The Witcher 4 Will Be Console-First: CD Projekt RED Promises Smoother Launch Than Cyberpunk 2077
CD Projekt RED is changing its approach for the highly anticipated The Witcher 4. This time, the studio is betting on a “console-first” strategy, aiming to avoid the technical problems that plagued Cyberpunk 2077’s launch. In a recent interview with Digital Foundry, CDPR devs opened up about what this means for fans and what to expect from Geralt’s next adventure.
- CDPR is focusing on consoles first for The Witcher 4 development
- Goal: Avoid buggy launch like Cyberpunk 2077
- Game demo already running at 60 FPS with ray tracing on PS5
- Studio is switching from REDengine to Unreal Engine 5
- PC players don’t need to worry – the game will still shine on PC
- No release date yet, but confirmed for PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X
Why “console-first” for The Witcher 4?
During a tech demo at the State of Unreal showcase, CD Projekt RED showed off The Witcher 4 running at a smooth 60 frames-per-second with ray tracing on a standard PlayStation 5. That’s a big step, especially since it’s the first time CDPR is ditching its own REDengine for Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 5. According to Charles Tremblay, CDPR’s vice president of technology, the decision to focus on consoles is a direct response to past troubles:
“I think that when we started the collaboration [with Epic], we had super high ambition for this project, and we always do PC [first] and we push [the limits] and then we try to scale down [for console]. But then we had so many problems in the past that we tried to see, ‘OK, this time around we really want to be more [of] a console-first development, right?’”
Learning from Cyberpunk 2077’s launch
Most fans remember the rocky start of Cyberpunk 2077, especially for console players. Despite several delays, the game was full of bugs and performance issues on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Sony even pulled Cyberpunk 2077 from its digital store for months after launch. The Witcher 3, on the other hand, had a much smoother debut back in 2015. CDPR clearly wants to avoid repeating old mistakes with The Witcher 4.
“It’s pretty logical when you think about it, because it’s easier to scale up than down,” explains Jakub Knapik, CDPR’s vice president and global art director. “We knew that once we set up certain foundations — both visually and technically — there’s room to scale up. Now, what that means is another question. We’re CDPR: We always like to push PCs to the limit. It’s just a creative process, [figuring out] how to really use it.”
What about PC players?
If you’re a PC gamer, you can relax. CD Projekt RED promises that PC won’t be left behind. Tremblay reassures fans:
“In the past, something that’s super important for [us] is that if people pay good money for their hardware, [then] we want them to have what the game can provide for that, not like a simplified experience. So this is something we’ll definitely explore. The company started as a PC [gaming] company, and we’ll definitely want to have the best experience for the PC gamer for sure. But it’s too early to say what this will mean for The Witcher 4.”
However, there are still some concerns about the Xbox Series S version, which Tremblay calls “extremely challenging” to develop for.
What’s next for CD Projekt RED?
There’s no official release date for The Witcher 4 yet, but we do know it’s coming to PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X. That’s not all – CDPR is also working on a Cyberpunk 2077 sequel and a remake of the original The Witcher with an open world. So, plenty for fans to look forward to!
