CD Projekt RED has announced The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered, a major free upgrade for the acclaimed 2015 role-playing game. The remaster was revealed during Gamescom Opening Night Live and is scheduled to launch on 29 September 2026 for existing owners on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. The update brings extensive visual, gameplay and quality-of-life improvements while also making the original expansions available at no cost to base-game owners.
Announcement and Launch Details
The reveal took place on stage at Gamescom Opening Night Live, hosted by Geoff Keighley. CD Projekt RED confirmed that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered will arrive as a free upgrade for players who already own the game on Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. A native version is also coming to Nintendo Switch 2, and the game will appear on Battle.net for the first time.
The remaster launches on 29 September 2026. Owners of the base game will receive both of the original expansions—Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine—for free. Digital owners should see the expansions appear automatically in their libraries, while those with physical copies can claim them through the relevant storefronts. This immediate access allows players who never purchased the expansions to experience the full original content ahead of the remaster’s arrival.
Visual and Technical Upgrades
The remaster focuses heavily on bringing the game’s presentation in line with contemporary standards. Updated textures, improved lighting, refined foliage and HDR enhancements are among the core visual changes. On PC, the update introduces advanced features including path tracing, ray reconstruction and ray-traced hair. Support for modern upscaling technologies—NVIDIA DLSS 4.5, AMD FSR 4 and Intel XeSS 2.0—has also been added, along with native DirectX 12 and rendering parallelisation.
These technical improvements aim to deliver sharper image quality, more realistic lighting and better performance on current hardware while preserving the distinctive atmosphere of the original game. Console versions benefit from platform-specific optimisations, including PlayStation 5 Pro support and Xbox Play Anywhere functionality, which allows progress to carry across Xbox Series consoles, PC and supported handhelds.
Gameplay and Systems Improvements
Beyond graphics, the remaster introduces meaningful changes to how the game plays. Combat has been enhanced with new finisher animations and updated effects for Witcher Signs. Traversal and movement have been refined, including adjustments to climbing and mantling. Mount handling for Roach has been reworked, and monster behaviours have been improved for more dynamic encounters.
The skill tree has undergone a full revamp designed to offer greater player choice and flexibility. Transmogrification support has been added, allowing players to separate an item’s appearance from its statistical benefits so that preferred looks can be maintained without sacrificing useful gear. An expanded photo mode, reworked looting, improved quest tracking, refined animations, UI updates and new accessibility options further modernise the experience.
Cross-platform mod support is another notable addition, enabling a wider range of community content to function across platforms. Immersive meditation and other quality-of-life features round out a substantial list of changes that go well beyond a simple visual refresh.
Relationship to Existing Content and Future Expansion
The remaster incorporates the full original game plus both Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, all updated to the new technical standard. It does not include the upcoming paid expansion Songs of the Past, which is scheduled for release in 2027. A teaser for Songs of the Past was shown alongside the remaster announcement, introducing a new region and story elements, with the expansion set to arrive on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2.
By delivering the remaster and free expansions first, CD Projekt RED is giving both longtime fans and newcomers a polished foundation before the next major story content arrives. The studio has indicated that Songs of the Past will be supported on the remastered version when it launches.
Platform Availability and Accessibility
On PC the remaster is available through the major storefronts that already carry The Witcher 3, with the addition of Battle.net. Console players on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S receive the free upgrade directly. Nintendo Switch 2 owners will have a native version of the remastered game, with pre-orders already opened. Exact details of any exclusive Switch 2 features have not yet been fully outlined.
Xbox One owners of the base game are also eligible for the free expansions, ensuring that the original story content becomes widely accessible across the Xbox ecosystem.
Significance for Players
More than a decade after its original release, and several years after the 2022 next-generation update, The Witcher 3 continues to receive substantial support. The remaster reflects CD Projekt RED’s ongoing commitment to one of its most celebrated titles. For existing owners the update is entirely free and immediately expands the amount of content available. For new players it creates a more modern entry point that includes the full original experience plus both expansions at no extra cost for the core package.
The combination of visual modernisation, combat and systems refinements, and the free inclusion of Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine makes the September 29 release a significant moment for the community. Players who have been waiting to return to the Continent, or who have never fully experienced the expansions, now have a clear and low-barrier opportunity to do so in a substantially updated form.
Looking Toward the Future
The remaster serves as both a celebration of the existing game and preparation for what comes next. With Songs of the Past scheduled for 2027 and other Witcher projects in development, the free upgrade helps ensure that Geralt’s original adventure remains relevant and accessible on current hardware. CD Projekt RED has positioned the remaster as the definitive way to experience the story while maintaining the heart of the classic role-playing experience.
When The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered arrives on 29 September, owners on supported platforms will be able to download the free upgrade and, if they have not already done so, claim the original expansions. The result is a refreshed and expanded package that rewards both long-time fans and those discovering the game for the first time.
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