CD Projekt Red Reveals The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered, Launching September 29 as a Free Upgrade
CD Projekt Red will release The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Remastered on September 29th, the studio confirmed today alongside a trailer. The remastered edition will be available as a free upgrade for players who already own the base game on GOG, Steam, the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X / S. (The Verge)
The remaster brings improvements to both visuals and combat, along with a reimagined skill tree. CD Projekt Red has not yet disclosed full technical specifications for the visual overhaul, though the trailer offers a first look at the updated presentation. The combat changes and redesigned skill progression system suggest mechanical depth beyond a simple resolution or texture bump.
Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, the game's two expansions, are included in the remastered package. Both were substantial additions to the original release and have been widely regarded as benchmarks for post-launch DLC. Bundling them means players upgrading from the base game alone will receive the complete content suite at no additional cost.
The free-upgrade model applies across all five listed platforms. Notably, the announcement does not mention PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, the consoles the original 2015 release shipped on. The platform list is limited to current-generation hardware and PC storefronts.
Looking at what this means for existing owners, the free-upgrade approach mirrors the strategy CD Projekt Red took with the game's current-gen console patch, released in late 2022, which delivered ray tracing and other enhancements at no charge. That earlier update also included Netflix-series-inspired DLC items. Whether the remaster supersedes that patch or builds upon it as a separate product tier was not detailed in today's announcement.
The decision to reimagined the skill tree is the most mechanically interesting element here. Skill progression in the original Witcher 3 was functional but widely critiqued for a lack of meaningful build diversity, with many players converging on similar sign-intensive or melee-focused builds. A redesigned system could address that criticism directly, though the specifics remain undisclosed.
For a game that has sold over 50 million copies across its lifetime, a free remaster is a low-friction way to re-engage a massive existing audience. The inclusion of both expansions further lowers the barrier for players who never purchased the DLC separately.
What remains unclear from today's announcement is pricing for new buyers who do not own the base game, whether the remaster will be sold as a standalone product at retail, and whether there are any platform-specific features beyond the shared improvements. The trailer and accompanying details focus on the upgrade path for existing owners.
The September 29th release gives the remaster a clear runway into the holiday period, positioning it as one of the higher-profile titles in a typically crowded Q4 window.
