Quest Design
Ongoing coverage on Quest Design.
Latest coverage
The Witcher 3 Lead Quest Designer Writes About Bloody Baron Quest and Killing A Beloved Character
Paweł Sasko, lead quest designer at CD Projekt RED, shared insights into the development of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, including early office environments and the challenges of designing iconic quests like the Bloody Baron's story arc. He detailed the difficult decision to kill the character Vesemir during the Battle of Kaer Morhen and the extensive nine-month process of writing the main storyline. Sasko also celebrated the game's 11th anniversary and its significant sales success.
The Blood of Dawnwalker Promises A “Lot of Reactivity” to Player Choices in Quests
Rebel Wolves' The Blood of Dawnwalker will feature significant reactivity to player choices in quests, with NPCs remembering actions and reacting accordingly. The game director highlighted that relationships can be built through dialogue and actions, with both combat and subtle interactions influencing bonds. A typical playthrough is estimated to take around 50 hours.
Star Trek: Voyager – Across the Unknown 1.7 update announced, patch notes – Delta Flyer and more
Star Trek: Voyager – Across the Unknown has announced its 1.7 update, featuring the free Delta Flyer mechanic, a new questline with Tom Paris, and construction systems. The update also includes combat ally roles, new quest branches, and numerous fixes and improvements to quests, UI, gameplay balance, stability, and visuals. The game is available on Nintendo Switch.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Patch is Live, Adds “High-Risk, High-Reward” Quest in X-18 Lab
GSC Game World has released the "Sealed Truth" update for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, adding a new high-risk, high-reward questline within the X-18 Lab. The update also includes fixes for mutant spawns and mission progression, along with new loading screens. The upcoming "Cost of Hope" expansion is set to launch this Summer for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Crimson Desert Players Beg You Don't Take Items Too Early
Players of Crimson Desert are encountering game-breaking bugs that softlock questlines, particularly the Fragment of Life mission, by collecting key items too early. While workarounds like save file reverting or inventory mods exist, developer Pearl Abyss is reportedly reworking some quest chains. The game, launched on March 19 for consoles and PC, has sold over 4 million copies.
The consensus is that Crimson Desert has terrible storytelling—it's not true
Despite a consensus that Crimson Desert's storytelling is weak, this article argues it's not terrible and contains compelling individual quests and character moments. While the overarching narrative lacks structure, the game offers engaging stories, particularly those involving the Greymane faction, which are elevated by strong characters and voice acting, comparable to elements found in The Witcher 3.
Crimson Desert main mission list
This guide provides a comprehensive list of all main quests available in the game Crimson Desert. It details the primary storyline progression for players.
"Typical hubris" led to one of WoW's "s**ttiest" quests, admits creator Jeff Kaplan, who thought he was a clever designer but was "actually a dips**t"
Former World of Warcraft designer Jeff Kaplan reflects on the infamous "The Green Hills of Stranglethorn" quest, admitting "typical hubris" led to its widely criticized design. Kaplan, who was inspired by Ernest Hemingway, views the quest as a valuable learning experience despite its negative reception.
WoW's questing system was inspired by a playtest that didn't work out as planned, because the testers didn't play MMOs and had no idea what they were supposed to do: 'I ran out of quests right away!'
Former World of Warcraft quest designer Jeff Kaplan revealed that the game's questing system was inspired by a playtest where testers unfamiliar with MMOs expected a constant stream of quests. Initially, the team aimed to mirror Everquest's design, but feedback from internal testers highlighted the need for a more guided experience, leading to the quest-heavy system present in the final game.
A terrible quest in vanilla WoW 'holds a really special place in my heart', says Jeff Kaplan, but was also 'the hubris of a junior game designer who thinks he's clever but is actually a dipsh*t'
Former Blizzard designer Jeff Kaplan reflected on the notoriously disliked "The Green Hills of Stranglethorn" quest in the original World of Warcraft. He described it as a personal project that taught him valuable lessons about game design, particularly regarding player experience and avoiding "ant farm" design principles.
Marathon’s Fiddly Quests Need To Stop Getting in the Way of the Fun - IGN
This analysis critiques the quest design in Bungie's extraction shooter Marathon, arguing that its "contracts" are overly fiddly and often impede the core looting and shooting gameplay. While the game is still enjoyable, the author suggests improvements are needed to make objectives clearer and less disruptive to the player experience.
Stray (PS5)
This review of Stray on PlayStation 5 details a frustrating experience after the initial hours of gameplay. The reviewer found the quest design to be illogical and tedious, particularly the main story's fetch quests for a hat and coat, which involved convoluted steps and mechanics not previously introduced. The article concludes that the game's structure became disjointed and not worth the player's time, despite a strong visual and audio presentation.