If you're a big fan of The Witcher series you will probably love this: CD PROJEKT RED have announced The Witcher Remake. Working together with developer Fool's Theory, it will be developed in Unreal Engine 5.
This is what was originally teased as "Canis Majoris", it will be a modern reimagining of the classic from 2007 and it "will use the toolset CDPR is creating for the new Witcher saga" — sounds fancy. Hopefully it will release in a better state than Cyberpunk 2077, with Fool's Theory having veteran developers who previously worked on The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and CD PROJEKT RED is providing full creative supervision. Fool's Theory have also contributed to the development of Baldur’s Gate III, Divinity: Original Sin 2 DLC’s, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, Outriders and Gord.
From the press release:
"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 updating the game for the next generation of gamers to experience it is 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."
"I am very happy that my professional paths have crossed again with fellow developers from the time of working together on The Witcher 2 and The Witcher 3. Especially when it's a remake of a project that is so close to our hearts," said Jakub Rokosz, CEO, Fool's Theory. "We are excited to join forces with CD PROJEKT RED, and our goal is to give players another great game from the iconic Witcher series."
Hopefully whenever it releases, Proton will run it nicely on Linux desktop and Steam Deck. Although, perhaps by the time it's out we might have a Steam Deck 2 as no doubt it is quite a long time away from release.
Quoting: CorbenOh... now I have good reason to NOT finish my playthrough of The Witcher: Director's Cut, hihi.
Haha, I've been meaning to start it since I got my SD in March. I guess I can postpone it even further now. ;-)
CD Project Red are becoming increasingly insecure, aiming for a quick buck without a lot of effort.
Great game, but it had it's issues of the time.
A remake of a great game in a new engine? We've seen that working before.
And UE5 with the live parallel editing seems to become more and more popular. And I understamd why from a designer perspective.
Linux ports don't usually turn our well on UE though. Sceptical, but DXVK got it working properly in the past.
Quoting: ShmerlInteresting, though I'd say the first game is good and doesn't need a remake, but if they want to make one - why not.
And since it's Unreal Engine 5 they can as well make a native Linux version. What happened to such idea?
The controls of the first game were horrible, I dare to say at least 60% of the people who bought it back then stopped very soon because of the controls, lag, sluggish fighting etc etc. So in that respect I welcome a remake, but they can leave the story etc as it was, there was nothing wrong with that.
Last edited by Shmerl on 27 October 2022 at 3:13 am UTC
On the other hand, I have no doubts that the controls in the remake will be similar to those in the modern Witcher games. After all, the first Witcher was a 100% PC RPG, and now they have to think about the console market too.
Personally, if they respect the story and the characters, it could be a great remake.
And it's definitely a safe bet for CD Projekt RED,
If it is just halk hogans texture pack plus some raytracing i'll be disappointed
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