CD Projekt Red has released the comprehensive patch notes for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Remastered, detailing a wide array of improvements and changes set to arrive with the update. The update, launching September 29, will introduce significant enhancements across visual fidelity, gameplay mechanics, user interface, and accessibility.
Visual and Rendering Enhancements
The remaster boasts an improved shading model, updated textures and models incorporating assets from The Witcher 3 HD Reworked Project, and enhanced lighting and shading for foliage. Native DirectX 12 rendering with multithreading is implemented for better performance and visuals, alongside updated tone mapping and a new GTAO option. Ray-Traced HairWorks offers improved hair lighting and shading, while motion blur has been refined for a more cinematic look. Subsurface scattering has been updated for more natural skin rendering, and terrain and material rendering have been improved with new Image-Based Lighting (IBL) and reworked Bloom effects.
Gameplay and Control Overhauls
A revamped skill system now features a skill tree with three ranks per skill, requiring prerequisite unlocks rather than fixed skill points. Skill points have been reset due to these changes, and skill tree bonuses have been rebalanced. The introduction of a Reforge system allows players to change equipment appearances without altering stats, available from master craftsmen. Combat for non-boss monsters has been polished with updated attack patterns and behaviors. Roach's movement has also been improved, with new options for cantering and galloping, and an added "Horse control input sensitivity" slider. Geralt's animations have been refined for more natural jumping, new finisher and idle animations, and smoother ledge climbing, vaulting, and combat gap closing. Target-lock switching and Roach mounting/dismounting animations have also been polished.
User Interface and Experience
Meditation now features a timelapse for a more immersive experience, and the skill screen has been reorganized into a more intuitive skill tree layout. The map screen allows for easier switching between tracked quests, with untracked quests now having distinct markers. Players can now hide herbs, boats, and corpses on the minimap for a cleaner view. Quest notifications have been consolidated into single HUD updates, and nearby loot can be grouped into a single window. A loot feed displays recently collected items, and item tooltips are available in the loot window before pickup. The "HUD Configuration" section in settings has been renamed to "Interface," and updates have been made to the CD PROJEKT RED Account connection, My Rewards, and telemetry consent menus.
Photo Mode Expansion
Photo Mode has been significantly expanded with new features, including the ability to select and pose multiple characters, adjust lighting with granular control, and save camera presets. Players can also change aspect ratios, toggle a first-person camera, and enable or disable camera collisions. Environmental presets, weather and time-of-day adjustments, and the option to hide surrounding NPCs are also available. A cursor is now visible in Photo Mode on PC when using a mouse.
Accessibility Features
A new Accessibility section has been added to the settings menu, consolidating existing options. Ukrainian text localization has been implemented. The "Bard's Ballad" preset is available, designed to reduce cognitive load by simplifying mechanics and disabling select features. This preset can be customized with options such as Vitality Regeneration Boost, Infinite Breath, Unlimited Item Durability, Unlimited Boat Durability, Ignore Item Weight, Faster Boats, and toggleable Witcher Sense.
Quality of Life and Modding
Tutorials have been streamlined for conciseness. A new option allows players to quickly disengage from combat by holding the dodge button and then pressing the sprint button. Loot can now be collected without dismounting Roach. Cross-platform mod support is now integrated via mod.io, allowing players to browse and install mods directly from the game's main menu. Engine and UI improvements have also been made for REDkit, the modding tool.
Fixes and PC-Specific Additions
Several issues have been fixed, including problems with Right Stick Sensitivity and HDR settings on consoles. A specific quest progression block in "Wine is Sacred" has been addressed, though this fix is not retroactive. PC players will benefit from new additions including support for Path Tracing, NVIDIA DLSS 4.5 with Ray Reconstruction, AMD FSR 4 with Frame Generation and Anti-Lag 2, and Intel XeSS 2.0 with Frame Generation and Low Latency. Support for DualSense controller haptic feedback has also been added for PC.