Highly anticipated: You might have spent over 100 hours completing the Witcher 3 and its expansions a few years ago, but the upcoming next-gen update could tempt former players to return to the fantasy world, especially as the PC version comes with an exclusive Ultra+ graphics setting.
More than two years since CD Projekt Red announced a next-gen version of the Witcher 3 was in the works, the highly-anticipated update arrives tomorrow (December 14) at 1 AM CET for PC & Xbox Series X/S and midnight local time for PlayStation 5.
The Witcher 3 is still a gorgeous-looking game despite being released in 2015, and the new update adds a slew of graphical improvements, including ray-traced global illumination, reflections, and shadows, as well as ambient occlusion. It also includes a number of community mods and mod-inspired content to improve the visuals and game quality.
The PC version of the update gets an exclusive Ultra+ graphics setting. It affects several elements, including the number of background characters, foliage visibility range, and detail levels. It also improves the quality of shadow, grass, terrain, water, and texture.
Our Release Night Stream of #TheWitcher3NextGen starts in just 24 hours!
--- The Witcher (@witchergame) December 12, 2022
Get ready for an event full of music and emotions! Tomorrow, December 13th, at 9:30 CET on https://t.co/IpFERTnJsB - directed by Dandelion himself 🎶 pic.twitter.com/48nzbPqr8v
Those with an RTX 4090 or RTX 4080 will be able to enable DLSS 3.0 in the game, which will help push those 4K framerates even higher. AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) 2.1 is another new addition, as is photo mode.
The update also brings numerous quality-of-life improvements, such as a Quick Sign Casting option that allows signs to be switched without opening the radial menu, a new map filter for hiding specific icons, instantly lootable herbs, and an improved radial menu so bombs, bolts, and pocket items can be switched dynamically without opening the inventory.
Gameplay changes include combat rebalancing and fixes, and there's additional content inspired by the Netflix series, including an all-new side quest in Velen called In The Eternal Fire's Shadow.
The complete list of patch notes is extensive. You can read all the changes and updates here, though CD Projekt Red says they are just the highlights.