New Witcher spinoff game was vetted "by multiple loremasters, writers and producers" at CD Projekt Red, devs say, so they couldn't get away with everything: "Hordes of zombie witchers was considered a step too far"

The Witcher 4 — (Image credit: CD Projekt Red)

The developers behind The Witcher spinoff game Reigns: The Witcher may shyly tell GamesRadar+ it's only a "fan-fiction simulator," but, crucially, it's fanfiction that IP holder CD Projekt Red approved.

Reigns narrative designer Oscar Harrington-Shaw and design director Francois Alliot explain in their joint interview with GamesRadar+, saying CD Projekt Red devs have "been extremely generous with their time. Every scenario you face in the game has been read by multiple loremasters, writers and producers on their end to ensure that all of the content is in keeping with the tone and lore of the Witcher universe."

Previously, Reigns developer Nerial collaborated with HBO for a Game of Thrones version of the "swipe 'em up" strategy game – which anoints you as a monarch who decides their next move by swiping left or right on scenario cards, turning the fate of your kingdom into an RPG dating app.

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But while "Reigns: Game of Thrones is still a light management simulation through the eyes of the ruler, as the original Reigns was," Harrington-Shaw and Alliot say, "In this game you play as Geralt in his role and position as a witcher. It's not so much about the fate of the Continent as it is about being an outcast who needs to strike a balance between the factions he encounters – humans, nonhumans and mages – while also maintaining his reputation as a monster hunter."

Originally, Nerial thought about using "a structure which involved the re-discovery of the [alchemical experiment] Trial of the Grasses, leading to new witchers and perhaps even resurrection." But CD Projekt Red swooped in as Reigns: The Witcher's true overlord. Harrington-Shaw and Alliot say, "Hordes of zombie witchers was considered a step too far…!"

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