The Witcher 3 Remastered: Release Date, Free Upgrade & Everything New

26.09.2026

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Updated September 26, 2026. Eleven years after Geralt first rode out of White Orchard, CD PROJEKT RED is giving The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt its biggest overhaul yet. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered launches on September 29, 2026, and if you already own the game on PC or current-gen consoles, it costs you nothing. Here is everything confirmed so far: release times, platforms, how the free upgrade works, every new feature, PC requirements and the new Songs of the Past expansion.

Release Date and Unlock Times

The remaster was announced at gamescom Opening Night Live on August 25, 2026 and goes live simultaneously on every platform. There is no preload: the update simply becomes available at the times below.

Geralt and Roach in the original release. The remaster reworks textures, foliage, lighting and mount handling. (Image: CD PROJEKT RED)

Platforms and the Free Upgrade

The Remastered edition is coming to PC (GOG, Steam, Epic Games Store and, for the first time, Battle.net), PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2, which gets its first native version of the game. On Xbox it supports Play Anywhere.

CD PROJEKT RED describes it as "a free upgrade for existing The Witcher 3 owners on qualifying platforms," and it arrives as a regular update. Your saves carry over, and on Xbox your achievements transfer as well. As a bonus, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine are now free for all current owners, so everyone gets the complete story.

Everything New in The Witcher 3 Remastered

Combat, Signs and monster behaviour are all getting reworked. (Image: CD PROJEKT RED)

This is much more than a texture pack. The official feature list covers visuals, combat, movement and quality of life:

Visuals and performance

Upgraded textures, reworked foliage shading, a new shading model, reworked global illumination and ray tracing, including ray-traced hair, plus DLSS 4.5 and FSR 4 on PC. The modder behind the famous HD Reworked Project worked directly with CD PROJEKT RED on the remaster, so those improvements are now part of the official game. On PS5 Pro, CDPR has confirmed a ray tracing mode at 60 fps (30 fps on base PS5), an unlocked performance mode running around 90 fps, and PSSR upscaling.

Combat, Signs and finishers

Combat has been enhanced, Signs get brand-new visual effects, monsters behave more intelligently, and there are new finisher animations. If you want to master Igni, Quen and Aard all over again, our Witcher 3 Signs guide and combat tips for beginners are a great refresher.

Skill tree revamp

The skill tree has been reworked so you can reach advanced skills without first buying every basic one. That opens the door to far more flexible builds from early in the game. We will publish updated build guides once we have played the final version.

Traversal and Roach

Geralt can now vault over fences and walls, and mount handling has been revamped, with fewer collisions and smoother pathfinding for Roach.

Transmog, photo mode and quality of life

You can finally change how your armour looks without losing its stats thanks to transmogrification. The photo mode is expanded, tutorials are modernised, looting is reworked, quest tracking is improved, and new accessibility options include health regeneration, auto-loot and infinite item durability. The remaster also adds cross-platform mod support.

Monsters get refreshed behaviour in the remaster. (Image: CD PROJEKT RED)

PC System Requirements

The following requirements were reported shortly after the reveal. We will confirm them against the official store pages at launch.

Planning an upgrade? Check our gaming PC build guide under $1000 or, if you game on the go, our list of the best laptops for Witcher 3.

Songs of the Past: A New Expansion in 2027

A new chapter for Geralt is coming in 2027. (Image: CD PROJEKT RED)

Alongside the remaster, CD PROJEKT RED revealed Songs of the Past, a paid expansion arriving in 2027 on all platforms. It takes Geralt to Letten, described as an idyllic land of rural tradition hiding a dark secret beneath the surface. The expansion promises new abilities, a new chain weapon, new enemies and returning characters, and it is co-developed with Fool’s Theory, a studio led by Witcher 3 veterans. The price has not been announced yet, but you can already wishlist it.

What About Mods and Console Commands?

The remaster officially supports mods across platforms, but CD PROJEKT RED has not yet said whether existing PC mods will keep working. Expect popular mods to need updates. We will refresh our best Witcher 3 mods list and our Witcher 3 console commands guide once the update is live.

Frequently Asked Questions

Facts checked on September 26, 2026 against CD PROJEKT RED’s official announcement and platform reports. We will update this article at launch with final details and hands-on impressions.