The premiere of The Witcher season two on Netflix this past winter spiked viewer anticipation for the series' direction and what it could bring to the franchise. For some of us, that means following the production of season three much more closely as it commenced, while for others it calls for yet another replay of The Witcher 3.
Barring the sort of setbacks season two production suffered from multiple lockdowns, and newly implemented COVID restrictions on set, season three production is looking at smooth sailing towards late 2022. That may still seem like a ways off to fans who are itching to re-experience the thrills and heartache of Geralt and Ciri's story, and we'd be the last to discourage an umpteenth read through of Andrjez Sapkowski's original saga or a replay of The Witcher 3 from CD Projekt Red. As such, here are some games to play while the third season gets underway.
7 Valheim
Valhiem strikes that difficult balance between survival challenges and exciting exploration these sorts of sandbox adventure games strive to achieve. The indie Viking survival title was an instant smash hit with PC gamers and captured the imagination of many sandbox enthusiasts.
As with any good PC game, a plethora of mods quickly began to surface including one that brings Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri, and Triss to the land of Valheim. Of course, these characters meld seamlessly into this ancient and mysterious land, and it's easy to see how a witcher might idle away a few months chasing off Greydwarfs rather than Drowners while cast and crew reassemble to bring us the witcher's next cinematic adventure.
6 Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
Keeping on the Viking trend, Assassin's Creed Valhalla was met with rave reviews and captures many ruggedly beautiful landscapes, similar to those enjoyed by players while traversing the icy Skelligan isles or the Kaedwenian mountain peaks surrounding Kaer Morhen in The Witcher 3.
Those who enjoy relying on Geralt's sword skills in combat will likely appreciate the hack n' slash fervor of the Viking melee style, and the open-world heralds many similarities to that of The Witcher.
5 The Witcher Spin-off Games
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If you're not looking to get drawn into another in-depth RPG title at the moment, you could try one of The Witcher spin-off titles like Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, or there's always a taker for another round of Gwent. In fact, Thronebreaker bridges the gap between RPG storytelling and laying all your cards on the table in the same fashion as the Continent's favored tavern game.
4 Monster Hunter Rise
Monster Hunter to Monster Hunter, if you enjoy the witcher contracts that take Geralt all across the Continent and back you'll probably enjoy getting up close and personal with the many unique and peculiar beasts that threaten the rural Japanese town and surrounding maps in Monster Hunter Rise.
Yet another world where the witcher would find himself surprisingly at home, Geralt has already made a trip to the alternate Monster Hunting universe via an event collaboration with Monster Hunter: World. Since then, Monster Hunter Rise also got a Steam release so PC gamers can get in on the larger-than-life monster-hunting action.
3 The Witcher 1 & 2
If you haven't yet, now might also be the time to go back and play The Witcher and The Witcher 2: Assassination of Kings. CD Projekt Red's first installment of The Witcher trilogy picks up right after the closing events in Andrzej Sapkowski's original novels.
Not much can be said for the graphical quality - games have come a long way since 2007 and 2011 - but the rich storytelling we expect from the witcher's tales is all there and as a fan of the franchise, you don't want to overlook these chapters in Geralt's story.
2 Horizon Zero Dawn & Horizon Forbidden West
If only the most visually stunning games with elaborate storytelling and rich lore can hold a candle to the void left in the absence of new Witcher content, then Horizon Zero Dawn will fill that void ten times over. Dominating the screen as the fiery heroine, Aloy will certainly scratch the itch for players who especially enjoy Ciri's story and playing a strong female role.
All around a mesmerizing gameplay experience with jaw-dropping graphics, breathtaking scenery, and a masterful storyline to tie it all together, Horizon was ahead of its time when it debuted on console several years ago. But, since the game's recent steam release Horizon has found a home among PC gamers who are reveling in the game's graphical splendor. And if you love that and still have some time to kill, there's Horizon Forbidden West too.
1 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Of course, when you're missing dusty dimly lit taverns, war-torn landscapes, and ale that nobody actually enjoys but drinks anyway, there's nowhere quite like the Continent, and we said we would be the last to discourage a replay - no matter what number it is. In fact, we encourage revisiting The Witcher 3 as many times as you'd like in order to experience every last dialogue option, rare cutscene, missed side quests, and dozens of optional endings Geralt may nimbly or not so gracefully navigate his way through.
As if CD Projekt Red didn't give us enough content to warrant multitudes of playthroughs already, after being announced at the first-ever witchercon last summer, show-inspired DLC from the Netflix series will be made available for free along with the Next-Gen Update later this year. Not to mention you can find several fan-made mods that bring various aspects of the show into the game, including Henry Cavill and Anya Chalotra's faces as Geralt and Yennefer.