Development on Witcher 4 video game sends The Witcher RPG into hiatus
R. Talsorian Games’ Cody Pondsmith says “The Witcher TTRPG line is not dead” but don’t expect big, new books in the near future.
Development on The Witcher RPG has been indefinitely paused while CD Projekt Red creates the fourth video game in The Witcher series. Publisher R. Talsorian Games, which also handles the beloved Cyberpunk franchise, recently announced the tabletop series’ hiatus was a “complicated” and “disappointing” decision.
Cody Pondsmith, one of the most prominent designers at the publisher, explained in a recent post on R. Talsorian’s website that the company’s relationship with CD Projekt Red “has gotten closer and closer” over the years and allowed them to collaborate on “a unified world that you can all experience both in the video game space and on the tabletop.” Apparently, that shared vision means ceding more time to the video game developer as it continues work on the massive upcoming title meant to launch a new trilogy set on The Continent from Andrzej Sapkowski’s fantasy novel series.
“As CD Projekt Red begins work on the fourth Witcher video game we’ve been collaborating to make sure that the information between our two products stays as connected as possible. We’ve had countless meetings covering days’ worth of time discussing the lore of The Continent and the direction of the Witcher franchise,” Pondsmith said. “What we’ve come to realize is that it would be extremely difficult or perhaps impossible to continue work on The Witcher TTRPG line at the moment and still maintain the connection with CD Projekt Red’s upcoming plans.”
Pondsmith explicitly states that “The Witcher TTRPG line is not dead”, mentioning plans for upcoming books and supplements for the fantasy tabletop RPG that don’t tie directly into the ongoing storyline of Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri - specifically “DLC material based on pre-existing concepts that will not be changing”. He also left the door open for the tabletop studio to announce new material once CD Projekt Red’s plans have progressed accordingly.
R. Talsorians’ hitching their creative wagon to The Witcher canon - as opposed to spinning off a separate incarnation of Sapkowski’s dark world of Polish folklore - is a bit of a gamble. While the publisher runs the risk of losing fans during the hiatus, they must believe in the draw of a unified world where players can experience the same stories, characters and events on their consoles and PC as they do around the table.
“I know this will be incredibly disappointing news for many of you, but I want to give you the best products we possibly can. We’re proud of the work we’ve done on The Witcher TTRPG, and the lore we’ve helped add to the canon, and want to do nothing less than the best we can for you and for ourselves,” Pondsmith said.
Not all of R. Talsorian Games’ recent news is bad, as the publisher recently teased a wholly new tabletop world created by Pondsmith that seems tied to Japanese spiritualism and tradition. More information about Project: Blue Moon is expected to drop tomorrow, August 31st.