The Witcher

*The Witcher* is a 2007 role-playing game developed by CD Projekt Red and based on the fantasy world created by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. Released for Windows, it was the studio’s first game and introduced players to Geralt of Rivia as a playable protagonist. Its story takes place after the events of Sapkowski’s books, rather than retelling one of them.

Geralt begins the game with amnesia. He is recovering at Kaer Morhen, the stronghold where witchers train, when attackers from a criminal organization called Salamandra raid it. They steal secrets used to create witchers, and the assault leaves a young witcher named Leo dead. Geralt’s search for the thieves takes him toward Vizima, the capital of Temeria, where he becomes entangled in political unrest and a broader conspiracy.

Familiar characters from the books appear throughout the story, including the sorceress Triss Merigold and Geralt’s fellow witchers Vesemir, Eskel, and Lambert. Geralt also encounters Shani, a medic, and Alvin, a boy with unusual magical powers. His investigation brings him into conflict with the Salamandra leaders Azar Javed and the Professor. Later, the Order of the Flaming Rose and its grand master, Jacques de Aldersberg, become central to the plot.

The game repeatedly asks players to make choices whose consequences are not immediately clear. In the conflict between the Order and the Scoia’tael, a group associated with nonhuman rebels, Geralt can support either side or try to remain neutral. Decisions can change later encounters and determine which characters help him. The story also revisits a problem from Geralt’s past: Princess Adda, whom he once freed from a curse that turned her into a striga, becomes a striga again.

Combat uses timed mouse clicks to extend attack sequences. Geralt can switch among strong, fast, and group fighting styles, and he carries a steel sword for ordinary foes and a silver sword for monsters. Witcher signs provide simple magical abilities, while alchemy lets players prepare potions and other useful mixtures. Drinking too many potions raises Geralt’s toxicity.

CD Projekt Red built the game with a heavily modified version of BioWare’s Aurora Engine. In 2008, it released *The Witcher: Enhanced Edition*, which improved aspects of the original release, including dialogue presentation and loading times. The edition also included two additional adventures, *The Price of Neutrality* and *Side Effects*. The game established the characters and choice-driven approach that CD Projekt Red carried into its later Witcher titles.