The story of Geralt of Rivia and Ciri wrapped up once and for all in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and CD Projekt Red has suggested multiple times that Geralt will not be appearing in any future games in the franchise. It has been confirmed, however, that CD Projekt Red will be developing new content in both The Witcher and the Cyberpunk franchise simultaneously as part of the “RED 2.0 Transformation Plan.”
This plan comes in the wake of the chaotic release of Cyberpunk 2077, and criticism of the crunch time involved in the game’s development. The possibility of a new game in The Witcher series will have many fans of the franchise excited. With CD Projekt Red undergoing some significant changes, here are just some of the reasons that the next Witcher game could work well as a multiplayer experience.
Following up The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt with another singleplayer RPG would be an extremely ambitious task, one which CD Projekt Red might be reluctant to pursue after the difficulties developing Cyberpunk 2077. The last game wrapped up multiple plotlines which had been left over since the novels, including killing major characters like Vesemir. While a singleplayer story focused around another Witcher is possible, Geralt of Rivia is also a very tough act to follow.
The Witcher series might be able to gain a successful second life as a multiplayer game. Multiplayer games often rely far less on story, with players creating their own experiences with one another instead of relying on fully-developed plotlines for their engagement with the world. Not only that, but the combat and monster-hunting aspects of The Witcher 3 were very well developed and could stand to work well in a multiplayer game.
A multiplayer Witcher game could see players as part of a school of witchers at some point before Geralt’s time. As in games like Monster Hunter: World, players could go on the hunt in groups, tracking down challenging foes as they explore parts of The Witcher‘s world which have yet to be depicted in the games.
A tight multiplayer experience could help get CD Projekt Red back on its feet. Perhaps it would help the studio avoid overextending itself by trying to following up The Witcher 3 with another epic, sprawling singleplayer experience.
There would be some Witcher 3 combat mechanics which would need edits for multiplayer. It’s often possible in The Witcher 3 to kite monsters on horseback and slowly wear down their health in a war of attrition rather than reacting quickly to attacks, for example. This isn’t a problem in a singleplayer game, but could negatively effect a multiplayer experience.
Similarly, the sword combat in The Witcher 3 is designed for fights with NPCs with a limited set of reactions and tactics, and would have to be adjusted for the far more dynamic PvP combat that a multiplayer game would allow, if the series goes down that route. If CD Projekt Red wanted to develop a more fleshed-out world, the world of The Witcher could even be expanded into an MMORPG.
The MMORPG market, however, could easily prove too risky to rely upon during the studio’s attempted transformation. As games like Star Wars: The Old Republic show, experienced RPG developers have sunk huge amounts of time and money into MMO projects in the past for disappointing returns.
Many fans will be curious to see how CD Projekt Red plans to handle The Witcher franchise going forward, especially after the disastrous press surrounding the release of Cyberpunk 2077. Whatever the studio chooses, it is undoubtedly at a turning point. Whether or not it will be able make the necessary changes to succeed in the new decade remains to be seen.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
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