The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, even after almost a decade since its release, still keeps players engaged thanks to its amazing open world filled with great storylines and characters. Earlier this year, CD Projekt Red also released a modding kit to make the game more accessible to modders.
One of the latest mods that’s grabbing everyone’s attention is called Sail Big Ship by the user TrickArrant. This mod offers players a chance to experience something new in Geralt’s world by sailing a full-size ship, similar to what you might see in Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag.
Witcher 3’s Modding Community Is Thriving
This mod is especially impressive because it takes advantage of the game’s REDkit modding tools, pushing the limits of what can be done within the game. However, while the mod is a unique addition, it comes with its own rough edges, which the creator jokingly refers to as “jank.”.
We used to have a saying during the development of The Witcher 3, "no one touch the boat script, it's going to explode any minute!"
— Philipp Weber (@PhiWeber) August 30, 2024
This makes a mod like this even more impressive! https://t.co/VSG2rwdpg4
CD Projekt Red’s own developer, Phillip Weber, took notice of this mod, reminiscing about the challenges they faced with the boat scripts during the game’s development. The fact that modders are now able to create such ambitious projects is a nice representation of the REDkit modding tools, which were launched earlier this year in May.
Unlike the original modkit released back in 2015, which allowed for minor tweaks, REDkit lets players create new quests, items, and even landscapes, similar to Bethesda’s own modkit.
Speaking of the mod itself, it allows players to pilot large ships that were originally just static objects in the base game, adding to the exploration of places like Novigrad and Kaer Trolde.
But it’s not without its challenges. The mod layers these big ships over the default rowboat, which means there are some unusual behaviors to watch out for. The ship itself has some collision issues, as players can swim through the sides of the boat because only the deck has collision detection.
Despite these issues, the mod does offer a fresh way to explore the game, even if players need to suspend their immersion a bit and get on with the jankiness.
The Evolution of The Witcher 3’s Modding Tools
When The Witcher 3 was first released, it came with a modkit that allowed players to make small changes to the game, like swapping objects or adjusting item stats. But for more complex modifications, third-party tools were necessary.
This all changed with the release of REDkit, a much more powerful toolset that lets users create entirely new content within the game.
CD Projekt Red had previously stated that they weren’t planning to release REDkit for The Witcher 3, but they eventually did, much to the delight of the modding community as it made things drastically easier for them.
The release of REDkit has led to a big surge in creative mods, with projects like this one showcasing what can be done when players have the right tools.
It’s clear that even years after its initial release, The Witcher 3 is still evolving, thanks to its dedicated community of modders. Whether or not this will lead to a Skyrim-style modding boom remains to be seen.
According to CD Projekt Red, The Witcher 4 is now in full production as well, along with the sequel to Cyberpunk 2077.
Have you tried out the game’s mods for yourself? Let us know in the comments!
