The Witcher 3 Songs of the Past Gamescom demo proved it isn’t just a cheap return to CDPR’s RPG; it’s a new story that I need more of.
There's something almost Shire-like about Letten. There are rolling green hills, an abundance of food and drink, and playful music whispers through the air. It's a stark contrast to the darkness and despair that we associate with the life of a Witcher; a nomadic monster hunter with their eyes firmly placed on their bloody prize. Said Witcher, Geralt, awakens from an alcohol-induced, nightmare-ridden slumber, blinking as he looks up at a sunny sky, laughter and merriment drifting on the breeze. Songs of the Past's live Gamescom demo looks a little different from what I expected, but it immediately has me intrigued.
The Witcher 3's new DLC focuses on Dandelion, or Jaskier, if you want his original Polish name. Geralt's faithful bard has gone missing, with his trusty lute turning up in the hands of mischief-makers. Our preview's guide chooses to give the drunks a good ol' smack, prompting them to quickly return said lute, but they don't seem to know where Dandelion is. After that beating, I reckon they'd tell us if they did.
Geralt sets off to Manor de Lettenhove to question Dandelion's family and try and work out where he's run off to. We're introduced to his fearsome grandmother, and his cousin, Lilla, a young woman hellbent on unshackling herself from her regal chains and heading out into the wilderness. After a brief conversation, it turns out that, in his alcohol-tinted dreams, Geralt has seen visions of an eerie well just outside of Letten, which is apparently haunted by an ancient witch. Lilla firmly believes that Dandelion has wound up there, but his grandmother remains stalwart in her view that he'll 'turn up eventually.' Our path forward is pretty clear: head to the well, and find out what's going on.
Songs of the Past's most obvious addition is, of course, Letten. The region is absolutely beautiful, with its emerald pastures juxtaposing perfectly against the dark, rotten feel of the witch's domain. "When we're building a new place on the map, the most important thing is to stick to the principles we already know," Creative Vision Director, Karolina Kuzia-Rokosz tells me. "The new place has to feel like it belongs, but is still fresh and different. We want to give you this experience of visiting a new place you haven't visited before; the idea is for you to feel at home, but also feel like this place is new."
Letten isn't all sunshine and rainbows, however; the witch's well is oppressive and claustrophobic, with thorny vines draining the lifeblood from wandering animals and unfortunate travelers. "We take extra care to make sure that these places are intertwined with each other and that there's a story behind them," Kuzia-Rokosz continues. "It's woven into what you can learn from the people of Letten: you hear about the fact that there is this place that they don't allow their children to play in because it holds a dark secret. But people don't understand it; it's not the main problem on their list. They live different lives and just don't mention it because, why would you?"
The 'out of sight, out of mind' mentality is immediately reminiscent, once again, of The Shire in The Lord of the Rings. It adds that sense of innocence, and in turn that sense that you want to save Letten. The world of The Witcher is overridden with monsters and violence; darkness and shadow. Letten is a safe haven - a bastion of goodness, untouched by war. The parallels are clear, and after just an hour of live gameplay, I do find myself wanting to be Letten's Frodo.
Geralt and Lilla, however, simply can't resist the well's call, and head on out into the murky thickets in search of Dandelion. This is where we get our first taste of combat, with some fresh enemies (called Swarmions) to fight using Geralt's new chain weapon. As a result of the free remaster, fights feel smoother and more fluid, and the chain adds a new, dynamic element to how Geralt approaches combat. You can target individual parts of your foes, but in this instance we go straight for the throat, decapitating the corpse-like, corrupted beastie in an instant. It's smooth, it's clean, and most of all, it's sick as hell.
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.pcgamesn.com/the-witcher-3-wild-hunt/songs-of-the-past-dlc-gamescom-preview
