The Witcher 4 IS In Development!

Will There Be a Witcher 4?

Will there be a new GTA? A new Elder Scrolls? A new Dragon Age? Some franchises are just destined to go on and on, unless a final chapter has been set, as was the case with Uncharted, and even in the case of the latter: Who's to say we won't just a get a new game with a different protagonist. Hell, even God of War continued after its original trilogy, by essentially reinventing Kratos. With The Witcher only really achieving mainstream popularity of the highest order with The Witcher 3, you can bet your house and your mother's life insurance that The Witcher 4 is coming – in fact it was just announced. For most of the world, The Witcher 3 was the first time they experienced the franchise, so, if anything, The Witcher games are only really getting started. Even The Witcher 5 and The Witcher 6 seem like a certainty at this point.

Is The Witcher 4 Finally in the Works?

UPDATE: CDPR has now officially confirmed that The Witcher 4 is in development. So, yes, Witcher 4 is coming. You can read it all in detail here: Witcher 4 is in development.

https://t.co/XtbfqscMWr pic.twitter.com/eK6ZIbfLRa

— The Witcher (@witchergame) March 21, 2022

Though it hasn't officially been confirmed by CDPR yet, a job listing gave us everything we needed to know: CDPR is officially looking for someone with "experience in developing real-time third-person perspective cameras". Since the only other game in CDPR's stable is Cyberpunk, we can be damn sure that this is about The Witcher 4. Also, besides not even being a first-person game, Cyberpunk hasn't even released for the next-gen consoles yet (in fact, its next-gen release was delayed), so the production of a new Cyberpunk game is still ways away. Meanwhile, The Witcher 3 was released in 2015, and fans are itching for a new release. After 6 years, the timing seems about right, especially considering that we're still awaiting an announcement, the actual release could well be in 2025 or beyond, creating a 10-year gap between The Witcher 3 and The Witcher 4. Lastly, after the Cyberpunk debacle, The Witcher is CDPR's saving grace, so they'll want to get back on their fans' good sides with The Witcher 4.

Shouldn't The Witcher 4 Be Released By Now?

Well, The Witcher 3 was only released in 2015, so it's been 6 years. If we're expecting an announcement at the next Witchercon (which should take place in mid-2022), then we're talking 6 years between announcements. From then on, add another 2 years until the actual release, and the gap between The Witcher 3 and The Witcher 4 is 8 years. If we look at other major franchises, then that is a fair time for development: Red Dead Redemption 1 and 2 were 8 years apart, The Last of Us 1 and 2 were 7 years apart, while Uncharted 3 and 4, and GTA 4 and 5 were 5 years apart. With games getting bigger and bigger, and expectations on AAA games reaching an all-time high, developers are no longer in a rush, and even 10+ years between major releases is possible – just look at the release date for Elder Scrolls 6...

Will The Witcher 4 Be Revealed at Witchercon?

Witchercon 2021 was slightly disappointing and only had the Witcher 3 next-gen release as its biggest announcement, so now, all hopes are on Witchercon 2022. Since the convention is set to take place sometime in mid-2022, we would say that a first reveal – or announcement – of The Witcher 4 is realistic. After all, what else is CDPR going to announce within The Witcher universe?

What Else Do You Know CD Projekt Red Is Working on?

As stated above, we know that they are currently working on bringing Cyberpunk 2077 to the Xbox Series X|S and the PlayStation 5. Also, The Witcher 3 is getting the same treatment and is being ported to the new consoles. These next-gen versions were recently delayed, in order to assure quality, so we know that CDPR is busy with these games for the time being.

IMPORTANT PRODUCTION UPDATE pic.twitter.com/KOnaIVOt4v

— CD PROJEKT RED (@CDPROJEKTRED) October 20, 2021

What Is the Witcher 4 About?

Well, our guesses are as good as yours, so we'll just point you towards the few tidbits that CDPR has given us:

The first three 'Witchers' were by definition a trilogy, so we simply could not name the next game 'The Witcher 4'. This does not mean, of course, that we will leave the world of The Witcher. The Witcher is one of two franchises on which to build the future activities of the company. Today, unfortunately, I can not reveal anything more.

So... it seems like The Witcher 4 will not even be called 'The Witcher 4'. Thus, all bets are off, and the games is literally open to explore any storyline, with any character. What we do know is that CDPR already has a "relatively clear concept".

Who Will Be the Main Character in The Witcher 4?

• If you're wondering who the main villain could be, you might want to read this: The Witcher 4: This Could Be the Main Villain

After finishing The Witcher 3, Geralt's story is pretty much over – no matter which of the 40 endings you got. With this in mind, and the fact that CDPR already confirmed The Witcher 3 to be the end of a trilogy, we do believe that Geralt will not be a part of The Witcher 4 – at least not as a playable protagonist. Here's what the game's senior writer had to say on the matter.

“I think good stories must have an ending. You cannot extend them indefinitely, and we felt that Geralt has had such an amazing adventure, and his saga is already so long and complex that this seemed like a good point to think about an appropriate finale for the story.”

Fact is, Geralt is in retirement, and deservedly so. Maybe The Witcher 4 will introduce a time skip, and he'll play the part of the wise old guru, but that's probably about the extent of his involvement. As far as Ciri goes... well depending on what ending you chose, she's not an option...

Since the world of The Witcher has so many characters and so much lore to choose from, it's most likely that CDPR will look to introduce a new protagonist to the franchise. Besides, with Geralt's story over, and such an influx of new players, the next Witcher game is the perfect opportunity to start fresh, and give the franchise a whole new make-up to let it soar to new heights. We could easily see The Witcher getting the God of War treatment – except that we will probably see a different protagonist, rather than a changed and aged one...

Still... this is just all speculation, and only time will tell what CDPR truly has in stores for us. Whatever it is... it better not turn out like Cyberpunk.