If you already own The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on PC, PS5 or Xbox Series X|S, CD Projekt Red just handed you two expansions that used to cost $30 combined — Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine — completely free, no catch. That lands alongside a free graphical and gameplay remaster arriving September 29, 2026, plus a brand-new native version for Nintendo Switch 2 launching the same day.
What's actually changing in the remaster
CD Projekt Red isn't just bumping a resolution slider and calling it a day. The patch notes released alongside the gamescom Opening Night Live reveal list upgraded visuals, reworked combat, improved traversal and mount handling, new witcher sign effects, a revamped skill tree, transmogrification, an expanded photo mode, and new finishing moves. None of it requires a new purchase if you already own the base game on a qualifying platform.
Upgraded lighting, textures and draw distance across the open world
Reworked combat feel with new sign effects and finishers
Revamped mount handling — Roach finally steers like it's 2026
Full skill tree rework plus a transmogrification system
Expanded photo mode and Switch 2 gets its own native build, not a port
The remaster reworks mount handling and lighting across the entire open world. · CD Projekt Red
The part that isn't free: Songs of the Past
Here's where CD Projekt Red starts charging again. Songs of the Past, revealed with its first trailer at the same show, takes place in Letten, a new region the studio describes as idyllic farmland hiding something considerably darker underneath. It's being co-developed with Fool's Theory, a Krakow studio staffed by veterans who worked on the original Witcher 3, rather than built entirely in-house. Wishlisting is open now; the actual release isn't until 2027, so treat everything about it — combat additions, a new weapon type, unseen enemy designs — as a promise, not a shipped feature yet.
How we got from 2015 to a 2027 expansion
May 2015
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt launches on PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
October 2015
Hearts of Stone expansion releases at $9.99.
May 2016
Blood and Wine expansion releases at $19.99, closing out the base story's expansions.
December 2022
A free next-gen update brings the game to PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
September 29, 2026
Remastered launches free for owners, alongside a native Switch 2 version and both old expansions unlocking for free.
2027
Songs of the Past, a new paid expansion set in Letten, releases.
Do I have to pay for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered?
No. If you already own the base game on a qualifying platform, Remastered is a free upgrade, and it launches with Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine unlocked at no extra cost.
Is Songs of the Past included in the free update?
No. Songs of the Past is a separate, paid expansion co-developed with Fool's Theory, set for release in 2027.
Is the Switch 2 version a port of the PS5 version?
CD Projekt Red is calling it a native version built for Switch 2, not a straight port, though technical specifics haven't been detailed yet.
What does the Diablo 4 tie-in actually give you?
Buying Songs of the Past on Battle.net unlocks a Geralt-inspired cosmetic skin in Diablo 4 — it's a cross-promotion tied to CD Projekt Red's new Battle.net partnership, not a gameplay crossover.
Watch for a deeper look at Remastered's Switch 2 performance once review copies land closer to September 29 — a native build on Nintendo's newest hardware is the one variable nobody's confirmed yet. If it holds up next to Elden Ring's own Switch 2 rerelease, that's a genuinely good year for the console's third-party library.
