CD\u00a0Projekt RED, the Polish studio behind The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, announced that its upcoming expansion, Songs of\u00a0the Past, will not include Russian voice acting.<\/p>\n
When the expansion launches, the game\u2019s audio will default to\u00a0Polish, though the text will still be\u00a0fully translated, as\u00a0before. Russian voice acting will remain in\u00a0the base game and its first two expansions, Hearts of\u00a0Stone and Blood and Wine.<\/p>\n
The change stems from CD\u00a0Projekt RED\u2019s decision, made in\u00a0March 2022, to\u00a0stop working with tax residents of\u00a0Russia and Belarus.<\/p>\n
The announcement set off heated debate among Russian fans of\u00a0the game. The post<\/a> with the official announcement in\u00a0the game\u2019s Russian-language Telegram community had drawn more than 2,000 comments by\u00a0the time this article was published, far more than the fewer than 300 comments left on\u00a0neighboring<\/a> posts<\/a> announcing new content.<\/p>\n Gamescom opened in\u00a0Cologne on\u00a0August 25, and CD\u00a0Projekt RED unveiled a\u00a0trailer for the new Witcher 3 expansion on\u00a0the event\u2019s first day.<\/p>\n In\u00a0Songs of\u00a0the Past, the game\u2019s protagonist, the witcher Geralt of\u00a0Rivia, travels to\u00a0a\u00a0new region called Letten, home to\u00a0his friend Dandelion. The expansion is\u00a0set for release in\u00a02027, though an\u00a0exact date has not been announced.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is\u00a0the cult third installment in\u00a0the Witcher game series, following Geralt, a\u00a0professional monster hunter, in\u00a0a\u00a0world based on\u00a0the novels of\u00a0Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski. CD\u00a0Projekt RED released the game in\u00a02015.<\/p>\n Earlier in\u00a0August, CD\u00a0Projekt RED announced<\/a> plans to\u00a0release The Witcher 4 in\u00a02028, though an\u00a0exact release date has not yet been announced.<\/p>\n At\u00a0Meduza, we\u00a0are committed to\u00a0transparency about our use of\u00a0artificial intelligence in\u00a0the newsroom. The story you\u2019re reading was written by\u00a0one of\u00a0our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an\u00a0AI\u00a0model configured to\u00a0follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is\u00a0the result of\u00a0extensive testing and refinements to\u00a0ensure our English-language coverage is\u00a0timely and accurate. A\u00a0Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.<\/p>\n If\u00a0you find any errors in\u00a0this translation, please contact us\u00a0at\u00a0[email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.<\/p>\n