CD Projekt Red’s next installment in The Witcher series, codenamed Project Polaris, has entered full-scale production. The move marks a crucial phase in the development of what many label as The Witcher 4, though the studio hasn’t officially used this title.
The studio’s shift to Unreal Engine 5 from its proprietary REDengine comes with specific technical goals. Charles Tremblay, VP of Technology at CD Projekt Red, explains: “The way we built stuff in the past was very one-sided, like one project at the time. We pushed the limit – but also we saw that if we wanted to have a multi-project at the same time, building in parallel, sharing technology together, it is not easy.”
This change allows CDPR to:
- Manage multiple projects simultaneously
- Share expertise across development teams
- Focus more resources on game development rather than engine maintenance
- Ensure consistent performance across all platforms from early development stages
CDPR has implemented stricter technical requirements for development progression. “Having the console working super late, it’s unacceptable anymore, and it’s part of our process,” Tremblay states. The studio now conducts regular platform reviews to maintain consistent quality across all versions.
Regarding platform strategy, Tremblay indicates: “Most likely, we will not have a PC-only launch.” This approach differs from recent industry trends, such as Larian Studios’ strategy with Baldur’s Gate 3.
According to Paweł Sasko, speaking in March 2024, The Witcher team consists of “a couple hundred” developers and includes developers who previously worked on The Witcher and Cyberpunk projects. This differs from The Witcher 3’s 300-person development team and Phantom Liberty’s 350 developers. The studio employs approximately 1,400 people worldwide across different locations, including Warsaw focusing on art and Vancouver focusing on engineering.
Joint CEO Michał Nowakowski outlines a revised marketing strategy: “The marketing campaign, slightly earlier before the launch of the game, that’s different than the actual ‘mass attack’.” The studio plans a marketing campaign lasting between one and two years, with early “crumbs” of information released to maintain interest.
More Stories
Nowakowski adds: “If I ask you, what do you know about The Witcher 4? The answer is not much, probably – yes, there’s theories and so on. But there’s nothing really specific. So we want to drop the crumbs here and there so that people – and the media as well – can pick up on it.”
The studio maintains its technical ambitions while implementing new quality assurance measures. As Tremblay states: “The next game we do will not be smaller, and it will not be worse. So it will be better, bigger, greater than The Witcher 3, it will be better than Cyberpunk – because for us, it’s unacceptable [to launch that way].”
The source confirms these quality assurance elements:
- Regular technical reviews during pre-production
- Consistent platform performance monitoring
- Early console version development and testing
- Structured development phase approvals by the board
Industry analysts suggest The Witcher 4’s release could be around 2028, potentially aligning with next-generation console launches. However, CD Projekt Red has not confirmed any official release timeframe.