CD Projekt has locked in a reveal date for Songs of the Past: the third expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will make its full debut at Gamescom Opening Night Live on August 25. The show kicks off at 11am PT / 2pm ET, and this will be the first time CD Projekt publicly shows the expansion in any meaningful way since announcing it back in May.
What players can expect to see at ONL
Songs of the Past has been teased in pieces over the past couple of months, but nothing resembling actual gameplay has surfaced. Given the timing, a proper trailer at minimum seems likely, and there's a reasonable chance CD Projekt brings some gameplay footage too. The expansion is targeting a 2027 release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, which gives the team room to show something substantial without pressure to announce a firm date.
Here's the lowdown on what's confirmed so far:
- Songs of the Past is the third expansion for The Witcher 3, following Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine
- CD Projekt Red is co-developing it alongside Fool's Theory, a studio made up of industry veterans who previously worked on The Witcher 3
- Geralt of Rivia returns as the playable protagonist in a standalone story set after the events of the base game
- The expansion will be roughly comparable in size to Blood and Wine
- Gwent card additions are confirmed
- Cross-platform mod support for The Witcher 3 is also in development, though no timeline has been given
Geralt's mysterious new sword and what it means for the story
The most talked-about detail so far is a new sword Geralt is carrying in Songs of the Past's reveal artwork. The blade features an unusual ornate curved crossguard, and it first appeared in a piece of Belleteyn Night artwork CD Projekt posted on social media in April, months before the expansion was formally announced. Senior community manager Laura Beitzel confirmed during a Blood and Wine 10th anniversary livestream that eagle-eyed fans had already spotted it.
"It is a very important sword for the story," said CD Projekt's Amelia Korzycka, adding that more will be revealed in streams before launch. That's a deliberate tease, and the kind of detail that tends to sit at the center of a major story beat.
Dandelion is also confirmed to appear, which tracks for a Geralt-led story set in this era of the world.
Why 2027 and not this year
The expansion was originally expected to arrive in 2026. Michał Nowakowski addressed the delay directly during an investor call in May, stating that the development team made a joint decision to push to 2027 in order to deliver the best possible result for players. No specific feature or technical issue was cited as the reason.
The Witcher 3 has sold 65 million copies to date, and CD Projekt is clearly treating Songs of the Past as more than a routine content drop. The choice to delay rather than ship something unfinished is consistent with how the studio handled Blood and Wine, which remains one of the most well-regarded expansion releases in the genre.
What this means for the broader Witcher roadmap
CD Projekt is running a packed development slate right now. The Witcher 4 is in active development with no release window announced. Cyberpunk 2 is also in progress. Songs of the Past sits between those two projects, functioning as a bridge for fans who want more time with Geralt before the series moves on to a new protagonist.
Nowakowski put it plainly: the core goal is delivering a high-quality experience for existing fans. The franchise marketing benefits and the soft narrative setup for The Witcher 4 are secondary effects, not the primary motivation.
For everything confirmed about the expansion so far, including platform details and story context, check out our Songs of the Past release date and details guide. If you're planning a replay before the expansion drops, the full Witcher 3 guide collection has everything you need to get back up to speed. Gamescom Opening Night Live on August 25 is the next major checkpoint for this one.
