CD Projekt Red closed out a slot at Gamescom Opening Night Live with a world-premiere trailer for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Songs of the Past, a brand-new expansion for a game that launched back in May 2015.
The trailer keeps the story locked down. Geralt is front and center, cutting through drowners in a dark, root-choked place that looks straight out of the swampy, folk-horror end of the Witcher universe. Plenty of viewers immediately thought of the Crones of Crookback Bog, though nothing in the footage confirms they’re back.
Geralt is shown using a silver chain, and that weapon is loaded with history. Geralt uses a silver-studded chain against the striga in Andrzej Sapkowski’s short story The Witcher, the tale that kicked off the whole franchise. The same fight opens the 2007 original game as its intro cinematic.
Despite that, the chain has never been a usable tool in The Witcher 3. Its appearance here suggests a new combat mechanic rather than a wink at the books. How it works, what it does, and whether it has upgrades is still unknown.
Songs of the Past is being positioned as the third major expansion after Hearts of Stone (2015) and Blood and Wine (2016), the latter of which won Best RPG at The Game Awards. Both of those were substantial paid add-ons, and Blood and Wine was big enough that people compared it to a standalone game.
Still unannounced: the release date, price, platforms, and whether it needs a specific edition. The Witcher 3 passed 50 million copies sold as of May 2023, so there’s no shortage of players waiting to find out.
