The Witcher 4: A Fan’s Wishlist for Making an Amazing Game Even Better

The Witcher 4 cometh! Oh yeah, you heard me right. The Witcher 4 trailer dropped at the 2024 Game Awards, and I haven’t been able to contain my excitement ever since. As someone who’s spent more hours in The Witcher 3 than I’d like to admit to my boss, seeing Ciri with those signature cat eyes got me more hyped than finding a rare Gwent card.

But as much as I adore The Witcher 3, there’s always room for improvement, right? It’s like when you upgrade your smartphone—you loved the old one, but once you experience better battery life and a smoother interface, you wonder how you lived without it. So, let’s talk about what could make The Witcher 4 even better.

Combat: From Button Mashing to Ballet

Let’s be honest – we’ve all had those moments in Witcher 3 where we felt like we were fighting the controls more than the monsters. You know what I mean – trying to dodge a griffin but somehow ending up rolling straight into its claws? Yeah, been there, done that, got the dreaded “You Are Dead” screen more times than I care to admit.

And can we talk about that combat loop? Don’t get me wrong, I love The Witcher 3 like I love my morning coffee, but after your hundredth fight, you start to notice a pattern. Heavy attack, dodge roll, light attack, throw in a quick Igni sign, and repeat. Rinse and repeat. And repeat again. It’s like being stuck in a very violent version of Groundhog Day. Sure, it works, but it’s about as exciting as following a cooking recipe with only three ingredients.

The trailer shows Ciri using a chain to grapple with monsters, which already has me thinking about all the cool combat possibilities. Imagine combining her Elder Blood powers with fluid combat moves – it could be like watching a deadly dance choreographed by someone who actually knows what they’re doing (unlike my attempts at dancing at office parties). With Ciri’s unique abilities, we have a chance to break free from that repetitive combat loop and create something that feels as smooth as butter on a hot pancake.

A World That Actually Remembers You Exist

Look, The Witcher 3’s world is amazing at showing the consequences of your choices – one wrong decision and boom, an entire village might meet a tragic end. But here’s what drives me nuts: save an entire village from a nasty nest of nekkers, become their literal hero, and then walk back through that same village a day later… crickets. Complete silence. Not even a “Hey, aren’t you the one who saved our children from becoming monster chow?”

It’s like having the most epic presentation of your life at work, absolutely crushing it, saving the company millions, and the next day your colleagues act like you’re the new intern who just started. Actually, scratch that – at least the intern would get a “good morning.” These NPCs have worse memory than my smartphone after a software update.

For Witcher 4, I’m hoping for a world where NPCs don’t suffer from collective amnesia. Imagine walking through a village you saved, and people actually remember you. Maybe they offer you a drink, give you a discount at the local merchant, or at least acknowledge your existence beyond the generic “Hmph” or “Weather’s howling.” You know, like actual humans would?

Less is More (Except for Gwent)

Hot take: Witcher 3 sometimes felt like it was trying to be the Netflix of side quests – endless content that you keep scrolling through. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good side quest as much as I love procrastinating on my deadlines, but quality over quantity, right?

Speaking of things we can’t get enough of – Gwent. If you’re like me, you’ve probably spent way too many in-game hours playing Gwent when you should’ve been saving the world. The rumors about its return in Witcher 4 have me more excited than finding out the office has ordered pizza for lunch.

The Little Things That Matter

You know what’s as annoying as a laggy Zoom call? Clunky inventory management. In Witcher 3, organizing your inventory was about as fun as sorting through your spam folder. For Witcher 4, I’m hoping for an inventory system that doesn’t require a degree in logistics to manage effectively.

And can we talk about the mini-map? Sometimes it felt like trying to navigate using a GPS from 2005. A cleaner, less intrusive HUD would let us actually see the gorgeous world CD Projekt Red is creating, instead of staring at a corner of the screen like we’re checking our phone notifications during a boring meeting.

The Ciri Factor

Playing as Ciri in Witcher 3 was like getting to test drive a sports car – brief but exhilarating. Now that she’s the star of the show, I’m curious to see how her unique abilities will develop. Will we get to teleport around like we’re trying to dodge our responsibilities? (Just kidding, always face your responsibilities… unless you’re playing Gwent.)

Looking Forward

CD Projekt Red has promised a darker, more dangerous world this time around. With Ciri at the helm, wielding both her Elder Blood powers and witcher abilities, I can’t wait to see what new challenges and monsters they’ll throw our way. After all, this is the same character who took on the Wild Hunt – whatever this darker world has in store, it better watch out!

What’s particularly encouraging is CDPR’s commitment to avoiding the crunch time that plagued Cyberpunk 2077’s development. It’s like they’ve learned from pulling too many all-nighters and finally discovered the importance of work-life balance.

Final Thoughts

While we wait for more details about Witcher 4, I’ll be here replaying Witcher 3 for the nth time, probably getting distracted by Gwent again. What improvements would you like to see in the new game? Drop a comment below – unless you’re one of those people who thinks Gwent isn’t the best mini-game ever created, in which case… well, we need to have a serious talk.

P.S. If anyone from CD Projekt Red is reading this – please don’t mess with Gwent. It’s perfect just the way it is, like pizza or cat videos on the internet.