NVIDIA to toil and trouble on the engine, so it's the way it's meant to be played.
November 30, 2004
[This unedited press release is made available courtesy of Game Developer and its partnership with notable game PR-related resource Games Press]
CD Projekt RED | WARSAW, POLAND - NOVEMBER 29, 2004 - CD PROJEKT, producer of a new, exciting action-role-playing game - The Witcher, based on a highly modified version of the Bioware Aurora EngineTM, today announced a collaboration with NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA), a worldwide leader in graphics and digital media processors.
NVIDIA and CD PROJEKT are working together to prepare the game to playing on NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs), the preferred graphics hardware platform for The Witcher. The Companies will also engage in strategic co-marketing activities as part of NVIDIA's "The Way It's Meant to Be Played" program.
The Witcher, as the authors of the game assure us, shows completely new approach to the RPG games, combining dynamic action with deep and immersing storyline. The Witcher is set in a rich, diverse fantasy world created by Andrzej Sapkowski, a world, where you can't see a clear-cut between the good and the evil, as one lurks from another. Geralt, the game's main hero, is The Witcher - master swordsman and a professional monster-slayer. Yet, as we soon find out, altough these skills come in handy, not every matter can be handled by the sword... As in real life, sometimes all you need to do to get the information you want is to sit and talk with somebody over a glass of beer, or beat the hell out of him in a bar fight to convince him to your arguments during the discussion. Then there are ladies... as anywhere else in the universe, you can either win them by using your courtly speech and charm, or... showing your heavily stuffed purse. You also have to adjust your actions to the day-and-night cycle, according to which every character and monster in the game lives. Each quest in The Witcher can be solved in a number of different ways, and every choice you make can determine which of three endings of the game will be yours to see.
Besides the diversified story, the game will also include a lot of technical novelties, such as numerous modifications to the Bioware Aurora Engine. They include: a rendering system based on the newest DirectX libraries that provides full support for the newest technologies; real-time deflections and refractions; complex, visually-spectacular system of weather and night-and-day cycles; full-screen effects system; and a dynamic, real-time fighting system. What's more, the Witcher is going to be the first RPG game in history to employ a physics engine (Criterion's Karma, used in the Unreal series) that is responsible for realistic behaviour of both the items and characters of the game.
Darryl Still, head of developer relations EMEA at NVIDIA comments "The Witcher is certainly an RPG with a difference! Through using a very strong and reliable game engine, CD PROJEKT have been able to focus closely on the immersive gameplay and compelling storyline. We were thrilled when they chose NVIDIA as their development platform, and we think that the end result not only looks great, but is sure to provide a thoroughly enjoyable and rock solid experience for the gamers."
Micha³ Kiciñski, leader of the game's production team, comments: "The Witcher's world is incredibly beautiful and realistic. This wouldn't have been possible without the talent of our graphical team coupled with the ultra-modern technology supplied by NVIDIA. I think we managed to create a world that the gamers will not want to part with."
As part of NVIDIA's The Way It's Meant to Be Played program, The Witcher will undergo extensive compatibility testing to ensure a "no hassles" install-and-play experience for gamers equipped with NVIDIA GPUs. CD PROJEKT has optimized the game for NVIDIA hardware and is working with NVIDIA to ensure the game plays well across a broad lineup of GPUs, from the brand new GeForceTM 6800 series to the GeForce 3.
For additional information about NVIDIA's The Way It's Meant to Be Played program, please visit http://www.nzone.com. For more information about The Witcher, log onto http://www.thewitcher.com.
For more information please contact:
For more information on NVIDIA:
NVIDIA CORPORATION
Andrew Humber
European PR Manager - Corporate
For more information on The Witcher:
CD PROJEKT
Micha³ Kiciñski
Studio Director
About NVIDIA
NVIDIA Corporation is a worldwide leader in graphics and digital media processors. The Company's products enhance the end-user experience on consumer and professional computing devices. NVIDIA GPUs (graphics processing units), MCPs (media and communications processors), and WMPs (wireless media processors) have broad market reach and are incorporated into a variety of platforms, including consumer and enterprise PCs, notebooks, workstations, PDAs, mobile phones, and video game consoles. NVIDIA is headquartered in Santa Clara, California and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the Company's Web site at www.nvidia.com.
About CD PROJEKT
Founded in 1994, CD Projekt is the biggest Polish game distributor (according to Newsweek). The company has also its office in Prague, which is responsible for Czech and Slovak market and employs 80 people. Among gamers CD Projekt is known mainly because of the highest quality of their Polish and Czech game localizations, as well as the company's specialization in publishing Role Playing Games (CD Projekt was the Polish distributor of such games as Baldur's Gate, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale, Diablo, Gothic, Neverwinter Nights, Morrowind, Temple of Elemental Evil, and many others). CD Projekt won a Puls Biznesu magazine award for the year 2003 as one of the most dynamic companies in Poland, and was also awarded best distributor accolade (for the 2rd time running) by the biggest Polish games internet portal gry.wp.pl. Since September 2003 the CD Projekt development team has been working on its first project "The Witcher". CD Projekt information can be found online at www.cdprojekt.com.
Copyright ® 2004 NVIDIA Corporation. All rights reserved. All company and/or product names may be trade names, trademarks and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated. Features, pricing, availability, and specifications are subject to change without notice.
The Witcher, The Witcher Logo are trademarks of CD Projekt sp. z o.o. The Witcher ® CDProjekt Red Studio sp z o.o., based on the books by Andrzej Sapkowski. All rights reserved. BioWare, the BioWare Aurora Engine, and the BioWare Logo are trademarks of BioWare Corp. All Rights Reserved.
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