Witcher 3 Switch 2 patch rolls out today with a number of changes, including alterations to resolution and “visual clarity”

CD Projekt Red is currently rolling the promised Switch 2 patch for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Remastered, addressing a number of issues in the game.

The headline changes are adjustments to image sharpening and resolution to “improve visual clarity and fidelity” – changes that have resulted from players saying the game looked blurry to them, particularly when played in handheld mode.

There are also, as we’ve seen in patches for other console versions of the game, changes to lighting in the game to reduce some of the brightness caused by the Remastered edition – one of the main areas of contention since its late September release.

The full list of changes in patch 5.01 for The Witcher 3 Remastered are as follows.

Gameplay

• Fixed an issue where the “Automatically Apply Blade Oils” feature would work only if enabled during the current game session.
• Fixed an issue where, under specific circumstances, player-controlled boats could start moving uncontrollably and ignore terrain collisions.
• Improved ladder interaction animations.
• Fixed an issue where Geralt would collide with dead enemies after the Aard finisher.
• Fixed an issue where Vesemir would repeat a line if Quen was cast multiple times.
• Fixed an issue where dodging could have an unintentionally delayed response.
• Fixed an issue where it was possible to throw a bomb even if the option is disabled.
• Fixed an issue where the bonus granted by the Synergy skill displayed incorrect values.
• Added damage reflection to the Exploding Shield skill.
• Fixed an issue where Geralt’s Stamina would be fully drained when sprinting and dodging at the same time.

UI

• Fixed an issue where the “You’ve gained an ability point!” pop-up could stay stuck on the screen.
• Fixed an issue where input hints flashed for a brief moment on the meditation screen.
• Fixed an issue where the Potions tutorial didn’t appear after accessing the Consumables tab.
• Fixed some misaligned progress bars in the UI.

Visuals & Performance

• Made various visual adjustments, including improvements to Bloom, tone mapping, character lighting, Ray Tracing, and Path Tracing.
• Added Bloom, Light Shafts, and Depth of Field options to the graphics settings.
• Made various optimizations to improve performance.
• Fixed an issue where Dynamic Resolution Scaling could cause visual artifacts in certain configurations.

Audio

• The fix for voiceover audio becoming significantly quieter than other in-game audio after navigating through the pause menu tabs is now also implemented on consoles.

Nintendo Switch 2-specific

• Made adjustments to image sharpening and resolution to improve visual clarity and fidelity.
• Fixed a rare crash that could occur when changing between in-game regions.
• Optimized cache handling for Cross-Platform Mod Support.
• Fixed an issue where HD Rumble could only be felt in the left Joy-Con 2 when climbing a ladder.
• Fixed an issue where map pins could be placed on the black bars surrounding the map.

Other

• Due to backend issues, the policy consent screen will appear again. You’ll need to confirm your preferences once more. Choosing to opt in helps us improve the game.
• Fixed an issue where My Rewards and Twitch/Bilibili Drops wouldn’t appear in the chest in Vizima if it had been opened previously. As a result of this fix, some of the items may be duplicated. Consider them a bonus!
• Fixed an issue where foliage did not react to collisions.
• Fixed an issue that could affect save file data and added measures to address saves that may have already been affected.
• Ukrainian text localization is now available in all regions.

The Witcher 3 Remastered update overhauls the 11-year-old role-playing game, visually modernising it as well as adding new animations and tweaking some gameplay systems, including skills and enemy behaviour. It prepares the way for the new Witcher 3 expansion Songs of the Past, due to arrive next year, and is an extraordinarily generous upgrade in its own right.