A Decade of Monster Slaying: The Witcher 3 Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Nostalgia and New Adventures
Ten years ago, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt burst onto the gaming scene, forever changing the landscape of open-world RPGs. Now, CD PROJEKT RED is celebrating a decade of monster slaying with a wave of announcements, retrospectives, and treats for fans. But beyond the festivities, the story of *The Witcher 3*'s journey from a struggling studio's ambitious project to a global phenomenon is a tale worth telling.
The anniversary celebrations kicked off with a nostalgic trailer, taking players on a memory-laden journey through the game's rich story and thanking the dedicated community that has grown around it. This trailer isn’t just a look back; it's a testament to the enduring impact of the game.
As part of the celebration, Doug Cockle, the iconic voice of Geralt, joined a special anniversary episode of REDstreams. Cockle reminisced about his time as the White Wolf, reflecting on the role's impact on his career and the enduring appeal of Geralt as a character.
The Witcher in Concert tour is also joining the party, preparing for anniversary performances in Boston and Poznań before the official tour launch at gamescom in August. These concerts combine gameplay with visual and musical elements designed to immerse fans in the world of the game. Fans eager to attend can purchase tickets on the official Witcher in Concert website.
To honor the game’s artistic legacy, CD PROJEKT RED commissioned a series of 10 artworks from artists who have previously contributed to the series, even those who designed Geralt’s first appearance in the first game. These artworks will be available on Displate's metal canvas and other merchandise.
Embody has launched the Immerse Gamepack for *The Witcher 3*, which delivers unique spatial audio that enriches immersion. Those who already own the Cyberpunk 2077 Gamepack from Embody will automatically receive a free unlock.
But the celebrations aren't only about looking back. Josh Broadwell from PC Gamer suggests to dive into Andrzej Sapkowski’s books, which provide an even deeper layer of context and backstory with The Witcher 4 still years away. Experiencing the books reveals more of the connection between Geralt and Yennefer, and introduces characters like Cahir and Milva. These books help the emotional effect to resonate more effectively.
It’s easy to see how the game reached its position. CDPR Co-CEO, Michał Nowakowski said that at the start of development, before The Witcher 2 had even been released, “The early days were quite—for me, personally—focused on 'How do we escape annihilation?’”
The development team remembered a bunch of challenges along the way. Kajetan Kapuscinski, a cinematic artist, says, “Maybe this lack of knowledge was kind of a blessing at this point, because the scale of the game, trying to make an open world game, created new challenges that we couldn't have imagined beforehand.” He later mentioned, when constructing a cinematic scene, “I was asking, 'Okay, could I make Geralt, you know, move two steps to the right?' He was like, 'No, it's not possible.' That's where we started.”
Adam Badowski got in on the fun when he pointed out that, since the game had all sorts of bodies of water in it, they were gonna have to put swimming in so Geralt could dive. Badowski says, "I asked a very difficult question, ‘there's water, where's swimming?’ The whole room was quiet. If there's water, there's swimming, if there's swimming, there's diving, if there's diving, you have to build completely new locations."
The game came out and, as you're aware, proceeded to become one of the biggest games of all time. Nowakowski mentions, “It opened the door to conversations with everybody… Mark Cerny comes down to Warsaw to talk to our engineering team and saying he's very impressed with what we did, and he couldn't believe we managed to cram that game in the PS4.”
Ten years on, *The Witcher 3* continues to captivate gamers and inspire new adventures. Whether you're revisiting the Northern Kingdoms or delving into the books for the first time, the world of Geralt of Rivia promises an experience unlike any other.
What are your favorite memories from playing *The Witcher 3*? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
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