CD PROJEKT RED has announced that it is developing a remake to The Witcher, the company’s very first game, originally released in 2007 and inspired (but taking after) the main events in Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski’s fantasy novel series. Going by the code name “Canis Majoris,” the remake of the classic RPG is being rebuilt from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5 with the help of Fool’s Theory. CD PROJEKT RED has warned that it may be a while before it shares some real details regarding the project, as it’s still in the early stages of development.
“The Witcher is where it all started for us, for CD PROJEKT RED. It was the first game we made, ever, and it was a big moment for us then. Going back to this place and remaking the game for the next generation of gamers to experience it feels just as big, if not bigger,” said Adam Badowski, Head of Studio, CD PROJEKT RED.
“Collaborating with Fool’s Theory on the project is just as exciting, as some of the people there have been previously involved in The Witcher games. They know the source material well, they know how much gamers have been looking forward to seeing the remake happen, and they know how to make incredible and ambitious games. And although it will take some time before we’re ready to share more about and from the game, I know it’ll be worth the wait.”
From the official Witcher site:
We are thrilled to announce that The Witcher Remake is being worked on! That’s right, the game that started it all is being rebuilt from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5.
The game is currently in the early stages of development at the Polish studio Fool’s Theory, where veteran Witcher series staff are involved. We, as CD PROJEKT RED, are providing full creative supervision.
The Witcher Remake is what you might know by the codename “Canis Majoris”. It’s still early and we want to ensure that the game is created with the utmost care and attention to detail, therefore, while we’re excited to share the news with you, we want to ask you for patience as it will be a while until we start talking about this project in detail.
Discussion (3 replies)
Join Discussion →Welp, I'm down!
Woohoo! I loved the first one! ?
Whoohoo! This game definitely deserves it. I played it(remastered version) for the 1st time back in 2019 and then proceeded to do a complete play-through of all three games (already having replayed the 2nd and 3rd more times than I can remember). It was neat seeing the game saves carry-over for minute changes in each succeeding game.
It was sort of nice, in a late 90s/early 2000s nostalgic kind of way, to play it but it would really be incredible to play it with a modern engine. Hopefully, they also update that soundtrack. I have the complete versions for all three games and the 1st is wildly experimental compared to the 2nd and 3rd. Not bad, but you could tell they were still trying to create an identity for the franchise. Coincidentally I just re-listened to the soundtracks for the first two games a couple of weeks ago.
I really hope they finish the remaster for the 3rd sometime soon as well. It also leaves me wondering if they plan to do anything for the 2nd since it could use some love as well and just call it good for a complete franchise collection.