The Witcher’s New Spinoff Game Is Very Different (And It Gives One Character a Chance to Shine)

Many The Witcher fans are eagerly awaiting more concrete news about the next main series installment. But while The Witcher 4 is still a ways off, fans do have something new to look forward to this year. CD Projekt Red has teamed up with Nerial and Devolver Digital to deliver a brand-new spin-off experience featuring iconic characters and lore from the beloved RPG series. Reigns: The Witcher is an entirely different way to engage with Geralt and company, but will still offer plenty to delight fans of the series.

Reigns is a popular medieval choose-your-own-adventure game where you swipe your way through important decisions. And now, the series is getting a brand-new The Witcher-themed installment that centers on none other than Dandelion the Bard himself. Rest assured, Geralt is still plenty present, but players are tasked with helping Dandelion weave compelling (and often oddly specific) tales about The Witcher and his adventures. I had the opportunity to check out an early version of Reigns: The Witcher to get a sense of what this new game has to offer. Though it’s nothing like what I expected, this new take on The Witcher is surprisingly engaging and deceptively challenging.

Reigns: The Witcher Puts Dandelion the Bard in Charge 

Developer Nerial is no stranger to putting a fandom-inspired twist on its beloved Reigns formula. Back in 2018, they gave George R.R. Martin fans Reigns: Game of Thrones. But this new The Witcher twist puts a refreshing spin on the formula, making it something unique for Witcher fans and Reigns players alike. Rather than swiping cards left and right to vie for the throne, players are instead working as Dandelion the Bard. His goal? To craft compelling tales of the Witcher’s deeds in order to become the most famous bard ever known.

After a quick introduction that sets the stage (literally), you really dig into the gameplay loop. Each “run” begins with a selection of cards that inform the type of tale Dandelion wants to tell. The cards provide a basis for which decisions will satisfy the crowd that Dandelion is entertaining that night. But they aren’t your only guiding light, as you also need to balance the tale to avoid an untimely death or retirement for Geralt. And that isn’t easy, as the number of unique death scenarios I unlocked for The Witcher during my playtime can attest.

For those familiar with swinging a sword and slaying monsters, this is quite a different way to engage with the lore of The Witcher. Each decision presents you with just two simple options, which will guide what happens next. Familiar characters and lore make themselves known as you do, and there’s even a bit of card-based combat involved. But by and large, Reigns: The Witcher is engaging because your quick decision-making often has unexpected and entertaining consequences. It’s all ultimately Dandelion making up tales, but it’s fun to imagine Geralt getting himself into the scenarios that you dream up as the lively bard.

Deceptively Simple Mechanics Give Way to Surprisingly In-Depth Strategy in Reigns: The Witcher 

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At first glance, Reigns: The Witcher can seem almost too simple. It’s a pared-back game well suited to mobile, though I was playing a Steam build of the game on PC. The gameplay itself is mostly swiping left or right on various decisions, making it almost more of a visual novel than anything else. However, beneath that simple exterior lies a surprising amount of depth and strategy.

As you play your way through Reigns: The Witcher, you’ll unlock new cards and new gameplay scenarios. Each card introduces new decisions with new consequences, often leading to new characters from The Witcher world and new, surprising ends for Geralt. Though most “runs” follow the same basic formula, you will occasionally run across new scenarios that mix up gameplay, such as special performances that require Dandelion to use his skills to weave a tale for a specific, demanding audience.

To truly keep Geralt alive long enough to tell a tale that will please the crowd, you’ve got to juggle quite a few different moving parts. There’s telling the right kind of story as decided by your chosen cards, but also balancing the opinions of Humans, Non-Humans, Sorcerers, and your call to hunt monsters. And this is no easy feat, as these interests sometimes come in direct conflict with each other. It’s hard to keep everyone happy if a specific card demands that you Feed the Monsters or always agree with humans, for instance.

At the end of each tale (when The Witcher either dies or, sometimes, retires from the Witcher life), your final score is tallied up. Things like how long you stayed alive and how well you adhered to the 3 cards defining your tale will determine how well Dandelion’s performance is received. As he levels up, his renown grows, and he will also dream up even more wild scenarios to spin tales about Geralt for the next night. In this way, the game’s straightforward formula avoids being too repetitive by introducing new elements to alter the course of events. Even so, between unlocking new cards, I did find that things could start to feel a bit like Groundhog Day.

In all, Reigns: The Witcher is certainly quite different from the action-adventure vibes that traditional Witcher games offer. It’s a scaled-back, narrative-driven game with simple animations and gameplay. Even if it’s quite a departure for the franchise, it’s a fun, different way for fans to engage with The Witcher while also enjoying the surprisingly addictive, swipe-based gameplay of Reigns.

Reigns: The Witcher will release on February 25th for PC and mobile platforms. You can find more details at the official game website.