There was almost ice skating in The Witcher 3

The concept was prototyped

Let’s take a moment to imagine Geralt ice skating in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Ahh, sweet bliss.

Over the weekend, senior game designer Damien Monnier told a crowd at PAX East about CD Projekt RED’s canceled feature. “It was more than an idea — it was actually a prototype. You were going to ice skate and fight, and you could slice heads and the blood goes on the ice and it’s beautiful. I really liked it. It did look amazing, but ultimately — this feature was going to be at the end of the game and introducing new game mechanics at the end of the game was quite wonky.”

While I agree that late-game mechanics can go awry without proper care, this sounds so deliciously over the top and could’ve made for an unexpected diversion. It’s these sorts of quirks that stick with players long after they’ve put the game down. If nothing else, I’d like to see fan art.

The Witcher 3 was going to include ice-skating – but it was cut [Eurogamer]