Following CD Projekt Red's first real reveal of The Witcher 4 with its cinematic trailer at The Game Awards 2024, questions surrounding Ciri's new role as protagonist as well as the canon ending of the studio's previous RPG arose.
The studio addresses these questions and more in a 12DOVE interview, but doesn't yet confirm which ending from The Witcher 3 is canon - despite fans speculating about it being the one that sees Ciri becoming a Witcher herself. Given how powerful the White Wolf's adopted daughter is by the end of the game regardless, CD Projekt Red is quick to assure us that she won't be overwhelmingly so in The Witcher 4. She's no Mary Sue.
"The gap between her being totally overpowered at the end of the previous game and now," reveals executive producer Małgorzata Mitręga, "with the skill set we showed off in the trailer… something totally happened in between." It wasn't easy to pinpoint what, however. "We had to delve deep to consider how we would address this - we have huge respect for the lore, for both the books and for what made it into our previous games."
Mitręga continues: "But this was one of the first questions we found the answer for, and it's how we were able to create this original story which starts with The Witcher 4." There are still so many unanswered questions left, though, at least for the community. CD Projekt Red doesn't openly discuss the specifics of Wild Hunt's canon finale, opting to instead insist that all 36 (yes, really) of The Witcher 3 endings "are important."
While CD Projekt Red also doesn't delve into how Ciri ended up a Witcher or whether Geralt, who will be in the new game, played a part in her transformation, the protagonist will come equipped with a slightly different skill set. "She's faster, more agile," admits Mitręga, "but you can still tell that she was raised by Geralt, right?" As a fan myself, I can't wait to see the older Ciri in action - and hopefully, there's not too long left until then.
Can't wait? Check out these other upcoming CD Projekt Red games to look forward to.
After revolutionizing the open-world RPG twice in 10 years, CDPR is dreaming even bigger with The Witcher 4: "We definitely want to raise the bar with every game that we create"
"New regions" are coming in The Witcher 4, though the map size will be "more or less the same" as the last RPG in the series
