'The Witcher 3' is getting a free next-gen upgrade

CD Projekt Red’s critically-acclaimed role-playing game The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will be getting a graphical enhancement for next-generation consoles.

The studio behind Cyberpunk 2077 recently announced that the next generation version of the game will feature a series of visual and technical improvements such as ray tracing and faster loading times “across the base game, both expansions, and all extra content.”

But that’s not the only good news.

Although the improved version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will be released as a standalone purchase for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and PC, the studio said that existing owners of the game on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC will get the next generation version as a free update.

A release date of the upcoming next-gen version has yet to be announced.

CD Projekt Red released The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt five years ago along with two expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine. The studio’s next project, Cyberpunk 2077, is slated to be released on November 19, 2020.

Apart from the next-gen upgrade, a number of projects featuring The Witcher universe is also in the works. Netflix previously announced that it is also working on an anime series based on the franchise titled The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf as well as a prequel series, Witcher: Blood Origin. Meanwhile, filming of the second season of the live-action series featuring Henry Cavill has resumed last month after it was suspended in the wake of the pandemic.