Witcher 3 Remastered Update Splits Players Over Lighting, Bugs
The free Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered update has players divided over brighter lighting and technical issues across PC, consoles, and Switch 2.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered update has been released for free and applied automatically on consoles, but players are divided over its new lighting and a wave of technical issues. Many complain the remastered lighting is too bright and washed out compared to the previous version.
On PC, players can turn off a Bloom setting to reduce brightness, but console players have no such option. The update also adds a Path Tracing option on PC that brightens areas and carries a high performance cost. PC players with AMD-based systems report graphical glitches.
Switch 2 owners report blurry visuals in handheld mode even with blur options disabled. The game's audio mix has voices quiet and music loud, which players say is fixed by meditating in game. Xbox Series S players report performance drops because the update raised the game's minimum specs.
Some players are asking CD Projekt Red for a way to roll back to the older version. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt originally released in 2015, and a next-gen upgrade with ray tracing was previously released for the game. Eurogamer reported on the update and the player complaints.
Quick answers
Is the Witcher 3 Remastered update free?
Yes, the update was released for free and applied automatically on consoles.
Can console players turn off the bright lighting?
No, only PC players can turn off a Bloom setting to reduce brightness; console players have no such option.
Why do Xbox Series S players report performance drops?
The update raised the game's minimum specs, causing performance drops on Xbox Series S.