The Witcher 4 Tech Demo on PS5 Showcased in Unreal Engine 5 – PlayStation.Blog

Alright, so here’s the thing — I’m just rambling along as I try and wrap my head around this whole Witcher 4 Unreal Engine 5 Tech Demo that CD Projekt Red’s been showing off. It’s almost like they’re trying to break the mold with Epic Games. It’s ambitious, right? Yet here we are, along for the ride, soaking up the details like kids in a candy shop.

First off, let me just say, this isn’t about playing The Witcher 4 yet, but they did drop some teasers. Ciri’s making a big splash — taking charge in some monster contract situation. I mean, how cool is that? And then there’s Kovir, a total detour from the usual — trade cities keeping their noses clean from all that military mess. All rugged and mysterious. My kinda place.

Now, really, it’s tech talk central here — they flaunted this demo at 60fps on a PS5. Imagine that! Anyway, knowing this isn’t just for Witcher 4 but for the whole game-dev community, it’s like they’re trying to be Santa for game developers. A gift that keeps on giving, right?

I got sidetracked. Oh, yeah, Kelpie! So, in this tech demo, Kelpie, Ciri’s horse, is like Roach 2.0 or something. But way more complex and lifelike. They’ve been tinkering with some ML Deformer magic — muscles and all that jazz moving like they’re real. Not too shabby, eh? Keeps the game chugging along without any hiccups.

Oh, the streaming thing — Fast Geometry, or whatever — makes me think nothing of snowy tops and deep valleys ‘cause they just flow. No pause, no glitch. You blink, you miss it. It’s like magic. We buzz past stuff without a hitch.

And, hey, they’re waving around some Nanite Foliage tech for those forest escapades. Imagine branches swaying, leaves dancing, trees… being trees? Without choking your console. Epic, if not quite epic.

Unreal Animation Framework is up next. This is where towns get lively — bands jamming, people vibing. It’s intense how they make NPCs seem less like robots. Villages feel more like bustling little universes on their own. NPCs aren’t just drones, they vibe with you. Freaky in a good way.

Wrapping up, there’s the Mass Framework. Builds cities, populates them with enough people to hold a music festival. Like in Valdrest’s markets, if Ciri bumps someone, chaos ensues. Apples rolling, kids scrambling, pigs snorting. It’s as hilarious as it is immersive, unintentionally triggering a story within a story.

What’s the point? They’re onto something here, blending tech with story to create worlds that breathe and talk back. It’s raw wizardry, that’s what it is.