CD Projekt confirms next-gen The Witcher 3 is being developed externally

The Witcher 3’s PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X port will be developed externally by Saber Interactive, CD Projekt has confirmed.

Saber is the developer of The Witcher 3’s Nintendo Switch port and the company that was acquired by THQ Nordic parent Embracer earlier this year.

Commenting on the next-gen version of The Witcher 3 in an investor call on Thursday, CD Projekt president Adam Kiciński said: “This project is developed outside, with our proven partner who had delivered the 4K version of The Witcher 3 and The Witcher 3 for Switch, so they already know our technology very well”.

He added: “We asked them to prepare the next-gen port, and as I said during my presentation, we expect a full next-gen experience, with great next-gen features, but it doesn’t interfere with next-gen development of Cyberpunk 2077 – this will be done internally by the CD Projekt team”.

On Friday CD Projekt officially announced that the next-gen edition of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will release in 2021 as a standalone purchase for PC, Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5, and as a free update for players who already own the game on PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

Elaborating on the “next-gen” PC version, CDP’s VP of business development Michał Nowakowski told investors it would include improved visual quality and additional features.

“There will be a patch adding visual quality and a few extra features and of course we’re not going to charge people for a patch – it’s something they’re going to download and it will upgrade their game; upgrade their experience – but we’re not going to ask them for extra money,” he said.

“If you have your game on PC, you’ll just download an update – and the game will continue to cost what it currently does on the PC market. We consider it an upgrade of the currently existing game.”

CD Projekt president Kiciński told investors that the reason for the next-gen version of Wild Hunt was to attempt to extend the lifecycle of the game. The acclaimed RPG celebrated its fifth birthday in May and has sold some 30 million copies.

“The key thing behind this decision is to extend the lifecycle of the game,” he said. “The Witcher 3 is still selling great and we believe that having it updated on par with the most recent games – or the games that will be released – is a great advantage in terms of sales over the next – who knows how many years? 5? 4? So, in the long term it will be a meaningful addition to our back catalogue.”