The Witcher 3 Remastered Launch Hit by Performance Issues—CDPR Rolls Out Hotfixes

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered brings major visual and gameplay upgrades in a free update, but PC and console performance issues have made for a rocky launch.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered is finally here, bringing a major visual and technical update to one of the most popular RPGs of the last decade. Existing owners can get the upgrade for free, which adds better graphics, performance improvements, gameplay tweaks, and other modern features. Unfortunately, technical problems on both PC and consoles have quickly taken the spotlight.

CD Projekt Red launched The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered on September 29. The new version is out on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2. If you already own the game, you can upgrade for free on the same platform. The update also gives existing owners access to Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine. 

The Remastered version was supposed to give Geralt's adventure a modern upgrade, with better visuals, new lighting, improved foliage, updated gameplay, Path Tracing on PC, special support for PS5 Pro, and a native version for Nintendo Switch 2. Instead, many players have run into performance and stability issues, making the launch rougher than hoped.

Most complaints come from PC players, where performance varies widely depending on your hardware and settings. Both Nvidia and AMD users have had issues, but AMD users especially have seen poor performance that sometimes gets better with newer graphics drivers.

Stuttering, frame-rate drops, and other performance problems have made it hard for some players to enjoy the Remastered version at its best. This is extra frustrating since The Witcher 3 is over ten years old, so technical issues in a new version really stand out.

These problems aren't just on PC. Players have also reported stuttering and performance issues on current consoles like the PS5 Pro and Nintendo Switch 2.

The new version was meant to make Geralt's story run more smoothly on modern systems, but some players are still running into technical problems. That does not mean the Remastered update is a downgrade. Still, the Remastered update has delivered on its promise of better visuals. CD Projekt Red has made big improvements to rendering, lighting, foliage, textures, and more. The downside is that these upgrades can hurt performance on some setups. 

CD Projekt Red has admitted there are problems and is looking into player reports. Their support team is handling many technical questions, and more fixes are coming. The first big fix is already out: Hotfix 5.00c for PC. You can get this update on Steam, GOG, Epic Games Store, Battle.net, and Xbox Play Anywhere PC versions.

The hotfix addresses several issues that could affect players. One key fix solves a problem where the game wouldn't save or load if the Windows Documents folder path had special characters, which could make voice-over volume significantly quieter than other in-game sounds after navigating through the pause menu. CD Projekt Red also made visual tweaks to Velen, including changes to bloom, vegetation lighting, saturation, and Path Tracing lighting.

They also reverted a change that caused major performance and visual issues for players using HairWorks.The hotfix also lets players launch the classic 1.32 version of the game again, so you can go back to the older build if you want. These changes show that the deveThese updates show the developer is acting fast, but they also reveal just how many systems were affected at launch. The technical problems have also affected the game's reception on Steam.

The Remastered edition has faced criticism from users reporting crashes, performance problems, and other bugs. 

The backlash is particularly notable because existing owners receive the Remastered version for free. After all, existing owners get the Remastered version for free, so returning players don't risk much by trying it. But it's a different story for new players buying the game just for the upgrade. On Steam, it is currently discounted to $24.99. This price makes the technical problems even more frustrating for new buyers who expected a polished, modern version of a well-loved RPG. 

Even with the rough launch, CD Projekt Red is offering players some free rewards with the Remastered release. One reward is the Scarlet Crest Armor set. Players can get it by linking their game account with a CD Projekt Red account. The official rewards page lists the Scarlet Crest Armor, along with its gauntlets, trousers, and boots. The Remastered launch also brings Twitch Drops for Roach.

If you watch The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered streams for at least 90 minutes, you can unlock the Fire Horse Gear Set for your horse. This promotion runs until October 27. These rewards don't fix the technical problems, but they do give returning players some extra content to collect while CD Projekt Red keeps working on the Remastered version.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered still has a lot to offer. The update brings better visuals, lighting, performance features, gameplay changes, and new hardware support to a legendary RPG. CD Projekt Red also made the upgrade free for existing owners, making it much more accessible. posed a gap between the ambition of the Remastered version and its current technical state.

PC users have encountered particularly serious performance problems, while console players have also reported stuttering and inconsistent performance. The good news is that CD Projekt Red has already started fixing the problems. Hotfix 5.00c is just the first step, and the developer says they're still looking into more issues.

For now, The Witcher 3 Remastered shows how tough it can be to update an older game without running into new technical problems. The game is still one of the most celebrated RPGs ever, and the visual upgrades can make coming back to the Continent feel new again. But until they fix more performance and stability issues, the Remastered version's big improvements are still partly overshadowed by its rocky launch.