CD Projekt Red has officially ended support for Windows 10 in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The decision could leave millions of players behind when The Witcher 3‘s third expansion launches in 2027, although studio officials say the change may not be as final as it appears.
Following months’ worth of rumors, CDPR formally announced The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past in late May 2026. The company offered few details about the hit open-world RPG’s third expansion beyond a broad 2027 release window and higher PC system requirements for the base game, which immediately listed Windows 11 as the new minimum. However, some fans were confused because the support page announcement used the future tense to describe an event that had already occurred. “Windows 11 will be the minimum required OS for both The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 following Microsoft’s end of support for Windows 10 on October 14, 2025,” read the May 2026 update, whose wording remains unchanged as of late July.
CDPR Technically Already Dropped Windows 10 Support in The Witcher 3
That Said, the Change Shouldn’t Matter Until at Least 2027
In a statement to GameRant, CDPR confirmed that the end of Windows 10 support for both Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3 is already in effect. However, a company official said this only means the developer has stopped testing the games on the older operating system. CDPR is thus no longer guaranteeing that the two RPGs will run on Windows 10, though they may continue to do so, at least for the time being.
A Brief Version History of The Witcher 3 Minimum PC System Requirements
|
May 2015 |
Dec 2022 |
May 2024 |
May 2026 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
CPU |
Intel Core i5-2500K | AMD Phenom II X4 940 |
Intel Core i5-2500K | AMD A10-5800K APU |
No Change |
Intel Core i5-8400 | AMD Ryzen 5 2600 |
|
GPU |
GeForce GTX 660 | Radeon HD 7870 |
No Change |
No Change |
GeForce GTX 1660 | Radeon RX 5500 XT 8GB |
|
VRAM |
Not Specified |
No Change |
No Change |
6GB |
|
RAM |
6GB |
No Change |
No Change |
12GB |
|
Storage |
35GB HDD |
50GB HDD |
No Change |
70GB SSD |
|
OS |
64-bit Windows 7 | Windows 8 (8.1) |
No Change |
64-bit Windows 10 | Windows 11 |
64-bit Windows 11 |
|
DirectX |
DirectX 11 |
No Change |
No Change |
DirectX 12 |
GameRant can confirm that the latest versions of Cyberpunk 2077 (2.31) and The Witcher 3 (4.04) still run on Windows 10 as of July 2026. However, both versions predate Microsoft’s final regular Windows 10 security patch from October 2025. The real test will come when either RPG receives another update, which could prevent players using the older operating system from launching it. Of the two, The Witcher 3 is currently the only one confirmed to receive another update on account of its 2027 DLC. However, with Season 2 of Cyberpunk Edgerunners targeting a fall 2026 release, the Night City-set RPG could actually be the first to receive a patch that officially requires Windows 11.
What’s That Weapon?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)
How Many PC Gamers Could Be Left Behind Once The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past Launches?
PC is estimated to account for nearly half of The Witcher 3‘s 65 million lifetime sales. While Windows 11 became the globally dominant OS back in July 2025, the most recent Steam hardware survey estimates that nearly one in four users on Valve’s storefront, or 23.56%, still used Windows 10 as of June 2026. Although Steam is not the only platform that sells the PC version of The Witcher 3, industry trends suggest it is by far the largest. Applying that 23.56% share to just under half of the game’s lifetime sales produces a rough estimate of more than 7 million potential The Witcher 3 owners still using Windows 10. Should some or all of them be unable to run Songs of the Past, CDPR says they will retain the option to downgrade to an earlier version of the game that remains compatible with their aging OS of choice.
Microsoft Will Keep Supporting Windows 10 with Security Patches Until 2027
But the Windows 10 ESU Timeline Doesn’t Affect CDPR’s Plans
Although regular Windows 10 security updates ended in October 2025, Microsoft initially committed to a 12-month Extended Security Updates cycle before adding another year in mid-2026. The Windows 10 ESU program is thus currently guaranteed to continue until October 2027. However, a CDPR official told GameRant that the extension does not affect the company’s end of Windows 10 support, with the studio having no plans to resume testing future Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 updates on the older OS version.
Source: Steam
