Back to the topic at hand, I've been thinking more about the pacing this morning and in the absence of common sense taking a back seat to profits, Triss content needs to be added to new areas of the game. First of all, if you don't know what I'm on about, let me quickly recap on how Triss features in the games:
This is how the timeline for the story looks if played in a linear fashion:
Dream Sequence/tutorial >>
Prologue >> Act 1: Velen >>
Act 1: Novigrad >>
Act 1: Skellige >>
Act 2: Kaer Morhen >> Act 2: Ilse of Mists >>
Act 2: Battle of Kaer Morhen >> Act 3: Bald Mountain >>
Act 3: Novigrad >>
Act 3: Skellige >> Epilogue
The highlighted blue areas are were there is currently dialogue pertaining to the Yennefer romance. As you can see, it flows throughout the game, never giving you more than a few hours without developing the romantic story line further. The highlighted green areas are were there is currently dialogue pertaining to the Triss romance. As you can see, it's limited to two areas leaving you with almost the entire game between the scenes.
Now this is particularly bad if you're a player who is new to the series, someone who has never read a book nor played a previous game because the character of Triss does not get the chance to be as fleshed out as much as the character of Yen. Because of this and the way that all but one of the game's NPCs assume you're in a relationship with Yennefer, people new to the series don't really understand how important this character is in the context of the three games. So let me give you a quick guide.
The Witcher - Triss is one of two love interests for Geralt within the game. Whilst our hero can plough his way through the game, there are only two romantic story lines you can have. The other is a character called Shani who appears to be making a come back in one of the DLCs. The premise of the game, and how this trilogy starts, is that Geralt is found unconscious and has lost his memory. He's found by fellow Witchers and Triss. There's a bit of frolicking around at the beginning but after he's injured, she nurses him back to health. Without going in to detail, the romance continues (again optional) later in the game.
The Witcher 2 - Triss is now
the love interest for Geralt. She Royal advisor to King Foltest, he his bodyguard. That game opens with them sharing a bed and it's really this game that fleshes out the romance between them. There are two key points in the game in regards to the romance. The first is at a place called Flotsam. Here there is a scene were a Rose of Remembrance - a rose that if given to the one you love, forever blooms so long as that love remains true - is (optionally) given to Triss by Geralt. Que a love making scene and then there's dialogue about Yennefer, specifically Geralt's search for her. The player can choose to search for Yen alone, and thus break up with Triss, or travel in search of her in Triss' company. If you choose the latter, Geralt makes it clear that only an 'ingrate' would want to loose her and what they have.
The second key moment is in the final act and you can choose to clear Geralt's name from the false accusation of Kingslayer, or rescue Triss who got herself in to a bit of a pickle.If you choose to rescue her, you leave together in search of Yen.
As you can see, depending upon player choices, she's improtant to Geralts life. Yet in
The Witcher 3, in an attempt to target customers new to the franchise, CDPR stupidly reset this romance to a neutral state in a clumsy way of allowing player choice between Triss and Yen (clumsy because there were better ways of allowing for that). The content makes vague references to a past relationship and reconciliation over the break up. What it does not do is convey the importance of Triss to Geralt from what is now a canonised romance (in terms of the games, book readers).
So back to the time line.
Dream Sequence/tutorial>> Prologue >> Act 1: Velen >>
Act 1: Novigrad >> Act 1: Skellige >> Act 2: Kaer Morhen >> Act 2: Ilse of Mists >> Act 2: Battle of Kaer Morhen >> Act 3: Bald Mountain >>
Act 3: Novigrad >> Act 3: Skellige >> Epilogue
When we remove the Yennefer romance, this is how the timeline appears in regards to Triss romance-related material. Consider that this game is meant to be over two hundred hours long, there is an awful long period of time between re-kindling your romance with Triss and settling on were it will end. There is currently no further development of that romance, presumably because CDPR felt it had been developed over the previous games but that's no use for people who haven't played them and was never going to go down well with those of us who have and have always chosen Triss as the romance option. On both sides of that equation, there simply isn't enough romance development.
To accommodate those new to the series and help flesh out the character and the romance with Geralt, and to accomodate those who are veterans of the series and have anything up to eight years of emotional investment in the character, new content for Triss needs to be added. Not all these are my ideas but here's a list we've come up with so far:
- At the beginning of Act 2, Triss is at Kaer Morhen. She greets you with a kiss and a bit of dialogue surrounding how she's getting on with Yen should follow,
- Some form of argument between Triss and Yen over Geralt leading to reconciliation between the two.
- 'No place like home' sees you having a few bevies with your Witcher mates. If you romance Yen, you're on a promise. Same should apply to Triss.
- Vesemir's funeral should see Triss and Geralt comforting each other. Uncle Vesemir was very close to both of them and the game should acknowledge this.
- In Act 3: Skellige, the search for the Sunstone should feature Triss rather than Phillipa. If your'e in a romance with Triss, there should be dialogue pertaining to it.
- In Act 3: Skellige, before the final battle, there should be some dialogue between Triss and Geralt that recognises the danger the battle poses to Geralt's life.
- During the Epilogue, if you chose the Ciri-Witcher route, your love interest (Triss or Yen) should be with Ciri at the Inn with dialogue that suggests Ciri will live with them for a while in Kovir/wherever to complete her training.
That makes the timeline, specifically for Triss, look like this:
Dream Sequence/tutorial >> Prologue >> Act 1: Velen >>
Act 1: Novigrad >> Act 1: Skellige >>
Act 2: Kaer Morhen >> Act 2: Ilse of Mists >>
Act 2: Battle of Kaer Morhen >> Act 3: Bald Mountain >>
Act 3: Novigrad >>
Act 3: Skellige >>
Epilogue
The purple sections represent romantic material. As you can see, there would be no large gaps between the development of Triss' romantic storyline and plenty of opportunity for writing to be added that fleshes her character out for new players.
Overall romantic content would look like this:
Dream Sequence/tutorial >>
Prologue >> Act 1: Velen >>
Act 1: Novigrad >>
Act 1: Skellige >>
Act 2: Kaer Morhen >> Act 2: Ilse of Mists >>
Act 2: Battle of Kaer Morhen >> Act 3: Bald Mountain >>
Act 3: Novigrad >>
Act 3: Skellige >>
Epilogue
As you can see, both characters would have continuous development of their romantic story line with no large gaps in the game allowing for both story lines to be treated with equality. Thread's a bit long, I know and sorry about that but I wanted to put down all the ideas we've had in one easy to visualise thread.