The Witcher's next chapter shifts focus from Geralt to his daughter Ciri
In short: After years of speculation, CD Projekt Red has revealed the direction for The Witcher IV. Moving away from the original protagonist, the new trilogy will follow Ciri as she begins her own journey as a monster hunter, utilizing cutting-edge technology to create a massive, immersive open world.
The Witcher IV marks a significant departure from the previous trilogy by placing Ciri, the adoptive daughter of Geralt of Rivia, at the center of the narrative. While Geralt remains a vital figure in the story, the studio has confirmed that Ciri will serve as the primary protagonist. By focusing on an aspiring hunter instead of a veteran, this transition examines the essence of becoming a witcher.
To support this ambitious new direction, CD Projekt Red is adopting a "console-first" development approach. This strategy aims to avoid the performance issues encountered during the launch of Cyberpunk 2077 by establishing a technical foundation on consoles before scaling up to PC. The project is being built using Unreal Engine 5, a move intended to increase development flexibility and allow the studio to manage multiple titles simultaneously.
The scale of production is unprecedented. Analysts estimate the development costs at $390 million, with an additional $390 million allocated for marketing. The workforce has grown significantly to meet these demands; while The Witcher 3 relied on a core team of 240 people, the Witcher IV team expanded to 513 staff members by May 2026. A 2028 launch is planned for Xbox Series X/S, Windows, and PlayStation 5.
Technologically, the game aims to push the boundaries of environmental density. Using Nanite Foliage, developers can represent distant vegetation using voxel primitives rather than traditional triangles, allowing for much denser forests. This technology, alongside Nvidia's RTX Mega Geometry system, is designed to handle massive amounts of geometric detail, such as the 60 million plants and one million trees showcased in early tech demos.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: The Witcher IV
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