The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt News

CD Projekt has revealed that the game codenamed project Polaris - that "first instalment in the new Witcher saga" that we've all been referring to as The Witcher 4 just to make thing a bit less confusing until a proper name is slapped on it - is just about ready to enter full production.

According to joint CEO Michał Nowakowski in a press release detailing the studio's latest earnings figures and progress on its current projects, preproduction on Polaris is on track to wrap up soon, with the developers "nearing a major milestone" that'll mark this point. So, as of right now, CD Projekt is "gearing up" to launch into that next phase.

In an earnings video that adds the this smorgasbord of witchery info, CD Projekt CFO Piotr Nielubowicz added that in the first half of 2024, the Polaris development team has "made substantial progress", which will allow that step into full production to be taken "soon".

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The Witcher 4 is almost definitely still years away, but if you're a fan of the books the games are based on, there's some good news.

It's pretty unclear how far away The Witcher 4 is, that's just the nature of game development these days, though CD Projekt Red has at least made it clear that the upcoming sequel is "the most advanced" of its projects. Production is meant to be starting this year at least, so hopefully it's only a few years away at the very least. Still, considering The Witcher 3 is almost decade old, that's quite the long wait for something new from the beloved action RPG. There'll certainly be plenty of Witcher fans out there that are just interested in the games, but for those of you that have gone as far as ready the books, the original author has some welcome news: he's finished another book.

As spotted by PC Gamer, Andrzej Sapkowski recently spoke with French fantasy magazine Chimères, where he shared that he doesn't really have any plans for the series going forward, but he has wrapped up his latest Witcher book. "I have finished the book," he said. "It took me maybe two years - something like this." Sapkowski technically finished the Witcher books back in 1999, though did later come back to Geralt with another one in 2013, set in between the events of the original books. In 2018 at Warsaw Comic Con, Sapkowski said the story is finished, so presumably this new book will be filling in some gaps too.

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Sailing around in a little boat and occasionally sinking because you couldn't be bothered to get up and kill the sirens trying to break it apart is a key part of what makes exploration - or just commuting between missions - in The Witcher 3 a blast. Though, if you've ever thought Geralt could do with a vessel that could safely store all the drowner heads he keeps in his saddle bags, a new mod will let you have a go at sailing a full-size ship.

Yep, this is another one of those pet projects that the game's REDkit modding tools have made possible, and far from the first maritime-based one, with another mod having restored the game's cut boat races back in July.

TrickArrant's 'Sail Big Ship' not only boasts one of the best 'does what it says on the tin' names on Nexus Mods, it lets Gerry from the Rivia climb aboard pilotable versions of those big frigates that sit in the harbours of places like Novigrad as static objects in the base game. You'll just have to park your immersion at the door a bit, since, in its own creator's words, it boasts "quite a bit of jank".

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Good news for PlayStation Plus subscribers with a taste for the wild side, as the August line-up of games have been revealed. These include The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Wild Hearts, and Cult of the Lamb. These games will be free to download for those out there with a PlayStation Plus Extra subscription starting August 20.

There are also some more classics being added to the cataglogue for those who've spent a bit more and own a Premium subscription. These include TimeSplitters 1 and 2, a pair of truly brilliant FPS games that are well worth returning to if you've not touched them in a while. There's also TimeSplitters: Future Perfect, which is firmlyokay.

As for those main titles headed to the service, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is obviously a stellar package, filled to bursting with outstanding narrative content and awesome combat. Gwent is there too, which y'know, is fine I suppose. However you slice it, you're getting over 100 hours of premium brilliant RPG goodness.

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Speaking of moving — in this challenge, you will become the NPC puppeteer. We task you with creating a new animation for any character besides Geralt. It could be a cool pose that goes with Photo Mode, an entire choreographed dance routine, or anything in between.

Submit your work by uploading it on Nexus Mods at https://www.nexusmods.com/witcher3 and sharing a link in the submission form on the official contest website: https://thewitcher.ly/REDkitContest. There, you will also find a set of Frequently Asked Questions to guide you.

Here are a few things to remember:
• you need to participate individually, and you can only submit one mod per challenge, but you can take part in as many challenges as you like;
• entries in this challenge can be submitted until August 27th, 15:59 CEST;
• to qualify for the contest, mods must not have been published before April 16th, 2024, 13:00 CEST;
• submitted mods can be updated until the submission phase deadline;
• challenges are judged by CD PROJEKT RED and Yigsoft team members.

If you want to know more, you can find the complete set of rules and regulations for the contest here.

Join the main category The Witcher 3 REDkit Modding Contest: https://thewitcher.ly/REDkitContest