It's also been revealed that the company is opting for a new game engine—CDRED Engine 3. The game will be out on “all top-of-the-line” consoles, so there is a very high chance that it will be a next-gen console game. The game will also be opting for a more open-world design instead of the acts/chapters system of the previous games. Unlike in the previous games, the protagonist—Geralt— will not be suffering from amnesia this time.
The render of Geralt will see improvements
Geralt will look better, besides remembering stuff.
GameInformer wrote: “CD Projekt RED has provided the screenshots you see here from its current in-game assets running on its Internal PC development hardware. However, the renderer - the part of the engine that translates the game files into what you ultimately see on screen - is still in development and will boast significant improvements by the time The Witcher 3 ships. "Right now you see the game in the old renderer, but it's going to be taken to a truly next level," says gameplay producer Marek ZSiemak. In particular, the developers tell us that skin shaders and the dynamic lighting model will be markedly more advanced in the final version.”
More information will be available when CDProjekt officially announces the game later today.
CDProjekt had hinted that it would be announcing the game via a secret message hidden in the CG trailer for its upcoming sci-fi RPG—Cyberpunk 2077. The message was discovered, again, by a member of the NeoGAF forums. The secret message seemed to be about the announcement of a new game. The message read: "We are about to reveal our other project, which is much closer to being completed, and it will also be a fully open world game with an intense story. You can probably guess the game we're talking about. On the 5th February, it will all be clear."
Concept art for the open world
Concept art for the open world
Most of the speculation about this secret message points towards the next Witcher game—the series that made the company famous. The Witcher games are based on the universe created by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski and revolve around Geralt, the titular Witcher. The Witcher games have received critical acclaim thanks to its handling of mature themes such as politics and racism. The first game of the series received some criticism because of collectible cards in the game, which revolved around having sex with as many women as possible. Despite this, the games have been praised for its mature storyline and moral choices that actually mattered.
The first game revolved around Geralt losing all of his memory and everyone who knew him thinking that he was dead. The main story revolves around the Salamandra—a cult hell-bent on taking over the world.
The second game involves Geralt being framed for the assassination of a king, and him being set free to clear his name. Much of this game's plot revolved around the racism and political tension between humans and a group of freedom fighters/terrorists named the Scioa'tel.