The Witcher 3 10th anniversary interview – the making of Open Sesame!

by

In Hearts of Stone expansion for The Witcher 3, you’ll experience some of the bleakest missions ever crafted within the game. You’re bound by a pact with a demon stronger than any Geralt has previously encountered, requiring you to fulfill an insurmountable task. From witnessing that malevolent being, disguised as a man, forcefully moving a wooden spoon through a person’s frozen eye, to uncovering the tragic love story at its core, it’s heavy and somber, making sense why developers CD Projekt Red decided to balance it with something unexpectedly peculiar.

Switching gears, there’s Open Sesame, a movie-like game that leans on Point Break and Ocean’s Eleven for inspiration. Initially conceived as a bank heist due to the developers’ previous work involving Vivaldi Bank – its characters and location – CD Projekt Red decided to go with an auction house instead, offering more intriguing gameplay possibilities.

Danisz Markiewicz, an expert quest designer, shares, “We aimed for something more engaging. The idea of Geralt participating in an auction, mingling with high society individuals, and even purchasing items was captivating. While a bank heist offers some intrigue, this experience is on a whole new scale. Additionally, there are nods to characters from the latest Sapkowski novel.

CD Projekt Red drew inspiration from Grand Theft Auto 5 and allowed players to organize a heist, selecting individuals for various tasks required to execute it successfully. With Geralt serving as the muscle, you’re guided to a meeting room adorned with wanted posters displaying potential recruits. Here, you strategize alongside your new ally, initially called The Stranger, who eventually reveals himself to be the auction house owner’s brother, pursuing revenge for his family inheritance.

Markiewicz remarks, “Some characters are misleading, but others have a significant impact on the story because they offer choices. Initially, we decided to include an escape artist and a demolitions expert, among others. However, the specific traits and personalities of these characters were still undefined at that stage. We only had brief descriptions, then as we began writing dialogues for them, the characters evolved.

In the world of CDPR, it’s all about the characters that make up the game. When creating your heist crew, the developers focused on defining key character traits. For instance, Casimir is portrayed as the comical relief, while Eveline embodies the opportunistic archetype who prioritizes herself and her companions. These personality traits play a significant role in shaping future story developments, such as Eveline fleeing alone if situations become too dangerous. The characters are introduced through brief scenes that showcase their abilities and personas, similar to the introduction of a teammate in Mass Effect 2.

Markiewicz clarifies that the atmosphere in their game arises from the characters. For instance, Casimir, the dwarf demolition expert, was conceptualized by our quest writer. The writer envisioned him as a demolition specialist who might have a quick temper. This led to his character being placed atop a hut brimming with explosives, creating a tense yet amusing situation. Interestingly, the quality assurance team, always meticulous and inquisitive, brought up an intriguing detail – if you throw a bomb at him from afar before the scene begins, he will detonate. This can be seen as a subtle Easter egg in the game.

Fortunately, CD Projekt Red had a backup character ready, ensuring the game could handle any misbehavior from players. If a team member for your heist perishes before the job, they’re replaced by an alternative choice. However, it’s not as straightforward as simply swapping them; the option to assemble a crew of thieves brought fresh hurdles for CD Projekt Red in The Witcher 3, as this was the first instance where characters could replace each other within the same scene.

Markiewicz recalls that instead of re-shooting the entire sequence, they devised innovative technology to create a scene where the characters appear but can be replaced by another character if they are not present. This is noticeable in various scenes, such as when they discuss their overall strategy. If the scene were played out literally with two characters talking at once, it would result in both speaking simultaneously, much like Schrödinger’s cat.

As a gamer, I’ve noticed that the choice of character you pick significantly alters the narrative flow and events within the game. For instance, the safecracker you choose will impact the hostage negotiation scene when breaking into the vault, as well as whether your escape artist bails out prematurely. Moreover, it determines who the safecrackers align with during the confrontation between the auction house brothers. And to add another layer of complexity, the story can take a completely different turn based on whether you decide to negotiate with the auction house owner or not. It’s fascinating how each choice we make as players shapes the game’s outcome.

CDPR manages this intricate process through an engaging blend of tools like charts, spreadsheets, and sticky notes. For instance, graphs help them monitor their dialogue budget (since localization and voiceovers can be costly), while others indicate the number of quests required, the desired genre, and characters needing more attention on-screen. Spreadsheets, on the other hand, illustrate how all these elements connect and influence the game’s overall narrative – for example, showing how Vivaldi Bank takes over the auction house if the owner is killed. This allows different departments to propose expanding character development, such as learning about Vesimir’s past by speaking to Countess Mignole at the auction before a specific point in the main story. It’s an astonishingly complex task, and Markiewicz would probably make it even more intricate if he had the chance.

Markiewicz suggests that if he were to redesign it, he would make it less symmetrical to allow for more narrative variation. He also shares his vision for an ideal scenario: a thrilling horse chase at the climax. He points out that in most escape scenarios from banks, there’s usually a car chase; however, a horse chase could add excitement and extend the tension. Despite this, he is content with how the auction part turned out as it was challenging to design.

How do you make purchasing items intriguing for wealthy individuals in a game? The developers introduced distinctive merchandise that players can bid on, along with optional dialogues to enhance the player’s immersion. Keen-eyed gamers may catch sight of The Stranger sneaking around in disguise, gain additional details about the auction house, and learn more about Geralt’s mentor. However, these conversations can also impact what you choose to bid on.

If you can show an art collector your knowledge and appreciation for art, he might let you in on a valuable piece going up for auction, as well as a potential buyer. Informing Vivaldi about this item would mean competing against him to buy it, so it’s best to keep it secret and secure a nice profit. Additionally, there’s an artifact that could lead to an exciting quest, along with some trendy clothing items known as the Concealment Kit – nothing profound hidden behind it; the developers simply found it amusing to include a humorous set of clothes for Geralt to wear.

The overall design of the expansion progressed quite smoothly, and the developers were able to consider certain unique scenarios that may have gone unnoticed without rigorous quality control. However, skilled artists understand when it’s necessary to let go of cherished ideas.

Markiewicz elaborates on one significant alteration for the auction house: “At first, we envisioned incorporating a purely enchanted security system for the vault,” he says. “The concept involved a portal activating and Geralt being transported to a cave inhabited by a Golem. However, this didn’t quite fit because the entire quest was intended to be realistic. After some creative discussions, the magical golem morphed into a real trap door teeming with spider-like creatures.

Read More

2025-05-20 15:47