The Witcher 4 Development Focused on Console-First Strategy; CDPR States Achieving 60 FPS on Xbox Series S Will Be ‘Highly Challenging’

The Witcher 4 Development Insights: A Console-First Vision

In the wake of the impressive demo for The Witcher 4 unveiled during the recent State of Unreal presentation, Digital Foundry’s Alex Battaglia had the privilege of traveling to Poland. There, he engaged with CD Projekt RED (CDPR) and Epic Games to delve into the details surrounding the demo and the studio’s future ambitions for the game.

Transformation to Console-First Development

During a comprehensive interview, Charles Tremblay, the Vice President of Technology at CD Projekt RED, indicated a strategic pivot towards a console-first development approach. This shift aims to meet the ambitious goal of creating an expansive open-world experience featuring hardware ray tracing while maintaining a smooth 60 frames per second (FPS) on the PlayStation 5. Tremblay emphasized that this methodology simplifies the overall development process compared to their previous practices, which often required scaling down from PC-centric designs.

“When we started the collaboration, we had super high ambitions for this project. We always do PC and we push and then we try to scale down, but then we had so many problems in the past that we tried to see, okay, this time around we really want to be more of a console first development.[…] It’s too early to say if we manage to nail it, but we’ll work as hard as we can to make it for sure.”

Current Progress and Challenges Ahead

At this juncture, Tremblay acknowledges that the team has significant work ahead. The existing demo represents only a fraction of the complete gameplay experience, lacking vital elements such as combat mechanics. The ambition for The Witcher 4 remains steadfast, with the team striving to achieve their 60 FPS target without regressing to lower frame rates.

Optimizing for the Xbox Series S

Interestingly, while the PlayStation 5 stands as a high-performing console, the Xbox Series S presents additional challenges. Tremblay noted that optimization efforts for this platform have yet to begin, highlighting that achieving 60 FPS will be “extremely challenging.” He identified this task as a priority moving forward.

“I wish we did a lot of work already on that, but we did not, so this is something that is next on our radar for sure. I will say that 60 FPS will definitely be extremely challenging on Xbox Series S. Let’s just say that this is something that we need to figure out.”

Future of Ray Tracing in The Witcher 4

Moreover, the demo showcases a significant technological leap, as Epic has moved away from software-based Lumen ray tracing due to inherent limitations. Instead, the demo employs hardware RT Lumen technology. CD Projekt RED also indicated plans to scale up for high-end PCs, although the specifics of this scaling remain under consideration.

Anticipating the Release

Looking ahead, The Witcher 4 is tentatively scheduled for release in 2027, simultaneously for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X. As the development progresses, the gaming community eagerly awaits further updates on this highly anticipated installment.

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