{"id":39520,"date":"2023-11-28T17:15:52","date_gmt":"2023-11-28T17:15:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.xtremeservers.com\/blog\/destiny-2-x-the-witcher-collab-details-revealed-available-today\/"},"modified":"2023-11-28T17:15:52","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T17:15:52","slug":"destiny-2-x-the-witcher-collab-details-revealed-available-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.xtremeservers.com\/blog\/destiny-2-x-the-witcher-collab-details-revealed-available-today\/","title":{"rendered":"Destiny 2 x The Witcher collab details revealed, available today"},"content":{"rendered":"
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On the surface, the adventures of a stoic monster-hunting hero exploring a grim fantasy world of dark magic and ancient lore might have little in common with a game like Destiny 2. But, when you look closer, it\u2019s apparent that Destiny 2<\/a> and CD Projekt Red\u2019s long-running The Witcher series have more in common than you might think.<\/p>\n

After all, transplant dual-blade-wielding Geralt of Rivia into the far future, and it\u2019s reasonable to assume that he\u2019d be right at home in the role of a Guardian. Intent on hunting down the enemies of humanity? Check. Access to an impressive arsenal of weaponry and otherworldly powers drawn from mysterious sources? Yep. A slew of challenging enemies and a deep trove of worldbuilding that add life and color to the adventures? In both cases, a resounding yes.<\/p>\n

Today, with the start of Season of the Wish in Destiny 2, Bungie is launching a new set of items inspired by The Witcher, including three new sets of armor ornaments (one for each Guardian class), new accessories, and more. When creating these items, the Bungie team worked closely with CDPR to bring authentic touches of Geralt\u2019s world into Destiny 2.<\/p>\n

\u201cCDPR were excellent creative partners to collaborate with,\u201d said Destiny 2 Art Lead Josh Deeb. \u201cThey came to the table ready with ideas that started with Destiny 2 at their core and built authentically onto that framework with iconic Witcher visuals.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDestiny is known for its futuristic look. When it came to what we could bring to that world, I think it was the opportunity to fuse it with low fantasy elements,\u201d said Przemys\u0142aw Juszczyk, CDPR\u2019s head of franchise art. \u201cWe focused the design process on introducing more combinations of leather padding, belts, thick fabrics, and chain mails with metal accents similar to those in The Witcher franchise.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWitchers are known for their proficiency in hunting and killing monsters,\u201d continued Juszczyk. \u201cEvery armor has to scream that it\u2019s ready to deal with that type of encounter. We also included iconic Witcher <\/em>elements: looking closer, you can spot the wolf medallion, two swords, Glagolitic script inscriptions. All this got the Destiny spin from talented Bungie artists. Even if everything is happening in a cosmic reality, I believe the spirit of The Witcher is present in every item introduced in our collaboration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each of the three new armor sets was inspired by armor donned by Geralt in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal was to empower our players to feel like true witchers in Destiny 2,\u201d said Deeb. \u201cUsing armor designs inspired by the witcher schools (Bear, Wolf, and Viper) enabled us to create silhouettes that immediately bring this fantasy to life, complete with steel and silver swords.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, for fans, the devil is in the armor\u2019s details. That\u2019s where the Bungie team got a chance to flex their creative muscles and have some fun bringing the details to life. \u201cThe goal for all the sets was to get that Witcher medieval look with damage to show these armors have gone through battles already,\u201d said Joel Moran, art outsourcing specialist with Destiny 2. \u201cI think most of the fun details were probably on the swords. We all had to sync and work together to get these to look similar across all sets.\u201d<\/p>\n

While those twin swords aren\u2019t usable as weapons in the game, they add to the pervasive Witcher vibe that the Bungie team took seriously. \u201cThe problems began cropping up when it came to scaling them so they didn\u2019t look like toys, maintaining the fiction that they could be drawn from their scabbards,\u201d said Destiny 2 Senior Artist Jay Rios. \u201cWe also needed to make sure that they weren\u2019t so long that they started interfering with our cloth animation simulations. Finding the right balance between scale, position, length, and technical hurdles certainly made the swords challenging, but I think we did a good job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hunters will take to battle in the new White Wolf set. Inspired by Geralt\u2019s Legendary Wolven armor set, this set features the Hunter\u2019s trademark hood and crossed straps on the chest piece, plus studded leather gauntlets, among other details.<\/p>\n

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\u201cDuring the production for the Hunter armor, we noticed that the small crossbow (a cosmetic detail that sits on the Hunter\u2019s thigh) was too simple, and we all wanted it to look better with more material variation and more interesting shapes,\u201d said Moran. \u201cI had the pleasure of sketching some solutions with the CDPR team\u2019s direction and using other reference images from other pieces we were working on, such as the Sparrow, since it had the layered wood and metal look the team at CDPR wanted on the crossbow. We sent different versions of the crossbow to them and additional changes were made per their request until we were all happy with the results.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just as Geralt is a master of elixirs and magical signs, Warlocks plumb the mysteries of Destiny\u2019s <\/em>worlds. They\u2019ll do so in style in the new Hexer set, which finds its influence in Geralt\u2019s Legendary Ursine armor. With fur trim and ample padding throughout, this is a set that\u2019s suitable for the harshest environments the game has to offer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was about getting the materials and colors to bring The Witcher side of [each armor set] to life,\u201d said Rios. \u201cThe use of fur, leather, quilted padding, and chainmail pushed the medieval-inspired fantasy. As for the Destiny aesthetic, that was more about iconic shapes within our armor sets. Trying to match iconic silhouettes for the classes became important and having all the class items represented helped tie the look to Destiny.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sometimes the best way around a problem is straight through. It may be the unofficial tagline for Titans and the new Kaer Morhen armor set is designed for that head-first approach. Named for the stronghold that serves as training grounds and headquarters for witchers and modeled after the Viper School armor, this set is as solid and straightforward as a punch to the throat. In other words, just how Titans like it.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt was important to CD Projekt Red that all the helmets have deep asymmetrical gouges and scarring on them,\u201d said Rios. \u201cAt the end of the day I think that gave them all some more character, but making sure that each scarring was unique was an interesting challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond the trio of armor sets, Witcher <\/em>fans will also find three new accessories inspired by the world of Geralt, including a new ship, the Wolven Storm, as well as the Wolven Shell Ghost shell. There\u2019s also the new Roach-VGH Sparrow, complete with Glagolitic inscriptions, a large Vex skull tied up on the side of the vehicle (presumably for bounty collection later), and an Igni sign thruster effect.<\/p>\n

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Bungie VFX Artist Amanda Golla worked on the Igni effect for the Sparrow\u2019s trail, among other contributions to the collaboration. As a big Witcher fan herself, Golla spent a great deal of time and care on getting those Igni effects just right for the Sparrow. \u201cThe Igni trail itself is a reference to Igni\u2019s alternative sign mode, where the player shoots a straight blast of fire towards their enemies. The [Sparrow\u2019s trail effect] was particularly difficult since the sparks go in a linear direction, but the Sparrow is designed to curve and turn. I had to combine short core sparks that are completely straight with a longer trail of sparks with varied direction to make the sparks feel like they followed the Sparrow and kept their directional velocity.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Whether getting the details of the steel and silver swords just right or capturing the correct motion of dipping into the bathtub for a new Tub Time emote, the Bungie team has worked hard to bring the look and feel of The Witcher <\/em>into Destiny 2<\/a>. You can check out all these items for yourself starting today in the Eververse Store, launching alongside Season of the Wish on all platforms.<\/p>\n

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