This afternoon, CD Projekt RED VP and Game Director Sebastian Kalemba announced via Twitter (X) that The Witcher 4 is officially in full scale production after recently ending the pre-production phase. He also shared his confidence that the new saga could be a remarkable experience for fans.
I’m thrilled to announce that Project Polaris has entered the full-scale production phase! With new challenges just around the corner, it’s the talented and hard-working people who make me believe we can together make the upcoming Witcher Saga a remarkable experience. No stopping now! Stay tuned for what’s on the other side of the coin!⚔️
Kalemba shared a picture with the tweet. This could be our very first look at The Witcher 4.
We first heard of the new game over two and a half years ago when CD Projekt RED also announced they were abandoning their own REDEngine in favor of Epic’s Unreal Engine 5 technology. At the time, they called it a true partnership where they would also contribute back to the game-making tool. CTO Paweł Zawodny said:
From the outset, we did not consider a typical licensing arrangement; both we and Epic see this as a long-term, fulfilling tech partnership. It is vital for CD Projekt Red to have the technical direction of our next game decided from the earliest possible phase as; in the past, we spent a lot of resources and energy to evolve and adapt REDengine with every subsequent game release. This cooperation is so exciting, because it will elevate development predictability and efficiency, while simultaneously granting us access to cutting-edge game development tools. I can’t wait for the great games we’re going to create using Unreal Engine 5!
The switch could speed up the development of future games, but that won’t apply to The Witcher 4, since the team is still familiarizing itself with the new tool. When he spoke about the new installment last year, Sebastian Kalemba teased that the studio aims to surpass current RPGs with new features and mechanics that break boundaries. Moreover, the new The Witcher game will be a great entry point for newcomers.
A couple of weeks ago, we spotted the first actor who will work on the game. That info also revealed how voice-over and motion capture will begin in 2025. It’s hard to say exactly when The Witcher 4 could launch, but it will be at least a couple more years if not more. Until then, you can beautify The Witcher 3 NextGen Edition with HalkHogan’s definitive texture mod.
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