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Epic Games and CD Projekt Red have unveiled an impressive technical demonstration showcasing The Witcher 4 running on Unreal Engine 5. Revealed during Epic's State of Unreal 2025 presentation, this preview highlights some of the revolutionary technologies powering the next Witcher installment. The developers clarified this represents engine capabilities rather than actual gameplay footage.
Next-Generation Witcher Experience
"When we first launched Unreal Engine 5 three years ago, CD Projekt Red announced their collaboration to bring large-scale open-world capabilities to the engine," explained Epic representatives. "Today's presentation demonstrates our joint progress."
The tech demo follows protagonist Ciri exploring the newly introduced region of Kovir while undertaking a monster contract. This showcases several UE5.6 innovations running natively on PlayStation 5 hardware at 60 FPS with ray tracing enabled, including the Fast Geometry Streaming Plugin for seamless open-world loading. One particularly demanding scene features a marketplace crowded with 300 individually animated NPCs.
Epic highlighted several pioneering technologies in their official description:
As Ciri navigates Valdrest's vibrant marketplace, UE5.6 demonstrates its capacity for rendering dense crowds of high-detail characters alongside advanced effects like ML Deformer. The demonstration also introduces Nanite Foliage technology, enabling realistic vegetation density with optimized performance - a feature scheduled for UE5.7.
CD Projekt Red added context about the demo's setting:
This technical preview introduces Kovir, a region making its series debut in The Witcher 4. Players follow Ciri and her steed Kelpie through Kovir's dramatic mountainous terrain and dense woodlands to the thriving port settlement of Valdrest.
Development Timeline and Platform Strategy
While this demonstration offers exciting glimpses into The Witcher 4's visual direction, CD Projekt Red confirms the full game won't launch until 2027 at the earliest. This timeline excludes possibilities for 2025 or 2026 releases that some fans had speculated about.
The technical demo's performance on current-generation PlayStation 5 hardware suggests The Witcher 4 will likely follow Cyberpunk 2077's cross-generational release approach rather than being exclusively developed for next-gen consoles.
New Protagonist and Narrative Direction
The Witcher 4 initiates a fresh trilogy occurring after The Witcher 3's events, with Ciri assuming the lead role instead of series veteran Geralt. Executive producer Małgorzata Mitręga explained this creative decision:
"Ciri represented the natural progression for our narrative. Her complex character arc in the original book series makes her the ideal protagonist as we transition beyond Geralt's story. This evolution feels organic to all of us."
Geralt's original voice actor Doug Cockle expressed enthusiastic support for this directional shift during a January interview:
"Transitioning the focus to Ciri creates fascinating storytelling opportunities. I'm incredibly excited to see how CD Projekt Red expands her narrative potential while respecting the established lore."
