The Witcher 4: I am So Ciriously

[x Tame Impala]

I'm glad it's Ciri to be honest. I know some on the internet wanted a create your own character sort of deal or a continuation of Geralt but I think this is the best option by far. A BYO Witcher game would lose so much of the charisma you get from the story, Ciri has a ton of history with this world already so this paves the way for another great narrative adventure, character interactions, and a great story. Geralt's story (apparently) ends pretty nicely at the end of Blood and Wine so I'm fine with him taking a back seat. Maybe this time around we'll get the reverse of TW3 where 90% of the game is played as Cirri and some missions you play as Geralt, maybe in a prequel sort of deal like TLOU Pt 2.

Cirri probably loses her powers fighting the Frost at the end of the game or she loses them in the trial of the grasses. Either way I'm really excited for this one!

IGN Article about the game:

Inside The Witcher 4: CD Projekt Red’s Plans For Its Next Big RPG - IGN

IGN's exclusive interview with CD Projekt Red reveals the developer's plans for The Witcher 4, including a renewed focus on varied gameplay and a protagonist defined by the player.

www.ign.com

Click to read more...

 

[HanSolo]

Just got wind of the announcement. The Witcher 3 is my favorite game of all time so this is a day 1 get for me no matter how long it takes to release. For me, the repairwork done to Cyberpunk 2077 (and with how phenomenal Phantom Liberty was) has restored my trust in CDPR if only for the fact that if they release this game and it's even a little broken, it could be catastrophic for them and their reputation.

I'm glad Ciri is taking over as the protagonist and they're letting Geralt have his retirement. My only concern is how they will square away the fact that Ciri is basically the most powerful being in this narrative universe. You can't have the game have challenging combat unless you seriously nerf Ciri somehow that seems lore plausible. Also I know the trailer isn't final and the cinematics in Witcher 3 didn't match how the characters look in game but there was something weird about how they rendered Ciri's face. Like just her face is being viewed with a fish eye lens, but the rest of her looks normal. It was a little weird. But those are my only two quibbles. Ciri is a fantastic character and a worthy successor to Geralt.

 

[Andrei79]

0 interest in Ciri as a protagonist. The trailer was underwhelming at best and I have 0 faith in CD Projekt Red after the stunt they pulled with Cyberpunk. Will definitely wait for the reviews on this one.

 

[Osprey]

I, too, am uninterested in her (or anyone else) being the protagonist, just as I wouldn't care for a Tomb Raider without Lara Croft. CDPR is taking a risk here, especially after the reception that the last two seasons of the show and its spinoff received for doing something similar.

 

[HanSolo]

I mean why bother playing Red Dead 2, any Resident Evil game after the first, Final Fantasy sequels, Assassin's Creed sequels, Castlevania sequels, Grand Theft Auto sequels, The Last of Us 2, and so on?

Geralt is one of my favorite video game protagonists ever but the strength of The Witcher 3 isn't Geralt himself. It's the world and overarching narrative that Geralt occupies with his dry wit, heroism, and badassery. Ciri is the second most important character behind Geralt. Considering he retired at the end of the last DLC, I don't see the huge risk. I just want the lore behind it to make sense.

I mean if people aren't interested in continuing the story with her, I'm not going to change anyone's mind, and that's fine, but CDPR was very intent on Blood and Wine being a happy ending for a beloved character. If the idea is "if it's not Geralt, I'm not interested" then yeah, don't bother.

 

[Puckstop40]

Gwent 2!

 

[Osprey]

I mean why bother playing Red Dead 2, any Resident Evil game after the first, Final Fantasy sequels, Assassin's Creed sequels, Castlevania sequels, Grand Theft Auto sequels, The Last of Us 2, and so on?

Geralt is one of my favorite video game protagonists ever but the strength of The Witcher 3 isn't Geralt himself. It's the world and overarching narrative that Geralt occupies with his dry wit, heroism, and badassery. Ciri is the second most important character behind Geralt. Considering he retired at the end of the last DLC, I don't see the huge risk. I just want the lore behind it to make sense.

I mean if people aren't interested in continuing the story with her, I'm not going to change anyone's mind, and that's fine, but CDPR was very intent on Blood and Wine being a happy ending for a beloved character. If the idea is "if it's not Geralt, I'm not interested" then yeah, don't bother.

I had a feeling that you'd want to argue about it. To address your points...

First, I haven't bothered to play through any of those games, except for the GTA sequels. Second (and unlike GTA), the series is specifically about a specific character, Geralt, who's referenced by the title and has been the only protagonist so far. Third, you just confirmed that he's the strength of it by saying that his narrative and "dry wit, heroism, and badassery" are. Fourth, I didn't say that it's a "huge risk," just a risk, and I think that changing the protagonist after 3 successful games is risky, regardless of what happened in the last. Heck, simply recasting the protagonist for the TV show was risky. Fifth, fans don't have to be OK with new directions for franchises just because the storytellers were intent on them.

I'm sure that the game will still be successful, but some people who became fond of the series because of Geralt may be less excited and wait for a sale or service inclusion, pirate it or even skip it. I don't think that saying that is controversial, especially since, as I alluded to, the last few seasons of the show were criticized for his diminished role (and they were made after the last game's DLC, suggesting that some fans still wanted him to be the protagonist and hero despite it).

 

[x Tame Impala]

If it were some new Witcher we’ve never heard of, either a new character or a create your own Witcher, then I think that would be risky. Ciri is a very good character in her own right and the continuation of her story makes perfect sense.

I just beat the base game the other day for the first time and am through a bit of HoS. I’ll be finishing BaW pretty soon as well. It makes perfect sense to me that Geralt is retired or at least mostly out of the picture in this one. It was clear in the base game though that Geralt wanted to have a “boring” life with Yen for the rest of his days.

Maybe he’ll be a Vesemir equivalent to Ciri? Ciri looks much older in this game so Geralt is probably much older too.

 

[AlanHUK]

Based on the 'good' ending from the previous game this makes perfect sense continuity wise, I don't think anyone who played through 3 in it's entirety could genuinely have expected a new story with Geralt as the controlled character. It wouldn't be a complete shock if there's a sort of reversal of 3 in that you control Geralt in a couple of flashback chapters though.

Hopefully there's a good in game explanation that allows the nerfing of Ciri's powers from Witcher 3, which considering how good they've been with story telling through the entire series so far shouldn't be a stretch.

And for those who didn't want a witcher game without Geralt you'll have the Witcher 1 remake which is also being worked on at the moment

 

[robertmac43]

I got a feeling this one is going to hit. CDPR feels like the kind of studio that learns from past mistakes.

 

[Beau Knows]

I never found Geralt to be all that interesting (from what I understand he's much more fleshed out in the books). For me the world and stories around him were what made the games special.

I suppose it's inevitable that one day Geralt will be dragged out of retirement for "one last job" or something like that. But I'd rather they try something new here, and a different protagonist is certainly one way to approach the world from a new angle.

 

[aleshemsky83]

Love Ciri. Don’t get the tweets saying they uglified her, she looks the same just with chapped lips cause it’s cold outside, duh

 

[Bocephus86]

Alright CDPR did it to me again and I am hyped. Just like I was for Cyberpunk. So I will learn my lesson and wait until release & they have a chance to polish (Polish? *rimshot) any issues, or I get confirmation from regular gamers that it's good.

Whether it's soon after release or 2 years later, I will own and play this though, no matter what.

 

[HanSolo]

I had a feeling that you'd want to argue about it. To address your points...

First, I haven't really played any of those games, except for the GTA sequels. Second, but more importantly, the franchise (unlike, say, GTA) is specifically about Geralt because he's referenced by the title and has been the only protagonist so far. Third, you actually are confirming that he's the strength of the franchise by saying that his narrative and "dry wit, heroism, and badassery" are. Fourth, I didn't say that it's a "huge risk," just a risk, and I think that changing the protagonist after 3 successful games is risky, regardless of what happened in the last. Heck, simply recasting the protagonist for the TV show was risky. Fifth, fans don't have to be OK with new directions for franchises just because the storytellers were intent on them.

I'm sure that the game will still be successful, but some people who became fond of the series because of Geralt may be less excited and wait for a sale, wait for a service to include it, pirate it or even just skip it. I don't think that saying that is controversial, especially since, as I alluded to, the last few seasons of the show were criticized for his diminished role (and they were made after the last game's DLC, suggesting that some fans still wanted him to be the protagonist and hero despite it).

I mean I don't really care to try to change anyone's mind or really to say that someone's feelings on the matter aren't valid. I'm just explaining why the change in protagonist doesn't matter to me personally or at least not negatively. But since I don't mind debating you I should point out that people weren't upset at the recast of Henry Cavill because it was a change in protagonist, they were upset that they changed the actor playing Geralt because he, like many of the fans, was upset about the writing quality and because Cavill generally did a good job.

And I don't think what I said about Geralt confirms he's the sole strength of the story. Yes, he's a fantastic character who actually has more nuance behind his medieval badass stature than meets the eye which adds a compelling reason to play through the game. But the world itself, the rules of that world, the adventure stories that can be told in that world are the strength. I adore the Witcher 3 as much as I do because it plays like you're immersed in a Game of Thrones adjacent medieval story. The animated and voice acted cutscenes are boring for some but I think they add to a tremendously immersive story. Geralt fits that story well because he is written and voice acted well (and because he is such a proficient killer, he can get away with standing up for others and call out injustices when he sees them, even to powerful figures who the average person wouldn't risk crossing). Ciri, in her limited appearances in The Witcher 3, was also acted and written well. CDPR's biggest strength is its storytelling and that includes Cyberpunk 2077 as even when the game was in a broken launch state, the stories you could experience were strong to top notch. So all that is to say that, for me, I have faith that CDPR can write Ciri well as a protagonist and write good stories around her new adventure. Maybe I'll be wrong, I don't know. But as someone who would put Geralt, among my list of top 3 best video game heroes or at least three favorites, I am more than fine with Geralt enjoying his retirement and playing through Ciri's new saga.

But you're right, I was only speaking to a massive risk. I'm sure there's a fair number of people who won't be interested if it's not another Geralt adventure, and that's fine. Those people have a series of novels and three games to occupy their time.

 

[HanSolo]

I got a feeling this one is going to hit. CDPR feels like the kind of studio that learns from past mistakes.

I really believe they will do everything possible to avoid another CP2077esque launch disaster. They had to do so much work to repair Cyperpunk's catastrophic reputation to restore the company's reputation and even after all that, the question of whether they'd have a repeat disaster on the launch of this game would be at the fore or back of everyone's mind. They can't afford even tolerable bugs at launch the way I see it.

Based on the 'good' ending from the previous game this makes perfect sense continuity wise, I don't think anyone who played through 3 in it's entirety could genuinely have expected a new story with Geralt as the controlled character. It wouldn't be a complete shock if there's a sort of reversal of 3 in that you control Geralt in a couple of flashback chapters though.

Hopefully there's a good in game explanation that allows the nerfing of Ciri's powers from Witcher 3, which considering how good they've been with story telling through the entire series so far shouldn't be a stretch.

And for those who didn't want a witcher game without Geralt you'll have the Witcher 1 remake which is also being worked on at the moment

I didn't even know about this. If they could even bring it to WItcher 3 production quality, I'm so down for that.

 

[Romang67]

Love Ciri. Don’t get the tweets saying they uglified her, she looks the same just with chapped lips cause it’s cold outside, duh

I mean, it's capital G Gamers on Twitter. I'm not sure you can find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. They are also commenting on a woman in a video game. Of course they are going to complain about her looks.

I'm a bit surprised they're going with Ciri as the protagonist. I expected it to be set somewhere else entirely, with another Witcher School than the School of the Wolf.

I think it will be good. Cyberpunk bombed at release, but from what I've heard went through a lot of work to become (supposedly) fairly good. The Witcher is not a new IP, so it doesn't have to go through much of the difficulties that Cyberpunk did.

The Witcher games also improved A LOT game by game. I'm still fairly certain I'm being gaslit when people tell me that the first Witcher game isn't a mess with few to no redeeming qualities. Witcher 2 is a massive step up, and the third is, IMO, a masterpiece.

 

[RandV]

But you're right, I was only speaking to a massive risk. I'm sure there's a fair number of people who won't be interested if it's not another Geralt adventure, and that's fine. Those people have a series of novels and three games to occupy their time.

Yes and it can be pointed out a series of novels that splits between Geralt, Yennifer, and Ciri as the leads.

Nothing wrong with Ciri taking over here, Geralt isn't immortal and per the story has been around forever now.

 

[HanSolo]

Yes and it can be pointed out a series of novels that splits between Geralt, Yennifer, and Ciri as the leads.

Nothing wrong with Ciri taking over here, Geralt isn't immortal and per the story has been around forever now.

Right. I think it's a clash between two sentiments. The first "If it's not Geralt's story, I'm not interested." That's fine.

The second, "If it's not Geralt, it's not The Witcher", I would disagree with that.

 

[Osprey]

I'm not convinced that CDPR fully learned from Cyberpunk. They reportedly started full production only last month, yet are getting the hype train rolling again before they even have a game.

I think it will be good. Cyberpunk bombed at release, but from what I've heard went through a lot of work to become (supposedly) fairly good. The Witcher is not a new IP, so it doesn't have to go through much of the difficulties that Cyberpunk did.

The issues with Cyberpunk were mostly not related to being a new IP, but to bugs and performance. A lot of the performance issues had to do with releasing it on last gen consoles that couldn't handle it, which is an issue that they could run into again if they release this for the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S at the very end of their lifespans.

 

[Romang67]

I really believe they will do everything possible to avoid another CP2077esque launch disaster. They had to do so much work to repair Cyperpunk's catastrophic reputation to restore the company's reputation and even after all that, the question of whether they'd have a repeat disaster on the launch of this game would be at the fore or back of everyone's mind. They can't afford even tolerable bugs at launch the way I see it.

I didn't even know about this. If they could even bring it to WItcher 3 production quality, I'm so down for that.

I wouldn't bet on CDPR releasing a clean game at launch. There is a reason both Witcher 1 and Witcher 2 had "Enhanced Edition" releases less than a year after launch.

Even Witcher 3, by far CDPR's cleanest launch, had massive bugs at release. Just not to the point where they needed an Enhanced Edition or over a year to fix it all.

 

[Mikeaveli]

This will be CDPR's first project using Unreal Engine rather than their own tech. I'm hoping that CDPR's tech experts can help solve some of the problems we've been seeing with UE5 games so far.

 

[Romang67]

I'm not convinced that CDPR fully learned from Cyberpunk. They reportedly started full production only last month, yet are getting the hype train rolling again before they even have a game.

The issues with Cyberpunk were mostly not related to being a new IP, but to bugs and performance. A lot of the performance issues had to do with releasing it on last gen consoles that couldn't handle it. They could run into that issue again if they release it for the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S at the very end of their lifespans.

When I say it was related to being a new IP, I mean everything included in having to move over to it. Too many things were experimental, and as such too many things were riddled with bugs. Too many unknowns at the start of development, that won't be the case (to the same extent) with another game in the Witcher universe.

But yeah, it also definitely had to do with trying to get the audience from both old-gen and next-gen consoles.

This will be CDPR's first project using Unreal Engine rather than their own tech. I'm hoping that CDPR's tech experts can help solve some of the problems we've been seeing with UE5 games so far.

Not quite. Witcher 1 was made using the Aurora Engine (of Neverwinter Nights fame). They created their own engine for the Witcher 2. The Witcher 1 remake will also be using the Unreal Engine, which should mitigate some of the potential issues for this game.

 

[HanSolo]

I wouldn't bet on CDPR releasing a clean game at launch. There is a reason both Witcher 1 and Witcher 2 had "Enhanced Edition" releases less than a year after launch.

Even Witcher 3, by far CDPR's cleanest launch, had massive bugs at release. Just not to the point where they needed an Enhanced Edition or over a year to fix it all.

I mean true. But iirc, CDPR was pushed to the brink of financial ruin by the abysmal launch of Cyberpunk. And it was that much more aggravated by the fact that CDPR was one of the most respected developers in the industry. They lost that trust and only got back into good standing but I wouldn't say they can hold the title of most (or one of the most) respected developers at this stage. If I were to bet, I wouldn't bet big but my thinking would be that they're probably going to do a massive amount of quality control before launch. Maybe that's just hopium, but I can't see a repeat performance happening. If there are bugs, they'll likely be tolerable, but they'll also be heavily scrutinized.

Also agree with your next post. They'll probably give Ciri more powers and combat abilities than Geralt had, but past that they're comfortable with their formula for this series and it shouldn't be as hard to craft a new installment even with a new engine.

 

[Romang67]

I mean true. But iirc, CDPR was pushed to the brink of financial ruin by the abysmal launch of Cyberpunk. And it was that much more aggravated by the fact that CDPR was one of the most respected developers in the industry. They lost that trust and only got back into good standing but I wouldn't say they can hold the title of most (or one of the most) respected developers at this stage. If I were to bet, I wouldn't bet big but my thinking would be that they're probably going to do a massive amount of quality control before launch. Maybe that's just hopium, but I can't see a repeat performance happening. If there are bugs, they'll likely be tolerable, but they'll also be heavily scrutinized.

Also agree with your next post. They'll probably give Ciri more powers and combat abilities than Geralt had, but past that they're comfortable with their formula for this series and it shouldn't be as hard to craft a new installment even with a new engine.

I think the Witcher 1 remake will be a massive plus for the Witcher 4 release. All the basics for Witcher 4 gameplay will have been tested in Witcher 1, so focus could be entirely on the new installments for the new game, and making sure they work as intended.

I'm cautiously optimistic about the release. I'm sure I'll like the game. I loved 3 enough that about 10 hours in, I went back and read the books and played the earlier games before returning to finish playing 3.

 

[HanSolo]

I think the Witcher 1 remake will be a massive plus for the Witcher 4 release. All the basics for Witcher 4 gameplay will have been tested in Witcher 1, so focus could be entirely on the new installments for the new game, and making sure they work as intended.

I'm cautiously optimistic about the release. I'm sure I'll like the game. I loved 3 enough that about 10 hours in, I went back and read the books and played the earlier games before returning to finish playing 3.

I've replayed TW3 and the DLCs 4 1/2 times. Still working through my next Gen update PS5 playthrough here and there. Even if Ciri is a downgrade as a protagonist, I'm sure the stories told in 4 will be great and I'm really interested to see what they can do with the new dev tech available to them.

I'm planning on eventually reading through the books but I'm reattempting to get through ASOIAF first. After 1000+ pages I'm only 18% done