The world of The Witcher is full of monsters, madmen, and mages, but when Geralt isn’t on the trail of any of those, the man knows how to wind down with a game of Gwent. The two-player card game has the players as generals pitting their armies against each other. There’s been a Gwent mobile app and free-to-play version on Steam, but now a physical reproduction of the game is on its way.
Hachette Boardgames UK and new publisher No Loading Games–which is focused on bringing licensed brands to tabletop gaming–are collaborating on the release. The set will come with over 400 cards and a playmat to give players that authentic Witcher 3 experience. There will be variant rulesets from casual play to tournament rules.
“Gwent is the biggest ‘game within a game’ in media history,” said the marketing manager for Hachette Boardgames UK, Rob Trounce (via Eurogamer). “After a 10-year wait, we are proud to be working alongside No Loading Games to bring this beloved game to tabletops in a stunning package–whether it’s a souvenir for fans of Geralt and his adventures, or a game for competitive card game enthusiasts, Gwent will be one of the hottest games of 2025.”
The rules are simple enough, but the path to victory has several routes, all depending on your deck, which has its own set of advantages. There are four decks to choose from: Monsters, Nilfgaardian Empire, Northern Realms, and Scoia’tael. A fifth deck–Skellige–was added with The Witcher 3’s Blood and Wine expansion. There are also neutral cards that, while not a deck in itself, can be used with any of the main decks to boost their abilities.
Matches are won by two out of three rounds, which are tallied by red gems in the game. Losing a round loses you one of the points, and if you lose both, you lose the match. A draw makes both players lose a point unless you are the Nilfgaardian Empire, whose ability is to win matches that end in draws.
The entire Gwent game set is priced at around $40 and will arrive in late 2025.
While Witcher fans won’t have to wait too long for Gwent, they’ll have to wait a bit longer for The Witcher 4. Though the game has reached full-scale production, we’re still looking at two years before the release.