A Real Beauty

Besides continuing to feel sad about the continuing GPU pricing insanity (FYI--prices are slowly creeping down; they're still nowhere near MSRP...even for cards that probably shouldn't exist like the 8G 5060/9060 models), there was at least a reason to feel some happiness/excitement.  CD Projekt released a "tech demo" showing off Unreal 5 graphics in the upcoming The Witcher 4.  If you haven't had a chance to check it out, here you go:

My immediate reaction was WOW!  It does look absolutely stunning.  But now, to be a buzzkill, we have to remember the teeny little words emblazoned across the bottom of that video--"tech demo--not actual gameplay."  All the big games like to trot out the prettiest of pretties to get that hype train running.  I did find it interesting that it was pointed out that the demo is running on standard PS5 graphics with ray tracing enabled.

There are numerous gameplay tidbits embedded in the video to be excited about.  Ciri looks absolutely awesome--the cloak, the freckles, the scar...this more mature version of Ciri is going to be great to learn about and play.  The manticore in the beginning of the video also shows that they're putting a lot of effort into making the monsters even more realistic.  I'm looking forward to seeing all the new critters that Ciri will be facing.  And what about Ciri's new equine companion, Kelpie!  I mean, she's no Roach, but Ciri's love of horses features prominently in the stories and this horse looks exactly like the one she wins from the Bloody Baron in The Witcher 3.  It also looks like the story is going to take place in Kovir, a new area that is referenced in the previous games.

In other CD Projekt Red news, there's apparently going to be one more surprise CyberPunk 2077 patch coming out.  It's likely going to feature modding support for new platforms, but maybe they'll throw in a few fun features like the new car cosmetics (which I haven't experienced yet).  They've really been pitching the Switch 2 version of the game, so this update is likely in response to its release.

Not gonna lie, the tech demo made me hyped!  Who knows when the game will actually come out, but wow--it's already looking awesome.  I'm also very glad that CD Projekt seems like they're going to stick to what they're good at--open world RPG's.