The Witcher Interview

FiringSquad: For people who are not familar with the game, what can you tell us about the fictional backstory for The Witcher?
Gary Keith: The Witcher is based on the fantasy literature of Andrzej Sapkowski. We developed the story of our game based on his series of books by first focusing on the main character of his novels, Geralt of Rivia. Without giving away too much of the backstory I can say that the game world contains all the elements of a typical fantasy universe, but in our world there is no clear distinction of good vs. evil. Essentially The Witcher has two main plots, global and personal, which interact during the game and end finally as one epic tale. As Geralt — a renowned slayer of monsters — tries to regain his lost memory and pursue a group of assassins who raided the witchers’ stronghold, he finds himself trapped in a struggle between powerful political powers. The background includes an ancient prophecy, racial tensions, a mysterious Order, a horrible pestilence and an invasion of monsters. Geralt will become involved in many types of relationships including friendly, treacherous, passionate, rivalrous and hateful. The story will end in one of three ways depending on the player’s behavior and choices throughout the game.