Witcher Remake was announced by CD Projekt Red yesterday, October 26. It has been confirmed that the title will be rebuilt using Unreal Engine 5.
Witcher Remake Announced by CD Projekt Red, In Collaboration with Fool’s Theory
CD Projekt Red announced right out of nowhere yesterday, October 26th one of the projects in development. The team previously announced that it hastons of projects in the pipeline, one of them being Project Canis Majoris.
It has been confirmed that Canis Majoris is the codename for a complete Witcher Remake. Yes, the original game back from 2007 will be getting a total makeover.
The Witcher Remake
CDProjekt Red announced in a blog post on their official website that the Witcher Remake is being worked on. Just like the previously confirmedUntitled Witcher Sequel, the Remake is also being built from scratch using Unreal Engine 5.
The original Witcher game was built upon a highly customized version of the Aurora Engine, created by Bioware. This specific engine was highly likely chosen to be a base as CDProjekt Red’s humble beginnings actually started by creating legal methods in which they could distribute Bioware games in Poland. So they likely had some experience using the company’s tools.
Series Veterans
Witcher Remake’s announcement also surprisingly included that CD Projekt Red will not be the main developer. Instead, they are partnering up with fellow Polish studio Fool’s Theory. This relatively smaller company is actually comprised of some ex-Witcher developers. It seems like the remake is in good hands, as they already have experience in the lore, the setting, the world, and what magic makes the Witcher series special.
CD Projekt Red themselves will be providing “creative supervision” and will likely oversee the entire production, publishing, and distribution.
As quoted by Adam Badowski, Head of CDProjekt Red, “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,”
The First Witcher
The original Witcher game was released by CD Projekt Red in October of 2007. It was met with fairly positive reviews, with most outlets applauding its daring nature of creating branching narratives due to player choice. Quests and outcomes could be experienced in vastly different ways. The environments were large and expansive at the time, and great to explore, as well.
Having played the original personally when it came out, the technical side of things was not as polished. Awkward dialogue animations and long load times were the biggest offenders. Thankfully, these issues were ironed out in the free “Witcher Enhanced Edition” upgrade that was released just 11 months later.
The release of this enhanced Edition started the precedent that CDPR was a “generous” company. It was highly appreciated that the upgrade was given for free to all players, which was surprising considering the sweeping changes and enhancements.
A Foolish Request
Developer Fool’s Theory might not ring a bell for most people. While some of their senior members have worked on all three of the mainline Witcher games, they currently have only one stealth RPG under their belt: Seven.
The studio is mostly in charge of supplementary or auxiliary work in collaboration with other major studios. Their list of accomplishments includes project support forDivinity Original Sin II,Baldur’s Gate III,Outriders, and the upcomingGord.
Aside from this, the team is also working on a title called “Project Vitriol”. Vitriol, much like the Witcher games, is a morally grey RPG that will challenge people’s decisions. It will focus more on the “esoteric side of reality, that dark part of the world that most of us don’t see and are not aware of.”
Project Vitriol is quite early in development, and we haven’t heard much of it since its original announcement back in June of 2022. The team even listed that this was, at the time, the largest project they’ve worked on ever. This will probably need to change with the announcement of the Witcher Remake.
That’s Unreal!!
The list of games being built upon the backbone of Unreal Engine 5 grows longer by the day. Other than the previously mentioned Witcher 4, we haveHell is Us,Avowed,Mortal Online(in the progress of changing engines), andThe First Descendant.
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