The Witcher 4 is inching ever closer. CD Projekt RED just revealed its next open-world RPG, the first installment in a new Witcher saga that’s set to star Ciri as she begins her journey as a monster hunter on the Continent. A gorgeous Unreal Engine 5 cinematic trailer showcased the look, feel, and vibe of the world CDPR is striving to create in its new Witcher game, a sprawling single-player epic that is charting a future for the franchise without Geralt at the helm. As something ends, something begins – the studio striving to deliver “the most immersive and ambitious open-world Witcher game to date.”
With no Witcher 4 release date in sight, there’s a chance we will be waiting for years for new updates – CDPR is known to take its time, and only gradually tease out information. So what you’ll find below is all of the latest The Witcher 4 news, including the first details on the world and story, and the reason for Ciri taking the lead. Here’s what I will say, The Witcher 4 is instantly one of the most anticipated upcoming video games on the calendar, and one that is striving to upend the standards set by the best RPGs. So keep on reading to find everything we know so far about The Witcher 4.
The Witcher 4 release date and platforms are unconfirmed
CD Project RED is yet to confirm any launch details for its new open-world RPG. That means that there’s no Witcher 4 release date, and no sense of what platforms it will land on just yet. In fact, the studio hasn’t even committed to a rough release window after its showing at The Game Awards 2024 – there’s basically zero chance of this title landing in 2025, and 2026 also seems unlikely given that it only entered its “full-scale production phase” earlier this year. We’re going to be waiting a while for this one, folks.
The Witcher 4 trailer
The Witcher 4 gameplay
The Witcher 4 gameplay experience is going to be familiar if you played The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with some notable differences. While you’ll be returning to the Continent, CDPR is shooting for a more brutal dark-fantasy world, with Ciri taking the lead as she tries to walk the witcher’s path as the old world crumbles around her. The studio has already confirmed that The Witcher 4 will be a single-player RPG set in an open-world, albeit one where you have more scope to make choices and live with the consequences.
Ciri is a very different character to Geralt, more open to embracing the world around her – part of her struggle in this new adventure will be not only in grappling with ancient nightmares, but the evil which lurks in the people struggling to survive this land. Still, at the heart of it all is the witcher – a mutated warrior skilled in combat and alchemy, slaying monsters which threaten people for a price; only now you’ll be able to do it with new combat proficiencies, all of it enhanced with Ciri’s ability to deftly wield magic.
The Witcher 4 combat
In The Witcher 4 you take control of Ciri, not a seasoned veteran but a character just starting down the witcher’s path. That’ll be reflected in combat encounters in The Witcher 4, where Ciri may not always start with the upper hand in encounters but always have the capacity to gain the upper hand by striking at the opportune moment. You can get a sense of this from the first Witcher 4 trailer, particularly in how the character wields magic (something not typically seen in other witchers out there in the wilds). If you watch the cinematic back closely you’ll notice that Ciri is able to seamlessly integrate her abilities into combat, imbuing her with more range, options, and vulnerabilities – CDPR says that this will be at the heart of The Witcher 4 combat experience.
The Witcher 4 story
CD Projekt RED is yet to reveal the full extent of The Witcher 4 story, but it has framed the new adventure nicely. In this single-player, open-world RPG you will take control of Ciri as the beginning of her monster-slaying career – just as she starts her journey down the witcher’s path. “We’re kicking off a brand new Witcher saga, this time with Ciri as the heart of the story,” says Sebastian Kalemba, game director. “For the longest time we knew that we wanted Ciri to be the protagonist of The Witcher 4; it just felt natural to us and we believe that Ciri deserves it. In this game we want to explore what it means to truly become a witcher by following Ciri on her Path.”
Executive producer Malgorzata Mitrega explains that Ciri being so distinct from Geralt also opens up new storytelling possibilities. “She’s open, curious, and drawn to people, yearning for connection and understanding. This opens up uncharted territory in storytelling, where relationships and emotions are just as important as the fight for survival.” You get a sense of all of this in the first Witcher 4 trailer, which sees Ciri completing a witcher’s contract near the village of Stromford – not only battling an ancient evil in the shadows but encountering evil in a more human form too, where her decision to intervene in old rituals leads to disastrous consequences.
The Witcher 4 main character
Ciri is the main character in The Witcher 4. Geralt’s adopted daughter played a pivotal role in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and now that his story has reached its conclusion it’s time for a new Witcher to leave their mark on the Continent. CD Projekt RED is keen to note the differences between the two characters, with story director Tomasz Marchewka explaining: “On one hand, she’s very similar to Geralt, a continuator of his values – honorable, brave, just, but she also has this side we haven’t explored much – grim, rebellious, and fierce. She’s familiar, but at the same time she’s fresh. And she’s simply a badass.”
The studio says that there was never any doubt that Ciri would become the protagonist of The Witcher franchise. Marchewka says that “from the very beginning we knew it had to be Ciri – she’s a very complex character, and there is so much to be told about here.” Executive producer Malgorzata Mitrega adds: “Ciri is a worthy successor to the title of the next Witcher, and personally for me she always has been!”
The Witcher 4 open world
The Witcher 4 is going to be a single-player open-world RPG. Developer CD Projekt RED believes it’ll be the “most immersive and ambitious open-world Witcher game to date.” With a new protagonist comes a new open-world to explore, and the studio is already teasing out a far darker fantasy world. You should expect The Witcher 4 to offer up a world that is more dangerous and unpredictable than the one we experienced alongside Geralt, “a world where the old order is crumbling, and dark forces are seizing their chance to rise.” The studio adds: “In this world, survival depends not only on your skills in combat, but also on the connections you make with those around you, for better or worse.”
The Witcher 4 choice and consequences
Expanding on this darker open-world concept, narrative director Philipp Weber says that: “The world of The Witcher 4 is a place full of moral ambiguity, and so the stories we tell there rarely provide easy answers of good and evil. Make your choices, and live with the consequences. Ciri’s story is a battle against destiny. This battle comes at a price that will have to be paid eventually – either by Ciri, or by those dear to her. Your actions within the open world, the people you permit to come close to you, all have the potential to affect the path Ciri goes down on, and who she will become.”
The Witcher 4 engine
CD Project RED is using Unreal Engine 5 to develop The Witcher 4. The studio spoke back in 2022 about its decision to shift away from the REDengine – which was used for The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 – but The Game Awards 2024 was our first opportunity to see the new vision for the series in action. The results are spellbinding, although it should be noted that The Witcher 4 cinematic trailer is not rendered in real-time, but rather has been powered by the same technology powering the game to give you a sense of what the final product may look like. CDPR has confirmed that the debut trailer uses assets and models from the game itself and “represents a look that we’re targeting.”
Did Geralt die in The Witcher 3?
While The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt had a number of ending variations, it’s possible to now get a better sense of the canon ending for the Geralt series now that we know Ciri is walking the witcher’s path. In The Witcher 3 the three core ending scenarios involved: Ciri becoming a witcher, becoming the Empress, or dying. We know that the third option is out of the picture, which is also the scenario which implied that Geralt dies in combat. So instead we’re likely looking at a world in which Geralt is still active in the Continent during The Witcher 4, albeit in a reduced capacity – his monster slaying days behind him as he grows older and wearier. Some of the ending variations in The Witcher 3 did, after all, have Geralt retiring in Kovir with Triss or eloping with Yennefer. So who knows, maybe we’ll see some old, friendly faces.
Looking for something to play while you wait for more? Check out one of the best games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.