A bunch of new screens and artwork can be found in this GAF thread

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=657213

During an interview with the polish site Gazeta Prawna, Adam Kicinski has revealed some interesting info about how much cost CDProject to develop The Witcher 2, and it was... $10.36 million!

Such a big game for that! Some western studios should learn from them (I know that working in Poland helped, but it's still a very low amount for the industry standards).

He has also revealed that during the first 6 months of the year they has spent $2.83 millions while working on The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk.

good previewfrom PCGamesN

Leaked Gameplay trailer (off screen) for those who are interested, I will wait for official one

http://leadergamer.com.tr/witcher-3-gamescom-oyun-ici-videosu-sizdirildi-49675.html

I'm excited for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Cyberpunk 2077. Do we have any information on save imports from The Witcher 2 into Wild Hunt? Bear in mind that I'm fine with or without them.

PC yeas, console maybe (most likely not)

They haven't finalised what will happen for people without a save, most likely just a preset world state like TW2 but they may have some way of creating a game state (something like the interactive comic from Mass Effect 2 on PS3 that lets you make the major decisions if I had to guess).

That sounds good, I play on PC, with saves from both a Iorveth path and Roche path playthrough that I wouldn't mind importing.  I'm interested in the way Bioware is addressing save imports into the next gen with Dragon Age Keep, an online app that seems like a flag checklist that can then be used to generate an import, regardless of what platform you play on.

VG247 has a mini interview

http://www.vg247.com/2013/09/05/is-the-witcher-3-wild-hunt-maxing-out-next-gen-consoles-already/

VG247: While bringing The Witcher 3 to next-gen, have you had to make any changes to the game? Have any sacrifices had to be made to fit in with the business practices of Sony and MS

Marek Ziemak: No, it actually worked the other way around. We actually had loads of new opportunities because of the new platforms. We have got better equipment to play with and can now deliver more things in the game.

VG247: Earlier this year we saw Microsoft introduce various DRM policies on Xbox One that have since been overturned. Given your relationship with GOG.com and the fact it places no DRM restrictions on its titles, what were your thoughts on the whole process? Did it put you off developing Witcher 3 for Xbox One?

Ziemak: Whenever we can, our approach is to create games without DRM. The Witcher 3 will be available on GOG.com, day one, DRM free. But when it comes to consoles, well, we have to consider the platform we’re developing for. Of course we’re independent as a games studio but when developing for Playstation 4 or Xbox One; we have to work with console manufacturers. And in the end, the market makes the decision.

If people buy consoles with DRM restrictions and they are OK with it – because there are a mass of players who don’t care whether a game has DRM or no DRM restrictions – we don’t want to cut those players off. So yes, we will be delivering our products to Sony and Microsoft, despite talks of DRM. If it was possible to deliver a game DRM free on those systems that would be cool, we would love it as it would support our philosophy. But sometimes we have to work with manufacturers and respect their business decisions.

VG247: In a recent interview, CD Projekt members suggested that the team has already managed to max out next-gen systems. I found this a bit concerning as you’re aiming to launch The Witcher 3 very early on in their life cycle. I know the game will be dramatically intense on PC, but can you tell us just how much the game is progressing on next-gen platforms?

Ziemak: Sure. At this point, we’re advanced in testing, running and experimenting with next-gen platforms, and at this point we know the game is pretty demanding. Of course, we still have the authorisation phase in front of us, but because of size and density, we are already close to maxing out the equipment. Of course, if we find more workforce in boxes, we will surely use it to make the game even better. I think others share the same opinion as us, if there’s power to be used then why not use it all? [Laughs]

VG247: You’re currently in talks with Microsoft about cross-save opportunities between Xbox 360 and Xbox One for The Witcher 2 and Witcher 3. How are those progressing? For those who’ve played Witcher 2, what differences can they expect in Witcher 3?

Ziemak: To be honest, I don’t know how the talks with Microsoft are progressing in this instance. We’re looking for ways to allow people to load their save games from previous instalments and put them into Witcher 3. This isn’t problematic for PC as we’re in charge of that situation and control it fully. We’re investigating the possibilities of transfer between Xbox 360 and Xbox One, and if its possible, we will move ahead with that.

As for what to expect, players will be able to continue their progress, continue with the decisions made in storyline of The Witcher 2. They’ll also be able to collect some stuff from their inventory, such as gold, but we haven’t firmed up the full details yet. We’ll see. Things still need to fine-tuned and balanced.

VG247: Could you tell us how diverse the landscape of The Witcher 3 is and describe some of the environments players will get to see?

Ziemak: There’s a pretty huge diversity. The world is around 35x bigger than Witcher 2 and each location is different. We’re putting effort into creating unique elements in this world and producing various points of interest. We believe these things make a world more attractive and interesting. There are a few different kingdoms or relics you can visit as you travel through the game. All of them are connected and part of one coherent experience.

VG247: Final question. As we’ve come to expect from The Witcher series, the PC version will offer mod opportunities. From your experience with next-gen systems, do you think Xbox One and Playstation 4 will offer more flexibility for modding opportunities than current-gen?

Ziemak: I’m afraid I can’t answer this question yet. We haven’t spent too much time exploring this area as we’re trying to get the core product and core experience onto the platforms. From there, we will be trying to squeeze Red Engine 3 to allow modders to use this part of the technology. But it’s a very hard question and i’m afraid I can’t give you a clear answer at this time.

make sure to check out the full article

http://www.vg247.com/2013/09/05/is-the-witcher-3-wild-hunt-maxing-out-next-gen-consoles-already/

And keep in mind people using all the available resources doesn't actually mean the same thing as using the resources in the most effeciant way humanly possible. Just because a game is "maxing out" the systems doesn't mean there won't be better ways to use those resources in the future.

CD Projekt RED On Why The Witcher Series Was Not Created With CryENGINE or Unreal Engine

A couple of days ago, we had the pleasure to interview CD Projekt RED’s Greg Rdzany – Senior Technical Producer at CD Projekt RED – and Balazs Torok – Lead Engine Programmer at CD Projekt RED. Although our full interview will be posted later this weekend, we felt the need to share with you some juicy details about why CDPR decided to create the REDEngine engine, and why it did not license CryENGINE or Unreal Engine. 

When asked about it, Greg Rdzany told us:

“The short version: after our work on W1, which gave us a lot of experience with the Aurora engine, we concluded that ready-made solutions were not fully capable of giving us the creative freedom we were looking for. After evaluating different possibilities and exhaustive discussions we decided to start developing our own technology – technology that would fit our needs perfectly, not only in terms of rendering but also when it comes to tools. RPG games are very complex, so designers and artists require a lot of specialized solutions allowing them to create vast, believable worlds and compelling stories. We believe REDengine provides such support.”

Balazs Torok added:

“The big licensable engines are really great – there’s a team of experts behind them developing every little piece and this creates something that sets the bar really high for us – but we believe that these engines are also very general in their nature. We try to concentrate on all the features that make our engine and toolset especially good for making RPG games, and this specialization allows us to have a smaller team providing high quality solutions on par with the engines mentioned above. With that said, our engine is modular enough that it could be used to make different kinds of games if such a decision was made.”

Greg Rdzany concluded that CD Projekt RED is watching all the available commercial engines (Frostbite 3, CryENGINE and Unreal Engine 4) closely and that it wants to have its own impact on the technological development of solutions powering current AAA games:

“As for the available commercial engines, we are watching them closely. Companies like Crytek, Dice and Epic are pushing technological boundaries further and further every time they release new versions of their engines. We try not only to keep up the pace but we would also like to have our own impact on the technological development of solutions powering current AAA games.”

Stay tuned for our full interview!

http://www.dsogaming.com/news/cd-projekt-red-on-why-the-witcher-series-was-not-created-with-cryengine-or-unreal-engine/

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will be published by Spike Chunsoft in Japan

Full interview is up

CD Projekt RED Talks The Witcher 3 Tech: Tessellation, PhysX, DX11.2, Windows 8, Global Illumination

A couple of days ago, we had the pleasure to interview Greg Rdzany – Senior Technical Producer at CD Projekt RED – and Balazs Torok – Lead Engine Programmer at CD Projekt RED. Greg and Balazs shared some new information about the Fur tech that will be implemented in The Witcher 3 and talked about PhysX 3.0, Tessellation, DX11.2, Global Illumination, and shared their opinion about other commercial engines – like CryENGINE and Unreal Engine. Enjoy the interview after the jump!

DSOGaming: Before we begin, please introduce yourselves to our readers.

GR: Hello, I’m Greg Rdzany – Senior Technical Producer at CD Projekt RED.
BT: Hi, I’m Balazs Torok – Lead Engine Programmer at CD Projekt RED.

DSOGaming: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is powered by REDengine 3. What are the key differences between REDengine 2 and 3?

BT:  The key difference is that REDengine 3 is made to support open world games. We spent a lot of time figuring out the pipeline and the systems and techniques needed to enable our game teams to achieve their goals, both in terms of storytelling and openness. We also rewrote the renderer to support DirectX 11 – this brought a lot of new features that we can use to make our games look even better.

DSOGaming: Why did you create your own engine instead of licensing one, and what’s your opinion about both CRYENGINE and Unreal Engine 4?

GR: The short version: after our work on W1, which gave us a lot of experience with the Aurora engine, we concluded that ready-made solutions were not fully capable of giving us the creative freedom we were looking for. After evaluating different possibilities and exhaustive discussions we decided to start developing our own technology – technology that would fit our needs perfectly, not only in terms of rendering but also when it comes to tools. RPG games are very complex, so designers and artists require a lot of specialized solutions allowing them to create vast, believable worlds and compelling stories. We believe REDengine provides such support.

As for the available commercial engines, we are watching them closely. Companies like Crytek, Dice and Epic are pushing technological boundaries further and further every time they release new versions of their engines. We try not only to keep up the pace but we would also like to have our own impact on the technological development of solutions powering current AAA games.

BT: The big licensable engines are really great – there’s a team of experts behind them developing every little piece and this creates something that sets the bar really high for us – but we believe that these engines are also very general in their nature. We try to concentrate on all the features that make our engine and toolset especially good for making RPG games, and this specialization allows us to have a smaller team providing high quality solutions on par with the engines mentioned above. With that said, our engine is modular enough that it could be used to make different kinds of games if such a decision was made.

DSOGaming: One of the key features that was removed from UE4 was Sparse Voxel Octree Global Illumination. Does REDengine 3 support it (or any other forms of Global Illumination) and if not, are there any plans for implementing it?

BT: In some ways Global Illumination is the biggest challenge currently facing graphics programmers. It’s quite hard to find a solution that gives feature parity across all our target platforms and we decided that for now we would rather spend our time on other features for providing better-looking lighting and shading. We will definitely return to this topic at some point and I’m sure that we will find a solution that will fit our games, but right now we have other ideas on how to improve the visuals.

DSOGaming: A couple of days ago, Nvidia showcased its Fur Tech that will be featured in The Witcher 3. The performance, though, was underwhelming. Are you guys working with Nvidia to optimize the PhysX effects, and will you be using the PhysX 3.0 SDK?

GR: The Fur Tech showcase presented recently is only an early version of a feature we are working on in cooperation with Nvidia. We will definitely put more effort into optimizing it as well as improving its visual quality. We are still quite far from release, so I believe we will achieve a satisfactory level of performance.

And yes, we will use the PhysX 3.x SDK.

BT: The fur technology from Nvidia is in a very early stage of development – not too long ago it only existed as a research project. It is a very interesting process to get our hands on something at such an early stage and make sure it will be usable in our games. Obviously the technique is not optimized yet but we see a lot of potential in it and we are working very closely with the developers to make sure that we can get the best out of it.

DSOGaming: What are the key tech features of The Witcher 3, and what is the one that you are really proud of?

BT: We are very proud that The Witcher 2 is considered one of the best looking games on the Xbox 360, so we’ve tried to improve our graphics and we are very satisfied with our initial results. Naturally, we are proud that we made the transition to run our games on multiple platforms and to create the systems for an open world. We also switched our physics middleware from Havok to PhysX and we started using Apex.  These were all really big changes and we are far from done – we have a lot more on our plate, including constant improvements to our editor. We should probably get back to this question after the game is released but right now these things come to mind first.

DSOGaming: With the release of the REDkit, players can mod The Witcher 2. What more can we expect from The Witcher 3 (regarding its mod support)?

GR: Honestly speaking it’s too early to talk about that. Simply because the game itself is at pre-alpha stage and we’re fully concentrating on finishing it. Bear with us though and ask us this question again once the game is out!

DSOGaming – Readers’ Question – How has native 64-bit affected the engine? How did you achieve a world 35 times larger than Skyrim and what does it imply about the engine, performance, and requirements? Can you share any estimated minimum/recommended PC requirements?

GR: Well, 64-bit architecture gave us access to larger amounts of memory available for the game. I think that’s the biggest benefit. In general the transition to 64-bit went quite smoothly and seamlessly for us.

I admit that the size of the world we have in TW3 provided us with a considerable number of technical challenges. It pushed us to rewrite our streaming system, memory management and resource handling mechanisms. It also required a lot of enhancements from us to the tools used by designers and artists. Many things that were done manually in TW2 had to be automated now to allow us to fill the vast areas Geralt will travel through faster.

It will obviously cause TW3 to have higher requirements than previous installments of the game. But at this stage, without final optimizations, it’s hard to estimate what the minimum system requirements for comfortable playing will be. We will definitely work hard to make this game playable on most gaming PCs.

DSOGaming: In the past, we’ve seen a lot of games being optimized for tri-core CPUs. There are only a few titles that show performance differences between tri-cores and quad-cores. Will The Witcher 3 take full advantage of quad-cores? Will it be a CPU or a GPU bound title?

GR: Even The Witcher 2 was fully prepared to work on multi-core CPUs (not limited to 3 or 4 cores). So our technology is already using the full potential of multi-core CPUs. For TW3 we’ve just made it even better .

As for being CPU or GPU bound – it’s too early to say anything about this. We are still before final optimizations so we don’t want to speculate now.

DSOGaming: During SIGGRAPH 2013, it was revealed that you had some issues with tessellation on characters. Have you found a solution to this or will you be using tessellation solely for the game’s environments?

BT: The biggest problem we have with tessellation is the way it creates holes in the mesh. This can be solved in two ways: one is to add a lot more data and a lot more calculations to the shaders, and the other is to change the assets in a way that avoids the problem. Both solutions are quite expensive, one in terms of performance, the other in terms of artist time. This is why we made the decision that using tessellation as a default for our characters wouldn’t give us as much as it would cost. That being said, tessellation can still be used with any mesh in the game because the system supports it – using it just becomes a decision that has to be made in some special cases.

DSOGaming: Have you experimented with tessellation in order to eliminate the distant pop-up/pop-in of various objects?

BT: We’ve done some experiments with adaptive tessellation; unfortunately, it would require quite a big pipeline change to really use it everywhere, plus we didn’t get that much benefit from it, so we decided that we will only use it in a few cases where the problems can be easily avoided and the difference is really visible.

DSOGaming: What’s your opinion about Windows 8 and DX11.2? Will you be using any of DX11.2′s exclusive features?

BT: We will definitely make sure that our games have no problem running on Windows 8 and 8.1 but at this point we are not considering using any of the DX11.1 or 11.2 features. It is very important for us to keep the platform specific changes to a minimum while still making use of everything that’s available to us. Some of the DX11.1 features are actually available in DX11 via standard APIs, so we are using those in the development process but not necessarily in the released game.

DSOGaming: Thank you very much for the interview, and we can’t wait to see what you guys have in store for us!

GR: Thank you! It was nice chatting with you. We are also looking forward to share our vision with all RPG fans.

BT: Thanks, I’m sure there will be a lot more interesting information in the future.

http://www.dsogaming.com/interviews/cd-projekt-red-talks-the-witcher-3-tech-tessellation-physx-dx11-2-windows-8-global-illumination/