The Witcher 4 Hinted at by CD Projekt Red

The next Witcher game, tentatively dubbed The Witcher 4, has been subtly teased by CD Projekt Red, but, unfortunately, the tease isn't all that exciting for fans looking forward to the return of the series following 2015's The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. According to CD Projekt Red, the Polish studio is currently focusing on its two franchises, which is to say, Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher. Speaking about the two franchises, CD Projekt Red president Adam Kicinski noted that the current aim is to begin work on the next AAA projects for both IP next year. When exactly next year, Kicinski doesn't say. 

Unfortunately, this is all the CD Projekt Red president had to say while speaking to Polish outlet Rzeczpospolita. That said, while the boss of the Polish company didn't have much to say, a lot can be inferred here. For one, if The Witcher 4 -- or whatever the next installment in the series ends up being called -- is starting development in 2022, it's pretty easy to narrow down a release window. The Witcher 3 took CD Projekt Red three-and-a-half years to make on a budget of $81 million, which is a very humble budget for a game of its ambition and quality. 

The Witcher 4 is going to have at least a budget equal to this, if not more. So, even if it's more ambitious than its predecessor, this shouldn't mean it will take longer, and that's again assuming it's more ambitious in the first place. 

If our math checks out, the game should be out sometime in 2025 or 2026, as long as it's the primary focus. The assumption is it will be released before another Cyberpunk 2077 game, however, for now, this is just an assumption. 

For now, all we can do is speculate, but we wouldn't be surprised if The Witcher 4 is revealed as early as next year or in 2023 at the latest.  In the meantime, and as always, feel free to leave a comment or two letting us know what you think or, alternatively, hit me up on Twitter @Tyler_Fischer_ to talk all things gaming.