Witcher 3 remaster rebuilt its combat because gameplay was the weakest part, CD Projekt says
CD Projekt Red rebuilt combat, skills and movement for The Witcher 3 remaster because its own team thought gameplay was the original's weak link.
Designer Paweł Sasko described that side of the game as obvious and almost the weakest side, in an interview published on 29 September 2026. He said players and journalists agreed with that verdict. Sasko consulted on the remaster and is associate director on the upcoming Cyberpunk sequel, while his main work is on Cyberpunk 2 and The Witcher 4.
The team went back to years of feedback from players and journalists to decide what to change, Sasko told Video Games Chronicle. The result is not only a visual lift. The remaster includes revamped combat gameplay and a reworked skill tree, the menu system where players unlock new abilities, plus new animations and finishing moves and smoother movement while exploring.
Sasko said the work drew heavily on the studio's experience redesigning Cyberpunk 2077 for its 2.0 update, a large free overhaul that changed perks, police behaviour and combat. He said the comparison with Cyberpunk 2.0 is justified, though the Witcher 3 changes may be less impactful on the overall experience.
The idea traces back to the 2022 next-generation update, the version tuned for newer consoles and PCs. Sasko said developers used that work to discuss which areas of the 2015 role-playing game, a story-driven adventure where choices shape the plot, had become rusty.
The remaster is available as a free upgrade for existing owners of The Witcher 3, according to CD Projekt. A remaster here means a rebuilt edition of an older game for current hardware, with updated visuals and systems.
Separately, a new expansion, a large add-on story, titled Songs of the Past is in development at Fool's Theory and is scheduled for release next year. The details were discussed in a Video Games Chronicle interview titled 'The Witcher 3: Developers talk remastering a classic and creating Songs of the Past'.
What makes this stand out is the candour. Studios rarely single out a flaw in a much-loved game. Here the message is simple. The story stays. The swordplay changes.
