The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was voted the greatest game of 2015 by hundreds of gaming media outlets across the globe, including the Editors of NoobFeed, and was the recipient of the Game of the Year 2015 award at The Game Awards, along with the Golden Joystick Awards, the DICE Awards, and the Game Developers Choice Awards. In 2022, after all these years, there is still enough to celebrate in The Witcher 3. CD Projekt RED's Next-Gen Version was to be anticipated and appreciated, given that The Witcher III: Wild Hunt Complete Edition that includes the two DLCs Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine is merely a milestone title for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and PC, and this update is completely free.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's beauty lies in its open world and its abundance of optional quests, which always managed to fit in with the main storyline and appease whichever peasant or nobleman seemed to require pleasing. The expansive maps and gloomy mood combined to create a dark but ultimately satisfying adventure. There was nothing that could be improved upon at the time, with critics hailing the adventures of the White Wolf as a smashing success. It was never the fighting in the game that made it famous, but rather the exceptional quality and depth of its missions, which are still as stunning now as they were when the game was first released. CD Projekt RED's effort on the game's graphics is the most noticeable improvement. The loading times and graphics have been substantially better, but what else has changed that would make you want to play again?

If you recall The Witcher 3 from its first release when it was one of the finest games ever developed, you could be fooled into thinking that the improved visuals in the updated version aren't all that noticeable. However, when compared head-on with the same game with last-gen, the contrasts seem glaringly obvious. There have been significant enhancements to the game's visual quality, including the degree of detail in the landscapes, the amazing weather, and the richness of all the available characters and objects. The visual changes are the most noticeable part of the upgrade. Players on consoles may choose between a raytracing mode that runs at 30 frames per second and a performance mode that runs at 60 frames per second. While the visual overhaul has led to some breathtaking new landscapes and lighting, it has done nothing to improve the cutscenes.

There are two visual styles available in the Next-Gen Update for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Quality Mode strives for maximum visual quality with ray tracing features, while Performance Mode prioritizes fluid at 60 FPS. Many of the expected enhancements are included in the update, however, a few are missing on the console. While ray-traced atmospheric shadowing does a fantastic job of rendering lighting seem more realistic, the impact is rather muted without it. It's to be anticipated that you can't have the best of both worlds by picking both, so your decision will come down to how much weight you give to graphics and how you want to play.

The Performance Mode is better at showcasing the capabilities of current-gen consoles, particularly in terms of capturing their accomplishments with just little reductions in frame rate due to ray tracing. While the ray tracing effects in Quality Mode are a wonderful touch, the frequent pop-ins and frame rate difficulties made even the most intense battle scenes and rapid horseback riding somewhat frustrating. However, both modes are upgrades from the original, so it's best to experiment with both before settling on a strategy.

The addition of "ray tracing" technology, the most prototypical of the next generation, made the fading sun cast a golden light over the land and gave the surface of the lake a glistening sheen at night. CD Projekt RED not only used these advanced technologies to produce newish works, but they also improved a wide variety of in-game assets. The protagonist Geralt's armor and his trademark white hair are very fine and realistic looking. A lot of work has gone into making the scene's plant materials seem more authentic, lifelike, and rich in complexity too.

Nonetheless, the visual improvements are just part of this upgrade. It's a real delight to have fresh content for The Witcher 3 so long after its first release. Even if you haven't played the previous installments and haven't imported your save data, the next-gen version is simple to use. In Blood and Wine, when you start a new game, your character will already be rather high in level, and you'll have finished the main mission. After that, all that has to be done is a quick trip to Mulbrydale, Velen, where you will find the cleric waiting outside of the Devil's Pit.

Again, this is a free update for existing owners, so now is a great opportunity to reinstall the game and enjoy a lucid, hour-long slice of Witcher action. DLC for The Witcher 3 based on the Netflix series is part of this latest release. It can be completed in under an hour, but it's still up to the same high quality as the main game. It can be accessed early on and provides Geralt and other characters with access to additional clothing options or the means to create those options. Characters from the world may even don armor from the Netflix show if the player so chooses.

Another one of this version's new features is the Photo Mode. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt now has a free camera that allows you to capture photos with halted movement. The update that is most immediately noticeable is the new default option associated with the camera. This new setting positions the camera such that it is significantly closer to Geralt's shoulder, totally doing away with the zoom-out effect that was characteristic of the battles. Photo Mode enables you to make adjustments such as the field of view and provides a standalone camera. However, you won't be able to pick alternative stances for Geralt, nor will you be able to adjust his expression. The available possibilities are somewhat restricted.

Bug fixes and other enhancements of all types have been sent out to all editions. Numerous bugs have been addressed, such as missions that were previously locked but can now be completed, or improvements to the map's accuracy made possible by one of the game's in-built modifications. In our opinion, the greatest ways to implement alterations use the camera and the controller. The new closer camera does its job well, and we found it to be significantly more engaging, especially because it can be adjusted to modify constantly depending on the circumstances.

Different running methods, walking speeds that vary with how hard you press the stick, and a radial menu to swap out gear are among the examples. However, the most helpful feature is the redesigned menus, which make switching magical signs and activating them during battle a breeze. It's effective, letting the story progress more naturally and reducing the amount of time spent navigating menus. The UI is great overall and a noticeable step up from the previous iteration, particularly the new map view which is less cluttered with icons by default.

Besides those major changes, the update also includes several minor tweaks and enhancements to the gameplay. Rather than constantly entering the radial menu, the game now allows you to cast signs with a single button press. Originally, switching signs required players to go deep into the casting wheel, which took them out of the action and made fighting less intense. There is no longer any need to remember which signs are associated with which buttons; instead, you may simply designate each casting spell to a button and then use that button to cast the magic while you're in combat. In a nutshell, yes. Overall, this makes fighting seem more fluid, giving Geralt a sense of increased speed and power.

In addition, the game's new default camera angle; is an over-the-shoulder viewpoint gives it a more theatrical feel. Even though this is a significant improvement and a great way to admire the intricate detailing on Geralt's armor, it also makes battle seem very off-balance and takes away a lot of your sense of direction. Not to mention that the loading times, which were a major annoyance on previous consoles, have been much reduced. A lot of tiny but welcomed features have been made, such as the ability to tame Roach and a few new quick travel markers dotted across the area to make traveling about even easier. The HUD is now more customizable, so you can remove all the distractions from the quests if you want explorations to be more entertaining.

The Witcher 3 is still The Witcher 3 in the end. After a lengthy break, I forgot what makes this game so great; nevertheless, returning to it has reminded me that its storytelling is unparalleled to anything else in the genre. Although the story as a whole isn't something particularly memorable, the presentation of it is excellent, and the two DLC packs' narratives are far superior to what was already there in the base game. The game doesn't shy away from giving its characters surprising layers of complexity, resulting in likable and interesting personalities. You can generally find some reason to have compassion for even the worst of individuals.

I'm not asking whether you'll play, but rather how. This update has the potential to turn a person who has never enjoyed their time with Witcher 3 into a fan. Some of the controls have also been rethought to complement the new look. Quick casting is a fantastic replacement for the old method. However, despite these caveats, it is still The Witcher 3 at heart. The same characters, the same towns, and the same missions. Not everyone who wasn't interested in the game before the upgrade will be interested after. A content injection like this is not easily patched in like a new version of the game. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is unquestionably improved by the aforementioned free update. It's prettier, easier to play, and more enjoyable overall thanks to a wealth of tweaks big and little, and no RPG fan should miss playing it.
 

Azfar Rayan (@AzfarRayan)
Editor, NoobFeed