Anyone hoping for a quick reunion of Geralt’s journey in Modern Family will have to continue to be patient. Work on a full-scale remake of the first The Witcher is on hold for now, as developer and publisher CD Projekt Red has officially confirmed. The reason why the project was discontinued was that it was closely integrated with the technology of “The Witcher 4”. Fool’s Theory, the externally commissioned development studio, must wait until development of the next major series spin-off is sufficiently advanced. Only once the newly created asset, tool, and engine foundation based on Unreal Engine 5 is complete can the remaster take full advantage of these technologies.
The decision follows a clear strategic logic from those in charge. Since The Witcher 4 and the remake of the first game are both based on Unreal Engine 5 and use CD Projekt Red’s customization tools, the foundation of this next major part should serve as a direct blueprint for the new version. In order not to waste resources or develop outdated systems in parallel, the Fool Theory team is waiting for the technical progress of The Witcher 4.
At the same time, the employees of the cooperative studio are definitely not idle. The team is currently working hard to complete Song of the Past, the main story expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which is scheduled to be released in 2027.
For players, this reliance represents a significant shift in expectations. Since CD Projekt Red is only considering a 2028 release date for The Witcher 4, it’s actually unlikely that a new version of the first part will appear before the end of the decade. However, the Polish company stresses that it wants to use this time to transform what was originally a rather tubular game from 2007 into a modern, mature open-world RPG that meets the quality standards of its current major projects.
Despite the hiatus in direct development, CD Projekt is optimistic about the Hexer series’ near-term prospects. With The Witcher 3 Remastered set to launch on September 29, 2026, and the aforementioned Song of the Past content expansion, ample supply will significantly shorten the wait before the next big saga begins.
