The Witcher 4 has been named Most Wanted Game at the Golden Joystick Awards 2026, giving CD Projekt Red another major vote of confidence before the highly anticipated role-playing game reaches players. But for the team building it, the award is not simply a victory lap. Production director Malgorzata Mitrega used the acceptance moment to recognize the considerable expectations facing the studio as it prepares the next mainline entry in one of modern gaming's most acclaimed RPG series.
Mitrega accepted the honor near the close of the ceremony, shortly before Resident Evil Requiem was announced as the event's overall big winner. The Witcher 4 prevailed in the Most Wanted Game category over fellow contenders including Fable and Resident Evil Veronica, a result that illustrates how closely fans are watching CD Projekt Red's next move.
While accepting the award, Mitrega called it a "huge, huge honor" for the developer. She also made clear that the recognition carries weight. In her view, the studio understands the responsibility attached to the award and is putting its skills, passion, and sustained effort into delivering the game when the moment is right.
An Award That Raises the Stakes
Most Wanted Game is a uniquely consequential category for a project like The Witcher 4. It is not an assessment of a finished release, nor is it a retrospective celebration of a game players have already spent hundreds of hours with. It is an expression of anticipation. That means it reflects faith in the developer, attachment to the series, and curiosity about what comes next.
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For CD Projekt Red, that anticipation exists on an enormous scale. The previous mainline Witcher game remains a defining open-world RPG for many players, praised for its quest design, characters, atmosphere, and the way its choices could make even comparatively small stories feel personal. Building a successor inevitably means confronting the legacy of that work without merely repeating it.
That is why Mitrega's focus on responsibility is especially notable. The team is not entering the project without awareness of the standard players expect. A Most Wanted Game award offers a welcome boost to a development group, but it also publicly confirms that the audience is waiting for something exceptional.
"This is a huge, huge honor for us, but it's also a great responsibility. We all know it," Mitrega said while accepting the award.
Her remarks framed the recognition as fuel for the long process of development rather than a reason to become complacent. She described moments like the award win as a powerful lift for the team's stamina as it works toward delivering the game at the appropriate time.
Following a Landmark RPG
The challenge for The Witcher 4 extends beyond the usual sequel expectations. The series has become inseparable from Geralt of Rivia for a large portion of its audience, and its most recent mainline installment left a lasting cultural footprint. Any new chapter must carry forward the world, tone, and storytelling appeal that brought so many people to the Continent while establishing a compelling identity of its own.
That task involves more than producing a bigger map or more elaborate combat encounters. The Witcher's reputation has been built on morally complicated situations, character-driven drama, folklore-inspired monsters, and choices that often resist simple ideas of right and wrong. Players will likely be looking for that same sense of consequence and texture in the new game, whether they are longtime fans of the books and earlier titles or people whose first connection to the universe came through the later games.
The Golden Joystick result suggests that the appetite for another major Witcher adventure remains strong. At the same time, enthusiasm is not a substitute for development time, careful production, or creative decisions that fit the series. Mitrega's comments acknowledge that distinction. The studio can appreciate a high-profile award while remaining focused on the difficult work still required.
A Wider Witcher Commitment
The Witcher 4 is not the only way CD Projekt Red is expected to engage with the franchise in the coming years. The studio is also preparing Songs of the Past, new DLC planned for 2027. That expansion places the company in a position where it is not only moving the series forward through a new mainline project, but also returning to an established era of the saga.
Expanding a beloved game years after its original release presents a different kind of creative responsibility. The material needs to feel meaningful to players who already know the world and its characters intimately. It also has to respect the performances and narrative foundations that helped make the prior experience so memorable.
One detail surrounding Songs of the Past highlights the care that can be required. CD Projekt Red has confirmed that it worked with an AI company to refine Geralt's Polish voice for the DLC after voice actor Jacek Rozenek experienced changes to his voice following a stroke in 2019. Crucially, the work went forward only after Rozenek himself gave approval.
That context matters. AI-assisted voice work remains a sensitive subject throughout entertainment and game development, particularly where a performer's likeness, voice, consent, and livelihood are involved. In this instance, CD Projekt Red's stated approach included obtaining permission from the actor directly. The goal was to support the Polish portrayal of Geralt while recognizing the circumstances surrounding Rozenek's health and performance history with the character.
For fans, it is a reminder that preserving continuity in a long-running game series can involve personal as well as technical considerations. Voice performances are a central part of how players remember characters. Any effort to revisit or extend those performances needs to be handled with care, especially when it concerns an actor whose work is so closely associated with a major protagonist.
CD Projekt Red's Growing RPG Future
CD Projekt Red is simultaneously shaping multiple large-scale RPG ambitions. Alongside The Witcher 4, the company is also working toward Cyberpunk 2. Its expanding development plans have recently included the addition of three former leads from Kingdom Come: Deliverance, bringing more experienced RPG talent into the wider organization.
That growth speaks to the scale of CD Projekt Red's ambitions, but it does not remove the pressures surrounding The Witcher 4. If anything, it makes production discipline and clear creative leadership even more important. Large projects require teams with a shared understanding of what the final experience is meant to be, while a franchise with this level of affection needs decisions that are confident without taking its audience for granted.
The studio's present situation is therefore defined by both opportunity and scrutiny. The Witcher 4 has already earned a prominent public endorsement at the Golden Joystick Awards. Songs of the Past represents an upcoming return to existing Witcher material. Cyberpunk 2 points toward another major future for the developer. Taken together, those efforts show a company planning around its biggest RPG worlds at once.
What the Most Wanted Win Really Means
A Most Wanted Game award cannot predict exactly how a final release will be received. It does, however, establish a clear message: players are eager to see what CD Projekt Red creates next in The Witcher universe. That enthusiasm is valuable, especially for a team working through the long and demanding process of making a major RPG. Mitrega described the recognition as a boost, and it is easy to understand why an award of this kind could energize a development team.
Yet the more important message from the acceptance speech was the emphasis on accountability. The Witcher 4 is being developed in the shadow of a beloved predecessor, under the attention of a vast fanbase, and amid heightened industry conversations about production practices and the responsible use of emerging technology. There is no simple path through those expectations.
For now, the Golden Joystick win gives The Witcher 4 a prestigious early milestone. It confirms its place among the industry's most anticipated upcoming games and gives CD Projekt Red's team a moment to celebrate. The real measure, as Mitrega indicated, will come later: when the studio is ready to put the finished game in players' hands.
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