With The Witcher Remake having been officially announced, fans are wondering how CD Projekt Red and Fool’s Theory will go about recreating the first game in the franchise. One thing the developer team can do is draw from features of The Witcher 3 as that was the most recent game in the franchise, and it’s one that’s well-loved by the community.
From the combat to the game world, there are plenty of ways to modernize the original Witcher. Doing so doesn’t just make it more accessible to new players, but also gives older fans a new way of experiencing the game. Overall, it makes the game feel a lot more streamlined and polished.
The Witcher 3’s More Modern Combat Mechanics
First and foremost, The Witcher Remake needs to change up the original game’s combat. The first game’s fighting mechanics have been described as rhythm game-esque because for the player to land hits on the enemy, they have to click at the right time. Additionally, they need to be using the right combat stance. Otherwise, Geralt’s attacks won’t work.
Admittedly, this system of combat is outdated, especially when compared to The Witcher 3 and even The Witcher 2. However, while there’s a need to modernize the system, that doesn’t have to mean doing away with the old game’s features completely. Perhaps The Witcher Remake can borrow the combat mechanics of The Witcher 3 but still retain there being three different attack styles. This makes combat less repetitive and more challenging, which is something players wanted more of in The Witcher 3.
The Witcher 3’s Ability Point System
Another feature that needs tweaking in The Witcher Remake is the character progression system. In the original Witcher, leveling up abilities required a resource known as talents, and there were three types – bronze talents, silver talents, and gold talents. This made it considerably more difficult for players to plot out their builds as they’d have to ration their different talents.
In contrast, The Witcher 3’s ability point system is a lot simpler and streamlined. While it still pushes the player to plot out their use of ability points in advance, it’s nowhere near as complex as the system in The Witcher. Instead of having different variations of ability points, the player can just focus on collecting the number of points they need for whatever build they choose. Because at the end of the day, more complex doesn’t always mean better.
Despite The Witcher 3’s less complex ability point system, it still poses a challenge given the limited number of points that the player can acquire in a single playthrough. Additionally, acquiring the abilities doesn’t make them take effect. Geralt still needs to “equip” them, meaning the player has to prioritize which abilities to use at any given time. This is one way for The Witcher Remake to prevent players from becoming too overpowered, though notably, some in the community aren’t too fond of the ability slot system.
The Witcher 3’s Mutagens
In addition to the altered character progression mechanics, The Witcher Remake should also implement The Witcher 3’s mutagens. In The Witcher 3’s ability menu, the player has a number of extra slots specifically for mutagens. These are rare alchemical ingredients acquired from different monsters that amplify the effects of certain abilities. But to fully optimize them, the player has to match the right abilities to the right mutagen. Red mutagens bolster combat-based abilities; blue mutagens bolster sign-based abilities; and green mutagens bolster alchemy-based abilities.
The original Witcher game didn’t have a system like this, but it’d be a welcome addition. The mutagens provide an extra layer to character progression, which further encourages players to choose a build and commit to it. It also provides incentives for players to go out and search for mutagens, thus making monster contracts and exploration more worthwhile.
The Witcher 3’s Open World
This feature is a bit difficult to navigate as some players like the open world of The Witcher 3, while others much prefer the smaller, more controlled environments of The Witcher 1 & 2. That said, there’s a case to be made for the implementation of an open world in The Witcher Remake. It doesn’t have to be as expansive as the game world of The Witcher 3. If anything, the developer could simply make past “levels” accessible even after their relevant chapters and quests have already been completed.
For example, upon reaching the latter chapters of the original Witcher, Geralt would gain access to the walled city of Vizima. However, this would also bar the player from returning to the Outskirts of Vizima, where the preceding chapter took place. Perhaps The Witcher Remake can alter this, and allow Geralt to revisit past locations, much like how The Witcher 3’s open world lets the player travel back to Novigrad even after unlocking the Skellige Isles. It could even allow for new quests to showcase the consequences of the player’s actions in past chapters.
The Witcher 3’s Scavenger Hunts
Lastly, the original Witcher already had main quests, side quests, and even monster contracts, but it had no treasure hunt-type quests. Admittedly, many of the treasure hunts in The Witcher 3 were more tedious than fun. However, the more enjoyable treasure hunt quests were no doubt the ones involving Witcher gear.
That said, The Witcher Remake can implement something similar to The Witcher 3’s treasure hunts for unique Witcher armor. These not only provide the player with powerful gear but are also a great avenue for world-building, giving players a fresh perspective of Vizima and its surrounding locations. However, the developer needs to be cautious in implementing these quests. The number of treasure hunts in The Witcher Remake should not be as excessive as that of The Witcher 3. Otherwise, it runs the risk of becoming repetitive.
Overall, there are plenty of features in The Witcher 3 for The Witcher Remake to draw on. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a one-to-one copy of old elements. The developer can simply take inspiration from the things that have already worked before and try to improve them for the unique context of The Witcher. The right mix of old and new will no doubt result in a more modern and inspired recreation of the game that started it all.
The Witcher Remake is in development.