CD Projekt is sticking to its formidable plan to launch all three video video games within the new Ciri-fronted The Witcher trilogy inside a six-year interval.
Talking throughout a current monetary name, joint CEO Michał Nowakowski mentioned that future The Witcher video video games “needs to be delivered in a shorter time period.” That’s as a result of CD Projekt has switched to Unreal Engine 5 for the total manufacturing of not solely The Witcher 4, however The Witcher 5 and 6.
Right here’s Nowakowski’s quote in full:
“We’ve been utilizing UE5 for The Witcher 4 for nearly 4 years now, and we’re very proud of what we’ve achieved. I believe you may have seen a few of that with your individual eyes with our tech demo reveal at Unreal Fest couple of months in the past, and we’re very proud of the outcomes of that as effectively – we’ve already mentioned that, however I’m at all times joyful to say it once more – and we’re proud of how the engine is evolving by means of the Epic workforce’s efforts, and the way we’re studying the right way to make it work inside an enormous open-world sport, as TW4 is supposed to be.
“In a means, sure, I do consider that additional video games needs to be delivered in a shorter time period — as we had said earlier than, our plan nonetheless is to launch the entire trilogy inside a six-year interval, so sure, that may imply we might plan to have a shorter growth time between TW4 and TW5, between TW5 and TW6 and so forth.”
That’s a massively formidable launch plan that comes throughout as all of the extra stunning given The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was initially launched on Might 19, 2015 — 4 years after The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. Based mostly on Nowakowski’s remark, CD Projekt plans to launch The Witcher 5 three years after The Witcher 4, then The Witcher 6 three years after that, assuming it desires to unfold every launch out equally.
As we’ve seen, AAA online game growth could be a troublesome endeavor that takes years to finish. Bethesda continues to be beavering away on The Elder Scrolls 6, which it introduced in 2018. Microsoft’s new Fable sport, due out in 2026, was introduced in 2020, however growth started earlier than then. And there was a five-year hole between Sony’s launch of Ghost of Tsushima and Ghost of Yotei.
So, the concept CD Projekt will launch three new The Witcher video games in six years is actually formidable, and it stays to be seen if this plan holds when all is alleged and accomplished. However assuming it does, when can we count on the video games to truly come out?
CD Projekt has indicated The Witcher 4 received’t be out in 2026, which suggests 2027 on the earliest. Based on CD Projekt’s newest monetary report, 447 individuals are at present engaged on The Witcher 4, up barely from the quantity reported on the finish of July. Clearly, it’s CD Projekt’s focus proper now, and manufacturing is in full swing. Let’s say The Witcher 4 comes out in November 2027. That might imply The Witcher 5 in 2030, and The Witcher 6 in 2033.
There are a number of spanners which will find yourself being thrown within the works. CD Projekt will little question should handle a console transition, which can or might not happen earlier than The Witcher 4 comes out. And who is aware of the place the world, typically, shall be in only a 12 months’s time, not to mention 4 or 5? The online game trade, already struggling by means of maybe essentially the most transformative, disruptive time in its historical past, might be in a really completely different place in only a couple years. It is simply unimaginable to foretell a lot of something proper now.
In the meantime, CD Projekt has Cyberpunk 2 within the works, though that’s additional behind The Witcher 4. Will Cyberpunk 2 come out in between certainly one of these new The Witcher video games, or will CD Projekt wait till the brand new trilogy is out earlier than pulling the set off? And let’s not neglect The Witcher 1 remake CD Projekt is engaged on in some trend. Will that launch amid the brand new trilogy? There are different tasks too at numerous phases of growth on the Polish firm, in addition to non-video sport tasks involving its IP. In brief, CD Projekt has lots happening. A hell of lots.
CD Projekt not too long ago dominated out The Witcher 4 from this month’s The Sport Awards, so don’t count on any new trailer there. Our final have a look at the sport got here through the massively spectacular Unreal Engine 5 tech demo in June, which Nowakowski talked about in his remark. So, do not maintain your breath for The Witcher 4, however when it lastly comes out — assuming all the pieces goes based on CD Projekt’s plan — followers are doubtlessly in for an unbelievable six years.
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Wesley is Director, Information at IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You’ll be able to attain Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
