Having finally accepted and taken the opportunity to retire from a life of wandering the world, accepting jobs from all and sundry, and inevitably having to confront mythical monsters, there were few people who could probably bring Geralt out of retirement. One would no doubt be Ciri, but since she has her own adventures coming in the future, it’s instead Geralt’s bardic companion Dandelion and a mystery within his family and homeland that is at the heart of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Songs of the Past.
The demo presentation starts after a long night of frivolity for all in Letten, celebrating the Beletaine for fertility and a good harvest. While Geralt wakes up clearheaded thanks to his mutations, there’s still people staggering around and drunk, thanks to continuing to chug down the local Bragot – a blend of honey and beer.
Letten is a secluded ‘land of plenty’ within the world of The Witcher, kept safe from the wars and battles that have washed across other parts of the continent by a large mountain range. You see it as Geralt wanders through the world, as more people meander through little villages, tend to the huge fields of hops, and generally go about their business. Some of this is possible thanks to CD Projekt Red and Fool’s Theory raising the minimum system requirements for this expansion and dropping the last generation systems, they’re able to push greater fidelity with the lighting effects, there’s much thicker vegetation across the world, an increase in the number of NPC routines and behaviours within the community systems – it might seem like an insignificant touch, but NPCs can now drive carts, sail boats and go fishing out on the lakes.
The warmth of the late summer or early autumn that meant Geralt could sleep out in the open with nothing but a plain tunic to cover him is soon dispelled, though. He was startled awake by a nightmare, Dandelion has gone missing and a belligerent drunk is twanging away on his lute, and the atmosphere is rather frosty once he gets the sprawling family home. You forgot that this bard was a rich boy back home? Well, to be fair, he doesn’t travel under his full name, Julian Alfred Pankratz, Viscount de Lettenhove.
Part of the reason for Geralt’s visit to Letten is that Dandelion’s grandfather and head of the family has passed away, and it turns out that his grandmother shared some home truths with him the night before. What with the lute situation and some details about Geralt’s nightmare, Dandelion’s cousin, the similarly free-spirited Lilla, is deeply concerned and demands that they go searching for him.
Cutting ahead to the end of that day, Lilla and Geralt set out to the Garden of Thorns, one of the few blighted parts of Letten. The bountiful land gradually morphs into one filled with gnarled trees, thick brambles and an ominous knot that seems to be feeding on the blood of a deer ensnared in its tangle. It all becomes clear why this might be, as the legend is unspooled for Geralt by Lilla.
Hacking a way through, the brambles react, splitting Geralt and Lilla up and blocking paths as other vile blooms and monsters start to appear. The Witcher 3 Remastered is bringing further enhancements to the gameplay, CDPR and Fool’s Theory working to make animations and character movement smoother, and the targeting for abilities smoother. It’s a key area that could be improved, and it’s great to see the team take a fresh attempt at improving it, as well as with a revamped skill tree system.
Geralt has a new weapon in addition to his traditional twin swords, able to throw a chain to grab enemies and grapple them. It’s pretty handy against the Swarmion, an undead monster surrounded with a cloud of hornets protecting it. You can grab them out from the swarm with the chain, or perhaps just blast them with fire. The grapple hook is also handy against the boss waiting at the well in the heart of this garden, a human consumed by the tough vines, such that it has one tree-like arm and a sword in the other. It has a neat fencer-like fighting style, while also using its tree arm to block, Geralt able to grab, pull and break through this guard with the hook.
And that, but for one final cliffhanger moment down in the well, was where the gameplay presentation came to an end. No sign of Dandelion, and just more mysteries for Geralt to try to unravel. It’s an expansion that is full of potential, and with the free remaster and upgrade to the complete edition preceding it, a fantastic way to bring players back into this world before the new trilogy begins in The Witcher 4.
