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The Witcher 2 on Xbox 360 includes new content, more coming post-launch
Following the launch of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings on PC, CD Projekt Red offered a steady stream of updates and DLC, free of charge.The Xbox 360 version, which I saw at a preview event in San Francisco, will bundle all of that previously released content when it launches this year -- along with new material.%Gallery-145685%
EA adds CD Projekt RED, Paradox, and nine other publishers to Origin
When Valve introduced the hat system to Team Fortress 2, you swore off Steam forever. You're a die hard PC Battlefield player, and simply won't play it anywhere else. You refuse to use standalone clients for launching your favorite PC games. Do these things describe you? Then you're probably a big fan of EA's Origin game service, which will be getting content from 11 publishers "in the coming months," according to a press release issued by EA this morning.The first game to be added is the aforementioned Rift from Trion Worlds, with games from Robot Entertainment, CD Projekt RED, Freebird Games, Recoil Games, Autumn Games, 1C Company, Inxile Entertainment, Paradox Interactive, Core Learning, and N3V Games joining Rift's ranks soon. EA says that more specific information on pricing and release dates will be offered in the near future via Origin, so keep an eye out while you're remaining steadfast in your stance against that other major digital retailer.
Witcher 2 dev CD Project RED ceases legal action against pirates
After some strong words and even stronger legal actions, it looks like Witcher 2 developer CD Projekt RED is curtailing its actions against pirates over stolen copies of its last release. CDP co-founder Marcin Iwinski penned an "open letter to the gaming community" wherein he states that, "immediately" his company will "cease identifying and contacting pirates." Make no mistake, Iwinski isn't flipping his stance on pirates or the concept of piracy. "It hurts us, the developers. It hurts the industry as a whole," he writes. He is, however, flipping his company's approach to dealing with piracy, rolling back past legal options and taking "your opinions to heart" instead. Iwinski also points out that unless folks pay for games, companies like his "won't be able to produce new excellent titles for you," which we fully stand behind. So, in conclusion: Piracy? Bad. Legal actions against pirates? Also bad. Questions?
CD Projekt demands Witcher 2 pirates pay up, '100% sure' it's targeting properly
Developer CD Projekt RED previously estimated that The Witcher 2 had been pirated 4.5 million times, and now it's looking for thousands of those offenders to pay up. TorrentFreak reports the company has sent legal notices to BitTorrent users in Germany seeking €912 ($1180) to cover their debt to the company. "As you know, we aren't huge fans of any sort of DRM here at CD Projekt RED. DRM itself is a pain for legal gamers – the same group of honest people who decided that our game was worth its price, and went and bought it," CD Projekt RED told Joystiq in a statement. "We don't want to make their lives more difficult by introducing annoying copy protection systems." "However, that shouldn't be confused with us giving a green light to piracy. We will never approve of it, since it doesn't only affect us but has a negative impact on the whole game industry. We've seen some of the concern online about our efforts to thwart piracy, and we can assure you that we only take legal actions against users who we are 100 percent sure have downloaded our game illegally." CD Projekt wouldn't explain how it's sure that it's targeting the pirates properly, but it's using a method, according to PC Gamer, developed by an external company.
Namco Bandai wins in Witcher 2 distribution dispute
If you pick up an Xbox 360 copy of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings in Western Europe, Central or South America, or the Asia-Pacific region next year, it'll be thanks to Namco Bandai. A court in Lyon, France has ruled that it may distribute the game in those territories, following a dispute with CD Projekt parent company Optimus SA, which had offered the game to THQ despite prior commitments. Namco Bandai is entitled to a new distribution contract, and can extract a punitive fee of 15,000 euros per day if Optimus doesn't sign on the dotted line within 15 days of the ruling. When the dispute began, Optimus president Adam Kicinski expected a settlement or a legal victory, after which, he said, "the loser will pay for our lawyers." A second loser here is THQ, which sees its preliminary agreement crushed as collateral damage beneath the gavel. According to Parkiet.com, CD Projekt RED board member Marcin Iwinski said THQ had suffered no costs, and that the companies may yet "part in harmony." The court did not venture an opinion on Namco Bandai's suggestion that CD Projekt had violated their agreement by spontaneously disabling DRM from PC versions of The Witcher 2.
Reminder: The Witcher 1 and 2 for $24 on GOG
GOG's 48-hour sale that gives you The Witcher: Enhanced Edition and The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings for $24 (down from $40) is on right now. The company states this is the "best price" it'll have on the Witcher franchise during its holiday sales, and it's not like it would lie about something like that (well, there was that one time). The Witcher 2, which we loved at launch, has since received one of the most significant post-release updates we've ever seen, effectively addressing most reasonable criticism. For those without the PC to handle all the visual awe The Witcher 2 has to offer, the game should cast its spell on Xbox 360 in early 2012. %Gallery-116971%
CD Projekt working on new IP, multiple multiplatform releases
According to a translation of the livestream of CD Projekt's recent Investor's Day, the Polish developer behind The Witcher is working on a brand new IP, along with a whole bunch of other releases over the next few years. The Witcher 2 is still due out on Xbox next year, and then CD Projekt says it's also working on two more "AAA+" titles for 2014 and 2015. Between then and now, the company also hopes to put out three smaller budget titles -- two with a budget/staff grade of "A", and 1 "AA"-sized game. All of the titles are set up for "multiplatform" release, though which platforms isn't yet clear. But the company says it's still working on developing the RED engine, and since that engine is already designed for PC and Xbox development, we'll guess those two. CD Projekt promises more news on all of these titles soon, and since both "AAA+" titles expect to take 3-5 years to develop, it's a good guess at least one of those is already under development. We'll keep an eye open for more.
Witcher 2 digital sales pass a quarter million
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings sold nearly a quarter of a million copies through digital distribution channels between May 17 and October 30, publisher CD Projekt has announced. The company revealed in late August that it had reached nearly a million sales of the RPG between retail and digital. CD Projekt's DRM-free digital distribution service GOG.com sold approximately 35,000 copies of the game, with Steam picking up the five-headed lion's share with 195,000 sales. According to the publisher, "all other digital distribution outlets combined sold approximately ten thousand units." "The digital sales of The Witcher 2 have exceeded our expectations. We are even more pleased that our own platform GOG.com had such a great share in the Witcher's success," said Marcin Iwiński, co-founder of CD Projekt Group. "The performance of GOG.com in selling new titles is not completely surprising, as we have said for years that DRM isn't necessary. It is gratifying to see that the only platform that offered The Witcher 2 DRM-free from launch has performed so well." Well, yes, but over 550 percent more went the Steam route. So, the crowd angry enough about DRM to vote with their wallets form a vocal minority. It's not hard to see why Ubisoft, which has been one of the harshest of publishers when it comes to DRM, considers it a success.
Warner Bros. casting Witcher 2 for Xbox 360 in NA
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will publish The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings in North America early next year, providing sales and marketing resources that North American PC publisher Atari likely wouldn't be able to provide for a console launch. "We are sure that this partnership with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, with its strong position in the entertainment sector and particularly in the video and games distribution market in North America, will help us to achieve even bigger success in the most important market for Xbox 360 games," said Adam Kiciński, president of CD Projekt RED. "This is also a big distinction for us, that Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment recognizes The Witcher 2 as a rare example of a game with world-class production values, which merges a very ambitious and complex approach with big commercial potential." And as WB "recognizes" the publishing opportunities for Witcher 2 in North America, THQ will work PAL territories. Meanwhile, Atari and Namco Bandai continue PC publishing duties for NA and PAL, respectively. Anybody else want in on Geralt? Because it looks like CD Projekt RED is open to multiple partners.
Witcher 2 DLC free on PC, not on Xbox (for obvious reasons)
The Witcher 2 has been very successful for CD Projekt -- and it's most certainly been deserved -- so when it came time to figure out the DLC strategy, the company didn't want to charge players on the PC. As for the Xbox 360, well ... that's not up to CD Projekt. "All DLC for the PC version is and will remain FREE," development director Adam Badowski told Rock Paper Shotgun. "That's not likely to be the story for the Xbox version, because of certain Microsoft policies that need to be followed. But on PC, once you buy our game, you don't need to worry about any additional costs – we will provide all updates, including those featuring new content, for free." Badowski says no current expansion packs are planned, but if CD Projekt is to ask PC players for additional money, it'd be for "a more classic expansion pack along the lines of, say, Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast." The "certain policies" Adam is speaking about have certainly thrown developers for a loop in the past. Who can forget Team Fortress 2 and the Left 4 Dead 2 DLC thing? Valve's Gabe Newell has been one of the most vocal opponents of Microsoft's restrictive policies.
Wall of text describes Witcher 2's major update in full
CD Projekt RED's exemplary (and entirely free!) post-launch support of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings is perhaps best conveyed in a massive, debilitating list of tweaks to be made on September 29. Read the finalized list of changes in the Version 2.0 update, which is being rolled into next year's Xbox 360 version, after the break. A couple of changes made to combat should do wonders for its pacing, as Geralt will now be able to parry blows even when he's exhausted. Not all damage will be nullified, but the change should reduce reliance on the ol' run-around-and-roll-repeatedly strategy. The white wolf's attacks are also protected from interruption by successful enemy attacks. If that makes it sound too easy, you'll be interested in Version 2.0's "Dark Mode," a more sadistic approach to difficulty with unique weapon rewards. And if that still sounds too taxing, you'll be pleased with the game's new, fully developed tutorial. Rather than a quick walkthrough, the tutorial is a brand new quest in which Geralt aids a wounded knight. That context sounds quite a bit more gentle than the unaltered game's cajun-style kick-off (which we still found inspiring, mind you).
The Witcher 2 gets 2.0 update next week, Steam sale begins today
During a livestreamed press conference this afternoon, Polish developer CD Projekt Red detailed many of the 2.0 changes coming to its hit PC title, The Witcher 2. Those features include a new tutorial system, addressing complaints that the game dropped players off right into the deep-end of the gameplay pool. If your complaint wasn't that the game was too hard but rather too easy, version 2.0 also introduces the so-called "Dark" mode, which "is nearly as difficult as 'Insane,' but allows players to save the game." And if your complaint wasn't that The Witcher 2 was too easy or too hard, but rather too finite, you'll be interested in Arena mode, which is a wave-based arcade mode where players will fight (and fight and fight) until they finally succumb to the enemy horde. Depending on how you fared, you could opt to upload your progress to Facebook or the game's forums. In addition to the PC enhancements, the upcoming Xbox 360 "adaptation" (don't call it a port!) includes all of the new 2.0 features, as well as some other "new features." Most notable, according to CD Projekt Red, is an all-new "4 minutes long CGI Intro by Oscar nominee, and BAFTA winner, animator Tomasz Bagiński." Baginski did the CGI intro for the first Witcher title, but promises, "The CGI Intro for The Witcher 2 will have different flavor than the one known from the first Witcher game." And before you get too upset, PC players, while the CGI intro is strangely being billed as an Xbox "feature" it will "be part of the future update of the PC version of the game as well." The 2.0 update hits PC a week from today, on September 29th, for the low, low price of free, while the Xbox 360 release is still expected in the Q1 2012 window. If you've been looking for an excuse to try your hand at witching, a new retail price point as well as some digital promotions should help. Beginning today, the Steam version is available for $29.99 (or €29.99) until October 6. CD Projekt Red sister company GoG.com will offer a DRM-free version on the 29th for the same price, until October 6 as well. If retail is more your thing, The Witcher 2 is getting a $10 drop from $49 to $39 (or €39), a price already beat by Amazon.%Gallery-134681%
The Witcher 2 approaching a million sales
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings is close to selling a million copies, a representative for developer CD Projekt Red confirmed to Joystiq earlier today. The Warsaw Business Journal reported that the studio had sold 940,000 copies of the gorgeous monster hunter RPG in the first half of 2011, following its launch on May 17. The Witcher 2 version 2.0 update for PC should arrive on September 29, alleviating the game's punishing opening and making other tweaks that should open up Geralt's excellent adventure to more players. The Xbox 360 version, which will ship with the V2.0 content, is still planned for Q1 2012.
The Witcher 2 marked down to $30 on GoG
DRM-free digital distribution platform GoG has given us another reason to get excited about Gamescom -- a reason that doesn't include the near-constant stream of tasty German beers. For the rest of the week, CD Projekt's The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings has been marked down to $29.99 on the GoG storefront.
Witcher 2 version 2.0 arriving September 29, included in Xbox 360 version
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings will be upgraded to version 2.0 on PC with an automatic update on September 29, CD Projekt revealed today at Gamescom. The free enhancements include a new tutorial system to train players on the game's mechanics, hopefully sparing the frustration of dying 18 times in the first 20 minutes of the game. It will also add a "Dark Mode" difficulty, which is like Insane Mode but allows saving. There will also be a new "Arena Mode," an arcade-style survival mode that has you hacking and slashing through wave after wave of ever-more-hearty beasts. The update throws in 20 new tech enhancements that the devs didn't delve into. CD Projekt also announced that the Xbox 360 version of The Witcher 2, scheduled for Q1 2012, will include all the DLC updates to the game, including the 2.0 version.
Witcher 2 hotfix fixes Steam Achievements, 3D Vision bugs
What good is your heroic success in keeping the world of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings from slipping into ruin if none of your Steam buddies are going to hear about it? A bug in the well-received RPG kept some Steam Achievements from registering on players' accounts -- but those dark and lonely days have passed. CD Projekt Red recently launched an update for the title which remedies these incidences of accidental humility. Other problems fixed by the update include graphical snafus in 3D Vision mode, a bug which allowed antivirus software to treat game .exe files as harmful, and an error which screwed with blood textures on certain graphical settings. For instance, when the graphical quality is turned up to "savory," blood begins to look like delicious raspberry preserves.
The Witcher 2 Xbox 360 delayed until Q1 2012
CD Projekt RED announced today that the Xbox 360 "adaptation" of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings will arrive in the first quarter for 2012. The developers stated that the extra time will allow them to improve the game -- which they are saying is not a "typical port" -- and resolve the legal dispute with Namco Bandai in which it's currently involved. The Witcher 2 for Xbox 360 will be playable at the upcoming Gamescom 2011 show in Germany in Hall 6 (Stand C021). CD Projekt will also reveal upcoming DLC for the PC version, following an "as-yet-unannounced update". An update that was, by definition, just announced... but apparently doesn't have a name or any details to share yet.
The Witcher 2 1.3 patch out now, grab A Sackful of Fluff
Our two biggest issues with CD Projekt's otherwise wonderful RPG The Witcher 2 were (in order of importance) that the prologue's tutorial was way too rushed, and that our sacks were way too devoid of soft textiles. The developer has announced the arrival of Update 1.3, a patch which adds an item storage system, a Quickload hotkey and support for a number of aspect ratios. The dragon section of the prologue can only be accessed after completing earlier sections, now, so you'll actually know what's going on before you get roasted. There's also a new, downloadable quest titled "A Sackful of Fluff," which players will encounter in the middle of Chapter 2. According to the patch notes, "The quest will prove most rewarding to those who demonstrate patience." This can only mean one thing: Geralt will be tasked with meticulously stuffing pillows for loot and experience points. That is literally the only thing this can mean.
The Witcher 2 patch 1.3 detailed, includes free DLC
The Witcher 2's patch 1.3 still doesn't have a release date, but we do have more details about its fixes and goodies. Patch 1.3 will allow item storage at the game's inns, new aspect-ratio support and will include a free DLC quest that sounds more like it belongs in LittleBigPlanet, "A Sackful of Fluff." The patch will also fix a slew of issues, including patch installation causing the game to reset to default, map pin problems -- and the option to fistfight the woman praying at a statue in Vergen, which has now been deactivated. The full list of patch 1.3 updates can be found here.
THQ to publish The Witcher 2 for Xbox 360 in several international regions
The Witcher 2 is coming to Xbox 360, and not since EA's landmark Skitchin' have we been so excited for a game with a made-up "itch" word in the title. But what of our friends in Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East? Will they have to live with an itcher they can't scratcher? Not if THQ has anything to say about it. And it does. Because it publishes games. The company announced this morning that it will be bringing the game to 360 in the aforementioned territories. We'd still argue that North American publisher Atari is a better fit for a game about prestidigitation (as its continued existence as an operating entity almost certainly required use of the dark arts), but we'll take what we can get.
