CD Projekt RED just showed off a new Unreal Engine 5 tech demo for The Witcher 4, with stunning next-gen visuals and smooth 60FPS performance on a standard PS5.
If you’re a fan of The Witcher series, you’ve probably been waiting (and waiting) for real news about the next game. CD Projekt RED’s follow-up to the beloved Witcher 3 is one of the most talked-about upcoming titles, especially since it’s not just a sequel but the start of a whole new trilogy, with Ciri taking the lead as the main character.
We finally got a proper look at what’s coming thanks to a brand-new tech demo shown at Epic Games’ State of Unreal 2025 event. CD Projekt RED and Epic revealed a long, detailed demo of The Witcher 4 running on Unreal Engine 5.
Even better, this showcase was running on a base PlayStation 5, showing off smooth 60 frames per second with ray tracing enabled. That’s impressive, considering how ambitious this next-gen open world is turning out to be.
A First Look At The Witcher 4 Gameplay In Action
Let’s talk about what was actually shown. The demo puts players in the shoes of Ciri, now a professional monster slayer, exploring the region of Kovir, a new area you’ll get to visit in The Witcher 4. Right from the start, the team wanted to make sure Ciri and her loyal horse, Kelpie, feel like a real partnership. As one developer put it: “These two characters need to feel like one. Since you’re going to explore the world on horseback, riding needs to feel seamless, natural, and just fun.”
To make that happen, CD Projekt RED introduced “multi-character motion matching in Unreal. So Ciri and Kelpie, they’re perfectly synchronized when mounting from any angle and speed.” Kelpie’s movements also feel more lifelike thanks to “realistic muscles moving and stretching under Kelpie’s skin without compromising the performance.”
The world itself looks like a massive leap forward. The team is focusing on “natural, organic” environments, especially in Kovir’s dense forests and wild landscapes. “With Nanite Geometry, we freed artists from so many of their old constraints… There’s always more work to do, and foliage is a huge piece of that puzzle. So, we are excited to introduce Nanite Foliage. And in order to achieve gorgeous foliage density everywhere while still being memory efficient, fast to render, we believe that a new idea was needed.”
Faster world loading is another major leap. The developers said, “We created a faster way to load the world. We can now bring in more content more quickly for the smoothest possible experience as we fly down to catch up with Ciri.” In practice, this means you can run through vast open areas, forests, and towns without hitting frustrating loading screens.
The official blurb can be found below:
“As Ciri explores the bustling market of Valdrest, we see how 5.6 handles busy scenes full of high-fidelity characters and visual effects like ML Deformer. The tech demo also showcases Nanite Foliage — which provides a fast and memory efficient way to achieve gorgeous foliage density and fidelity, slated for release in UE 5.7.”
The market was filled with “over 300 animated skeletal mesh agents all going about their business,” showing off the power of the new Unreal animation systems. But it’s not just about looking pretty, the world actually reacts to you. “Notice how responsive the world is. Character actions directly affect what happens around you. Sometimes even setting off chain reactions.”
And as a final treat for Witcher fans, CD Projekt RED ended the presentation with “a small gift for all Witcher fans. A first look at Lan Exeter.” It’s just a tease, but it’s one more hint at the size and ambition of what’s coming.
Watch the full tech demo below.
There are a few more important things to know. CD Projekt RED says Witcher 4’s map will be “more or less the same” size as Witcher 3, but their focus is on “quality over quantity.” It also doubled down on avoiding the mistakes of Cyberpunk 2077, promising a smooth and polished launch.
So, what do you think about The Witcher 4 so far? Does Ciri’s new journey and all this next-gen tech have you excited, or do you still have questions? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
