Next-gen version of Game of Thrones: The Witcher 3 coming with better graphics for PC players.
Next-gen version of Game of Thrones: The Witcher 3 coming with better graphics for PC players.
Hey guys, I guess by now everyone might have played 'Witcher 3: Wild Hunt' game at some point. If not, then this would be a great chance for newcomers to grab this title. It's time relive the memories, and replay the game if you wish, since a new next-gen update is coming. I never completed all the main and side quests in Witcher 3 though, so I might play this new Witcher 3 Complete Edition soon. I'm not sure whether the previously released game MODs (texture/graphics/gameplay) are going to work on this new version as well. But the chances are slim IMO. The free next-gen long-awaited update for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is coming to PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S|X on December 14th, 2022! It packs a lot of graphic improvements so it would be a suitable game title once again to benchmark in 4K, with full RT settings (ray tracing) maxed out. It would be interesting to know how the RTX 4090 behemoth of a GPU performs at 4K resolution. Anyway, as far as technical improvements go, CD Projekt positively whistled through them during its first-look livestream , but PC players can expect to see support for the likes of raytracing, DLSS, and FSR, alongside a selection of new Ultra Plus graphics options, boosting background characters, level of detail, and more. CD Projekt RED has detailed the Ray Tracing effects for PC. The game will have RTGI and RTAO. Furthermore, CDPR has added some new Ultra+ settings that will push/stress a lot of GPUs, and has improved the game’s SSR. Not only that but there will be support for both NVIDIA DLSS 2 and AMD FSR 2.0. Indeed, there are visual touch-ups across the board, including a rework for grass and foliage, enhanced and more varied weather conditions, plus higher resolution textures and meshes throughout environments. Novigrad's cobblestones are no longer normal maps, for instance, and instead now fully 3D. Keen-eyed players will also see the likes of smoke drifting from chimneys in distant villages. Console players will, of course, also get to take advantage of CD Projekt's various improvements, with new Performance and Quality modes providing a choice between better visuals at 30fps or a prioritised 60fps. Expect full console specifics in the run-up to release. The Witcher 3's next-gen update incorporates more than just visual enhancements, however, and CD Projekt has also taken the opportunity to introduce a number of new features and quality of life improvements. There's a new Photo Mode, for instance, giving players control over the likes of FOV, tilt, depth of field, aperture, focus distances, exposure, and contrast for more beatific snaps. Additionally, there's an optional new in-game camera, bringing the viewpoint much closer to the action while on-foot, on horseback, or both. There are also new map filters - enabling explorers to hide the likes of question-mark icons - and the mini-map can be hidden specifically during exploration too. Using this latter option, the mini-map can be temporarily restored at the press of a button, and it'll auto-appear in combat. Elsewhere, there are improvements to controls - by holding down a button in combat it's possible to instantly trigger a SIGN of your choice without having to bring up the radial map - and there's a new tap to sprint option for Geralt. Other notable additions include a range of accessibility improvements - such as larger HUD and subtitle options - plus enhanced language support including Chinese dubbing and subtitles. There are also numerous polishing tweaks, including a new pause option for cutscenes, plus fixes for the likes of cutscenes stuttering and previously broken quest lines - with CD Projekt saying the patch should retroactively fix broken quests on saves. Finally, there's cross-progression and cross-save support across PC, Xbox, and Playstation. We do know, however, that all platforms will be getting a small slice of DLC themed around Netflix's The Witcher TV series. These will include new armour and weapon options for Geralt, plus a new outfit for Jaskier, based on those seen in the show - and there's even a bit of a new quest tied to their acquisition, with Doug Cockle making a return in the lead role. The Witcher 3's free next-gen update and its last-gen counterpart arrives on 14th December. Source: thewitcher.com | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Next-Gen Update Trailer and REDstreams summary View: https://youtu.be/nBT2SP21f3Q View: https://youtu.be/Eqvcbfsk8IU
Here are some new things. ElAnalistaDeBits and Cycu1 made videos comparing the latest update with the old ones of The Witcher 3. These clips show off how much better graphics get with the Next-Gen Update. But it looks a bit strange. Some scenes flicker on the screen. They say that The Witcher 3 Next-Gen will have lots of visual, performance and tech upgrades over the original version. Besides RT, the game might come with some mods right away. CDPR wants to include the HD Rework Project. But they haven't said much about it yet. View: https://youtu.be/x-vpz6C9_Sg View: https://youtu.be/R-PgKQVLtrw
A brand new update has come out called "HYPED next-gen." But looking at it, the game feels like a serious mess. The Witcher 3 Next-Gen is really broken and needs lots of fixing to work smoothly. It looks just like a Cyberpunk 2077 crash when first released. A site named DSOG reported that this update has many glitches and bad performance problems right now. "Right now, this Update is a buggy mess because it has so many bugs and issues with how the game runs. The first big problem we found was starting a new game. If you try to save like in the old Witcher 2, the game stops letting you do that manually. Plus, when you restart later, it shows an error message telling you something is wrong. There are also crashes happening. Whether or not Ray Tracing is on, the game is really unstable. Sometimes it just randomly stops and crashes without a good reason. We aren't sure why it's crashing, but even after upgrading to the newest NVIDIA drivers, there are still stability problems. To be clear, all other games work fine on our PC system (so that's not a problem with your computer hardware). Also, many Steam users are having similar crashes with The Witcher 3 Next-Gen. There are lots of graphics issues too, especially with the Ray Tracing effects. For example, the lighting can change right in front of you, and shadows can disappear or appear suddenly two meters away from where you stand. I know that's not true, but the game looks amazing when using Ray Tracing. However, it is very hard to see those cool effects because everything keeps changing around you. Let's also mention the shaking or stuttering problems that keep happening right now in this game. Finally, almost no performance programs work with The Witcher 3 Next-Gen (not even Steam's overlay feature). The only one that works so far is GeForce Now's Performance Tool, which we'll use for testing our graphics card speed."
Well, its a free upgrade. So, I dont worry about bugs. They will fix them soon. Pretty sure of it. But I tested it last night with the 4080. Wow...I am kinda blown away and sold on DLSS 3.0 frame generation. Besides one bug that I experienced (has to do with scrolling through savegames), I had no issues in 2 hours just running around in Novigrad. This looks absolutely stunning. I set everything on Raytracing Ultra with DLSS on Quality and frame generation activated. I have consistent 110 fps in 1440p with smooth frametimes. No spikes. Very nice showcase for the technology.... If someone else wants to try it out...go to Novigard and set time at sunset or sunrise.....stunning....
You can tell us how MSI Afterburner is working better right now. By the way, CD Projekt RED just shared a list of problems The Witcher 3 Next-Gen has with them. Things are really bad for everyone who's having trouble. It seems like going back to the old PC version is our only choice if the game runs slow on any computer. But not all people have these issues. There are more problems when using an AMD or Intel graphics card instead of NVIDIA. CDPR hasn't listed CPU optimization mistakes or those huge Ray Tracing needs either. The team has also missed out on listing the annoying stuttering, sudden pop-in glitches, and other graphical bugs. Now they are working on fixing these specific things. Game crashes happen on PC players who own the game on Origin. Low performance on Intel GPUs is a separate issue. PlayStation 5 expansion packs aren't available in some areas. Basically, I don't think there will be big improvements for performance.
Some things might be related to graphics drivers too. Last night, when I played again, there was only that strange save game scrolling bug, otherwise everything worked fine. Nvidia released a driver update last week that has special fixes for the next-gen Witcher game. Even then, I have no performance problems at all. As you know about 1440p on high settings with raytracing and DLSS, I get around 110fps with smooth frame times. Sometimes this game can run in DX11 without raytracing if your computer isn't powerful enough. AMD and Intel might need to fix their drivers too. By the way, I'm playing GOG's Witcher Game of the Year edition. Also, I don't get any stutters at all; the frames are smooth. But even on my 4080 card, I can't run it smoothly without DLSS. That feature is a must-have. To fix Riva Statistics to work, you need to delete one file from an installation folder (something). Right now, I don't have my gaming computer handy. I'll check the location and filename later and post them here.
To fix Riva, find this specific file named d3d11on12.dll inside your installation folder and delete it. Just make sure to save a copy first if you need to put it back later. This file is in the "bin" folder. That's all you need to know! Once you remove that file (or rename/move it), Riva tuner will work again.