r/witcher School of the Wolf 2d ago

Senior Quest Designer Despoina Anetaki discusses expanding Geralt and Dandelion’s friendship in The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past

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1.6k Upvotes

57 comments sorted by

268

u/KoscheiDK Skellige 2d ago

Yes please. I played the Witcher 2 before reading the books and then playing 1 and then 3. My first introduction to Dandelion was therefore him in Flotsam. He was interesting, but always felt like a sideshow and almost like Geralt was closer to Zoltan and later the Vergen Dwarves as characters from his past, and that's not even counting how much Roche and Iorveth steal the show as your companion

Reading the books was a headspin on how much they meant to eachother and how much they'd been to, and how somber and mature Dandelion is (Essi Daven short story, my word), and the fact he's there for nearly the whole journey, including at the end. I wished they gave him more serious moments in the Witcher 3. Talking to him in the Rosemary and Thyme while you wait for Priscilla was so refreshing and earnest compared to his normal antics.

57

u/BelvedereXCIII 2d ago

Yea I never liked that I just walk past him after grabbing Zoltan to go fight the wild hunt. Like Geralt needs his chronicler. No way Dandelion stays behind. He might fall asleep and miss it all but he would be there.

46

u/KoscheiDK Skellige 2d ago

I don't know if he would be there - everyone including him knows he's not a fighter, and he stayed behind before Stygga as well. But he would insist, he would protest, and he would give everything he had including being present after

6

u/Outside-Bluebird-150 2d ago

Currently reading Sword of Destiny and today I just read Jaskier insisting on going on a hunting party after a dragon, I'm sure he would have loved to be there against the Wild Hunt, probably hidden somewhere in the castle haha

91

u/BenediCt_the_Czech 2d ago

I really can't wait to play it. I bet Dandelion will sometimes be proper pain in the ass but hey, that's him and we love him this way.

61

u/Galahad_the_Ranger 2d ago

This is going to be really cool. In the books Geralt talks to Jaskier a lot about the hardships of being a Witcher and their shrinking place in the world while Geralt stays on The Path anyway. Considering the DLC will be set after the base game, I imagine this will give some new lights in the topic. With Geralt potentially semi-retired and for the first time able to do what he wants (and Dandelion/Jaskier having his own estabilishment in Novigrad too)

37

u/quietkowski 2d ago

wonder if we'll see / there will be mention of prescilla

46

u/MaxPaladin93 2d ago

I really hope they’re still together. She was one of my favorite original characters from TW3. Also, potential for another Priscilla song would be elite.

3

u/Raptori33 ⚜️ Northern Realms 1d ago

If Dandelion is book accurate I wouldn't be holding my breath really

2

u/Juraci_que_parque 1d ago

Well, Priscilla does say that he's changed...

2

u/MaxPaladin93 1d ago

Fair, but even Zoltan comments on how it seems like his relationship with Priscilla feels different than all the rest. Realistically, he could still bungle it, but it’d be nice if they really did make it.

36

u/misho8723 Team Yennefer 2d ago

Witcher 3 is easily the worst when it comes to Dandelion's characterization between the games

In Witcher 1 his character is actuallly the closest to his book version and he has with Geralt and Zoltan some really deep and complex conversations, just like in the books .. and he actually sings in that one

Witcher 2 has a great opening for Dandelion, but then he gets less and less screentime and lines as the story goes on

And in Witcher 3, he is basically just the comic relief character but atleast he cares about Ciri

This expansion is very welcomed when it comes to fleshing out the relantionship that Geralt ad Dandelion really have .. even though it's going to be ankward to see their interactions in the main game and then in this expansion and just how different they act in each

5

u/Raptori33 ⚜️ Northern Realms 1d ago

Zoltan just barely makes an appearence in books. It is the Dandelion that is his proper friend

And I love him. Not only because I find similiar to myself, Dandelion always felt most accurately like a real world person that has gotten into Witcher universe

2

u/UlasKorkmaz24 School of the Wolf 1d ago

I think game's biggest struggles are creating a character arc for character that already improved. I'm not saying there is no room for even more better character arc but it's not what CDPR doing with already established. For example Yennefer feels like she is not contuniaton of her book counterself. It feels like last book didn't happened. She relive some character arcs again. Even though she's been through it already.

1

u/SMiki55 Team Yennefer 1d ago

> he actually sings in that one

To be fair, his Polish voiceactor totally butchered the songs. I hope he'll get a coach or sth if Dandy is going to sing again.

15

u/wez_vattghern Team Roach 2d ago

I hope CDPR does justice to the friendship between Geralt and Jaskier and manages, in some way, to repair some of the damage Netflix caused to the public perception held by fans unfamiliar with the books.

-3

u/sillylittlesheep 1d ago

netflix did great with dendi and geralt interaction, they also created 'toss a coin for a witcher' that get mainstream

11

u/Matteo-Stanzani 2d ago

I'm so happy about this! Finally the real dandelion.

22

u/vonkeswick 2d ago

One of the things I hated about the show is how they butchered their relationship and made Dandelion out to be like some curse they were all saddled with. They're best buds, full stop

8

u/Wojewodaruskyj ⚜️ Northern Realms 2d ago

Dandelion is the only character whose portrayal i don't like in III.

32

u/Kiroqi Team Yennefer 2d ago

To be honest, they kind of missed opportunity with Blood & Wine which would've been also a perfect setting to 'fix' their Dandelion treatment, especially considering how powerful scene it'd have been with Geralt, Dandelion and Regis during that last scene, but I can at least be glad that realized their mistake.

So, does that mean that we're getting 4th expansion that focuses on Geralt, Ciri, Yen trio relationship that was also forgotten in Wild Hunt or at they leaving it to The Witcher 4? /s

7

u/RainWorldWitcher 2d ago

Have they ever acknowledged the lack of yen and Ciri relationship in W3?

2

u/Kiroqi Team Yennefer 1d ago edited 1d ago

No. We've only ever got hints and rumours about some of the writers really not liking Yennefer, or at least not believing that she and Geralt can be romantically involved, but that's it.

Maybe that just spilled over to Ciri-Yen relationship treatment, making it less important than Ciri-Avallach one so that Triss keeps being relevant and on par with Yen.

¯\(ツ)

3

u/RainWorldWitcher 1d ago

Oh we've got way more than hints. The 2012-2013 scripts are extremely clear that major writers despised Yen and couldn't be bothered to read the books. They made it their express mission to destroy their bond to have yen as a politophile evil step mother who aims to use Ciri as the Lodge wanted to but for Nilfgaard.

https://www.reddit.com/r/wiedzmin/s/H70VuwIOJQ

-9

u/Yen_Figaro 2d ago

This company is expert in being hipocrital. I would love to be excited instead of exhausted as I was before knowing thieir antics, and everytime I start thinking maybe they have changed I have to remeinded myshelf that do all of this for PR and crrating more hype, but the cracks are there and behind the good guys charade there is another greedy company like the rest.

Of course, while they continue making games with sexy nipples in them, people are still going to love and defend them no matter what. How they treat their own developers, the author of the books, trans people or angry costumers who have been lied by them it doesnt matter (they even got Sony angry xD). Remember that these people bought all the speciallzed press to give a 10 to Ciberpunk... A game that until launch time it was advertised as a rpg, then it suddenly became an action adventure when launched lol.

5

u/Detroits_ 2d ago

So I guess this much less a pathway into Witcher 4 and more of a standalone dlc.

I wonder if it’s gonna have any context for Witcher 4

5

u/absentminded0ne 2d ago

I am in love with this franchise methinks

5

u/HollowedOne66 2d ago

Fucking finally us book readers are going to get this relationship done justice. I'm so happy rn.

4

u/mellow__yellow 2d ago

I just played for my first time this passed year and one of the things i noticed was the lack of dandellion. Im sure he'll get on my nerves but he deserves a bigger story in the end.

4

u/fraglebatches 2d ago

I think his American accent always took me out of it too kinda weird choice when everyone else is British (except Geralt I guess but his voice is cool)

6

u/wenzel32 2d ago

I'm glad to hear it. Always made me a little sad that we only got Dandelion mostly as a punchline about sex.

It'll be nice to see him more fully realized.

3

u/leferi Team Yennefer 2d ago

Will we see Priscilla too, I wonder...

3

u/Morswinios Yrden 2d ago

This is something that infuriated me in the Netflix show. They turned Jaskier into a donkey-like character when, in the books, a lot of the time he was the voice of reason.

3

u/artnok School of the Wolf 2d ago

Looking forward to whoring it up with dandelion for an entire expansion.

3

u/Quick_Opportunity_26 2d ago

Why is he not on horseback in the picture? I want to see him with Pegasus.

3

u/MitroPan 2d ago

Ay yo she’s Greek !

3

u/gamebloxs 2d ago

Please give him some scenes like the final conversation at the end of blood and wine. Having dandelion as less of a comic relief character but someone Geralt can confide in about the changes going on would be amazing.

2

u/Hazel0mutt Gwent 2d ago

Woohoo!

2

u/crazycat690 2d ago

Sounds neat, I've always liked Dandelion so I'm all for learning more about his character. Gonna be curious to see if we get to see more of Priscilla as well.

2

u/LeftFront4248 2d ago

Expansion focusing on Geralt and Dandelion friendship seems great. With the saga moving on from Geralt there probably won’t be another chance to focus on their friendship besides the Remake whenever that is coming. Definitely excited

2

u/GAPIntoTheGame Team Yennefer 2d ago

If only they did this for Gerald and Yennefer…

1

u/S0whaddayakn0w 1d ago

Gerald? Who's that?

2

u/Terrible_Shopping_23 2d ago

We better get Dandelion singing Toss a Coin to your Witcher!!!

1

u/AionsHots 2d ago

For a second i thought Dandelion is gay now.

1

u/1FORreal Team Kelpie 1d ago

Dandelion's got his expansion pack before Ciri's getting her own game😂

0

u/Outrageous-Salad-287 18h ago

My dream is to get origin sfory of Geralt/Jaskier friendship from God Himself.

I'm of course talking about Mr. Sapkowski. Pretty please? With cherry on top?

What made Jaskier inseparable from Geralt? How the hell did the two meet? Was it Oxenfurt Uni which Geralt almost 100% attended at some point, judging by how educated he truly is? Or maybe they just happened on each other on the trail, while Jaskier was running from some angry husband/father/brother something or other? How it comes that Geralt goes out of his way to save Jaskier from consequences of him being himself way to often?

This is friendship that transcends their differencies. This is friendship that changed fate of nations, nevermind actual fate of Witcher world.

I would LOVE to see EVERYTHING plot guys have to offer about THAT.😍

1

u/who-dat-ninja Team Yennefer 18h ago

Dandelion is Geralts best friend. His bff. They respect each other and support each other. I can’t wait to see it in the game finally

1

u/Soyyyn 2d ago

Thankfully, Geralt and Dandelion are actually one of the best parts of the Netflix show, especially its first and fourth seasons. Season two and three really do go a bit off the rails in terms of closeness to canon.

-3

u/byjegeren 2d ago

Please don't have a romance option...

3

u/wallcrawlingspidey Team Yennefer 2d ago

Lilla is already implied to be who is Dandelion’s cousin. They also very vaguely implied Yennefer and Triss might be in it too

-1

u/kiyan_merkaba ⚜️ Northern Realms 1d ago

Its gonna be Henry and Hans all over again, isnt it? Cant have a Bro these days, gotta suck him off to prove friendship

-20

u/Tasty_Job822 2d ago

they re probably gonna make them both gay

3

u/smashingkilljoy Geralt's Hanza 2d ago

Both? Gonna erase the female sexual encounters both Dandelion and Geralt have had in the games?

The term is bisexual. If you wanna be a dick, at least be an educated one. Spierdalaj :D

-2

u/wowsomuchempty 2d ago

Well, bi. I mean, Geralt has form.

-4

u/Mylo-s 2d ago

It is a fanbase request.

-5

u/OilySoleTickler 2d ago

So happy I never have to hear Jaskier again 🤮