The Witcher series has set the world on fire as of late. Although the latest iteration of The Witcher RPG, The Witcher 3, was released in May of 2015, the hype for the game and its world has only grown ever since the game’s release six years ago. Netflix’s The Witcher show was an instant hit, starring Henry Cavill (of Man Of Steel fame) as Geralt of Rivia, and the creation, and subsequent success, of the show, has only brought more eyes to the world of The Witcher, the masterful RPG games, and the books by Andrzej Sapkowski, the Polish author on whose books both the games and the show are based.

The latest development in the world of The Witcher is the announcement by CD PROJEKT that a new mobile game called The Witcher: Monster Slayer, based on the original series will be released for iOS and Android in July of 2021. The game is heavily inspired by Pokemon GO and is an augmented reality game in which users can find clues and meet characters through their phone screen in their immediate surroundings, much the same way you can find Pokemon around your neighborhood when playing Pokemon GO. 

CD PROJEKT, the developer for this game and also the developer of the previous iterations of the game such as The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, has stated that The Witcher: Monster Slayer will take place long before the era of Geralt of Rivia, which means that many fans will be disappointed that they don’t get to see their favorite monster hunter sitting on the park bench near their house. The game instead takes place in a time when monsters densely populated The Continent after having arrived there due to the Conjunction of Spheres. This means that the user is put into the role of a young witcher themselves after the humans realize the need to rid The Continent of the host of monsters present there. The game throws at you a wide selection of monsters, including Moolas, Ghouls, Bruxas, and Kikimoras. This comes in conjunction with a new prequel series Netflix has planned, which will feature a story from 1200 years before the events of The Witcher took place.

Spokko, the Polish game developer recently acquired by CD PROJEKT in 2018, has also stated that while the game may offer a novelty experience of finding strange objects such as decapitated horse heads and ten feet tall monsters in and around your house, The Witcher: Monster Hunter has a clear storyline and every single item you find in-game will help you progress through that storyline and understand what the game is all about. This is in stark contrast to a game such as Pokemon GO, which relied heavily on the gaming experience (which, to their credit, worked very well, since the game became a worldwide phenomenon) and the freshness of an augmented reality mobile experience, while a storyline was mostly missing from the game.

The gameplay trailer for The Witcher: Monster Slayer, which was released in August of 2020, promises immersive AR block-and-slash type combat and gives us insight into how the game is going to function and how exactly monsters are expected to be found and hunted. The user relies on Witcher senses to track monsters, and all monsters provide a different challenge that the user needs to take on. You can also stock up on potions that may help you during combat which can be done either by finding the potions yourself or helping a (fictional) stranger out in between your quests. This also enables you to prepare for each quest and use the material and equipment necessary to slay specific monsters. The game also offers different weather and time of day bonuses which can be used to the user’s advantage to gain more Experience Points or other in-game currency. As mentioned before, the plot is central to the game and Spokko places a huge emphasis on it, stating that the game contains “deep, story-driven adventures inspired by the Witcher series.” For this reason, the user must investigate severed horse heads and gain as much information from their quests as possible to move forward with the story of the game.

The date set for the release of the game is the 21st of July 2021, and the game is also available for pre-registration. Pre-registering for the game grants you access to the Kaer Morhen Steel Sword, which gets you 10% extra Experience Points upon successfully slaying a monster.

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