It’s not easy making one of the best RPGs of all time. And it’s definitely not easy to make one that’s even better than that. Unfortunately forCD Projekt Red, it has had to do both. While we’re still a long way away fromThe Witcher 4, we can’t help but wonder if it will be able to surpassThe Witcher 3; even more so,now that Ciri is the lead.
There’s no doubt that the folks over at CDPR are also wondering the same, but the devs will have to try and put the pressure out of their minds and focus on making the best possible version of the game they can. Of course, this is easier said than done, as The Witcher 4 narrative director Philipp Weber explained, “I’m like ‘yeah, how are we going to do that?'”
The Witcher 4 Devs Are Not Focussing On Beating The Witcher 4
In an interview withGamesRadar+, Weber revealed that while the dev team can’t help but think that way, they try to be objective about it. “I don’t see video games as mathematical,” he said. Trying to follow the same path and receive the same sort of reception that The Witcher 3 got does not make “mathematical” sense, as the reception is “subjective”.
He elaborated that the best way to pay homage to The Witcher 3 while working on the next game is to adapt the same philosophy – “how to make a game, how to really care about these things, how to tell stories” – while answering new questions in The Witcher 4. “I think it’s really trying to have that healthy mix of really moving forward and also trying out some new things, but doing justice to what was there, not trying to beat it.”
In an attempt to further prove his point, Weber mentioned that The Witcher 1 is his favourite game in the series. “I know many people have problems with that but I love it,” he explained. While the game is not as good as the second or third games, Weber’s point was that his love for it is subjective, and that the the crux of the team’s approach to The Witcher 4.
All the team needs to do is make sure that there are enough people who like the game, and hope that those who liked The Witcher 3 are among them. “The philosophy we had - how we make games, how we make quests, what The Witcher means to us - it’s the same one.”
