The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Songs of the Past

It was one of those announcements you truly don't expect to see after so many years. The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt was released in 2015, Blood and Wine concluded Geralt's original adventure in 2016, and for years, we considered the White Wolf's journey to be essentially over. Yet, CD PROJEKT RED decided to return to the game for a third major expansion, titled Songs of the Past, which will be released in 2027.

Since the initial announcement on May 27, 2026, we knew that Songs of the Past was being developed by CD PROJEKT RED in collaboration with Fool's Theory, a studio comprised of series veterans and people who previously worked on The Witcher 3. The company also clarified that this is a full expansion and not a small DLC, with its size and philosophy being closer to what we know from Blood and Wine. The release has now been confirmed for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2.

The first major element: Letten

With Gamescom Opening Night Live on August 25th, we finally saw the first real glimpse of the new adventure. Songs of the Past transports Geralt to an entirely new region called Letten, a place that initially appears almost idyllic. The area is rich in rural traditions, folklore, celebrations, and bountiful harvests, but beneath this beautiful surface lies a dark secret and an ancient evil that has remained dormant for a long time.

Geralt doesn't go there just to hunt another monster. The story brings him to Letten with his old friend Dandelion, as he travels to help him with a personal matter. As one would expect from a Witcher story, the peaceful image of the region soon begins to crumble, and Geralt finds himself facing something that truly requires the skills of a witcher.

A new weapon for Geralt

One of the most interesting revelations is that Geralt will acquire a new weapon: the chain

. It's not just another item, but a weapon that will add new options to combat, especially against groups of enemies and for crowd control.

And there's a nice symbolism behind it. The chain is a reference to the introductory cinematic scene of the first The Witcher, where Geralt used a similar weapon. Thus, an element that existed at the beginning of the franchise's history now returns, almost two decades later, in Geralt's last great journey.

At the same time, the expansion will add new mutagens, while Geralt will have to face brand new monsters that we haven't encountered until now in The Witcher 3.

The material presented at Gamescom confirmed that Songs of the Past will not just be a short story that will lead you from one quest to another. Letten will feature dozens of new quests, points of interest and additional content, creating a new area to explore.

The expansion will once again be based on what made The Witcher 3

so special: choices, consequences, characters with personal motivations, and a story that won't necessarily have easy answers. The official description itself speaks of a supernatural case and a dark curse at the heart of Letten, with the fate of the entire region and Geralt's important relationships at risk.

What we learned from the REDstreams

CD PROJEKT RED didn't stop at the trailer. On August 26, in the first Gamescom REDstream dedicated exclusively to Songs of the Past, separate sections were presented for Story & World, Characters & Monsters, and Gameplay & Features. Developers from Fool's Theory also participated in the streams, including Creative Vision Director Karolina Kuzia and World Director Peter Gelencser, who have previous experience from The Witcher 3 and other major RPG projects.

This is particularly interesting to me because it shows that the return to The Witcher 3it's not treated as a quick nostalgia project. Fool's Theory is actively involved in creating a new world, new characters, and new systems, while CD PROJEKT RED clearly wants the expansion to feel like a proper chapter of The Witcher.

Belleteyn and the first hints

Even before Letten's reveal, the developers had dropped small hints during the Blood and Wine 10th Anniversary REDstream on May 28th. At the time, they avoided revealing the story, but mentioned that players could look for clues in previous publications and artwork related to the Belleteyn festival.

In the same stream, it was confirmed that the expansion would have new Gwent cards, and new musical material from Songs of the Past was heard for the first time. The developers had also emphasized that the expansion would be comparable in philosophy and size to what we expect from a Blood and Wine-level expansion.

And of course… Gwent

Gwent couldn't be missing. The first information given in May confirmed new cards, while additional cards and ideas connected to the new content were revealed during Gamescom streams. If nothing else, it seems that Songs of the Past will not simply use Gwent as a small break between quests, but will add new material to the already beloved mini-game.

The Return of Geralt

And here lies perhaps the most important reason why Songs of the Past interests me so much. CD PROJEKT RED is not trying to replace Geralt or create a new story that simply uses the name of The Witcher 3. Geralt returns normally to the Path, in a brand new adventure designed as the last major chapter of The Witcher 3. CD PROJEKT RED itself describes it as the final chapter of the game, before the series moves into its next era.

And this makes the whole situation a bit strange — but in a very nice way. On the one hand, we have The Witcher 4

now on the horizon and representing the next big step for the franchise. On the other hand, CD PROJEKT RED seems to have designed a very specific way to keep us in the world of The Witcher until we get there.

First, it gives us The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Remastered as a free upgrade for those who already own the game, with significant improvements in graphics and performance, as well as changes in gameplay, talents, combat, Witcher Signs, mounts, and several other areas. And as if all that wasn't enough, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine also come for free — two massive expansions that alone offer dozens of hours of new content.

In short, it's like CD PROJEKT RED is telling you: "Play it again. You now have a very good reason."

And when you finish the main game again, along with the two expansions, then comes Songs of the Past. A brand new, complete adventure with Geralt, featuring a new area, new characters, new monsters, a new weapon, new quests, and even more content. And when you finish that, then — at some point — it will be time for The Witcher 4.

If you look at it as a whole, it almost seems like a carefully designed chain: you replay The Witcher 3 with the Remastered version, continue with the two expansions, return for Songs of the Past, and finally move on to the next chapter of the series. And the most important thing is that for this entire journey, the company doesn't ask you to buy the same content again. The Remastered is a free upgrade, and the two previous expansions are offered at no additional cost to owners of the base game.

With what we know so far, Songs of the Past seems much more like a true farewell to Geralt and The Witcher 3instead of a simple bonus chapter. And personally, I really like the way CD PROJEKT RED seems to be closing this cycle. It's not just trying to say goodbye to Geralt; it's giving us one last reason to return to his world, to relive what we loved, and to take one more great journey with him.

We still have a long way to go until 2027, and we will certainly learn much more by then. For now, however, one thing is clear: Geralt has not yet told his last story.