Home Gaming CD Projekt admits Witcher 3 downgrade

CD Projekt admits Witcher 3 downgrade

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Tw3downgrade

The Witcher 3 looks pretty good. But as many, particularly those on the PC side of the fence, think it could have, and should have looked better. They say that the game’s been downgraded, and that the blasted consoles are to blame. They’re right on both counts. CD Projekt RED has admitted that yes, the games visuals have taken a knock, and yes, the consoles might be responsible for some of that – but there’s far more to it than that.

CD Projekt co-founder Marcin Iwinski told Eurogamer that the visual are indeed a step down, but it was an unavoidable thing, that left the team feeling a bit sad about it all.

“If you’re looking at the development process, we do a certain build for a tradeshow and you pack it, it works, it looks amazing. And you are extremely far away from completing the game,” Iwinski explained. “Then you put it in the open world, regardless of the platform, and it’s like, ‘Oh shit, it doesn’t really work.’ We’ve already showed it, now we have to make it work. And then we try to make it work on a huge scale. This is the nature of games development.”

As for consoles holding things back? That’s true too, but only to a point. According to Iwinksi, it’s because of the console versions that the game even exists.

“If the consoles are not involved there is no Witcher 3 as it is,” he said. “We can lay it out that simply. We just cannot afford it, because consoles allow us to go higher in terms of the possible or achievable sales; have a higher budget for the game, and invest it all into developing this huge, gigantic world.

“Developing only for the PC: yes, probably we could get more [in terms of graphics] as there would be nothing else – they would be so focused, like if we would develop only on Xbox One or PlayStation 4. But then we cannot afford such a game.”

As for why they’ve been mum on the downgrade before release? Iwiniski says they didn’t even see it as an issue.

“…we didn’t see it as a problem,” he said. “In a way, because of us not seeing it as a problem, and working hard on the game until the very end, that’s where we are today and that’s why we have to explain. I hope it shows our intentions, because we are not hiding anything.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t have shown that [trailer], I don’t know, but we didn’t know that it wasn’t going to work, so it’s not a lie or a bad will – that’s why we didn’t comment actively. We don’t agree there is a downgrade but it’s our opinion, and gamers’ feeling can be different,” he said. “If they made their purchasing decision based on the 2013 materials, I’m deeply sorry for that, and we are discussing how we can make it up to them because that’s not fair.”

The game will still be fixed, patched up and optimised to look and run better on all three platforms. This whole downgrade argument is all rather sad, because in spite of it, the game is a marvel.

Instead, people should be focusing on how damned impossible it is to read the game’s teeny tiny text.

Last Updated: May 21, 2015

167 Comments

  1. Dutch-Trevor Matrix

    May 21, 2015 at 08:45

    Y’know? I’d go out and buy this bloody game based on the sincerity of CD Projekt alone. I tip my hat to these guys for being so open.

    Reply

    • beerhammer

      May 21, 2015 at 10:20

      They were not open though, in fact they constantly lied or misdirected the problems. They even said it will look better at launch than what was seen in the 2013-2014 gameplay demos. The only reason you are seeing this now from them is that they kept getting called on their BS and publications started running with the story to the point where any more silence and they would look worse than they do now.

      Reply

    • jhosson Mandala

      May 21, 2015 at 14:52

      Great by google yahoo and lazygamer < I didn't believe …that…my brother woz like truly making money part time at their computer. . there aunt had bean doing this 4 only seventeen months and resantly paid the dept on there apartment and bourt themselves a Lotus Elise .

      see this her CLICK FOR MORE INFO

      Reply

    • PCGamingMaster Race

      May 22, 2015 at 00:13

      Yeah let’s tip our hats to them for lying when saying there was no downgrade.
      They were prodded for days and days and finally admitted it.

      Reply

    • iamfromthefewchur

      May 23, 2015 at 12:57

      they were not open at all.
      they said that the downgrade wasnt real and was simply just rumors. and now they did this.
      not impressed with this company

      Reply

    • Joe Black

      May 23, 2015 at 20:59

      Admitting to something after the fact is very far removed from being open about something.

      Reply

  2. Mistake Not...

    May 21, 2015 at 08:50

    So I’ve been holding off on this game because of the bugs I’ve been hearing about. I most likely won’t be able to get the updates. What do you guys think? Should I get it nonetheless? PS4.

    Reply

    • Valenlord

      May 21, 2015 at 08:57

      Get it, like Nike say JUST DO IT!!

      Reply

    • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

      May 21, 2015 at 08:58

      You should, but hopefully when they fix the tiny font issue, especially when playing on a TV.

      Reply

      • Mossel

        May 21, 2015 at 09:26

        I switched to playing it on my TV yesterday…that font though. I had to squint to see most text in the menus and glossaries.

        Reply

        • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

          May 21, 2015 at 11:24

          Yup, I can’t play it. My eye sight is already not that great, don’t wanna strain it further

          Reply

      • Raptor Gilbert

        May 21, 2015 at 19:36

        Weird about tiny font does not seem to affect me. Seems normal for me.

        Reply

        • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

          May 22, 2015 at 08:34

          Yeah seems to be a thing for some(myself included) but fine for others. Playing on my 40 inch is horrible

          Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      May 21, 2015 at 09:09

      Yeah, get it, today if possible.

      Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      May 21, 2015 at 09:18

      You need the updates. The game runs like ass pre-patch.

      Reply

      • Blood Emperor Trevor

        May 21, 2015 at 09:19

        Please be more specific: Constipated ass or KFC Zinger Wings ass?

        Reply

      • Guild

        May 21, 2015 at 09:33

        So basically if the individual doesn’t have an internet connection then they possibly screwed where the game runs like shit or just doesn’t run. Nice, where is Ryanza again?

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          May 21, 2015 at 09:39

          Not playing Witcher 3?

          Reply

        • RinceTheElfRoot

          May 21, 2015 at 09:48

          LOL! After he was banned we haven’t seen him. But after a half gig day one patch, bug issues and text that makes you look like this gif, I presume he’s in a ward somewhere. http://i.imgur.com/HAfJjuT.gif

          Reply

    • Captain JJ Browman

      May 21, 2015 at 09:40

      You have to get it.
      Do, there is no try.

      Reply

    • Peter Pan

      May 21, 2015 at 09:46

      There is no if and but and maybe. Only one helluva big DEFINITE!

      Reply

    • Nikola

      May 21, 2015 at 10:13

      Get it I have been playing on PS4 I see no issue’s at all yet game is amazing however u need the day one 482mb patch!!

      Reply

    • Francois Knoetze

      May 21, 2015 at 10:23

      Played it a bit pre patch and didn’t have any issues. after patch no issues either. Loving the game and you should definitely get it! (PS4 btw)

      Reply

    • Sageville

      May 21, 2015 at 10:39

      Personally, this is game of the year, maybe game of the generation.

      No need to “hold off”, as I’m sure only a tiny amount of peeps have had a game-stopping bug.

      Basically, this is gonna be one of the must haves in any PS4 collection.

      Reply

  3. kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

    May 21, 2015 at 08:55

    Honestly, this game looks frikken amazing…My eyeballs popped when I saw Geralt’s abs (they popped when I tried reading the menu text too 😛 ) I was never a fan of CDPR, but I now am. They’re great, they actually replied to my support ticket to reassure me they’re working on trying to find a fix for the tiny text. They’re good guys, trying to right by the gamers.

    Reply

    • Dutch-Trevor Matrix

      May 21, 2015 at 08:57

      *My balls popped… Fixed it for ya! 🙂

      Reply

      • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

        May 21, 2015 at 08:58

        Both popped. But dat Yennefer butt shot though. I know I can get pervy….but holy shit dat ass doe…………Sorry for my perviness

        Reply

        • Valenlord

          May 21, 2015 at 08:58

          I wanna smack that ass!!!!!

          Reply

          • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

            May 21, 2015 at 08:59

            LOL O_O Dat next level comment :O

          • Dutch-Trevor Matrix

            May 21, 2015 at 09:01

            OH FUCK CHIVALRY! I AM GETTING THIS GAME FOR THE ASS!!!

          • Pariah

            May 21, 2015 at 09:01

            So you’re buying it for yourself then? Interesting.

          • Dutch-Trevor Matrix

            May 21, 2015 at 09:03

            Sweet Lords Above. I see the IQ’s dropped a shitload yesterday in my absence! Tell me, you got your ANC Membership card just yet?

          • Pariah

            May 21, 2015 at 09:20

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:22

            Jeez the love between these 2 guys is tangible

          • Dutch-Trevor Matrix

            May 21, 2015 at 09:24

            Oh I think he’s just baiting me with the Jesus image. Because if you can’t outwit a guy, attack his religion. Tactic of the weak minded fools!

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:27

            Klein mannetjie sindroom

          • Kensei Seraph

            May 21, 2015 at 09:35

            They should just get a room already.

          • RinceTheElfRoot

            May 21, 2015 at 09:49

            Agreed.

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:02

            That ass… that ass… Dandelion should make a ballad for that ass

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:08

            I want to bite it like a lion bites a zebra on the rump

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:09

            O_O what a reply!!!

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:10

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:12

            My thoughts exactly…

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:12

            Still love that movie.

          • Dutch-Trevor Matrix

            May 21, 2015 at 09:09

            You sexist bunch of asswipes you! How dare you objectify a pixelated woman like that?

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:10

            UNLUCKY!!! She knows that she likes it…..

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:10

            Fuck that. Triss ain’t got shit on Yennefer

        • Blood Emperor Trevor

          May 21, 2015 at 09:10

          Be honest Umar, you also got… giddy… when she made that creature go into the bath tub.

          Reply

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:11

            True true but the ass made up for that….

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:11

            Bwahahahahaha! Oh hell I almost died!

          • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

            May 21, 2015 at 09:12

            HAHA I felt it, not in a good way. I was expecting him to jump out. Looked like it was gonna claw his weener.

        • Lardus-Resident Perve

          May 21, 2015 at 09:13

          Never apologize for perviness! 🙂

          Reply

        • Mossel

          May 21, 2015 at 09:14

          I may have looked at Yennefer longer than necessary.

          Reply

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:15

            I may have restarted the game more than once

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:16

            May have…. nah you definitely did start it at least twice… am I right?????

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:18

            At least twice, at most…………

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:21

            Good for you!!! 😉 lol

          • Mossel

            May 21, 2015 at 09:30

            Screw it! It was totally necessary!

        • JayDiCee

          May 21, 2015 at 11:20

          I’m guessing only ps4 owners can confirm “dat 1080p ass doe” not even ass love for the XBoners

          Reply

        • zeemonkeyman

          May 21, 2015 at 12:17

          Damn feminists got people apologising for perving these days! What’s the world coming too mang

          Reply

  4. Valenlord

    May 21, 2015 at 08:55

    I must admit this game is awesome, everything I hoped for and it didn’t disappoint!! Graphics downgrade isn’t such a big deal, a smooth run in my books is way more important… And the bugs… none encountered thus far touch wood…

    Reply

    • Johann

      May 21, 2015 at 09:34

      I had two gfx glitches on the Xbox One version but I don’t know if it’s a corrupt install and it wasn’t anything game breaking. Also when using the boat, Geralt would sometimes shoot up a few kilometers into the air and fall back down into the boat without taking any damage.

      I haven’t had any of the other major issues like hanging on the load screen though.

      Reply

      • Valenlord

        May 21, 2015 at 09:37

        Flying superman in a boat!!!! LOL…

        Reply

      • Valenlord

        May 21, 2015 at 09:39

        I also have the Xbox one version, and thus far my boat rides have been smooth…

        Reply

  5. SEGA Neptune

    May 21, 2015 at 08:57

    Nep Neps version was downgraded to CMYK black last night 🙁

    NEP NEP HATES ESKOM!!!

    Reply

    • Valenlord

      May 21, 2015 at 08:58

      Don’t we all….

      Reply

      • SEGA Neptune

        May 21, 2015 at 08:58

        Nep Nep is still waiting for the Winter 🙁

        Reply

        • Valenlord

          May 21, 2015 at 08:59

          What are our words… winter is coming

          Reply

          • Kensei Seraph

            May 21, 2015 at 09:32

          • Hammersteyn

            May 21, 2015 at 09:38

            I see a face in the dark….

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:40

            Mommy hold me that looks like a STRIGA… O_O

          • Skoobaz

            May 21, 2015 at 09:44

            Winter is coming, don’t support load shedding?
            Buy a generator and invertor?
            Lots of candles?

          • Captain JJ Browman

            May 21, 2015 at 09:49

            Sounds about right.

            Don’t Support Eskom.

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:51

            To that I can agree, but ok this now might sound silly where can I pick up an inverter and what should the specs be for it to safely carry a load of a xbox one +tv+ DSTV + Surround sound for roughly a time frame of 2 hours?

          • Skoobaz

            May 21, 2015 at 10:36

            Home UPS system: a 2.5KVA true sine wave inverter ( which gives even better-regulated 220V electricity than Eskom) plus 4 x 12V deep-cycle 150AH batteries. Total cost, About R30k. Running what you said above this should cover you for more than two hrs gaming

          • Captain JJ Browman

            May 21, 2015 at 10:45

            Right. Now to find 30k

          • Skoobaz

            May 21, 2015 at 10:51

            If only we did heists in real life eh?

          • Captain JJ Browman

            May 21, 2015 at 11:28

            Of course we won’t. Because that would be wrong. Right?

          • DarkWave

            May 21, 2015 at 12:03

            Just get a small inverter petrol generator. Small Portable and runs all of that and more. I got the Briggs and Stratton p2000.

  6. HairyEwok

    May 21, 2015 at 09:00

    Like i said on a previous post. They did downgrade because they knew not every person out there has a Titan and super SLI in their PC rig. You can if you have all the bells and whistles go into the graphics ini file and tweak the setting to look exactly like the advertised game.

    Reply

  7. Pariah

    May 21, 2015 at 09:00

    What text?

    Reply

  8. Alessandro Barbosa

    May 21, 2015 at 09:04

    This entire debate around downgrades is really ignorant – spawned from a fundamental misunderstanding of how game development plays out.

    Games that are shown off at trade shows are extremely small vertical slices of the entire project. It’s almost impossible to know at that point if everything is going to turn out that way because – surprise – the game isn’t even close to being done.

    So developers show it off, and later realise that certain things just won’t work in the grand scheme of it all. They’re allowed to change it – and more often than not trailers leading up to the launch show that off. It’s not a lie, or a deception – it’s the reality of what is needed to get a good game actually running.

    If a game (like Alien: Colonial Marines) intentionally doesn’t show what the game actually looks like before launch, then yes, get mad. But if a game gradually changes over development and but also showcases these in subsequent trailers, then you really have no right to get angry.

    Reply

    • Valenlord

      May 21, 2015 at 09:08

      In my opinion what would you prefer an game that looks like a 3d movie but only playable for half an hour @R700 or a game that actually looks like a game, gives you a playtime of 100hours @R700? I think it is a obvious choice…

      Reply

    • Blood Emperor Trevor

      May 21, 2015 at 09:08

      Actually, it’s about ethics in video game development! *run*

      Reply

    • Pariah

      May 21, 2015 at 09:09

      Common sense. It exists! O_O

      *cheers*

      Reply

    • Johann

      May 21, 2015 at 09:30

      I honestly can’t think of one game in the past 5 years that looked and played exactly like the preview videos. I get that they need to show off what they’re working on, but maybe they should preview it a bit closer to release date and not 2-4 years before release.

      I don’t care that the game looks different to the screenshots and videos they showed 2 years ago, it’s still a damn impressive piece of entertainment. I’m sure they will also try and improve on it as much as possible in the coming months via patches.

      Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        May 21, 2015 at 09:38

        Indie games do 😛

        Reply

    • Tbone187

      May 21, 2015 at 11:28

      That is certainly so but what’s stopping developers from noting that the quality may vary in the final product? That’s the key issue here.

      This way the client has no excuse and it covers their backs with a little clause that won’t probably affect anyones view of the game in any event.

      They trying to hide the ‘fine print’ by not outlining this clearly from the start. Simple.

      Reply

  9. Blood Emperor Trevor

    May 21, 2015 at 09:04

    I get what he’s saying, but if they can’t be reasonably sure of the final product matching their preview build a few years later, which they should know, they should rather be more conservative in the initial reveals or risk having people calling bullshots on what they showed then.

    Personally, of the tiny bit I’ve seen of the graphics so far, I think it looks fantastic. For me, if what I’ve got now is only 95% graphics level (for arguments sake) compared to the initial pics being 100%, and the difference really is that tiny – I don’t care because it still looks great, & I haven’t actually even lost anything now have I?.

    And people complaining that their super special PC version got gimped because of those silly consoles… just shut the fuck up, you’re being childish. It’s not a competition to see who gets the “better” version.

    Reply

  10. Hammersteyn

    May 21, 2015 at 09:05

    LOL!

    Reply

  11. Witcher Bob

    May 21, 2015 at 09:08

    The game still looks amazing. Yes they could have made it that it run like the tradeshow release graphics level but they we’d all need Titan X’s to pull it off. Ain’t nobody got cash for dat.

    Reply

  12. James Anderton

    May 21, 2015 at 09:08

    Sorry, but people giving CD Project the benefit of the doubt is just showing how hypocritical you truly are.

    When Ubisoft, or Gearbox or any other publisher pulls the same dubious crap, they get chewed out for it and rightly so.

    Its extremely disingenuous of CD Project to comment on this only AFTER launch. This has been a topic of discussion for weeks already. It was plainly obvious that what we’ve seen in early promotional material was complete bullshit. And they sold pre-orders based on that bullshit.

    I haven’t bought the game. I reject the concept of pre-ordering digital products based on nothing but promises.

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      May 21, 2015 at 09:17

      I still like CD Projekt more than any other dev. There was an issue with the Korean language at launch as well and the gave those people free copies of Witcher 1 and 2 as compensation. Would like to see the other guys do the same.

      Reply

    • Mossel

      May 21, 2015 at 09:18

      I seriously doubt anyone preordered in 2013. I’m willing to bet that most people only preordered in the last two months. So I think people’s minds were made whether or not the 2013 footage was bullshit or not. I for one preordered because I’m a huge Witcher fan. Same with Mass Effect and Bioshock, I would buy anything related to those games.

      Reply

      • James Anderton

        May 21, 2015 at 09:19

        Does it matter how many pre-orders they got?

        Tell me: If this was any other of the main stream publishers, would your attitude be the same?

        Reply

        • Mossel

          May 21, 2015 at 09:22

          I’ve never bashed Ubisoft or EA unlike many people. So yes, my reaction would be the same. Like I said, if Ubisoft reveals a new Far Cry, chances are I’ll buy it, whether it’s downgraded or not.

          Reply

      • Valenlord

        May 21, 2015 at 09:19

        True to that!!!! couldn’t state it better myself…

        Reply

      • Kensei Seraph

        May 21, 2015 at 09:23

        I pre-ordered last week and never even looked at a single piece of gameplay footage or any of the trailers.
        Spoilers are evil.

        Reply

        • Mossel

          May 21, 2015 at 09:24

          Same here. I even avoided some Witcher related articles on Lagz. I looked at the cinematic footage though.

          Reply

          • Kensei Seraph

            May 21, 2015 at 09:25

            I watched the first trailer and also skipped the articles.

        • James Anderton

          May 21, 2015 at 09:25

          So you pre-ordered based on nothing but marketing. Good decision making there /sarcasm.

          Reply

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:26

            Right so everything you own has got nothing to do with marketing????

          • Kensei Seraph

            May 21, 2015 at 09:27

            No, I pre-ordered based on initial reviews, and my prior experiences with their games.

            One of the things I liked about how they handled The Witcher 1 is that they released a free Enhanced Edition patch that included a massive upgrade to the combat system and (if I remember correctly) some upgrades to the graphics.
            I’m expecting them to do something similiar to The Witcher 3 so the graphical downgrade doesn’t phase me much.

    • Valenlord

      May 21, 2015 at 09:19

      The thing is these guys are sincere, they still know what gaming is all about, and are not a bunch of money chasing hypocrites…

      Reply

      • James Anderton

        May 21, 2015 at 09:21

        Game development companies are not your friends. They are businesses trying to sell you products.

        Then why not comment on this last week, when it was already a topic of discussion for WEEKS, if not MONTHS.

        Reply

        • Valenlord

          May 21, 2015 at 09:25

          True they are not friends, but the way they handle themselves are way better… Other companies state that under no circumstances were there any downgrades only to admit in 3/4months time that there actually was. These guys admitted it 2 days after launching. Where does Ubisoft etc ever done this…

          Reply

          • James Anderton

            May 21, 2015 at 09:30

            So basically, for you, its okay for a company to own up to shitty mistakes, as long as they do it in a short amount of time? That still doesn’t fly for me, sorry.

            This was a calculated decision.

            If they had addressed it before the game launched, I would have more sympathy for them clearly trying to address a glaring issue.

          • Valenlord

            May 21, 2015 at 09:32

            Its not about the fact that they owned up to the mistake in a short amount of time, but rather to the fact that they owned up to it irrespective of what it is going to do to their sales figures…

          • Mossel

            May 21, 2015 at 09:34

            You clearly don’t like the company and/or the game. Don’t buy it. Simple as that. And why do you care if we like it and we are perhaps biased?

          • James Anderton

            May 21, 2015 at 09:41

            Yeah, you must be right. I mean why own both Witcher Enhanced Editions or have 50+ games on GOG.com if I hate the company, right?

            I must hate Valve to then, having over 300 games on their platform even when they make pretty stupid decisions from time to time.

            In short: You can still be a fan of something and be critical of it.

    • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

      May 21, 2015 at 09:27

      It’s unfortunately just the way it is. They’re not our friends at all, but they have much better business practices than most of the companies. They’ve still delivered an amazing product. I never wanted to give them a free pass, but after playing W3, I find it hard to really harshly crit them on the downgrade. They do more right than wrong and we can’t blindly treat them the same as everyone else.

      Reply

      • James Anderton

        May 21, 2015 at 09:32

        I don’t deny they are in order of magnitude BETTER than someone like *shudder* Ubisoft, but that doesn’t mean they should just get a free pass.

        People and their double standards. Gotta love em.

        Reply

        • kuuu(UMAR)rrrr

          May 21, 2015 at 10:01

          Nope, I do agree. They shouldn’t, but I don’t believe we shouldn’t treat them the same as say, EA, but I feel you though.

          Reply

    • Hendrik

      May 21, 2015 at 09:43

      I must agree to some extent. I am not that worried about the graphics, but hey, the bugs! THE BUGS! Imagine it was Ubisoft?? I thought that I am going to buy this game because I am offline, but I can’t now and must wait for the GOTY version before buying it. But because it is CD Projekt, now it is all right. They deserve a bit of anger.

      Reply

    • Tbone187

      May 21, 2015 at 11:19

      I believe the fact they issued the game to reviewers prior to launch has vindicated them a bit on this argument.

      Reply

      • James Anderton

        May 21, 2015 at 11:40

        PC reviewers only got access to the game ON launch. So…

        Reply

  13. Izzy

    May 21, 2015 at 09:15

    They communicate with the gamers on a level few other developers do. They are still the industry’s current sweethearts, and I commend them for it. Us gamers can be a fickle lot, and pleasing us can be even more daunting, bordering on impossible. I hope these guys find a good balance between keeping up their current trend but also not succumbing to every whim and moan out there.

    Big companies tend to nickle and dime the living crap out of gamers and treat us like cattle with wallets, making choices based on statistics that promise the most income. These guys reveal all their cards and basically come out saying they do it to make ends meet and make it happen. Simple. Spoken like one human being to another. Hope it doesn’t get shoved back into their faces somehow, that would be sad indeed. :/ I’ve played the prologue area so far, and it’s amazing! I was lucky not to run into any bugs at all, so far.

    Reply

  14. veggiesaurus ZA

    May 21, 2015 at 09:15

    It may have been downgraded, but it’s still a fantastic looking game. And if any company is likely to support the game post-launch with enhancements, it’s CDPr

    Reply

  15. Kensei Seraph

    May 21, 2015 at 09:21

    I’m expecting that at some point (probably in a years time) them to release a free Enhanced Edition patch that includes a graphical upgrade across all the platforms (might only be minor upgrades on the consoles though).

    Reply

  16. CypherGate

    May 21, 2015 at 09:23

    The game looks brilliant regardless of the downgrade. The story and gameplay is briliant and I havent even played it yet lol

    Reply

  17. Peter Pan

    May 21, 2015 at 09:28

    It still looks damn good, and the fact of the matter is that it convinced me to finally upgrade my GFX card, and few games would have convinced me to spend over R6000 on a new GFX card.

    Reply

    • Mossel

      May 21, 2015 at 09:31

      What did you buy? And where? For interest sake. I’m really really tempted to upgrade as well.

      Reply

      • Peter Pan

        May 21, 2015 at 09:35

        Gigabyte Nvida Geforce GTX 970 G1 Gaming GFX card from Takealot. Got it yesterday, and then I found out that at a length 354mm, it barely fits in my case so now I’ve had to get a new case which I’ll only see next week. Sucks really that the card is still snug in its packaging at home.

        Reply

        • Mossel

          May 21, 2015 at 09:38

          hahaha!! Ah that really sucks, I would probably also make a mistake like that. My only problem with these R6k gpu’s is you can buy a console for that price. So I have to choose between upgrading something that still runs well for R6k or get something new for R6k. Choices choices.

          Reply

          • Peter Pan

            May 21, 2015 at 09:45

            Well, IMHO, if your other components are up to the challenge at the end of the day, the GFX card would be the better option. If your other PC components are going to land up being performance bottlenecks, I would rather buy the console. My opinion of course.

        • Blood Emperor Trevor

          May 21, 2015 at 09:41

          Heh, I had the same issue when I got my 6950. There was a bloody lip on the hard drive cage that meant the card wouldn’t fit in the case, ended up taking the case to get a slot cut out.

          Reply

  18. Captain JJ Browman

    May 21, 2015 at 09:39

    Don’t care.
    It’s out.
    It’s awesome.
    It’s what I expected it to be.
    I’m happy.

    Reply

    • Admiral Chief's Adventure

      May 21, 2015 at 09:45

      Same here

      Reply

      • Valenlord

        May 21, 2015 at 09:52

        Same here

        Reply

    • Blood Emperor Trevor

      May 21, 2015 at 09:54

      So say we all… except that one guy… because there’s always one.

      Reply

      • Captain JJ Browman

        May 21, 2015 at 09:55

        Yep.

        Reply

  19. Ray Watson

    May 21, 2015 at 09:49

    Vegetation textures in the game is my only complaint –

    Reply

    • Captain JJ Browman

      May 21, 2015 at 09:51

      I’ll agree. It’s not great.

      Reply

      • Blood Emperor Trevor

        May 21, 2015 at 09:55

        Hah yes, that wall creeper. What was going on there?

        Reply

    • Ray Watson

      May 21, 2015 at 10:08

      But with that said – The lighting system is incredible – They should just release like a HD vegetation texture pack – still gives you the choice whether or not to use it according to your own specs ….

      Reply

  20. house_hero

    May 21, 2015 at 10:00

    I got it on PS4 and I must say that I am really impressed. Not sure if it was there pre-patch, but it definitely had the option to toggle the text size. That said, I really think the graphic debates are getting a little tired now.

    Reply

  21. Ranting Raptor

    May 21, 2015 at 10:19

    I still want this game. Regardless if it doesn’t look “as good” as they originally showed, it still looks amazeballs. You know what else they delivered on? Gameplay. They promised an amazing gaming experience and they delivered that.

    People seem to want to complain just for the sake of complaining it seems.

    That being said, did no one there test it on an actual TV and see you can’t read the text? Seems like an odd one to let through the QA process….

    Reply

    • Captain JJ Browman

      May 21, 2015 at 10:23

      Honestly. There’s nothing to complain about. It’s a great game and well worth that price, if you consider what sh!te some companies have sold for the same price.

      Reply

      • Ranting Raptor

        May 21, 2015 at 10:30

        I wouldn’t say nothing. There are people who legitimately can’t play. Crashing, not getting past load screens etc;

        However, that being said the openness and honesty these guys show, is astounding considering the PR avoidance so many companies practice as of late. That and the fact that, as you pointed out, the issues here compared to what other companies release, seem far smaller in comparison

        Reply

        • Captain JJ Browman

          May 21, 2015 at 10:41

          Yes, true. I, personally, can’t complain though.
          Considering the size of this game, it would be silly to expect it to be perfect anyway. There were bound to be problems.

          Reply

      • Blood Emperor Trevor

        May 21, 2015 at 10:30

        But JJ, even PONG has better gfx than Witcher 3!

        Reply

  22. James Anderton

    May 21, 2015 at 10:40

    http://www.gamespot.com/articles/witcher-3-studio-responds-to-crunch-accusations/1100-6422841/
    And I quote

    “So, PR aside, if you have any doubts about Wild Hunt’s quality, have a look at the 35-minute gameplay video we published some time ago, or check out gamers’ reactions to our public previews at Gamescom, San Diego Comic Con, and E3 and decide for yourself.”

    O rly? Well, I guess its okay then, since its CD Project.

    No, it isn’t.

    Reply

    • Paul McClancy

      May 29, 2015 at 20:24

      How unfortunate that the final build was downgraded even from last year’s gameplay footage.

      Reply

  23. Deceased

    May 21, 2015 at 11:03

    “If they made their purchasing decision based on the 2013 materials, I’m deeply sorry for that, and we are discussing how we can make it up to them because that’s not fair.”

    This!!! Fuckit, I bought my copy in Febuary already ( not because of expectations or shit, but because… THE WITCHER – and I’ve been a fan of CDPR since The Witcher 1 ).

    EA won’t learn a goddamned thing… ever.
    Oobi still has hope, they could learn from CDPR.
    2K is GREAT, even though – *wipes tear away* – no more BioShock.

    Don’t support half-assed studios. Cyberpunk2077 is coming.

    Reply

  24. Novakaine

    May 21, 2015 at 11:06

    “If they made their purchasing decision based on the 2013 materials, I’m deeply sorry for that, and we are discussing how we can make it up to them because that’s not fair.”

    Seriously?? Anyone who buys a game based on pre-rendered show footage is an idiot. Pre-order a game because you love the developers or they have a good track record or something…but honestly it’s kind of like buying a car without test driving it…just silly…

    Reply

    • James Anderton

      May 21, 2015 at 11:11

      Can you direct me somewhere I can quote ‘test-drive’ this game without pirating it?

      Seriously, need to know if my PC can handle it to my satisfaction.

      And you don’t need to go back that far by the way. There are plenty of 2014 trailers, that are also graphically misleading.

      Reply

  25. WitWolfy

    May 21, 2015 at 11:07

    Got it last night. It’s still an awesome game.. Unlike how Watch_Dogs turned out…

    Reply

  26. Ranting Raptor

    May 21, 2015 at 11:25

    This is why I miss Demos. I can’t test this game on my system to make sure it works before buying. I really want to buy it but dunno if it’s going to run nicely enough on my hardware 🙁

    Reply

    • Blood Emperor Trevor

      May 21, 2015 at 11:32

      It runs super smooth on Medium on my PC, and I’m barely above min spec. Actually really impressed on how well it performs because I wasn’t expecting it to be that good. So as long as you meet the specs you’re good to go.

      Reply

      • Ranting Raptor

        May 21, 2015 at 12:05

        560Ti… Only 1GB VRAM. Yes it’s SLI but still…. 1GB VRAM sounds like a serious issue so far

        Reply

  27. Tbone187

    May 21, 2015 at 11:31

    Expo hosts should be moderating this to ensure developers include clear messages that quality may vary in the final product depending on the game’s development stage. Simple.

    Reply

  28. JayDiCee

    May 21, 2015 at 11:31

    Need a reason for PS4 Witcher?
    Solved

    Reply

  29. Charl van der Merwe

    May 21, 2015 at 11:42

    lol the game can barely run on ultra on a gtx 970, who is gonna moan that the visuals are downgraded ? the 0.5% of people who have gtx 980’s in SLI? Oh please take a seat.

    Reply

  30. zeemonkeyman

    May 21, 2015 at 12:12

    They didn’t even see it as an issue?? Have they been under a rock all this time?! All the kids care about these days is 1080p!

    Reply

  31. Francois Knoetze

    May 21, 2015 at 12:42

    Reading other sites reaction on this little titbit of info. My reaction: Would you people please stop bitching about something that you can’t program or create from scratch. Fine it’s downgraded. IT TILL LOOKS PHENOMENAL! “the trees look like rubber and its always windy”…the reviewers at polygon(or was it forbes?) clearly have not lived in windy areas…bec where i live the fricken wind blows all the time. GET OVER IT! I think we as gamers have been spoilt to the point that buying a game becomes a criticising and bitch fest by nature bec our standards have been set unbelievably high due to high budget games that we can’t enjoy gameplay and a good story. So now we are checking frame rates which most untrained eyes can hardly even pic up and find something to complain about bec we as gamers are constantly being done in by the guys that give 3 years of their lives away to create ART. We are the victims! Not the poor sod spending his hours behind a desk with character programming. ugh…this makes me sick. I remember when a development team was 10 or 20 people. the graphics were pixilated but hell the last thing we were moaning about was shady textures and frame drops. It was:’did you also get caught off guard by the wolf in the cave?” or “damn I shat myself when the licker jumped through the one way glass” The industry is at fault but people need to change their perception about what is worth complaining about and what is not.

    Reply

  32. Stosta

    May 21, 2015 at 13:26

    Sidenote – Did he essentially say that without us amazeballs console gamers, they wouldn’t bother making games like this? *Engages Poop-Dodging Stance*

    Reply

  33. Honey Vig

    May 21, 2015 at 14:02

    If anyone actually believed the 2013 stuff would represent the final product, you’re naive, and, well, stupid.

    The
    game looks absolutely gorgeous in its current state, and let’s face it,
    what was shown in 2013 is way too ambitious given current technology,
    and most PC gamers don’t own the highest end PCs it would take to get
    anywhere near that fidelity and depth. Coupled with the game play, it
    never would have worked.

    Hell, look how many people are tweaking settings and turning off hairworks just to get their desired frame rates.

    Reply

    • James Anderton

      May 22, 2015 at 07:06

      Sorry, but there are no excuses for mis-representing your product. They have been poked since October 2014 about this issue and have either denied it in the press or ignored it (until now).

      Reply

  34. Matt Vaughn

    May 21, 2015 at 19:31

    Nope. Cannot keep rewarding companies for this nonsense. It’s simple false advertising. You show epic trailers with fantastic visuals, and then dumb down the final product, for console peasantry. Nope.

    Reply

  35. Hooptiecoupe

    May 21, 2015 at 22:45

    That’s really funny to read this. And makes me feel a lot better. Because I got Into a several day argument with a few different people on disquss who were defending the graphics and saying they looked much better than witcher2.

    But me and maybe 2 other people seemed to be the only one not seeing the difference the pics appeared to not be any better I. Graphics from witcher2.

    Thank you for acknowling that the games graphics are downgraded.
    It feels good to know I’m not going blind yet 🙂
    http://Www.hooptiesworld.enjin.com

    Reply

  36. IT_HOT

    May 22, 2015 at 14:01

    the game still looks good though…fuck people crying about.

    Reply

  37. Joe Black

    May 23, 2015 at 20:55

    meh… if it is not a game made “for PC” then I am not interested. I guess we just have to wait till consoles catch up in the graphics and controls departments. If you don’t understand that – Then you wont understand it.

    Ever been able to drag and drop a potion to a belt slot? Ever used 10 skills in one battle without pausing, or memorising weird little button combinations? I think not. PC keyboard and mouse is to console controllers like console controllers are to touch screen gaming.

    Ever HD photo quality modded Skyrim and still been able to run it at over 40fps? I think not.

    But keep drinking that prescription cool-aid. Enjoy it.

    Reply

  38. Ghost In The Rift

    May 29, 2015 at 09:58

    Well if it was not for the downgrade my system would not hold up, i barley get decent fps on 1200×900 everything on low:-(

    Reply

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