The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past got its first trailer at Gamescom Opening Night Live on 25 August 2026. CD Projekt Red confirmed Geralt is the protagonist and that Gwent returns, and reiterated a 2027 launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC. It is the first new Wild Hunt expansion since Blood and Wine in 2016.
What CD Projekt Red actually showed
Worth separating two things that are being run together in a lot of coverage. Songs of the Past was announced back on 27 May 2026. What happened today was the first look at footage, not the reveal of the expansion’s existence.
The trailer premiered during Opening Night Live, which ran from 11:00am PDT / 8:00pm CEST. CD Projekt Red is also running guided presentations at its booth when the Gamescom show floor opens on 26 August — but those are demonstrations, not hands-on. Nobody outside the studio is playing this yet, so treat any “impressions” you see accordingly.
The Gwent confirmation is a similar case. The card game’s return was confirmed on 24 August, the day before the trailer, rather than revealed in it. It is real, but it was not today’s news.
| Detail | Confirmed |
|---|---|
| Release window | 2027 |
| Platforms | PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC |
| Protagonist | Geralt of Rivia |
| Developer | CD Projekt Red, co-developed with Fool’s Theory |
| Gwent | Returning (confirmed 24 August 2026) |
| Price | Not announced |
| Exact release date | Not announced |
A new expansion for a game that came out in 2015
Here is the part that makes this genuinely unusual rather than just welcome. The Witcher 3 launched on 19 May 2015. Blood and Wine, which CD Projekt Red presented at the time as Geralt’s send-off, followed on 31 May 2016.
A 2027 release for Songs of the Past puts roughly twelve years between a base game and its next paid expansion, and about eleven years since the last one. Studios do return to old games — but usually as remasters, remakes or free updates. Building substantial new story content for a decade-old single-player RPG is close to unheard of at this scale.
Reporting around the reveal has put Songs of the Past on a similar footing to Blood and Wine in size, which would make it a full expansion rather than a short epilogue. CD Projekt Red has not published an hour count itself, so that is worth holding loosely until it does.
It also lands in a week of publishers going back into the vault. Konami’s Master Collection Vol. 2 finally drags Metal Gear Solid 4 off the PlayStation 3 on 27 August after eighteen years, and Elden Ring’s Switch 2 edition arrives the day after. The difference is that those are ports of existing games. This is new material for one.
Why Geralt, and why now
Ciri, not Geralt, leads The Witcher 4 — CD Projekt Red confirmed that when it revealed the game in December 2024. That makes Songs of the Past the last scheduled outing for the character who carried the series for three games. The studio has not itself described the expansion as a send-off, so read what follows as our take rather than theirs.
That reframes the expansion. It is not leftover DLC that took a long time to finish. It is a closing argument for the protagonist the studio is about to retire, released while the audience still has the muscle memory for him.
The studio split is the most interesting detail
The credit worth noticing is the co-developer. Songs of the Past is being made with Fool’s Theory, the Polish studio that is also building the The Witcher remake — a ground-up rebuild of the 2007 original.
So the arrangement looks like this: one studio is handling Geralt’s past on two fronts, while CD Projekt Red’s main team builds Ciri’s future in The Witcher 4. Fool’s Theory has effectively become the custodian of the old Witcher while the parent studio moves on.
That is a sensible way to keep a back catalogue alive without stalling the next mainline game, and it explains how a 2015 RPG is getting new content at all. It does leave one studio carrying two Geralt projects at once, which is worth keeping in mind — though CD Projekt Red has not linked that to the expansion’s move from 2026 to 2027, and neither should we.
Update, August 26: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered Gets a September 29 Release Date
The same press release also confirmed The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered, a separate product from Songs of the Past: a free upgrade to the base game for existing owners on qualifying platforms, launching September 29, 2026. It brings upgraded visuals, enhanced combat, improved traversal, new witcher-sign effects, revamped mount handling, a skill tree revamp, transmogrification, an expanded photo mode, and new finishers to the 2015 game.
Two platform firsts come with it: a native Nintendo Switch 2 version (The Witcher 3 has never had a native Switch 2 release before), and a new CD Projekt Red–Blizzard partnership bringing Remastered to Battle.net, where buying it unlocks a Geralt-inspired skin in Diablo 4. Remastered is being co-developed with Yigsoft. Separately from the remaster, every current Witcher 3 owner was given free access to the Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions the same day.
| Detail | Confirmed |
|---|---|
| Product | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered (separate from Songs of the Past) |
| Release date | September 29, 2026 |
| Price | Free upgrade for existing owners on qualifying platforms |
| Platforms | PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2 (new), Battle.net (new) |
| Co-developer | Yigsoft |
| Included free | Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, for all current owners as of August 25, 2026 |
Correction to platform details above: the same press release confirms Songs of the Past is also planned for Nintendo Switch 2 alongside PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S — broader than the PS5/Xbox/PC-only platform list reported when this article was first published.
When you can play it
2027, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC. There is no month, no price, and no pre-order. CD Projekt Red originally weighed a 2026 release and moved it back to 2027 to get the expansion where it wanted it.
For the wider showcase, our rundown of Gamescom Opening Night Live and every game confirmed for the broadcast covers what else was on the bill, and the show floor in Cologne runs 26–30 August.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past come out?
In 2027. CD Projekt Red has confirmed the year but not a month or an exact date, and has not announced a price. It was originally considered for 2026 before being moved back.
What platforms is Songs of the Past on?
PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2, per CD Projekt Red’s August 25, 2026 press release. No PlayStation 4 or Xbox One version has been announced. The separate Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered base-game upgrade is also coming to Nintendo Switch 2 and Battle.net on September 29, 2026.
Is Gwent in Songs of the Past?
Yes. Gwent’s return was confirmed on 24 August 2026, the day before the first trailer aired at Opening Night Live.
Do you play as Geralt or Ciri?
Geralt. CD Projekt Red has confirmed Geralt of Rivia is the protagonist. Ciri leads The Witcher 4, which is a separate game and has no announced release date.
Is this the first Witcher 3 expansion since Blood and Wine?
Yes. Hearts of Stone arrived in 2015 and Blood and Wine on 31 May 2016. Songs of the Past is the first new expansion since, roughly eleven years later.
Was Songs of the Past announced at Gamescom?
No. It was announced on 27 May 2026. Gamescom Opening Night Live on 25 August 2026 was where its first trailer premiered.
Is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered free?
Yes, for existing owners on qualifying platforms. CD Projekt Red confirmed Remastered is a free upgrade launching September 29, 2026, separate from the paid Songs of the Past expansion.
