Microsoft’s Xbox Series X/S and Sony’s PlayStation 5 launched in November 2020, and since then game studios have been busy releasing next-gen upgrades for numerous titles that released during the Xbox One and PS4 era. Upgraded games include Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, Destiny 2, Grand Theft Auto 5, and CD Projekt Red released PS5 and Xbox Series upgrades for Cyberpunk 2077 in February. One game whose upgrades people are still waiting for is The Witcher 3, and it seems like fans will need to be patient a while longer.The Witcher 3 next-gen upgrades were slated for a Q2 2022 release, meaning sometime between now and the end of June. Unfortunately, on April 13, CD Projekt Red announced that the release of The Witcher 3 next gen upgrades will be delayed indefinitely because the company’s in-house development team will be taking over the work. This will require an analysis of what has already been completed and still needs to be done, and so CD Projekt Red likely won’t be able to give fans a definite release date any time soon.RELATED: CD Projekt Red Explains Why It's Using Unreal Engine 5 for The Witcher 4The studio previously working on The Witcher 3 next-gen upgrades was the Russian division of Saber Interactive, a company that successfully ported The Witcher 3 to Nintendo Switch in 2019. While CD Projekt Red didn’t specify why the next-gen upgrades will be moving to an in-house development team, speculation has arisen that it may have to do with the fact that Saber Interactive was originally a wholly Russian development studio. Though the company’s headquarters are now in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Saber Interactive was founded in 2001 in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

CD Projekt Red has been vocal about the company’s stance on the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022. Shortly after the hostilities started, CD Projekt Red halted sales of The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 in Russia, and the Polish-based company released a statement announcing that it stood with the people of Ukraine. Many other companies in the video game industry have followed suit, both stopping sales in Russia and donating large sums of money to charities to support Ukraine.

While it’s not clear whether Saber Interactive’s Russian origins had anything to do with CD Projekt Red deciding to move The Witcher 3’s upgrade project in-house, it is a possibility. According to Kotaku, at least some Russian gaming sites seem to believe that it is a contributing factor. However, in addition to its headquarters in Florida, Saber Interactive has divisions based in Russia, Belarus, Spain, Sweden, and Portugal, and it’s uncertain how significant Saber’s Russian roots still are to the everyday operations of the now international company.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One, with PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions in development.

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Source: Kotaku