What do you want in Witcher 4?

[Beas7ie]

What do you want in Witcher 4?

.I know it's gonna be a while before we get any news at all about W4 especially sine CDPR still needs to get Cyberpunk 2077, but it would still be nice to get some ideas out as to what people want in the next Witcher game in terms of both features and story.

Personally this is what I would like.


Features- Create your own character and customize him or her. Maybe doesn't even have to necessarily be a witcher. Could also be a mage, soldier, rogue, or anything in between.

More options for spells and abilities. For example perhaps have a lightning sign, teleport skills like what some Wild Hunt mages(and Ciri, though not nearly as powerful) have.

Added igni abilities such as enchanting your sword to be lit on fire and do fire damage. (Think Thoros of Myr in Game of Thrones or pretty much any fantasy series which features a flaming sword)

More combat features such as if you are fighting near a wall, you may grab an enemy and slam his face into a wall, if you are near a cliff you will do move such as a "THIS IS SPARTA!" kick and knock him off. I believe the term is "context sensitive" but I'm not 100% sure. Assassin's Creed games have good features in the combat in that depending on your positioning compared to the bad guys, Ezio, Connor, Edward, Arno, whoever will do special animations depending on where they are located. If they are near a wall they may jump off it and then hit the enemy, or throw an enemy into a wall, etc etc,

Dual Wielding

More weapons and special attacks for each weapon. Sure in W2 and W3(not sure about W1) you can also use clubs and axes but they have the same animations. It would be nice to use spears, halberd, axes, daggers, clubs, and each weapons have their own movesets with special attacks, animations, and finishing moves for both humans/nonhumans, and monsters.

More finishing moves, and especially finishing moves for monsters. The main point of a Witcher is killing monsters but I was disappointed that there were no real finishing moves on the monters enemies except for the occasional decapitation from standard attacks or just knocking a monster such as a harpy down and then stabbing it while it's down.

I'd like to feature special finishing moves based on the monster, such as Dragons Dogma style of jumping or climbing it and then striking weak points and going for the finishing blow. For example a griffin flys past low enough or lands and you can jump on it and start attacking, griffin tries to fly but then you cut it's wing, stab it in the head while it's crashing down, and then jump off as it dies and then strike a pose to look like a badass.

More armor options and better looking armor. (WILD HUNT ARMOR!)

Personally I'd like an armor set made out of dragon scales.(It would be towards endgame of course) It would be the ultimate witcher armor in that it provides great protection, and would be light and maneuverable enough to move around in.


Storywise.

I think one major part of the story would be going around and trying to rebuild some of the old Witcher Schools like Kaer Morhen. Perhaps add an Assassins Creed style system where you can do quests, recruit people(there are a lot of refugees so there's sure to be skilled carpenters, masons, blacksmiths, and other professions looking for a new place to call home) to help rebuild the keep.

Other quests may be to seek out druids and mages to see if it's possible to improve the Trial of Grasses so that 70% of the participants don't die horribly.

I would also love to hear and see more about the other schools such as the Viper school where Letho is from or the Bear school and to meet some of the few remaining Witchers left from them.

Of course Geralt would be in it, but he would have a small role as this story would be mainly about the Player Character and Geralt is more interested in staying away from the main scene and living his "retirement" with Yennefer or Triss.

 

[ShinGnosis]

Haha. You make it sound like Cyberpunk is just a small stepping stone, something they can get done quickly before they return to the witcher franchise.

Cyberpunk will most likely be "the new witcher franchise" consisting of several games.... The witcher series has reached its logical conclusion. It's done for now. There will be DLC but then that's it most likely it.

They might come back to the Witcher universe with a different take on it, but if so we're talking quite some time down the road.

 

[Phinnway]

Way to early to tell. Let me beat The Witcher 3 three to four more times and I'll get back to you.

Features- Create your own character and customize him or her. Maybe doesn't even have to necessarily be a witcher. Could also be a mage, soldier, rogue, or anything in between.

Ironically, this is probably the last feature most people want in the next Witcher game. If this is the type of game you want then you want Cyberpunk, not The Witcher 4.

 

[Beas7ie]

Way to early to tell. Let me beat The Witcher 3 three to four more times and I'll get back to you.

Ironically, this is probably the last feature most people want in the next Witcher game. If this is the type of game you want then you want Cyberpunk, not The Witcher 4.

Cyberpunk seems interesting, but I'm more into the Swords and Sorcery type environment.

Why would people not want to make their own character in the Witcher World? The first games are based on Geralt's story and now his main stuff is done. If he pops up again he should be a bit player at best or maybe more of a mentor type character like Vesemir was.

And now there is a new opportunity to start fresh and make your own character to go into a new open world where you can make a lot of your own decisions and what not.

I for one would love to be able to make my own custom character where I can determine the appearance and skills of my character. If people don't want that then a good medium is a route like Commander Shepard where you can determine Shepard's skills and appearance but no matter what gender, appearance, skillset you chose you were still Commander Shepard.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Is there Witcher 4 coming? I didn't know, I thought CDPR are done with Witcher sequels. Anyway, what I want is the Linux version at release instead of unknown time down the road

 

[Beas7ie]

Haha. You make it sound like Cyberpunk is just a small stepping stone, something they can get done quickly before they return to the witcher franchise.

Cyberpunk will most likely be "the new witcher franchise" consisting of several games.... The witcher series has reached its logical conclusion. It's done for now. There will be DLC but then that's it most likely it.

They might come back to the Witcher universe with a different take on it, but if so we're talking quite some time down the road.

I'm aware that Cyberpunk 2077 is huge and is still gonna be a long time before it's done too, and then even when it is CDPR is gonna have to put most of their time and effort into support, DLC, and expansions for that so I definitely know that other than some more expansions and DLC that we won't be seeing much more new stuff for the Witcher and it is at a good "Stepping off point" per say.

That being said I would hardly call it "concluded" as there is still a huge world(s) out there with a lot more characters to meet and stories to tell, and while most of the manpower will be focused on Cyberpunk I doubt it would hurt to at least get a small team to brainstorm and possibly get a head start on a new Witcher game, even if it will be a good 5+ years before we hear anything at all about it.

I definitely know that other than some DLC and expansions we won't be seeing much new Witcher stuff for a while and

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

That being said I would hardly call it "concluded" as there is still a huge world(s) out there with a lot more characters to meet and stories to tell

Yeah, I surely agree with that. More Witcher games will be welcome (even without Geralt).

 

[Phinnway]

Why would people not want to make their own character in the Witcher World?

There is an inherent writing limitation in games where you create your own character. Everything needs to be generic to a fit a character from every race, gender, and background. They would not be able to write as meaningful of a story if you created a cutsom character.

Think of all the colorful side-characters in The Witcher.... Dandelion, Triss, Zoltan, Yennifer. None of those would have any history with a custom character. And since their relationship with us would need to be generic they would have very little role aside from being a quest-giver (think "Roche" in Witcher 3 vs Witcher 2.)

I think Witcher fans would notice the diferences in writing right away. And besides, other members of this forums have vocalized as much before. See the "World of The Witcher" thread.

 

[PrincessCiri]

I would like a Witcher 4, but as far as I am aware, CDPR are not even thinking about making another Witcher game in the near future.

Features- Create your own character and customize him or her. Maybe doesn't even have to necessarily be a witcher. Could also be a mage, soldier, rogue, or anything in between.

If we're not playing as a Witcher, why would the game be called Witcher 4? Plus I don't see how the game would work if we could be a Witcher, a Sorceress, or a soldier, considering they all have very different jobs in the Witcher universe. It's not like Dragon Age where you can play as an elf or human and still have the same story. It just wouldn't be a Witcher game if I was playing as a sorceress rather than a Witcher.

I think one major part of the story would be going around and trying to rebuild some of the old Witcher Schools like Kaer Morhen.

Again I don't know about this. Most Witchers seem as though they don't want their schools to continue. So many young boys die in those trials, I'm not sure re-starting them would be a concept that most Witchers would accept. Especially not the remaining Wolf Witchers. (Lambert would never agree, from what I can tell).

Personally I would prefer the next Witcher game to have Ciri as the protagonist. However I don't know if that would be possible either.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

There is an inherient writing limitation in games where you create your own character. Everything has to be generic to a fit a character from every race, gender, and background. They would not be able to write as meaningful of a story if you created a cutsom character.

Making everything generic is a cheap way to approach it. Better way is tailoring the story for each selection, but that's a lot more work. Some middle ground is limiting that selection in some way.

 

[Phinnway]

Making everything generic is a cheap way to approach it. Better way is tailoring the story for each selection, but that's a lot more work.

It would be, but I'm not sure video-games have advanced far enough for that to work yet. Look at how The Witcher 3 handled choices carried over from The Witcher 2

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

It would be, but I'm not sure video-games have advanced far enough for that to work yet. Look at how The Witcher 3 handled choices carried over from The Witcher 2

Can't say anything about TW3 since I didn't play it yet, but I guess you didn't find carrying choices over from TW2 to TW3 particularly well implemented? (Just no spoilers please).

 

[Phinnway]

I honestly think the next Witcher game will star Geralt, but it will be set sometime in the books timeline before The Witcher 1. Maybe even before he meets Ciri.

They've spent 7 years building this franchise. It's SUICIDE to abandon it now. They should ride out the popularity of The Witcher for another game or two until they have a big enough fanbase to move on to other things.

Personally, I hope they begin work on The Witcher 4 sometime before they finish Cyberpunk 2077.

---------- Updated at 06:42 PM ----------

@Gilrond-i-Virdan They nod to your choices here and there. But for the most part they are flat out ignored. Or retconned. It's worse than TW1 > TW2.

Good luck with your Linux support, btw. I hope you don't have to wait to long to play the game.

 

[ShinGnosis]

Well - they could remake Witcher 1 in the new engine, make some new expansions for it and then release it for the new consoles as well as PC.

I always likes the Witcher 1 story and setting, and the game is pretty much open world like W3 but on a smaller scale.

Then you go and remake Witcher 2 again for the new consoles and suddenly you have a real trilogy that can be played from start to finish on one generation of hardware and look amazing.

 

[PrincessCiri]

Can't say anything about TW3 since I didn't play it yet, but I guess you didn't find carrying choices over from TW2 to TW3 particularly well implemented? (Just no spoilers please).

I am especially unhappy with how my choices/decisions from the Witcher 2 have been pretty much ignored.

I hope you can play the game soon

---------- Updated at 10:53 PM ----------

Well - they could remake Witcher 1 in the new engine, make some new expansions for it and then release it for the new consoles as well as PC.

I always likes the Witcher 1 story and setting, and the game is pretty much open world like W3 but on a smaller scale.

Then you go and remake Witcher 2 again for the new consoles and suddenly you have a real trilogy that can be played from start to finish on one generation of hardware and look amazing.

A remake of the Witcher 1 (with updated combat) would actually be a fantastic idea.

 

[Phinnway]

@ShinGnosis That is a good idea. I even thought of a name, "The White Wolf Returns." It seems suitable for a remake of a game where the protagonist loses his memory and comes back from the dead, no?

Hmmm.... "The White Wolf," "The White Wolf Returns," "The White Wolf Rises." I think my subconscious is on an unoriginal streak.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

I wouldn't mind more games with Geralt (earlier times, other adventures and etc.). They can also explore the early times of the witchers, when they were just created.

 

[Phinnway]

They can also explore the early times of the witchers, when they were just created.

That would be neat. I've thought about them making a game where you play as a young Vessimer. It would be a really different time. Back when Witchers had more respect.

 

[ShinGnosis]

That would be neat. I've thought about them making a game where you play as a young Vessimer. It would be a really different time. Back when Witchers had more respect.

I'd like that. Who created the witchers and why? Why did they build Kaer Morhen? How did Kaer Morhen look and function in its prime? What threat did they face? What about the other schools? Was there a conflict or falling out? Or just disciples?

I'd be interesting to find potential recruits, invoke the law of surprise, and perhaps even see a few of them die if you've chosen poor recruits. Really mature stuff, but that's what the witcher universe is about right?

 

[Phinnway]

Who created the witchers and why? Why did they build Kaer Morhen? What threat did they face? What about the other schools? Was there a conflict or falling out?

I'm pretty sure the answers to all those questions were answered in The Witcher 1 in journal entries.

IIRC, the Witchers were created by a master Elven swordsman and an alchemist. They were created to kill monsters (everyone knows that.) There are different school because The Witchers are not a tightly knit organization like the Jedi Knights or historical Knights Templar. Each school teaches a slightly different combat style. The school of the Wolf focuses on martial abiltity; especially swordsmanship. The Witchers declined because (A) they were no longer needed when the human kingdoms grew strong and adapted to the dangerous world they lived in (B) humans innately fear what what they don't understand, and once the Witchers were no longer needed they began to be persecuted. The Wolf school was famously massacred during a pomgram that killed all the Witchers living at Kaer Morhen. Only Vessimer survived.

Of course, part of the point of The Witcher series is that The Witchers are in decline and they don't necesarily even want to revive their order. They're a member of a dying caste that used a wicked means to accomplish a noble end. They recogonize the method of creating a Witcher isn't exactly ethical and choose not to continue it. In the games, Bertram, Letho, and Lambert all take their turn playing the "anti-hero" Witcher to emphasize this (in literature, an "anti-hero" is someone who resists the call to duty or greatness.)