"Witcher 4 Director Clarifies: Ciri's Face Unchanged"

The director of The Witcher 4 has clarified that a new video features the same in-game model of Ciri, addressing speculation that her face looked different. Yesterday, CD Projekt released a behind-the-scenes look at The Witcher 4's cinematic reveal trailer, showcasing two brief clips at the 2:11 and 5:47 marks that zoom in on Ciri’s face. Fans noticed a slight difference in her facial appearance compared to the cinematic reveal trailer, sparking discussions and positive comments about her new look.

The initial reaction from some corners of the internet suggested that Ciri's appearance in the reveal trailer was "ugly," leading to speculation that CD Projekt might have altered her face in response to this backlash. However, game director Sebastian Kalemba took to social media to clarify that the developer had not modified Ciri’s in-game model. He explained that the new video showed raw footage without the cinematic enhancements seen in the original trailer.

“The behind-the-scenes video features the same in-game model of Ciri as seen in the original trailer,” Kalemba stated. “We have not modified it. What you’re seeing is raw footage — without facial animation, lighting, or virtual camera lenses. While it’s still in-engine, it represents a work-in-progress snapshot taken before we applied cinematic touches for the purpose of that video. This variation is a natural part of the game development process. At this point, any character's appearance may vary depending on the medium — whether it’s in a trailer, a 3D model, or in-game.”

A commenter on the Witcher subreddit humorously noted, “Redditor discovers the effect that lighting can have on an in-game face model, is confused,” highlighting the impact of different visual elements on character appearance.

The Witcher 4 marks the beginning of a new trilogy set after the events of The Witcher 3, with Ciri as the main character instead of Geralt. In an exclusive interview with IGN before the reveal, executive producer Małgorzata Mitręga explained that Ciri was a "very organic, logical choice" for the protagonist. "It was always about her, starting from Saga when you read it in the books. She's an amazing, layered character. And of course, as a protagonist we said goodbye to Geralt previously. So this is a continuation. I guess for all of us it’s like she was meant to be. That was always her."

Kalemba added that Ciri's younger age offers players more freedom to shape her character compared to Geralt, allowing developers more room to explore her story. Despite potential backlash from some fans about Ciri's role, both Mitręga and Kalemba emphasized that Ciri was always intended to be the lead.

"There was an intention behind this choice," Kalemba said. "It was far from roulette. It wasn't random. I remember we had discussions nine years ago, we were talking about who's next? The very, very instant answer was Ciri. There are many reasons behind that. We've already mentioned a few. But she really deserves a stage and we want players to really experience her story because she has so much to tell, so much to prove. The amount of challenges that are in front of her give us so much amazing energy and fuel to create an epic saga that we had no choice but to go with it. We all felt that this is the way. I believe this is the super right choice."

In January, during an interview with IGN about the upcoming Netflix animated film, The Witcher: Sirens of The Deep, Geralt voice actor Doug Cockle expressed his support for CD Projekt's decision to focus on Ciri. "I'm really excited," he said. "I think it's a really good move. I mean, I always thought that continuing the Saga, but shifting to Ciri would be a really, really interesting move for all kinds of reasons, but mostly because of things that happen in the books, which I don't want to give away because people, I want people to go read. So yeah, I think it's really exciting. I can't wait. I can't wait to see what they've done."

For more insights into The Witcher 4, check out our exclusive trailer breakdown and an interview with CD Projekt where they discuss how they plan to avoid a Cyberpunk 2077-style launch disaster.