CD Projekt RED has confirmed that previous serious protagonist Geralt of Rivia will appear in some capacity in The Witcher 4, with previous actor Doug Cockle seemingly set to reprise his role as the White Wolf. The scope of Geralt's role in The Witcher 4, which will feature his adopted daughter Ciri as the protagonist, has not yet been confirmed. Ideally, the game should be able to stand on its own without Geralt, and limit his appearances to those that can enhance Ciri's story rather than stealing the spotlight.
The Witcher 4 is Suddenly About to Hit a Home Run For Book Fans
The Witcher 4's tech demo at Unreal Fest revealed one character who fans of the original novels had particularly hoped to see.
Geralt Could Serve As A Mentor, Narrator, Or Gwent Opponent
Nothing is known about Geralt's role in The Witcher 4, but one obvious option would be to have him serve in a mentor capacity to his beloved daughter. Geralt had a mentor, Vesemir, who sacrificed his life to save Ciri during the events of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The Witcher 4 could see Geralt step into Vesemir's role and mentor Ciri, providing her advice in tough situations and being there when she needs a listening ear - whether he's stationed at the Wolf School headquarters of Kaer Morhen or his vineyard at Corvo Bianco.
Another option would be to have Geralt make brief "Easter egg" appearances when his path intersects with Ciri. With the card game Gwent confirmed to be returning in The Witcher 4, noted Gwent enthusiast Geralt could be a "final boss" type opponent for Ciri to face. Yes, it would be fun to see the two Witchers spar with swords as well - but a Gwent battle between the two of them would be an epic clash indeed.
Alternately, Geralt could serve a narrator role in The Witcher 4, perhaps writing or narrating the in-universe bestiary and character biography sections, a duty typically assigned to the bard Dandelion. A happily retired Geralt could even be recounting Ciri's adventures to his Toussaint friends, something that would be in character for the proud father.
Geralt Should Not Steal The Spotlight From Ciri As A Playable Character
In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, a few gameplay sections allowed players to take control of Ciri and witness events from her perspective. While that was an effective storytelling mechanic in Wild Hunt, The Witcher 4 should ideally stay away from featuring similar playable segments with Geralt, unless they are extremely brief (such as allowing players to step back into the veteran Witcher's shoes for a single key boss battle.)
Featuring Geralt as a playable character in a major capacity would run the risk of stealing the focus away from Ciri, due to Geralt's popularity. Ciri is capable of carrying the plot on her own, and should be allowed to stand on her own and shine as The Witcher 4's sole protagonist. De-emphasizing Geralt would also allow the game's narrative to focus on Ciri's story, which has significant untapped potential in the form of her backstory and adventures from Andrzej Sapkowski's original The Witcher novels.
However, having Geralt take up his swords again to fight alongside Ciri in one or two key battles, especially as an NPC rather than a playable character, would be an excellent way of honoring the iconic series protagonist. During one battle late in Wild Hunt, Geralt recruited several previous allies to fight with him, such as his fellow Witchers and the royalty of Skellige. Ciri being able to recruit Geralt for a similar fight (and possibly other returning characters, such as Lambert, Eskel, Yennefer, Triss and others) would be a perfect use of the White Wolf, as players would get to see father and daughter fight together in what would inevitably be a truly epic battle.
- Developer(s)
- CD Projekt Red
- Publisher(s)
- CD Projekt Red
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Franchise
- The Witcher
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Open-World
