its animations seemed too choppy and it didn't sound right. From what I've seen the Witcher 3 could use a little more "oomph". I'm a huge fan of the Witcher 1 and one of the things I loved about its combat is that every blow felt like it packed a punch. I suspect this might have something to do with the excellent sound design, but whatever the case we need more weight to the animations, and this includes the crossbow.

What I hated the most about the crossbow, though, is its very concept. An automatic crossbow that fires several bolts per shot is just silly in my book. I do realise that we're talking about fantasy here but armour and weapon design was rather realistic in the two previous titles and I've been loving it. I never really thought that Geralt needed a crossbow, let alone a ranged weapon - we don't want him to turn into Ezio now - because I've always liked how relatively simple his gear was in the books and in the first game. If we do have to have a crossbow then let's make it bigger - perhaps two handed like a proper crossbow that isn't just a pistol-substitute - and give it a proper reload-animation that takes time. That way you could add a strategic element because players would be unable to reload in the middle of a fight and thus would have to decide whether or not it'd be worth it to use the crossbow. Having a constantly loaded crossbow on your back is going to result in a crappy bowstring though so that might be worth considering too.

Let me hear your thoughts

 

[mico11]

Yes I agree

 

[Xtreme-Void]

That would be bad from a ranged fighter perspective
I agree about the need of "oomph"

 

[dakondakblade]

Agreed. I was hoping that for ranged weapons we'd have just a regular bow. Bows play a large part in the Witcher universe and in the books

Milva for example; is reknown for her archery skills.
Iorveth always has archers and such

The only way I can see a Crossbow being fun; would be if you were able to craft it yourself. IE different, wood strings and parts give different bonuses to accuracy, strength and durability.

I realize I could be ranting here; but that's my honest opinion as a fantasy reader ( Eddings, Tolkien, Brooks, ) and an avid Witcher fan.

 

[dragonbird]

I'm the opposite - if we have to have ranged weapons, I'd prefer a crossbow, with all of the problems that go with it, in particular the slow reload that makes it effectively a one-shot weapon in any fight. I wouldn't want it to be remotely possible for Geralt to go through an entire battle as an archer rather than a swordsman.

 

[C0bR]

I came to peace with crossbows.

Underwater usage on the other hand:mean:

 

[WFMS2]

I hope they don't remove it because of all the complaining.
They obviously considered it heavily if they should bend the lore a bit to add a crossbow. Not to mention it costs valuable time and money to model, animate and program a crossbow to work within the game
I mean they've been developing games for a decade now. I think they know what they're doing more than some users on a forum, no offense of course.
At the end of the day it's a video game. And with the inclusion of flying beasts that may or may not have ranged attacks, a crossbow might be a necessary weapon to avoid any player frustration. (Which anybody who's played any games with flying enemies knows all too well)
They've said it themselves during one of the demos. Something along the lines that from play testing flying enemies became frustrating to deal with without any ranged weaponry to counter-act them.

 

[ONLY_ONCE]

I hope they don't remove it because of all the complaining.
They obviously considered it heavily if they should bend the lore a bit to add a crossbow. Not to mention it costs valuable time and money to model, animate and program a crossbow to work within the game
I mean they've been developing games for a decade now. I think they know what they're doing more than some users on a forum, no offense of course.
At the end of the day it's a video game. And with the inclusion of flying beasts that may or may not have ranged attacks, a crossbow might be a necessary weapon to avoid any player frustration. (Which anybody who's played any games with flying enemies knows all too well)
They've said it themselves during one of the demos. Something along the lines that from play testing flying enemies became frustrating to deal with without any ranged weaponry to counter-act them.

Yep, keeps things moving and fun.

 

[Pedrolago]

In the demo we saw that Geralt has a slot for ranged weapons, as long as that slot is used for crossbow/bombs/throwing knives then I'm fine with it , as long as I can unequip it anytime an equip a bomb or a knife in its place the its all good imo

 

[WFMS2]

In the demo we saw that Geralt has a slot for ranged weapons, as long as that slot is used for crossbow/bombs/throwing knives then I'm fine with it , as long as I can unequip it anytime an equip a bomb or a knife in its place the its all good imo

Bombs have their own slots.
However, crossbows and throwing knives MIGHT share the same slot as I didn't see any place in the menu to equip throwing knives.
EDIT: Looking back at the demo now, it's possible throwing knives might have their own slot in the "Pockets" tab.
View attachment 3970
EDIT2: While I'm at it I might as well point out that there seems to be different types of bolts you can use as well, since in the demo they're using "Tracking bolts" with various effects active on it, instead of it just being called bolts.
View attachment 3971

 

[Pedrolago]

Damn, they are forcing this thing on us aren't they? Well there goes Geralt's iconic look

 

[WFMS2]

Damn, they are forcing this thing on us aren't they? Well there goes Geralt's iconic look

They're not forcing anything on you. If you don't like it, don't use it.
They obviously felt that it added something to the game and reduced frustration, but if anybody feels like they don't want to use it and pretend it doesn't exist because of lore reasons they're perfectly entitled to.

I feel like there's too much focus by some of you on this strict lore aspect vs the actual fun aspect of the game.
After all is said and done, it's ultimately a video game, and fun wins in this regard.

 

[Mohasz]

They're not forcing anything on you. If you don't like it, don't use it.

I'm assuming that for certain monsters you do have to use it. But it hasn't been comfirmed. (I'm OK with it, btw.)

Although that 'tracking bolt' thing makes me scratch my head.

 

[WFMS2]

Although that 'tracking bolt' thing makes me scratch my head.

Didn't they say during the demo that it causes it to bleed so they can track it as it's flying away?