51 cinematic scenes, which are pre-rendered and tend to be of a higher visual quality than actual gameplay. This is because it functions in the same way as an animated film would, as it is pre- rendered and captured (Dunlop, 2014).
52 It is important for the pre-production team to know the limits of their animation and visual capabilities. In the pre-production artworks for The Witcher, one can see that the artist opted to strive for hyperrealism/realism as the artist knew that the game engine would be able to process and create an immersive hyper-realistic game.
In the images below, one can see the effect of pre-production design. In the artwork Battlefield by Madej, one can see how pre-production art needs to portray the atmosphere and setting of the game early on. By doing this, we can see in the screen shots from the game that the correct mood is portrayed. The clouds and muddy landscape create a gloomy ambience that illustrates a harsh and unforgiving land; the stray dog and dead people and animals within the scene show the viewer just how desperate and dire the situation has become in this world. The overall look of this image does well in creating a window into the Witcher universe during a time of war. In many aspects, with the art works for The Witcher 3, it can be seen that the visual intent of the game is to portray a very dark theme of war, monsters, death and fantasy.
Figure 11 - Madej, M. Battlefield, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. CD PROJEKT RED
53 When looking at the screenshots and videos of gameplay from the finished game as shown in Figure 12 below, one can see how, throughout the game, much like in the pre- production images, shown in Figure 11 above, landscapes destroyed by war are depicted, with packs of diseased feral dogs often roaming the battlefields, along with monsters attracted by the decay. This is in fact a concern mentioned by Geralt in the game as he believes all the wars are contributing to the number of monster attacks and nests surrounding the villages. Deserters hung on trees are frequently seen near the villages to serve as a warning to others (IGN, 2014).
Figure 12 - IGN (2014) In-game screenshot - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. CD PROJEKT RED
As the main character of the game is Geralt, the monster hunter, the creatures within the game are undoubtedly one of the strongest aspects of the game. Monsters play a large role in the storyline and offer a number of side quests for the player to eradicate them. The creatures are mostly based on Eastern European myths and legends. The interesting point about this is that the design team has taken these myths into account and has tried to create creatures which are as realistic as possible, in terms of muscle structure and proportions. This can be seen in the image below in Figure 13 of the Fiend by Madej. The Fiend is a sort of demon, described in Eastern European legends as cloven-hoofed, with horns. Instead of depicting the Fiend, also known as a Chort, as a demonic human figure with animal features, the designers instead went for a more
54 animal like approach to the creature. It is my opinion that this is a better design as it makes the creature less relatable to the player and thus more alien. The third eye, hulking posture similar to that of a bison or hyena, as well as teeth that jut out of its mouth, creates an image of a beast that is intended to be surreal and horrid. As one can see in the image, the creature is surrounded by a mist-like environment, which portrays the possible environment the creature would live in and gives the viewer an understanding of how it would behave, very likely being a creature that stalks.
55 Figure 13 - Madej, M. Fiend. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. CD PROJEKT RED
The image in Figure 14 below, is a screenshot from a quest within the game where Geralt faces off against a Fiend. In the image one can clearly see how the environment, coupled with the creature ominously depicted in the fog, illustrates the impression of the Fiend creature, as seen in the concept design in the image above. I think it is important to understand that the creature on its own would most likely not be as terrifying and immersive; however, when coupled with the mist and dark forest or moor-like environments, as well as the dramatic music, the event within the game becomes terrifying and foreboding. The player quickly notices the creature in the distance and must prepare to do battle with it.
56 Figure 14 - (Video) Video Game Source (2015). The Witcher 3 - The Isle of Mists: Locate Ferenc (Dead)
Along Coast Level 22 Fiend Fight Gameplay. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. CD PROJEKT RED
Character design involves many phases from early concepts to 3D modelling and texturing, see Figure 15 below. All phases are important aspects of pre-production and
production, as they establish the designs for the character and prepare the production phase for animation and scripting. In the artwork below by Marek, it is interesting to see the number of designs that are created for non-player characters. One can see how a number of designs are approached and refined in order to create an appropriate visual idea of what will be created for animating. If one looks at the designs of the armour and clothing, one can see that it has been designed to appear functional and even historically accurate within the context of realistic eastern European medieval armour, suggesting that such armour would be wearable; this is an important aspect of character and creature design as the designs need to be realistic as well as able to support the animation capabilities of the animation and game engine software.
57 Figure 15 - Marek, J. Early Concept Art. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. CD PROJEKT RED
In the 3D models by Blaszczak in Figure 16 below, one can see how realistic armour designs are converted into 3D models. By paying attention to minor details, simple yet authentic designs are translated into a characters’ costume that is convincing. If the characters, creatures and environments are believable in their designs and proportions, this increases the games
immersive character, thus making the game more compelling for the player. In the image one can see how the shoulder guards and knee guards stay in place on the characters’ bodies, which illustrates that functionality was considered in the design; this is unlike some older games such as World of Warcraft where proportions are dramatically over emphasised to unrealistic
proportions. The realistic proportions, as well as the unique designs, add to the appeal of the game characters’ outfits.
58 Figure 16 - Blaszczak, M. (2016) Ciri-DLC. The Witcher III - non-player characters outfits. The Witcher
3: Wild Hunt. CD PROJECT RED