I'm still not convinced The Witcher 3 Songs of the Past is worth pasting

What the report says

Since the persistent rumours of a cheeky extra DLC for The Witcher 3 turned into confirmation from CD Projekt Red that such a thing is on the way prior to The Witcher 4, there's been a nagging voice in the back of my mind. On one hand, Songs of the Past is more of an RPG I love, the kind of unexpected gift it seems foolish to have reservations about getting a decade and change on from release. On the other, The Witcher 3 in its current form has long felt like as close to the ideal complete package as you can get.Going into last night's opening salvo of Gamescom, I was expecting that the DLC's full reveal might dispel my concerns, getting me fully on board with the idea that, yes, Geralt does need one last ride before Ciri takes over going forwards.

Instead, I'm still in two minds.The trailer for Songs of the Past that the studio showed off, which you can watch above, is perfectly fine. Here's Gerry, armed with a chain like the one he wielded all the way back in the first Witcher game's opening cinematic, heading off to the brand new region of Letten to battle tree-shaped monsters amid rural celebrations and get to the bottom of a cursed garden's dark secret. As intriguing a setup for a Witcher adventure as ever there's been, though not one which necessarily screams grand finale for a beloved character at the top of its lungs.Of the details released about the expansion thus far, the aspect that gesticulates most convincingly in that direction is the fact CD Projekt have revealed that Letten is the homeland of Dandelion, bouncy bard and Geralt’s long-established best mate.

The Witcher series' classic odd couple going off on one final jaunt that fills in more backstory for one of them, possibly while leading Geralt to properly contemplate what he'd be giving up by retiring, would fit the mold of one last hurrah, and a reason to return to a story which already had a fitting conclusion. Given that, it's surprising that Dandelion didn't feature in this Songs of the Past reveal trailer, unless the frilly sleeves on the monster Gerry fights around the halfway point are his, with the witcher instead looking like he's flying solo.

Key details

The DLC's Steam description does at least stress that "the fate of the entire land, and even Geralt’s closest friendship" are at risk, hinting that Dandelion will indeed have a key role to play."We had this idea for one more story with Geralt for a while, but we couldn't quite figure out how to fit it into our busy schedules," CD Projekt Red level design lead Miles Tost said on stage following the trailer. "Luckily, our friends from Fool's Theory came around and they hired a bunch of old veteran Witcher 3 developers, including my mentor Péter Gelencsér, and here we are today." He didn't have much more meat to put on the bone of what was being revealed, though he did note that Letten is "an almost uncannily idyllic place" despite the whole dark secret thing and that the studio are seeking to "go out with a bang" in what they're openly billing as "Geralt's last adventure" before Ciri steps into his boots.

1 of 4 Caption Attribution While the idea for Songs of the Past might have been floating around since around the time The Witcher 3 first came out - the DLC's website notes it was "first envisioned almost 10 years ago" - I'm left wondering what it can offer that the Blood and Wine DLC hasn't as The Witcher 3's swansong expansion for the past decade. I'm not alone in thinking Gerry's trip to Toussaint and acquisition of a vineyard to serve as his retirement digs is an ideal way to sign off his long monster hunting and magical daughter raising journey.

"It's a story about a man who has already had his last big adventure, and is more interested in giving him something hitherto impossible - a place to happily retire, if he chooses," Richard Cobbett put it in our Blood and Wine review. "Brick for brick, Toussaint is Geralt's perfect resting place - wine, women, respect, beasts for if he gets bored, and the political stability to be able to just sit back and let the world worry about itself for a while."Finding a neat and satisfying stopping point in a beloved multi-part series is far from easy, just ask the writers of Game Of Thrones or quiz Sopranos creator David Chase about how much he loves constantly having to justify how he wrapped up his tale of wiseguys and whackings.