There are some evergreen games that just end up going far beyond sales expectations. Grand Theft Auto V, for example, is still featured in best sellers lists, having surpassed an utterly insane 180 million copies in its lifetime. And although the vast, vast majority of titles released today could never even dream of reaching that kind of figure, there are games that, every now and again, push well past what's considered normal in the 'AAA' sphere.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is one of those games. The open world RPG, which first released in 2015, has now topped 50 million units, which comfortably places it alongside some of the highest selling titles of all time. It's a staggering achievement, and it's no wonder developer CD Projekt Red wants to expand the franchise going forward.
Of course, The Witcher 3 has — much like Grand Theft Auto V — benefitted from generational re-releases. Just last year, Geralt's highly rated adventure was ported to current-gen consoles, including the PS5, while the PC version was updated with all of the same improvements. This move saw The Witcher 3 once again skyrocket in popularity, and will have no doubt helped the game reach its new sales total.
Did you ever think The Witcher 3 would sell so well? Take on another contract in the comments section below.
[source twitter.com]
Comments 39
It's one of the best games of last gen. I truly hope the next installment will be on par, but we'll see.
That's an incredible number of sales. Wow!
Fully deserved. My favourite game ever and a genuine masterpiece
Probably my favourite game ever. Can't believe I've only played it 3 times.
The game was a masterpiece and was the first PS4 game I really got cracked out on.
500 hours total over three playthroughs.
Actually it’s the only big open world game I’ve ever played through multiple times.
@Uncharted2007
I don’t have the highest hopes.
I think it was a one time thing unfortunately considering how Cyberpunk turned out.
To be fair to Cyberpunk, it’s a much better game now than it was in December of 2020. But it still isn’t what CDPR promised us a decade ago.
I won’t be buying 4 on day one, that’s for sure.
@KaijuKaiser
I think that’s why I have such fond memories of it. It was the last game I really got to sink that much time into. It was the only game I played in 2015. I was working full time but my schedule was so open back then compared to today. I wasn’t mentally exhausted all the time.
So on a Saturday I’d play Witcher 3 from 7am until probably 9pm. And because I on weekdays I worked evening shift I always got four hours every morning to play it.
Now with much more responsibility and working a morning into the evening shift I just don’t have the time or even willpower to do that anymore.
I'm just finishing up my playthrough of the current gen version having done it twice on PS4 before. I was curious if I'd love it as much a few years later and yep, still one of my favourite games ever.
Eager to see how the remake of the original turns out, plus the new game too.
It was one of the very best games released last generation and it certainly deserves such success. Its one game I'd love to replay but I don't really have the time to do so anymore 😕
Triss is better.
Genuine question: Is this one of those games that is really only enjoyable if you get attached to characters and storyline in games?
I'm the type of gamer who skips cutscenes and doesn't read more than necessary. I only care about gameplay, so games like Skyrim hold no appeal, while I do like Dark Souls because the lore can be fully ignored by people like me who just don't care.
Where on the spectrum is The Witcher 3?
A brilliant game that deserves the hype. I urge anyone who loves the Witcher to do themselves a favour and read the books! They're incredible and well worth your time.
One of the few negatives I found about the Witcher 3 and it is a major one: the leveling system. If you play the game blindly and miss a mission, you would hardly gain any XP. What got me is how awesome the story is. I just finished Scarlet Nexus which is one of the worst, dumbest, and convoluted plots I've ever seen in a AAA title. Witcher 3 is the polar opposite. His quest/storyline with the Bloody Baron is one of the few times I've actually paid attention to 20 - 30 minutes of dialogue and plot. Witcher 3 also has some of the best side quests you'll see in a game. Tons of great characters, great storylines, awesome writing, fun gameplay, awesome open world and affordable and awesome DLC made Watcher 3 one of the best games of the PS4 era.
@sketchturner This won't be for you.
It's no RDR2, but it's certainly up there. Those frequent £5-£10 priced sales def had a positive impact. I was over the moon to get the standard edition for £4.99 on the PS store before the free PS5 upgrade.
That's more than Skyrim and that game has been milked to death.
@sketchturner
It has a great gameplay loop (with slightly awkward combat; even back in 2015 we all recognized that) but the story, the characters and their arcs and development, and the world building are all top notch.
You actually get invested in the fate of the world and the crazy amount of things that are happening there. The world building is that good and it’s my favorite part of the game.
It has wonderfully written side quests; probably the best in the RPG genre.
I will say that the main plot sort of meanders at the half way point for a while. But overall it’s very strong overall.
And the characters are all wonderful. Well the Wild Hunt (the overarching villains) are kind of lame but the smaller side villains and the protagonist characters are all wonderfully written and has great arcs.
Sold well, i disliked this game. But maybe it needed a few patches. I dunno.
A great achievement for any game, and this is single player only
Single
Player
Only.
If anything, there's too much good stuff in the one game (and DLC's) so it's good that people like us rebuy it and it keeps selling to new players too. It's at least 3 AAA games worth of content, world's, characters, and more.
Passion projects in gaming are so cool. More of those please
Laughs in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
I was enjoying playing this on the ps5. I waited patiently for what seemed like forever for the ps5 upgrade and i jumped in straight away...and then it crashed and it was my first ever ps5 hard crash and all my progress was wiped out. I just could not be arsed to start over again.
For me it's the best PS4 game ever. Finished 2 times and doing a 3rd run on PS5 version. A 10/10 game, truly must-play of the last generation.
Unlike GTAV you didn't have to buy the game again, it was a free next-gen upgrade.
I bought it, but never got around playing it because of everything I heard about its combat being mediocre.
I still don't get how it's that highly regarded.
How many of those did you buy @ShogunRok ? You like it too much to not have gifted it to at least a few people while it was on sale for $15. 😉 That's what I paid for my PS4 copy - worth every penny and more - but my kid waited for the PS5 upgrade and now they're busy doing other stuff, don't think it's ever gonna happen. Probably for the best, they're much more into faster combat. And even the PS5 version is gonna look kinda boring brown compared to FF16. 🤷♂️
@naruball If you don't get it, maybe you should play it then!
That's insane numbers.
I tried to get into it 3 times but I just couldn't. I'm glad everyone else enjoys it
@ApostateMage 3 times? Yeah I can't believe, I must have beat it 5 times and it's not my best ever but it's up there, you ain't a true fan haha.
@naruball Yeah combat is pretty standard, it's not that bad it's just, a beast like Bloodborne with its highly satisfying typical FromSoft combat released that same year making TW3's look just okay. But it just does everything right with storytelling, characters and colourful graphics, so yeah still one of the best of all time.
Really impressive sales. Though unfortunately it was an average game for me, storytelling was amazing but combat was poor.
One of my favorite games, if not my favorite game, of all time! You love to see it! Got the platinum 5 times and might give it another go.
For the record I absolutely be this will become reality.
Welcome to the Family
PlayStation x CD Project Red
Think I've bought the game 4 times, I'm part of the problem 😂
I'm interested in playing. Do I need to have played the previous games to start this one?
@JoeyTS but I can't convince myself to play a game with average combat, when I haven't played games with good gameplay (e.g. Devil May Cry 5). I always find myself playing something I feel I'll enjoy more.
This is a great game, no doubt. But the number of times it's on sale for £4.99 or £6.99 with all DLC has definitely inflated those sales. Personally I've triple dipped to have it on PS, Xbox and PC for that price.
I was very late to the Witcher 3 party, always wanting to play it, but so many other games taking my time.
Finally I decided to give it my full attention when the PS5 version came out.
This made me realize that I was putting off one of the best games I’ve ever experienced.
Curious question: Why does the official artwork show Geralt holding his sword and sheath like that? It’s always on his back in the game.
@naruball The Witcher 3 is the 3rd most awarded video game of all time just under The Last of Us 2 and Elden Ring. If you don't get how it is so highly regarded, don't think it isn't in your power to find out.
I honestly tried to get into it 3 times. Twice on PS4 and once on PC. To me gameplay/combat is King. I felt that part was lacking so each time after about 20-25 hrs in, I put the game down. But I don't doubt the quality of it and am not blind to why people love it. 50M in sales is well deserved and hope fans get an even better release next time
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