The Witcher 3 Remastered Improvements

The shock announcement of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Remastered has prompted many fans to start thinking about yet another playthrough — but what does the enhanced re-release actually include?

Well, yesterday's trailer does provide an overview — you just need to pause the video and read through the long list of stuff that scrolls up the screen. Fortunately for you, I've done just that and wrote it all down in this article.

Most of the improvements are to do with visuals. Based on the provided list, it sounds like CD Projekt Red has made pretty big changes to how the game's lighting system works, while also improving the detail and clarity of its models and textures.

Subscribe to Push Square on YouTube171k

But the remaster also introduces some very intriguing gameplay adjustments. There isn't enough footage in the trailer to determine how significant these changes will be, but if they're being highlighted like this, it's safe to assume that they'll make a noticeable difference.

Anyway, here are all of the improvements listed in the trailer. I've also added some brief explanations to some of them based on what we already know about the game.

The Wither 3 Remastered Improvements List

  • Upgraded visuals (seems to be a major lighting and texture overhaul)
  • Enhanced combat
  • Improved traversal and movement (shows smoother animations when jumping and climbing)
  • New Witcher signs FX (more detailed visual effects when using signs)
  • Revamped mount handling (shows greater control over Roach's movement when galloping)
  • Enhanced monster behaviours (shows a griffin blocking and then counterattacking)
  • Skill tree revamp (perk progression is now presented completely differently through interlocking skill tree branches)
  • Transmogrification (you can change the appearance of your armour without altering your stats)
  • Expanded photo mode
  • New finishers (execution animations in combat)
  • Cross platform mod support (mods for consoles were promised some time ago)
  • Immersive meditation (meditating now has an in-game animation that shows the passage of time)
  • Refined animations
  • New quest tracking
  • UI (user interface) improvements
  • Looting rework (most loot is randomised to some extent, so this changes how the system works somehow)
  • Refreshed motion blur
  • New accessibility features
  • Updated textures
  • Foliage shading rework
  • Tutorial modernisation
  • HDR improvements
  • GTAO (no, this isn't GTA Online — it's an ambient occlusion rendering technique that apparently allows for more realistic shading)
  • Improved menu navigation
  • Ray tracing improvements
  • Global lighting rework
  • New shading model
  • Subsurface scattering
  • New tone mapper
  • PS5 Pro Support

With The Witcher 3 Remastered out fairly soon, on the 29th September, I fully expect CD Projekt Red to share additional details on some of these points — like what 'PS5 Pro Support' actually entails.

Until then, though, this is what we've got to go on. It's worth reiterating that the remaster is free for anyone who already owns The Witcher 3.

Will you be playing The Witcher 3 Remastered? Decapitate a few drowners in the comments section below.