In The Witcher 4, the main character will no longer be a male (Geralt), but a female — players will be offered to take on the role of Ciri. Not all players accepted this creative decision by CD Projekt RED, and disputes on this matter continue to this day on the network.
For this reason, the recent statement by lead screenwriter Philipp Weber quickly went viral in the gaming community. He said that in the early stages of development, he also wanted to see Geralt as the protagonist.
Weber understands the feelings of fans and therefore, he explained, "the task [of the developers]: to show in The Witcher 4 that Ciri will become a worthy main character of the game."
Some female gamers seized upon these words and saw sexism and misogyny in them. Participants in the discussion reminded CD Projekt RED that Ciri was a hero in the books. For example, qelaay spoke out — in her opinion, Ciri doesn't need to prove anything to anyone:
Tell him to shut the **** up and stop pandering to misogynistic losers on the internet. Ciri doesn't need to prove anything. She was already the main character of an entire series of books. Just write a good story for the sake of a good story.
The Witcher 4 does not yet have a specific release date, but the release window is known — 2028. In September of this year, the remaster of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will be released, and next year, the story expansion Songs of the Past (or "Ballads of the Past" in Russian localization) should be released.