Andrzej Sapkowski, creator of The Witcher universe, isn't known to mince words when it comes to Geralt of Rivia or, well, anything else, really. During a Reddit AMA, he delivered more frank nuggets of wisdom about the franchise and its lore, including the revelation that a cornerstone of CD Projekt Red's video game adaptations comes from an errant mistake he’d sooner erase.
In the RPGs based on The Witcher, there are a number of schools for learning the craft of hunting down monsters. Geralt comes from the school of the Wolf, but you have institutions based on other animals, such as the Bear, the Viper, and the like.
CD Projekt is leaning into these academies for The Witcher 4, as the upcoming RPG's first teaser includes a mysterious sigil for another, as-yet-unspecified school. Where will it be? What do they do differently that threatens Geralt or The Continent? So many questions!
Sapkowski doesn't care for any of it, because this is all extrapolating from a line in The Last Wish he no longer stands behind. "A single sentence about some 'school of the Wolf' mysteriously made its way into The Last Wish. I later deemed it unworthy of development and narratively incorrect, even detrimental to the plot," he explains. “Therefore, later I never included or referenced any Witcher Gryffindors or Slytherins again. Never. However, that one sentence was enough. Adaptors, particularly video game people, have clung to the idea with remarkable tenacity and have wonderfully multiplied these 'witcher schools.'"
Don't be fooled by his use of "wonderfully," because he deems this all, "completely unnecessary." Unfortunately for Sapkowski, CD Projekt Red's games have become incredibly popular, making them the defining iteration of The Witcher for many. He acknowledges this creates a lot of potential - though he might also simply erase the idea from the base literature entirely.
"Perhaps, taking the path of least resistance, I'll erase the sentence about the 'school' from future editions of The Last Wish. Or maybe I'll want to expand and clarify the matter somehow in subsequent books?" He muses. "Perhaps I'll shed some light on the issue of Witcher medallions, their significance, and their connection to specific individuals? There are many possibilities, and the sky is the limit."
Needless to say, don't expect much overlap between The Witcher 4 and the next Witcher novel.
If you're itching for some swords and sorcery, have a look through our list of the best games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
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