Developer CD Projekt Red announced a new augmented reality video game for mobile devices called The Witcher: Monster Slayer, bringing fans a unique and technologically advanced way to immerse themselves deeper into the popular universe of The Witcher series.
Monster Slayer will be available on iOS and Android and will work similarly to Pokémon Go, but with much darker overtones. Launch dates are set for later in the year, but no official time frame was given along with the announcement.
CD Projekt Red did say that the new mobile game will take place before the events of The Witcher games, which spans over five decades, with the protagonist Geralt of Rivia. Players will be able to train, brew potions and oils, make bombs, and equip for upcoming battles. The game will include monsters from the game, as well as never-before-seen creatures explicitly created for the mobile experience. Things like weather conditions will affect gameplay, and it will pull source material from all of the Witcher games and lore released so far. Players in the game will take on the mantle of the monster slayer, just like Geralt.
“Monsters are freely roaming the land in great numbers, and the relatively new role of ‘witcher’ has become indispensable around the Continent,” a press release said. “Monster Slayer challenges players to become elite monster hunters, using advanced augmented reality features that transform the real world into the dark fantasy realm of The Witcher.”
This is the latest game in a line of Witcher games for mobile. There’s The Witcher Adventure Game, a board game set in the Witcher universe, and Gwent: The Witcher Card Game. The Witcher Adventure Game is $6, and Gwent is free.
Still, the latest mobile game comes while The Witcher rides a new popularity wave. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt cemented the franchise as one of the most popular in the world after it won several awards, including Game of the Year at the 33rd Golden Joystick Awards and The Game Awards 2015.
Geralt of Rivia was portrayed by Henry Cavill, of Superman fame, in a popular Netflix show released last year. Filming for season 2 was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic but recently resumed. Netflix also recently announced a one-off half-hour episode called Making The Witcher about creating the show.
Also in the works is a prequel Netflix series called The Witcher: Blood Origin and an anime titled The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf.
