The Witcher 4 Dev Explains How the Team Prepared to Work on the Long-Awaited Title

Witcher 4's Development: A Ciri-centric Trilogy Begins

CD Projekt Red's narrative director, Philipp Webber, recently shed light on the team's preparation for The Witcher 4, revealing a unique approach involving a Witcher 3 side quest. This initiative served as an onboarding experience for new team members, effectively easing them into the world of The Witcher before embarking on the ambitious Witcher 4 project.

The upcoming game, announced in March 2022, marks a new trilogy focusing on Ciri as the protagonist. This shift from Geralt, the iconic hero of the first trilogy, is a significant change that was foreshadowed in part by Ciri's prominent role in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, originally released in May 2015. A new trailer showcased at The Game Awards 2024 confirmed Ciri's leading role in The Witcher 4.

The key to the team's preparation lies in the "In the Eternal Fire's Shadow" side quest, added to The Witcher 3 in late 2022. While ostensibly promoting the game's next-gen update and providing in-game justification for Henry Cavill's Netflix armor, Webber confirmed its crucial role in integrating new designers and writers into the Witcher universe. He described it as "the perfect start to getting back into the vibe," suggesting it served as a crucial initiation before diving into The Witcher 4's development.

This side quest's timing aligns closely with The Witcher 4's announcement, offering insight into the team's early development stages. While pre-announcement planning undoubtedly existed, the side quest provides a concrete marker for the onboarding of new talent, potentially including members transitioning from the Cyberpunk 2077 team (released in 2020). This influx of new personnel, coupled with the timing of the side quest, fuels speculation about potential similarities between The Witcher 4's mechanics and Cyberpunk 2077's "Phantom Liberty" expansion, particularly regarding skill trees. While Webber didn't name specific individuals, the side quest's role in the overall development process is undeniable.