Whispers of a possible The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt DLC are sounding more like loud grumbles as the weeks drag on, especially now that one of the rumor's originators has doubled down on their claim that the decade-old RPG will be getting a swan song expansion of sorts.
Polish games insider Borys Nieśpielak has been talking about an upcoming The Witcher 3 expansion for months, citing several independent sources. And Eurogamer has now contacted the rumor's other prognosticator, Noble Securities analyst Mateusz Chrzanowski, who told the publication they're "100% certain" CD Projekt Red "will release significant new content this year."
Chrzanowski has a little more to show for their claim than anonymous sources, however. The analyst points to CDPR's comments from last year about there being "a chance" of new content for one of its games, as well as the company's incentive program, which dishes out employee bonuses based on the studio's revenue.
"Currently, PLN 700 million [$193m] is needed to meet the first threshold, with only five quarters remaining," Chrzanowski tells Eurogamer. "This implies the need for something significantly larger than just another update or a version for a niche platform."
Chrzanowski says another expansion would be the "natural direction" for CD Projekt Red to take in order to make that first threshold, though they don't rule out the possibility of a "Witcher-themed game" akin to CRPG The Thaumaturge (from The Witcher 1 Remakers Fool's Theory), either. "Remember, Fool's Theory was built on a foundation of Witcher veterans."
Chrzanowski notes that CDPR "is sparing with words," so its hint about new content didn't fall out of an executive's mouth haphazardly. According to the analyst, such a comment "provides certainty" about new content being imminent. Whether it comes from an in-house CD Projekt Red team or Fool's Theory is another question.
The Witcher 3's core team was of course disbanded many years ago after delivering the Heart of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions, but regardless, it would make sense for CDPR to have some interlude of sorts tying The Witcher 3 into The Witcher 4, which likely won't hit stores for a few more years at least.
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