The Witcher 3: Wild Huntis a dazzlingly large game filled to the brim with unique NPCs, villages full of life (or death, if a griffon got there first), and strangers more than willing to drop everything they’re doing to play a round of gwent. It’s possible to spend over 100 hours exploring from the gray shores of Skellige to the bustling streets of Novigrad and not experience everythingThe Witcher 3has to offer.
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However, when you’re spending hours slaughtering drowners for the thousandth time or sauntering around White Orchard to find an old woman’s frying pan, you’re able to’t help but wonder what else this game could have given players. What could Geralt be doing (or killing) if he wasn’t so busy doing fetch-it quests? These 10elements cut from the game(as revealed by CD Projekt Red leaks) will certainly have you wondering that, too.
10Ciri’s Imposter
Ciri’s Imposter (or False Ciri, as she’s known among fans) is a Cintran girl descended from nobility bearing a resemblance to our unique-looking heroine. In the books, she takes on Ciri’s identity and lives out her life married to Emhyr, playing the part of Empress so the real Ciri can live how she desires.
Ciri’s Imposter was originally meant to appear in the Skellige Isles, probably to make Geralt’s search for the real Ciri more difficult. However, her appearance was cut altogether, probably to raise the stakes on Ciri’s “to be an empress or not to be an empress” dilemma. Still, it’s easy to imagine how entertaining a questline searching for a false Ciri would’ve been.
9Hanged Men
Hanged Men originate from Polish mythos as demons who were hanged during war, presumably as prisoners or for deserting.The Witcher 3’s world is as war-torn as they come with the Nilfgaardian Army on their imperialism kick. There are no doubt plenty of unfortunate souls who could have turned into Hanged Men throughout the game.
These creatures were supposed to appear inThe Witcher 3but were cut from the game completely. In a fight, Hanged Men were meant to suffocate the player, either with their hands or with the rope around their own necks. It’s a shame that a monster with such a unique fighting style never made it into actual gameplay.
8A Scorned Water Hag
An abandoned sidequest featured a water hag who would actually talk to you! In a quest called “Whispers Under The Bridge,” White Orchard locals complain to Geralt of weird sounds coming from underneath a nearby bridge. After investigating, Geralt discovers a water hag who tries to strike a deal with the witcher. She requests that Geralt bring the husband she had had in life to the bridge so she could confront him for cheating.
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The quest had multiple possible endings. In one, you refuse and immediately fight and kill the water hag. However, if you bring her husband to her, she drowns him and disappears forever. As a witcher, there aren’t a whole lot of opportunities to actually talk to the monster you’re hunting, so cutting this interesting sidequest from the game is definitely a disappointment.
7Geralt, The Cat Whisperer
Now, this cut quest is quite a bit more lighthearted than the last one. In a quest titled “The Thing in the Attic,” Geralt follows magical notes that a drunk sorcerer left in a tavern. On his quest to find the magical artifact mentioned in the notes, Geralt eventually finds himself at one of the most powerful magical intersections in all of Temeria.
Knowing that entering such a magically-dense place would be fatal, Geralt decides to herd cats to the site so he can be granted safe passage. There’s obviously a lot to unpack with this one. Why are cats so great at absorbing magic? Where does Geralt even find these cats? Is Geralt asbad at rounding up cats as Cloud is? Does he lure them with tasty treats, or go for the classic “pspspsps” method? And why would this quest ever be cut?
6Bruxae
With superhuman agility, the power of invisibility, immunity to magical tracking, and a plain old nasty bite, bruxae prove to be horrifying to witness and challenging to duel. When the lanch trailer titled “A Night to Remember” was first released, fans were enchanted by the CGI fight scene depicting Geralt in a deadly dance with a bruxa. However, bruxae were nowhere to be seen in the vanilla version ofThe Witcher 3, to many fans' disappointment.
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CD Projekt Red fixed this in the Blood and Wine DLC, making one of the most important characters in the expansion a bruxa–and the exact same bruxa from the original launch trailer, to many easter egg hunters' delight.
5Really Honest Children
Have you ever had a kid tell you straight up to your face that they think you’re a weirdo? Well, apparently Geralt has. In a cut sidequest, Geralt is called names by young village boys from White Orchard. After making rude comments about his appearance and calling him a freak, Geralt decides to confront them about it. After a bit of back and forth, the boys become more interested in his crossbow than his cat eyes, asking him to do various trick shots around the village.
Wholesome quests like this help the player relax from the high-stakes world ofThe Witcher 3. Plus, seeing Geralt awkwardly interact with kids could make anyone smile. Cutting quests meant for comic relief is a definite disappointment for those of us who just want to see Geralt have a nice day for once.
4Rat Wizards
Yes, you read that right: rat wizards were cut from the game. No, not like theweird rat-wielding pope fromA Plague Tale, although there are a few similarities. Rat wizards were meant to be the ghosts of sorcerers that could summon rats and breathe flies, making for both horrifying and hilarious sounding enemies.
What’s so unfortunate is that we were so close to getting to battle rat wizards, too. They were pulled out of the game right before release for “unknown reasons,” though readers can probably imagine a few.
3Plague Questline
Throughout the game, you learn that the Catriona plague is ravaging Northern Temeria. Although Kiera Metz has the opportunity to develop a cure, the plague does not have much importance story-wise. However, there was meant to be a rather lengthy questline involving the Catriona plague.
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Originally, Geralt and fan favorites Iorweth, Roche, Ves, and Thaler were to form a shaky alliance in search of a cure. Meanwhile, the questline would have explored in more depth Nilfgaardian attitudes and the lengths they would go to preserve law and order. This questline was cut late into development, even though it was meant to be an important part of the overall story.
2Mula
Mula, a vampiric demon from Romani lore, was originally meant to be a male counterpart to bruxae. This mountain-dwelling demon is one of the few vampiric creatures that can go out during the day, making them super dangerous enemies.
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Slow but powerful, mula are highly aggressive and fly into a blood rage if they snag a bite of Geralt. Additionally, with the intelligence of a higher vampire on their side, mula sound like a fierce tank we were probably better off not having to fight. Still, it would’ve beat fightinganotherdrowner.
1Breakfast At Kaer Morhen
What’s better than breaking dramatic tension for some eggs? Yennefer is a hardworking sorceress, and she needs an omelet!
During Uma’s Trial of Grasses, Yennefer spends hours upon hours working tirelessly to lift Uma’s curse. In a cut errand, a romanced Yennefer complains of hunger and requests an omelet made by Geralt. Not only is it wonderfully ridiculous in context, but watching Geralt fumble around trying to scramble eggs is absolutely delightful. This errand made it all the way to beingfully rendered, voiced, and playable,but was removed sometime before release. Maybe the story is better off withoutGeralttrying to tell a pan from a pot, but it’s still a shame we couldn’t laugh at his expense.
NEXT:10 Unresolved Mysteries & Plot Holes Left Hanging In The Witcher 3
