Though CD Projekt Red's The Witcher still holds up in terms of its storytelling, other aspects of the game feel outdated. The first title in The Witcher series of games came out all the way back in 2007 after all, so it is only natural that it should receive the remake treatment as with many old games. The upcoming The Witcher remake will feature a fully open world and will be developed by Polish studio Fool's Theory alongside CD Projekt Red using the Unreal 5 Engine.

With the new engine and advancements in technology, Fool's Theory and CD Projekt Red plan to reintroduce The Witcher to series veterans and new players alike. After the success of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, fans would jump at a chance to experience the first game in a more modern light. Players already got a taste of where the future of The Witcher might be headed thanks to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's next-gen upgrade patch, but the developer could definitely add more gameplay improvements, particularly when it comes to potion, oil, and mutagen usage.

Seeing as The Witcher remake is supposed to be a vast improvement on the first The Witcher game, it would be in Fool's Theory's best interests to add a system that makes potion, oil, and decoction use easier. In fact, The Witcher 3's next-gen upgrade shows how this is possible.

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The Witcher 3 Nails The Witcher Fighting Experience

In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Geralt of Rivia utilizes a wide variety of items and gear to deal with humans and monsters alike. He uses a Crossbow to stun enemies and knock down flying foes at range and employs various bombs to control crowds of adversaries and strong monsters. Both the Crossbow and Geralt's many bombs can be outfitted with different types of substances to suit different situations.

But Geralt's main money-making tools are his swords and signs. Geralt has two swords that he carries on his back at all times. One is a steel sword for fighting human opponents and beasts, and the other is a silver sword for eradicating monsters. Signs are a witcher's variation of spells that produce different kinds of magic. To give a few examples, Quen is a sign that casts a protective shield around the caster while Axii briefly hypnotizes those afflicted by the sign. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt lets players control all aspects of combat, from which sword and signs they use to the various tools that supplement the core dance of death. It can take a while to come to grips with the game's combat, but it becomes extremely satisfying once players learn to identify what sort of foe they are fighting and what tactics to utilize.

The Next-Gen Upgrade Patch Made The Witcher 3's Combat More Fluid

The Witcher 3 Geralt Using An Axii Sign In Combat

Before the inclusion of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's next-gen patch, switching signs was very cumbersome. Players had to bring up a radial menu that would pause the game, whereupon they would pick their desired sign before closing the menu and returning to combat. Things are much easier now thanks to a dedicated sign button that remaps most of the combat buttons and turns them into sign buttons. This lets players cast signs without pausing the action and makes Geralt feel just as fluid using signs as he is brandishing his swords. Quick casting becomes the definitive way to play The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, especially if players are intent on creating a character that specializes in casting Witcher signs.

These improvements are great and are, hopefully, what fans can expect from the upcoming Witcher remake. But where such innovation is required has less to do with signs and more so with how Geralt prepares to battle his foes. Improving potions, oils, and decoctions would go a long way in the original game, even if the recent upgrades did not do so in The Witcher 3.

Potions, Oils, and Decoctions Would Benefit From An Easy-To-Use System

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Unfortunately, potions, oils, and decoctions didn't receive the same treatment as The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's signs. Players still have to pause the game to open their inventory, where they can apply the specific oils, potions, and decoctions that will give them the edge in battle. This is even worse than the game's original sign radial menu system as it forces players to flip through multiple screens and lose track of what is happening in the game world (in contrast, using the radial menu in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt at least gives players a darkened image of the state of the battle). While seasoned players know that using potions, oils, and decoctions gets easier once Geralt upgrades them, those that are playing the game for the first time might get the wrong impression as these buffs have a shorter duration in the early game, thereby requiring their more frequent application.

They are essential components of The Witcher's combat and are just as important to Geralt as his swords and signs. Aside from incorporating The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's one-time potion creation system, it would be nice to see a hotkey system that allows players to store and swap between 2-3 potions and oils without having to pause the game. Since the game world usually has around 1-2 enemy variants per location, this would make it easier for players to adjust their loadouts based on the areas they are exploring. Once they enter a new area, they could switch to another set of potions, oils, and decoctions that they could use on the fly. It still sounds quite cumbersome, but anything is better than having to pause the game for every single fight just to apply buffs to Geralt.

If nothing else, this is a lesson that the upcoming remake can learn from The Witcher 3, and if it were implemented, it would go that much further in improving the franchise's combat.

The Witcher Remake is in development.

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