In the development of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, CD Projekt Red's quest designer Philipp Weber revealed that a focus on creating realistic environments for non-player characters inadvertently led to a humorous, albeit morbid, bug: female NPCs would drop their babies when fleeing from danger. The development team aimed to imbue the game's world with authentic NPC behaviors to enhance player immersion, particularly in the game's rural areas.
Weber explained in an interview with Edge Magazine that the team concentrated on simulating believable day and night cycles for NPCs. This meant that while characters followed specific schedules that made them appear to live their own lives, their reactions to Geralt, the player character, were not as detailed. When confronted by the player or perceived threats, NPCs would drop whatever they were holding and flee. Unfortunately, this included babies, which were sometimes dropped by fleeing mothers.
This particular issue was eventually resolved. The developers employed a system where NPCs were assigned "spots of interest" rather than strict paths. This allowed them to dynamically choose activities, such as woodcutting or carpentry, based on available locations. For instance, in Novigrad harbor, 50 sailors could choose from 200 potential spots, ensuring varied activities even when many were active simultaneously.
While this baby-dropping bug did not make it into the final game, it highlights the challenges and unexpected outcomes of creating complex AI systems. The next installment in The Witcher series is currently in development, focusing on Ciri. While details are scarce, early gameplay footage has been shown, and it remains to be seen if similar unintended AI behaviors will emerge.