Bandai Namco’s latest SoulCalibur VI video showcases Geralt of Rivia, the famous Witcher who’s leaving his Witcher series for the first time to do combat in another franchise.
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Geralt was revealed earlier in the month as a crossover character for SoulCalibur VI following several teasers that suggested such a collaboration may be in the works. Following the release of the character’s first reveal trailer, Bandai Namco’s new trailer brings some of the CD Projekt Red team in to weigh in on Geralt’s new home in SoulCalibur VI.
“Geralt is a Witcher, a member of a cast of professional monster slayers, monster hunters, a master swordsman, a spinner, roller, an acrobat with superhuman strength speed, and reflexes,” CD Projekt Red’s writer and director of English adaptations Borys Pugacz-Muraszkiewicz explained for SoulCalibur fans wondering who this Geralt guy is. “He’s also a bit of an alchemist with potions, blade oils, and his bombs, and also a minor or lesser mage with his Witcher signs.”
That’s a wide set of skills that Geralt possesses, and he’s bringing all of that to SoulCalibur VI. The writer said that Geralt’s precise combat style has been imported into SoulCalibur VI with Geralt being described as “a scalpel in combat.”
Sebastian Kalemba, the head of animation for CD Projekt Red, spoke more about how the team looked to make Geralt appear at home in SoulCalibur VI. Though the Witcher already had his established moveset, and signature fighting style, moving that over the fighting game genre was something that they were careful of.
“Our role was making sure that Geralt in SoulCalibur VI moves, feels, and plays like Geralt from The Witcher 3,” Kalemba said. “However, since movement, timing, play-perspective, and general responsiveness are very different in the fighting game, we had to go back to the drawing board and reinvent the way that Geralt behaves in certain situations.”
This involved first establishing a center of gravity for Geralt, a fighter who Kalemba said makes no unnecessary movements and is decisive in his strikes. The original motion capture actor for Geralt was even brought in to supervise the new recordings for accuracy and authenticity.
And for those who question the crossover and says that it doesn’t make sense in the first place for Geralt to be in SoulCalibur VI, Pugacz-Muraszkiewicz says that the crossover doesn’t only make sense, it’s entirely plausible. Referencing Geralt’s ability to travel through dimensions, the writer says there’s a chance that Geralt could end up in the SoulCalibur universe on his own.
“On one leg, he encountered sandworms on a sand-covered planet,” he said. “On another, he might well have encountered Mitsurugi and Sophitia.”
SoulCalibur VI is scheduled to release in 2018 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
