According to IGN, CD Projekt’s joint CEO Michał Nowakowski has reaffirmed the company’s incredibly ambitious plan to release all three games in the new Ciri-fronted Witcher trilogy within a six-year period. This plan hinges on using Unreal Engine 5 for the full production of The Witcher 4, 5, and 6, which the studio believes will streamline development. With 447 developers currently working on it, The Witcher 4 is the clear focus, but it won’t be released in 2026, pointing to a 2027 launch at the earliest. If the six-year timeline holds, that would mean The Witcher 5 in 2030 and The Witcher 6 in 2033. This announcement comes amidst other major projects, including Cyberpunk 2 and a Witcher 1 remake, all while the industry faces significant disruption.
The plan sounds great on paper
Look, I get the logic. They’ve spent four years getting cozy with Unreal Engine 5. The idea is that once you’ve built all your core tech, tools, and assets for one massive open-world game in that engine, the next ones should be faster. You’re not starting from scratch each time. Basically, it’s the “build the foundation once, then construct the houses” approach. And if anyone could use a win for predictable scheduling, it’s CD Projekt after the Cyberpunk 2077 launch. So yeah, in a perfect world, a new Witcher game every three years sounds like a dream for fans.
But history says otherwise
Here’s the thing: video game development, especially at this scale, is a monster that eats plans for breakfast. The CEO himself said they’re still “learning how to make it work within a huge open-world game.” That’s a huge red flag for a timeline this tight. We’re talking about a studio whose last mainline Witcher game, The Witcher 3, came out nine years ago. They’ve shipped one major title since then. Now they’re promising three in six years? And that’s not even counting the console transition that’ll almost certainly happen in this window, or the fact that they have Cyberpunk 2 in the pipeline. It’s a logistical puzzle that makes my head hurt.
The industry context is brutal
Let’s just look around. Bethesda announced The Elder Scrolls VI in 2018, and we’ll be lucky to see it before 2030. Games are taking longer and costing more than ever. The idea that CD Projekt can sidestep this entire industry trend feels… optimistic. And that’s before we consider the human cost. “Shorter development time” often translates to brutal crunch, something CD Projekt has publicly vowed to move away from. Can they hit these dates without burning out their talented teams? I’m deeply skeptical. It seems like they’re trying to project confidence to investors, but the gap between a financial call soundbite and a polished game on a shelf is enormous.
So what’s realistic?
If I had to bet, I’d say the six-year plan is a best-case scenario that will slip. The Witcher 4 in late 2027 or even 2028? Maybe. But expecting a sequel of similar scope just three years later feels like a stretch. One major storyline twist, one ambitious new game system that needs extra polish, and the whole schedule tumbles like dominoes. They might hit the first sequel close to target, but The Witcher 6 by 2033? I wouldn’t count on it. The real takeaway is that CD Projekt is all-in on The Witcher as its flagship franchise for the next decade. They’re building an empire. But empires aren’t built on six-year schedules. They’re built iteration by iteration, with each game taking the time it needs to be great. I hope they remember that.
