There's definitely plenty going on at CD Projekt RED right now. While the studio is currently preparing to launch Cyberpunk 2077's 2.3 update, which will follow the game's arrival on Nintendo Switch 2, it's also not missing an opportunity to highlight its next title in development: The Witcher 4. A title that, since its big announcement at The Game Awards 2024, has generated a lot of reaction from players due to its change of protagonist. But one of the developers assures us that this choice was obvious, and everyone will understand it when the game is released.
CD Projekt returns to the change of heroes in The Witcher 4
Indeed, during an interview conducted by GamesRadar+, Jan Hermanowicz declared that "when the game is released, you will be able to see for yourselves and fully embrace [the character of Ciri], her story". Because yes, for those who missed the news, it is no longer Geralt but Ciri who will be the playable character in The Witcher 4. A change that is not to everyone's taste, but on which the head of engineering production for the recent technical demo invites us to take a step back.
"I think that's when we'll have to form an opinion and make decisions," Hermanowicz naturally adds. "We've shown her in different situations, in two very distinct emotional states. And there are many, many other parts of her that we'll show in the future." In other words: don't bet your ass before you've killed it, because The Witcher 4 is still very far from having revealed all its secrets. For players, the adventure has only just begun.
A logical evolution
Besides the ridiculous controversies related to her appearance and/or her legitimacy to occupy the main role as a woman, which we will not return to, the choice of Ciri for The Witcher 4 has notably caused debate among some fans for questions of lore. "Read the damn books" then replied Doug Cockle, who plays Geralt in The Witcher 3, on this subject, in order to make the most recalcitrant understand that it was in fact a logical evolution in the history of the franchise created by Andrzej Sapkowski.
These words are now endorsed by Hermanowicz, who adds: "For me, personally, reading the books, it's very clear that the story slowly shifts from Geralt's story to Ciri's story, sometimes told through Geralt's eyes." This is precisely why CD Projekt decided several years ago to follow the same pattern with The Witcher 4. "That's how it's going to happen. And you'll see in the game how it will happen.".
For that, however, we'll have to be patient, because The Witcher 4 isn't expected to be released until 2027 at the earliest. But as the Polish studio recently showed us, it intends to pull out all the stops to impress fans and win the hearts of new players along the way. We just hope that the lessons of Cyberpunk 2077 have been learned, and that it won't bite off more than it can chew again.
Source: GamesRadar+
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