The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is one of my favourite games of all time. Steeped in rich lore, abundant with characters and dripping in magic, it’s got so much to offer I’ve felt almost greedy as I devour its gameplay. And maybe I am, because I’ve certainly got a rumbly in my tumbly for more. When CD Projekt Red announced that a new Witcher game was in the works back in 2022, well, I felt a similar tingle to the one Yennefer undoubtedly bestows upon Geralt.
This time round, it’s a new trilogy, passing Geralt’s carefully-handed reins over to Ciri. Taking over from ‘daddy’, she’ll become the main protagonist. For Geralt, reportedly, he’ll hold a simple supporting role. It’s a clever move, granting players both new and old an appealing place to jump in, but it’s given players plenty to talk about.
When CDPR’s Cyberpunk 2077 was released to heavy criticism at launch in 2020 for its bugs and seemingly missing features, it’s unsurprising that the developers are taking their time. But what can we expect when this new trilogy-starter finally launches? It’s not clear.
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Instead, here’s what I want: seven things, in fact, because I’m a ravenous monster hunter with a real hankering for more open-world tomfoolery.
Building Ciri’s story
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)
To mark the beginning of a new Witcher trilogy, it can no longer be Geralt of Rivia’s story. Ciri, Geralt’s adopted daughter and sole heir to the throne of Cintra, is taking the lead. But Ciri is not as well-travelled and well-honed in the life of a Witcher as Geralt. For The Witcher 4, then, I’d like there to be an obvious learning curve in the storyline.
What I’d also really like from Ciri, as she picks up the Witcher (Witcheress?) gauntlet, is to flesh out her character with a depth that makes me care about her in the way I did about Geralt. This feels almost inevitable, but we can’t say it’s a given.
In a behind-the-scenes reveal, Sebastian Kalemba, game director, revealed: “Ciri is all about becoming the Witcher, and she is very determined to follow this path.” While my wishes will get a little more elaborate as we journey through this list, this one feels like a solid starting point.
Ciri was briefly playable in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, but we know there’s more to explore. Who will she meet? Who will she romance? Adding layers to her character feels very CDPR-coded, and long may it continue. After all, there’s a lot of canon to explore, and it’ll be interesting to see what CDPR stays true to and what they change.
A new way to fight
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)
One of the most interesting discourses I’ve witnessed about The Witcher 4 has been around combat. It’s especially interesting because it marks the first time that CDPR has had a fully-fledged combat designer for a Witcher game. They didn’t have one until Cyberpunk 2077, and now they’ve hired another in Dennis Zopfi of Metal Gear Rising and Horizon Zero Dawn fame. Zopfi joins as the new Gameplay & Combat Director to aid Ciri in her quest to become a monster slayer.
Undoubtedly, Zopfi’s presence will have a direct impact on the way that combat was integrated in The Witcher 3, and I’m not mad about that at all. In fact, I wouldn’t mind if it were a little less clunky and even a touch more complex than the previous game. The Witcher 4 marks a perfect opportunity to expand on the groundwork of the combat mechanics, especially melee, and Zopfi steps in to make a difference. Plus, they’ve moved to Unreal Engine 5 this time round, which CDPR says: “aims to be the most immersive and ambitious open-world Witcher game to date.”
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Deal me in — Gwent simply has to live on
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)
Lord have mercy, I’m such a fan of Gwent that I can’t imagine another Witcher game without it. Both my parents were card dealers, so I’ve got a little soft spot for card games regardless, but Gwent is something different.
In fact, I’d be bold enough to say it’s one of the best examples of a game within a game that I’ve experienced. Integrating it into The Witcher 4 feels like a must, and the developers have dropped some heavy teasers that they agree.
What I’m saying is bring it back, please, and throw in some tournaments while you’re at it. I’ve been fervently searching for a way to scratch that mini-game card itch in other titles, and Duo in Crimson Desert most certainly hasn’t cut it. Dare I say it, I wouldn’t even mind if they made it harder. I’m not talking about the standalone Gwent game, though, which changed up some of the gameplay mechanics.
Monster mash
The Witcher 4 — Cinematic Reveal Trailer | The Game Awards 2024 – YouTube
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Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of monsters in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. It’s literally named after them. But if I’m getting a wishlist of features that I’d like, then I’m choosing to have even more of them. More variety, more crossover from the Netflix show, more terror. Fortunately, we’ve already been teased with one such addition, the Bauk, in the game’s cinematic reveal trailer, described by Kalemba as having “this ability to smell your fear, to be able to play with your traumas, to paralyze you.” Creepy.
Ciri is learning what it’s like to be a Witcher, and with that, there’s going to be trials and tribulations. What better way to cut your teeth than literally fighting against the worst of the worst? Along with new monsters, though, it’d be cool to see the return of old monsters like the Leshen and some cheeky Rock Trolls, demonstrating that while it’s no longer Geralt, the threat is still the same. Seeing how Ciri deals with this in combat, transformed by Zopfi, will be really cool to see.
A better brew
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)
I’ve already explained my adoration for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, but one aspect of the game that I didn’t really love was the alchemy system. It felt a touch unimaginative at points, and I honestly feel like it could’ve done more. Considering the complexity of the rest of the gameplay, I wouldn’t mind if they made the alchemy a bit less simple, too. Maybe even, like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, where it’s a little less explained and a lot more creative, seeing what you can make up without guidance.
If there’s a possibility for a deeper system, closer akin to The Witcher 1, that would be ideal. If I’m prepping my oils and potions for combat, preparing for my next fight, then I want it to feel like I’m really doing something meaningful. After all, it’s the difference between survival and death. Plus, that rings true to merely living life as a Witcher without the threat of monsters, so it’d be fun if the alchemy carried a similar weight in the main gameplay.
Cause and effect
The Witcher 4 — Unreal Engine 5 Tech Demo – YouTube
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You spend a lot of time making a difference to the world around you in Witcher games, but the nonplayer characters (NPCs) don’t tend to treat you very differently when you leave a particular mission. In The Witcher 4, I quite fancy the idea of your reputation preceding you. I want NPCs in the wider world to have a reaction to the way I’ve chosen to live my life throughout the entire game, because it’ll weigh heavily on the decisions I ultimately make. What you’ve done and what paths you’ve chosen will ultimately affect how your game goes, and that’s the kind of deep interactivity that I crave from a role-playing game (RPG).
Especially with Ciri taking over as the protagonist, it feels like a great opportunity to weave a more dynamic reputation system into the game to see how people react to this Witcheress. The cinematic trailer showed just a glimpse of how Ciri’s involvement potentially changes the course of life in a butterfly effect. If it could impact the quests you get given, too, that would add another nifty layer.
A bigger map?
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)
As far as reports around The Witcher 4 map go, it’s supposedly going to be a similar size to that of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. That’s fair enough considering it was epically expansive and plenty big enough. But I said I was feeling greedy, so I’d totally take a bigger map.
While I quite like the idea of a map growing in size, though, I wouldn’t want it if it just had swathes of areas with nothing in. It’s a quality over quantity situation. And, the other rumor floating around is that CDPR is going to focus on making an equally-sized map of a better quality, perhaps with regions and biomes that differentiate where you are when you travel around. None of this is confirmed, but I love the idea of it. If I’m not getting a bigger map, I’ll certainly take a richer one.
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