Summary
The Witcher 3: Wild Huntwas known for NPCs that lacked personality, were repetitive in their design, and had limited routines and behaviors. InThe Witcher 4, that appears to be changing, as the game’s director recently revealed that it will be taking its NPCs to the next level. In a recentinterview with Gamertag Radio, game director Sebastian Kalemba revealed that NPCs inThe Witcher 4are specifically designed to look “like they’re living, with their own story.” Now, in light of their increased detail, it’s worth considering whatThe Witcher 4’s NPCs could introduce to the series' gameplay.
In pastWitchertitles, NPCs found throughout each game’s world have primarily been featured as quest-givers and vendors, alongside the natural part they play in fleshing out the world and atmosphere of each installment. Of course, this is generally the role of common NPCs found in other video games as well, but it nonetheless means the player’s interactions with these characters are generally shallow and uninteresting, as they are largely useless beyond their immediate utility. However,The Witcher 4’s more “immersive” NPCs could take interactions with them further, potentially even to the point of romance.
The Witcher 4 Should Let Players Romance Its NPCs
More Immersive NPCs in The Witcher 4 Potentially Means Deeper Interactions With Them
AssumingThe Witcher 4’s “living” NPCshave their own schedules, motivations, and perhaps even evolving narratives, interactions with these characters in the game could reach unprecedented depths for aWitchergame. As opposed to NPCs merely being a backdrop for the game or simply warm bodies to fill a quest-giver or vendor role,The Witcher 4’s NPCs could offer more dynamic, more emergent interactions that strengthen players' connection to the world and make each encounter with an NPC feel purposeful.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance’s NPCs are a great example of this design philosophy in action, and it’s possibleThe Witcher 4may be aiming for something similar. For example, if a playersteals an NPC’s food inKingdom Come: Deliverance, that NPC might eventually become suspicious of the player, go searching for more food, or simply starve. Ultimately, this increasesKingdom Come: Deliverance’s immersion, as it creates subtle consequences one might see play out in the real world.The Witcher 4might follow a similar route and feature NPCs who evolve according to the player’s choices, thereby deepening each interaction they have with those characters.
The Ability to Romance NPCs Would Increase Player Freedom and Make Relationships More Personal
The most fulfilling routeThe Witcher 4could go with its more immersive NPC design is to allow players to romance said characters, as it would be the ultimate payoff for some of a long-term investment. This could involve “courting” the NPC in the earliest stages of the relationship by speaking with them regularly, bringing them gifts, and potentially completing quests for them at certain intervals, similar toStardew Valley’s heart events. The originalFabletrilogy by Lionhead Studios is a clear picture of what it could be like for players to romance regular NPCs inThe Witcher 4, asFableopened the door for almost any eligible NPC to be romanced, so long as players put in the effort.
As opposed to NPCs merely being a backdrop for the game or simply warm bodies to fill a quest-giver or vendor role,The Witcher 4’s NPCs could offer more dynamic, more emergent interactions that strengthen players' connection to the world and make each encounter with an NPC feel purposeful.
TheWitcherseries has always featured romance mechanics of some kind, though they have evolved over the course of the series. However, these relationships have always been limited to canonical, pre-selected romance options for players to choose from, as opposed to the game world’s entire population. As such, ifThe Witcher 4’s more immersive NPCs were to be made romanceable, it would theoretically result in each romantic relationship feeling more personal to the player, thereby enhancing that immersion even further. It’s not an impossible feat, as it has been done before, but it would be a significant divergence fromtradition forThe Witcher.
