For now, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the last game in the successful series as CD Projekt RED move on to work on something new. But it would be foolish to let what is turning out to be a hugely successful franchise fade away without making the most of the growing fan base and momentum.
The Witcher games serve as continuation to the stories of Geralt the Witcher, initially short stories followed by five novels and a prequel book, written by Andrzej Sapkowski. The games pick up where the novels end, and do a very good job of building on the source material and growing on from it.
And what now? The sequels can go in a number of directions, although the game (Witcher 3) ends differently for everyone who plays it, considering all the choices you have to make about a few major issues. There are also two expansions coming out in the next six months which might affect the grand story.
And still, there are enough interesting things to see and do in the world created by Sapkowski and expanded by the video games, and we’re here to offer our assistance in finding the right idea to develop into the next game.
Ciri the Witcher
There are a number of possible endings in Witcher 3. My favorite one, for Ciri at least (and it’s also the one I got on my playthrough), is her becoming a Witcher. She and Geralt work as a pair for a bit before parting.
The next game will be about Ciri’s stories on the trail, although with no Witcher schools existing anymore (that we know of) she’s basically constantly on the go, without a Winter hibernation spot. I’m not quite sure about the story but obviously she’ll get involved in Northern Kingdoms vs Nilfgaardian empire politics and wars and it would be wise to involve her elven blood and connections somehow.
Still Geralt
Geralt, in most endings, keeps on hunting monsters, although if he’s with Triss or Yennefer (or maybe even without them, just like it happened to me when trying to grab the moon and the sun at the same time) he does a lot less than before.
This should have the biggest appeal to the fans of the series, because he’s the most famous character, the main protagonist in all three games and he simply is The Witcher.
Just like Ciri’s case, it’ll be about once again getting mixed up in North vs South wars among the many side quests that better minds than me can come up with, but the main thing here is sticking with what works, only finding new motivation and life goal for Geralt.
The Other Witcher Schools
There’s one more option in my opinion for a protagonist. Another Witcher. While it does seem like Witchers are a dying breed, and not just in Kaer Morhen. But lets say somewhere in this fictional world there’s a Witcher school still operating. Maybe down in the South, or maybe in some land we haven’t been exposed to in the books or the games. This opens up the possibility of moving away from Temeria, Kaedwen, Aedirn and Redania, although in the end of some of the games, they’ve all been swallowed by the Nilfgaardian empire, except for Temeria which sort of get to keep their independence.
Make it About the Other Worlds
One of the most popular quests in Witcher 3 was when Geralt joins Avallac’h and they travel together through a number of worlds (a desert one, a weird tropical one, an ice one) to reach the home of the Aen Elle and their city of Tir ná Lia.
In short, the possibilities are endless, especially with Ciri being able to time travel as well, although maybe after stopping the White Frost some of those powers have disappeared.
Wizards Making a Comeback
Regardless of the choices you make during Witcher 3, magicians and sorceresses are on the run, at least in the Northern Kingdoms. But being arrogant and talented, they’re also ambitious. Part of the next game could involve some power struggle between magicians who once again try to create a lodge or some sort of cabal to influence or even rule over the other rulers, be it in Kovir or even in the Nilfgaardian provinces.
Prequel
There are short stories and novels to go back to. While following the story in the books would create an interesting situation because of how the Open World allows you to stray off the main quest, it can be worked around, especially in the short stories settings and some parts in the Novels timeframe. Ciri escaping Cintra and Geralt finding her? Previous Geralt hunting of monsters? The story of the Witchers before the pogrom in their home Kaer Morhen? There are plenty of good ideas to develop into a game (and also a decent movie or TV series if we’re on the subject), even if they’re only mentioned in a line or two during the books or games themselves. (Image Source)
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