More than 7 years since the original game released, The Witcher 3 is receiving a Next-Gen Update for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC on December 14, bringing overhauled graphics, a new questline and enhanced gameplay options to the revered title. The best part is, it’s completely free for anyone who previously owned the game! Here are the biggest changes that you’ll find in The Witcher 3 Next-Gen Update.
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro
00:45 – -Overall Graphics Improvements-
01:35 – Console Graphics Features
02:42 – PC Graphics Features
03:08 – Photo Mode
03:18 – -Gameplay Additions-
03:36 – Sign Quickcasting
04:11 – Close-Up Camera Modes
04:28 – Dynamic Minimap and Objective Displays
04:43 – Map Filters
05:02 – DualSense PS5 Integration
05:25 – Netflix Series Outfits and References
05:48 – Cross-Save, Cross-Progression and Cloud Saves
06:00 – Subtitle Scaling
06:10 – Cutscene Pausing
More than seven years since the original Game released The Witcher 3 is receiving A Next Gen update for PS5 Xbox series s And PC on December 14 bringing Overhauled Graphics a new quest line and Enhanced gameplay options to the revered Title the best part is it's completely Free for anyone who previously owned the Game between city project red hosting a 30 minute update overview video and Games media having access to a preview Build of the game there's a ton of Information on what you can expect to Find in the latest update for IGN's 2015 Game of the Year here are the biggest Changes that you'll find in The Witcher 3 Next Gen update The first thing players are likely to Notice as they boot up the new update Are the upgraded visuals so let's go Over those changes first according to Cdpr the majority of art assets for the Game have been reworked which means Players can expect to find a higher Level of quality in nearly every asset In the game grass and foliage has been Improved environment detail and Complexity has been increased character And enemy models have been updated and There are enhanced textures being used Everywhere building for better Hardware Has also allowed the team to increase The game's streaming budget which Basically boils down to the game being
Able to load more high quality assets at Any given time cdpr gave the example of Being able to see smoke from a village From much further away or noticing more Enhanced geometric detail in City areas Like novograd if you are playing on PS5 Or Xbox series X you can expect to find New performance and quality modes the Quality mode on console is much closer To to the experience you could have on a PC's ultra settings targeting 4K and It's where you will find some of the Biggest next-gen features such as Raytraced Global illumination raytraced Ambient occlusion AMD FSR upscaling Dynamic resolution scaling and enhanced Screen space Reflections all aiming for 30 frames per second target the Performance mode foregoes most of these Advanced features for a higher frame Rate cap at 60 frames per second but you Will still be playing the game with Enhanced asset quality so the choice Will be up to you as to whether you Prefer playing with a smoother gameplay Experience or with all of the next gen Bells and whistles players on Xbox Series s have different options to Choose from between a 30 frames per Second mode and a 60 frames per second Mode we don't know many details yet About what will change between these two Modes to allow for the difference in Performance but Series S tends to offer
Lower resolutions and less features than Series X does in general which we expect To be the case here too Players on PC aren't being left out as They are gaining access to all of the Quality mode features we just mentioned As well as AMD FSR and Nvidia dlss Upscaling for their respective graphics Cards PC players also get access to a Suite of ultra plus settings that can Only be found on PC these settings Aren't a preset so much as they are a Group of settings that allow you to Tweak parameters such as crowd density Draw distance and foliage density To capture these new graphics in all of Their Glory the game now includes a Photo mode where you will be able to Change the time of day adjust camera Settings and more There are a number of bonus features That have been added to the game as Options for players to try out if you Want the classic Witcher 3 experience Then that is still available by default But it's worth checking the options menu To see if you might enjoy any of the new Settings The new signed quick casting mechanic Removes the need for the sign radial Menu of old usually to use a sign you Would bring up the radial menu which Would slow down time while you make your Choice before exiting the menu and using
The sign that you chose Now by holding a Button first your standard combat Actions are temporarily replaced with Side buttons allowing you to use any of The five signs seamlessly without going Into a menu this is similar to the quick Combat settings from Final Fantasy VII Remake where you can map quick actions To the face buttons and access them in Real time by holding down another button First There are new camera options to choose From in the menus that allow you to Bring the camera in much closer to Geralt for a more cinematic Over-the-shoulder feel you can Independently set the camera distance For when geralt is walking on a horse or In combat so you can find the balance For what works for you best You can now have the minimap and Objective description box fade in and Out from your heads-up display Dynamically to allow for a more Immersive exploration experience without Removing it from your toolkit entirely Just press the with your sense button to Bring them back if you want to look at Them again Speaking of exploration a new filter Mode has been added to the map screen Which allows you to filter out certain Icons like question marks and dock Locations this drastically reduces
Clutter on the screen and allows you to Treat the map more as a guide and less As a checklist of things to do which can Help to preserve a certain sense of Mystery Players on PS5 have the added bonus of Playing the game with new haptic Feedback and adaptive trigger Implementation of the Dual sense Controller you can find this most in Combat when you cast different signs as Each one rumbles and resonates Differently And you can also feel roach Galloping Through the haptic feedback as well come On Roach As was announced earlier this year the Next Gen update will include various References to the Netflix series of The Witcher you can find alternative outfits From the show for dandelion and the Entire nilfgaardian Army in the pause Menu and there is also a brand new Quest As part of this update that rewards Players with a set of armor from the Series too By signing into your Gog account on your Platforms of choice you will be able to Sync your save files across multiple Platforms allowing you to take your Saves with you wherever you are playing Thanks to Cloud saves you can now Increase the size of the subtitles Throughout the game including normal
Subtitles and PC chatter and dialogue Option font sizes you can find this in The display menu in the settings It may seem like a small thing but now You can pause the game during cutscenes In the original release this was Impossible and for a game as long as The Witcher 3 there was undoubtedly some Moment where players needed to pause the Game during a pivotal cutscene to go Answer the door or get your horse off at The roof of the house Are you going to use the new camera Modes or quick casting side mechanic or Do you prefer the traditional Witcher 3 Experience let us know in the comments For more on The Witcher 3's big update Check out our graphics comparison or our Video on the things that The Witcher 3 Doesn't tell you you can also find our Complete Witcher 3 guide as well as all Other things gaming on ign.com What's this PostScript I still have the Unicorn That's private Very private
