CD Projekt clarifies the Witcher 4 Tech demo: “Visual effects reflect the direction we take”
Blog Andrew Joseph 04 Jun , 2025 0
Excitement and incredible in quality Wizard 4 Unreal Engine 5 Technology Demonstrationdeveloper CD Projekt issued a statement insisting that it is not a game display and therefore does not represent the actual Witcher 4 game recording.
The technical demonstration was captured on PlayStation 5, running at 60 frames per second, following Ciri when she explored an area that Kovir had never seen before in the monster contract (CD Projekt confirmed Kovir was a playable area in the Wizard 4).
There is a lot of detail in the technical demo, and the level of incredibly smooth animation we haven't seen on current consoles. Ciri and her horse Kelpie are particularly impressive as they cross the hills of Kovir to the bustling harbor of Valdrest. At some point in the demo, CD Projekt increased the NPC count to 300 individual animated characters in the market scenario. The display cabinet ends with the first look at the Director, the winter capital and the main port city of Coville.
CD Projekt said the “independent” technology demonstration is designed to showcase five features of Unreal Engine and to develop the open world of the game. The developers stressed that this is not a game video.
So, does the technical demonstration reflect the player's expectations for the Wizard 4? CD Projekt said the visuals “reflected the direction we were with the Witcher 4 – but that didn’t quite represent the last game.”
CD Projekt continues: “Production is still in progress and we are still doing a lot of work. That is, our goal is ambitious: to create one of the most advanced role-playing games to date.”
The developers also explained why it chose the PS5 on high-end PCs for a technical demonstration: “Because the early days of optimizing consoles helped us with future protection performance on all platforms. The console brought tighter restrictions and encountered their limitations and prompted us to make smarter, more efficient technical choices – the kind of version that benefits from the game.”
One of the biggest questions about Wizard 4 is the target launch platform. With this technology demo on PS5, the suggestion will be a cross-natural game that will also run on next-generation consoles (PS6 and Next-Gen Xbox). But if it is to be done on current natural gas, does that also mean it will be used on an underpowered Xbox Series S?
It is worth recalling that the same is true of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto VI, which, as it is, should also be done on the current robot console including the Xbox SeriesS. So if GTA 6 on Microsoft's cheap consoles can use GTA 6, then maybe so will the Witcher 4.
CD Projekt says Wizard 4 doesn't go out until 2027so it may take us a while.
Wesley is IGN's news director. Find him on Twitter via @wyp100. You can reach Wesley via [email protected] or secretly visit [email protected].