The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is one of, if not the best, RPGs of all time. 11 years after launch, there’s even a remastered version of it coming later this month (and it’s free for anyone who owns the existing game), alongside a new expansion called Songs of the Past that’s in the works. However, Songs of the Past doesn’t arrive until 2027, and The Witcher 4 is not coming until 2028, which means there’s a big Witcher-sized hole to fill in our gaming backlogs.
The Witcher 3 has plenty of defining traits: a beautiful, dense open world; side quests with narratives so enrapturing they’re better than most games’ main stories; larger-than-life characters who become so personable, you’d consider them friends; and combat mechanics that allow you to dance between foes, all while using two swords and magic at once.
If any of that sounds like your sort of thing, here are the eight best games like The Witcher 3.
8
The Blood of Dawnwalker
The Blood of Dawnwalker is the newest game on this list, and it comes from studio Rebel Wolves, which is led by The Witcher 3 game director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz. The studio also employs a number of other former high-level staffers from CD Projekt Red, and as a result, it’s one of the closest games you’ll find to matching what Geralt’s best adventure has to offer.
In The Blood of Dawnwalker, you are Coen. He’s part-vampire, part-witch, a.k.a. a Dawnwalker. Not a Witcher. Structurally, however, this is heavily inspired by The Witcher games: a stunning open world with so many side quests to find, innovative, direction-based, parry-focused combat, and a unique time-based mechanic where every decision truly matters.
7
Cyberpunk 2077
Setting-wise, you couldn’t get further away from The Witcher 3 with Cyberpunk 2077. But structurally? This was the next major release from CD Projekt Red, and it has a lot of the same foundations: an emotional, captivating story, a colossal world that you can truly immerse yourself in, and characters you’ll never want to say goodbye to.
It launched in a rough state, but following 2023’s Phantom Liberty expansion and the 2.0 update, Cyberpunk 2077 is the best first-person RPG available today. The update completely revamped how skills work, fixed countless bugs, and introduced a whole new story with none other than Idris Elba. And don’t forget Keanu Reeves plays a major role in the full game, too.
6
Dragon’s Dogma 2
Combat in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is worlds apart from how it works in The Witcher 3. You have a small group of “pawns” to command, different classes to spec into, and you can even climb atop the massive foes you face. However, the rest of Capcom’s epic is very similar. It features a fantasy setting with all manner of different creatures and species to interact with, complex, winding quests, and plenty of loot to discover.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 isn’t for everyone, because it truly pushes the boat out with its combat and distances itself from the usual tropes and mechanics. But once you get to grips with it, it’s a delight. The Dark Arisen expansion is right around the corner too, which is the perfect time to jump in, as it adds a whole new region, more story, and dungeons.
5
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is one of the most impressive first-person RPGs of the last decade, thanks to both its quest design and simulation of real-time aspects. Did you know that every single NPC has a dynamic 24-hour daily routine, which means shops won’t open until around 8 or 9 a.m.? And if you don’t bathe, forget trying to be stealthy, because guards will smell you before they see you.
Polygon’s Marloes Valentina Stella called it the best RPG that they have ever played, thanks to this level of immersion, but that isn’t the game’s only selling point. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 also has “a brilliant story, captivating side quests, a gorgeous open world, and wonderful characters.” While it’s slightly less fantastical than The Witcher 3, as it’s set in 15th-century Bohemia (aka Czechia) and doesn’t feature magic, it has a similar vibe.
4
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
It may seem like an obvious option given that it’s the prequel, but don’t let the fact that it came before The Witcher 3 put you off. There’s no denying it isn’t as ambitious. This RPG is also more open-zone, rather than open-world. Still, The Witcher 2 is a fantastic game in its own right.
One thing The Witcher 2 arguably does even better than its successor is player choice and narrative decisions. There’s a decision you’ll need to make during the game’s first act that has very severe implications for the rest of the game. That essentially means you’ll need to play it twice to experience the full thing, as the decision completely changes which regions you visit and the characters you’ll encounter. You’re even able to import your choices from The Witcher 2 into The Witcher 3, so it’s worth replaying before The Witcher 3 Remastered’s launch.
3
Baldur’s Gate 3
When it comes to moment-to-moment gameplay, The Witcher 3 and Baldur’s Gate 3 are on opposite ends of the spectrum. One has fast-paced, reflexive combat, while the other is turn-based, where you can consider and calculate your every move. However, if the breadth of choices and decisions within quests is your favorite part about Geralt’s adventure, Baldur’s Gate 3 has that in droves.
Widely considered to be one of the best video games of all time, Baldur’s Gate 3 is set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, which is famous for how much control it gives the player. Want to kill everyone? Go ahead. Fancy one of your companions? You can romance them. You can even do an almost entirely pacifist run, if you want to kill as few characters as possible and instead talk your way out of most situations. Even if the turn-based nature of combat usually puts you off, I guarantee you’ll feel right at home very quickly.
If you still haven’t played Skyrim, congratulations! You are one of a very select few people to not experience what many consider to be Bethesda’s best game so far. Personally, I prefer the Fallout series, but when it comes to Witcher similarities, Skyrim’s fantasy setting and dragon-slaying focus make it a much better answer.
One thing The Witcher 3 doesn’t do is give you different ways of completing quests. You’ve got two swords on your back, so you’d better believe you’re going to use ’em to slash through various bad guys and bad ghouls. Meanwhile, Skyrim will let you spec into all manner of combat archetypes. You can be a tank, an archer, a rogue, a bruiser, a mage; the list goes on. And the world of Skyrim itself is so vast, with an indescribable number of secrets to find along the way. Fifteen years on from release, it’s also had countless updates and three hefty expansions to get your teeth stuck into.
1
Gothic 1 Remake
The original Gothic came out in 2001, and at the time, it was praised for its role-playing elements. Since then, CD Projekt Red has said that the first two Gothic games were direct inspirations for The Witcher series. And would you believe it? A from-the-ground-up remake of the first Gothic game was released earlier this year!
The Gothic 1 Remake went under the radar for many because the original is so old and not often considered one of the greatest of all time, but the remake is absolutely stunning and shouldn’t be missed. As Polygon’s Marloes Valentina Stella puts it in her pre-launch preview: “After six hours of playtime, I am weak, broke, and traumatized. Naturally, I cannot wait to spend more time in this glorious hellhole.”