Evolution of the series “Witcher”. Retrospective of the combat system

October 23 came out “Blood enmity: Witcher. Stories “, Sixth video game in the universe Andrzej Sapkovsky. From a single campaign “Gwint” The project turned into an independent RPG, which is simultaneously similar and unlike the predecessors. However, past representatives of the franchise are largely different from each other. In this cycle, we will recall what path the trilogy went about the white wolf, how the central mechanics changed and how it influenced the game experience. The first part is devoted to the analysis of the main gameplay element of the series – battles.

The combat system changed from part to part. At first it was a “drummer simulator”, where the player must observe the rhythm, pressing the left mouse key in time. Blows, dumps, blocks – everything takes on a computer, and now a high -level heral is knocked out of the enemies of three -digit numbers of damage, remaining invulnerable. “Kings killers” Got a more complex Hack’n’Slash Boyd. Blocks, rifts and relatively low survivability of the protagonist – it is no longer possible to endure the heels of shocks from several gulles – they allow commentators from Steam boast, they say, all of your hardcore with somersaults was before Dark Souls.

True, he was already after Demons Souls, but in Fable the fighting is surprisingly similar, but this is the topic of a separate conversation
“Wild hunting” did not touch the basics, but accelerated the pace and because of this transformed and changed part of the mechanic. Consider these systems more details separately and in dynamics.

Features of the first part are closely related to local management, and therefore we will analyze it in detail. There are three ways to choose how to control the protagonist. By default, we look at the world from a third -person and with the help of a combination of WASD and mouse we interact with it. The second option transfers the game into isometry, but does not change management. If you turn on the third, then the camera will fly into the sky and now almost everything is performed by the mouse. The majority probably stopped at the usual layout, but in 2007 the game could be held with one hand, the other leafing through the book to look for references.

A screenshot with isometry can be found either by accident or on the game page in the GOG, and there it is only one
Even with a classic scheme, it is noticeable how important the tailless device is. The player selects replicas with the left key, selects objects, lays them in the inventory and fights, the right – conjures. The set is standard, but you can also hang a little remaining on the mouse – walking and choosing weapons and witcher signs. Only a pause from the gap of the Poles did not guess to move to the wheels. Even in the year of exit, such a management-especially the battle with the timings at the forefront-in Action-RPG was unusual. Now it looks like a curiosity of the past, which is one place in a row with a fight “Gothic” and two types of walking in Thief. Fortunately, the “unusual” is not equal “uncomfortable”. In addition, rhythmic clicks on enemies are diluted with magic, several witches and alchemy. Gaming gods, we praise jamming! However, we praise deservedly, for even for the eye of the battle are pleasant. An employee who proposed to seize the movements of a professional fencer deserved a prize.

The concept of witcher styles was chillireelscasino.uk a good idea. From the point of view of game design, they turn a two -button baton into a three -stump. From the position of Laura, this makes the murderers of monsters more unusual characters. If in the books they are shown more “simply” by the masters of fencing with superhuman strength and reaction, then in the first game the witcher is something more than the ability to quickly wave a sword. This is a profession, and its representatives know who has a strong skin, and who should score with quick blows until they did the same with you. Continuations of this idea abandoned, which was why implanting in the role. However, it is already mostly provided with history and preparation for battle. Throughout the franchise, developers encourage an individual approach to a skirmish and forced to choose from several options for strengthening for weapons and potions. Ghost for ghosts by 15% damage or universal sharpener with 10%? Drink several restorative elixirs or a decoction to reduce the resulting damage? In a word, it was in a minute before the battle that the player feels like a centenary hunter for monsters. The Poles themselves, apparently, also liked the idea: for three games, its implementation did not actually change. But despite the overall stability, the second part is better than the rest in terms of immersion, where in order to cook and consume, you need to find a calm place and start meditating.

In the first project of the franchise, Geralt rested only at bonfires and centers, but ate and drank at any time
This is not the only distinguishing feature of the second part, in general, most of the changes occurred precisely at the stage “Witcher” – “Kings killers”. The first thing the player is faced with is more modern management: you can’t do without a keyboard. The reason for this is the new, slasher fighting. Describe it as details as mechanics from 2007, it makes no sense. She is not unusual, and we met the like many times, for example, in the same Souls-Series. Better focus on comparing two projects.

In the second part, the developers changed the main idea of ​​the battles: instead “Protagonist is a superman that cuts flies on the fly” – “The main character performs dangerous work for which skill is needed”. The battles have become slower and more difficult, you need to press more buttons, but, starting with “Kings killers”, Geralt victory is the player’s victory. Salto and blows in the deflection from 2007 look spectacular than rifts, but you can’t become better in jamming. And in the first and in the final skirmish, you just click the mouse. New enemies appear, but the complexity of the fights does not grow, only their duration. The Poles in time realized that if they want to release two more games, then they need to come up with something more interactive and corresponding to the principle “Easy to Learn, Hard to Master”. The slasher battleship not only fit these requirements, but also built up well in the story of the murderer of monsters.

New ideas were polished in a triple, and retrospectively the second part looks like an experimentation site. As if CD Projekt Red We tried just a little, so that in the next project to do everything perfectly perfectly. Traps, blows in the back, rifts, blocks, ripples and altered for faster fights magic. It was not possible to find the optimum the optimum, and from one mechanic in “Wild hunting” Refused, while others were finalized. So, if in “Kings killers” The battles became more dynamic from the fact that both the enemies and the main character stopped standing still, then in the third “Witcher” It is precisely that they added speed and dexterity to both sides. Geralt became easier to roll and remembered how to make volts and pirouettes.

But the differences in the fighting can really be explained by amnesia
However, the monsters in human and in animal guise, they jump as vigorously as the protagonist, which is why the player drumming on the evasion key and tries to remember why the rhythm is such a familiar. The only exception is the bears. They seem to turn out from trolls from “Gothic”, And they are killed in the side in the same way.

The rests who returned the memory of Geralt has forgotten how to put the traps: it is not permissible for a lot of time by the standards “Wild hunting” It would occupy. Now they are offered to beat enemies of animations with a crossbow. But its main function is to shoot away from the monsters, being in the saddle, behind a tiller or under water. Not canonical;It is not justified why there were no long -range witch weapons at least in games;However, the gods see how amazing it. You can also return the harpies, wyvern and other flying reptiles from heaven to earth, but why do it standing, if you can gallop in a circle?

Zaitsev in Skelig does not like, even busty
The new alchemy of the WAU effect does not produce. By the third part, it finally turned into standard cooking potions for health and damage. Once the reason for the change is the increased gameplay dynamics. Of course, the system with the required pause and individual animation is not suitable for fast “Wild hunting”, However, she had a certain charm. In addition, now the drug is prepared once and its reserves are replenished after meditation. Justified act, since the Poles decided to make any component necessary for some recipe. Yes, and the attending food from the first game was returned so that it does not sit down to relax after every fight, where I had to drink a swallow. This is reinforced by the canon and logic, however, from a gamed -design point of view, the decision is absolutely correct. In addition, together with unique recipes for type “Mix two parts of dandelions with one part of the diamonds” Alchemy gained a shade of nationality, as if the formulas were taken out with an experimental way. Perhaps someone remembered that in “Witcher” 2007 Wives can be prepared according to the grandmother’s recipe. On the other hand, the old system, where plants, mushrooms and parts of the bodies of monsters contained different alchemical substances, was closer to chemistry and inadvertently referred to Sir Terry Pratchett. Like, for all these witch’s sacraments, there is enough submitted burdock and a glass of warm water.

Be that as it may, in general, alchemy as an element of the combat system has changed little. Only the pumping of the protagonist and magic show greater constancy. In the case of the first, the Poles did not invent the bicycle and limited themselves to the Tree of the skills with the glasses received for increasing the level. Unless the branches were called differently and mutagenes in “Wild hunting” used in the same menu until they received their own pumping system in “Blood and wine”. Even the problem that the hero for some reason re-improves skills in the sequel, CD Projekt Red carefully transferred to their projects. Signs were also not globally transformed, and the “push – fire – trap – trap – shield – stupefying” is present in the entire trilogy. In fairness, there was no complete stability: initially it was impossible to attack with the activated quen;Aksius began to stun only in the third part;And Irden then beat spikes from under the ground, then stopped the enemy with electricity. But since the functions remained the same, the general perception of local magic did not change.

The impressions of the game were much more affected by the fact that in “Wild hunting” Opponents have levels. Now even a feral barbobes can bite Geralt, who has not entered the forest. On the one hand, this temporarily closes some parts of the open world. If you can run away from enemies wandering around the map, then complete all the tasks and clean all the signs of the question will definitely not work at a time. Be sure to run into a too healthy image that needs to be picking twenty minutes, perfectly evading her attacks.

Keiran in “Kings killers” also killed in a couple of blows, but the victory did not depend on how many quests have already been completed
On the other hand, the third part, unlike the first two, is nonlinear, and the scenery does not change every act. The fillings have become many times more, and it is no longer placed on the board of ads at the starting location. It was necessary to limit the player and come up with a new way to divide the content into portions, for which some enemies were made much more complicated than others. Of course, it’s a shame to die from a dog that swayed better than you, but such a solution is more elegant than invisible walls or not immediately appearing passages in the open world. In addition, the battles remain interesting and moderately complex, especially if you turn on auto -overlings;The backing was made less intrusive and at any stage of passage there is a quest of a suitable level. But since we smoothly moved to the issue of filling the world, then this is where we will finish the analysis of the fighting system of “witches”. The subject of analysis in the next part will be the presentation of stories, the style of games and side activities.