CD Projekt Red to Debut New Witcher 4 Footage at Unreal Fest

CD Projekt Red confirmed on its AnsweRED Podcast, Episode 26, that it will present new footage of The Witcher 4 at Unreal Fest in June 2026, but the studio did not specify whether attendees will see gameplay, an in-engine cinematic, or a tech demo. The announcement came during the podcast discussion led by animation director Maciej Pietras, and outlets reporting on the episode flag the confirmation around the 18-minute mark.

Unreal Fest is widely characterized as a developer-focused event that brings together creators and studios to share tools and workflows, making another engine-driven demo the likeliest option rather than a consumer-facing gameplay reveal. Past behavior supports that reading: CD Projekt Red and Epic Games teamed up for a State of Unreal presentation on June 3, 2025, where the studio showed a Witcher 4 tech demo designed to highlight Unreal Engine 5 features and large open-world support rather than final-game visuals.

The June 3, 2025 demo ran on PlayStation 5 at 60FPS, according to CD Projekt Red press materials, and showcased the Unreal Animation Framework, Nanite Foliage rendering, MetaHuman technology with Mass AI crowd scaling, and other UE5 tools. The press release said those tools "are being developed, tested, and eventually released to all UE developers, starting with today’s Unreal Engine 5.6 release," signaling that work shown at Unreal Fest could have direct impact on other studios using UE5.6 and later.

Critical reaction to the 2025 demo highlighted its polish and technical ambition. One outlet wrote that "The tech demo for The Witcher 4 was one of the most impressive demos I’ve seen on PS5. Not only did it run at 60FPS, but it was also using Ray Tracing," and reviewers noted the demo avoided stutters even during fast traversal. At the same time, editorial caution has appeared alongside praise; previous demos have been described as "curated tech demos that are not representative of the final build," underscoring that what is shown at Unreal Fest may not match a retail release.

On the AnsweRED Podcast, animation director Maciej Pietras framed the studio’s approach to Unreal Fest by saying the event allowed CD Projekt Red to demonstrate "so many technologies that we did," and he added the studio "will be doing the same this year as it did last year." Episode 26 also reportedly dropped hints about potential gameplay features, including a dedicated jump button, underwater swimming, and large NPC variety.

There is still no official release date for The Witcher 4; one analyst estimate places a possible launch around 2028, but that remains speculative. For June 2026, the clearest takeaway is that CD Projekt Red will use Unreal Fest to show new Witcher 4 material, likely with a technical emphasis that continues the studio’s transition to Unreal Engine 5 and its partnership with Epic Games.