The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Wild Collector’s Editions

The Witcher world is expanding rapidly soon, according to announcements at CD Projekt RED's press conference right before 2014’s E3. The biggest news is still about The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, due to be released February 24th, 2015. It will be released for Xbox One, PS4, and PC platforms. But other big news includes The Witcher Adventure Game and the service it ties into: GOG (Good Old Games) Galaxy.

As people who have played the first 2 games will remember, the Wild Hunt was mentioned as a part of his past adventures. The Witcher 3’s latest trailer shows Triss, Geralt, and at least one new female character with dark hair. One addtional mysterious character is referenced when King Richard states, "She has returned." Then we see the image of a woman with white hair, bearing a sword on her back. Is this Triss, somehow? Those who have read the book probably already know, but for those fans who have only played the game, it is a bit of a mystery. The monsters look even more detailed and fantastic than anything we’ve seen. The open world terminology does get dropped here and there by CD Projekt RED presenters, so we can expect even more magic, more places to explore, and more challenging monsters to pursue in world of The Witcher to come.

There’s something to be said for all the purchasing options offered for The Witcher 3. The fancy Collector’s Edition will come with a detailed polystone statue depicting Geralt fighting with a griffin. This statue is very nice looking, and from what I could tell, the paint job is immaculate, with blood splatter and tattered feathers given meticulous detail. It might be a bit much for an office setting, but it would definitely find a place in a gamer’s home. Add in Geralt’s wolf medallion, stickers, map, artbook, steel case, and copious video and soundtrack content, and this is going to be enough for any serious Witcher fan. But even when you step down from the Collector’s Edition, there’s plenty of love shown to the rest of the people purchasing the game. Even the digital edition includes a digital copy of the soundtrack as well as a digital copy of the artbook. All the videos, trailers, and documentaries are included in this digital edition as well. If you purchase at GOG.com, you’re not only guaranteed a DRM-free copy of the game, but you’ll get an extended soundtrack, the first episode of The Witcher Dark Horse comic book, as well as concept art and wallpaper goodies. To see the "plain vanilla" versions of this game get so much love, especially the digital one, just shows the commitment that CD Projekt RED has to its fanbase. Oh yeah, if you own any of the first Witcher games, you’ll get additional discounts to buy the game at GOG.com/TheWitcher3. It doesn’t matter what platform you bought those previous games on either. How’s that for love?

So what’s up with The Witcher Adventure Game I mentioned earlier? It appears to be a card-based, free-to-play game based in the Witcher universe. It ties into GOG’s new Galaxy online service. This service claims to be able to connect you to any platform while you play the multiplayer modes of a game. So if you bought the game on Steam, then you could seamlessly play with your friend on their copy purchased through Android’s Google Play. This is the theory, and it sounds very exciting.

So much cool stuff is coming from the makers of The Witcher. The announcements around this game and the partnership with GOG should be exciting for gamers of all types; they bode well for the future of gaming.