The best mods for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Geralt of Rivia has been in our midst for four years now, so let's take a look at the best mods for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
The Witcher 3 is one of the best RPGs out there and still looks incredible on PC, but if you have grown weary of watching Geralt’s beard quivering in the wind then perhaps it’s time to install a few mods.
Mods can do weird and wonderful things to games, as well as make enhancements to combat, environmental textures and other things that the community thought was lacking.
There are mods that allow you to fast travel from any point on the map, ones that show every single object if you like to really test your eyesight, and mods that make The Witcher 3 a bit of a gore fest.
We’ll also take a look at how you go about installing mods if this is your first foray into modding a game. Let me be the first to congratulate you on choosing the correct game to mod.
The Witcher 3: best mods
How to install mods
The easiest way to install mods would be to use the Nexus Mods Manager. It goes as far as installing any updates to the mods you use and makes the whole process a bit less daunting.
You can also install mods manually if it’s something you feel confident in doing and could use something like Script Merger to make sure you don’t accidentally break your game forever.
The Witcher 3 HD Reworked Project
Depending on your set up, you might already be playing on ultra high settings and getting the best out of The Witcher 3. This mod enhances the textures environment around you and that of some animals and creatures, making The Witcher 3 feel even more real.
These fine touches really make cutscenes all the more vibrant and realistic as the textures of wooden houses, rocks and plants have been improved.
This mod reminded me of one from TES 4: Oblivion in that it just makes everything that bit sharper and more pleasant to look at.
This mod is as simple as it is brilliant. It removes the requirement of visiting a signpost in order to fast travel. Instead, you can choose a point on the map and transport there no matter where you are. Stuck in a boat off the coast of Ard Skellig? Just open up your map, choose a destination and away you go.
The Witcher 3’s map is busy as it is and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the volume of activities. For those of you who are easily distracted from the main quest by side missions, this could be the mod for you.
This mod allows you to select and track more than one quest at any given time. You can also change your priority task from the map instead of going through the quest log.
Merchant locations can also be cached to make them easier to find.
Now that you’ve sharpened up your surroundings and fast travelled back to the mainland, it’s time to install a mod that lets you soak up the world around you.
Friendly Meditation lets you meditate in real time, watching the weather change and the sun rising or setting. Many players complained they missed this feature and didn’t like just watching the hands on the sundial move forward, so this mod is perfect if you want to watch the world go by as you rest.
Photo modes are increasingly popular in triple-A titles these days. My favourite one can be found in God of War where you can force Kratos to have an overbearing grin.
While you can’t pose Geralt with this photo mode, you can freeze the game and spawn certain weather conditions to add some flair. The camera spins 360 degrees and you can even make yourself and the HUD invisible to capture the perfect shot.
Even the most experienced Witchers occasionally forget to oil their sword before combat. This mod scans the enemies around you and applies the appropriate oil to your sword. All you need to do now is draw your sword, hit Quen and dive into battle.
If - like me - you simply must pick up every lootable object in sight, then this mod will make the task less laborious.
You can filter what kinds of items you want to automatically pick up and what you want to leave behind, so you won’t end up with as much junk in your inventory. Or, you can set it to pick up everything because you’re a hoarder and that’s how you like it.
It’s only logical, then, that we include a mod that will let you carry everything you want. By now you’ll have found a decent amount of merchants and can fast travel directly to them to sell off your goods.
These mods are very useful in the opening hours of The Witcher 3 as you’ll have loads to trade and can earn a lot of gold quite quickly.
This mod was created by one of The Witcher 3 devs, Andrzej Kwiatkowski. It comes with a bunch of tweaks, nerfs and buffs that make the game much more balanced but also far more dangerous.
If you’re looking for a good overhaul of the major systems in The Witcher 3 then this mod is perfect.
I’ve put as many hours into playing Gwent as I have the main storyline and side quests in The Witcher 3. It can be slow at the start to build up a decent deck and not lose to every merchant you plays a quick round of Gwent with you. Luckily, this mod turns the Bloody Baron’s quartermaster into a Gwent card dealer who sells almost every card in the game.
Now you can smash the Baron and whoever else decides to challenge you at Gwent and become the Gwent master you always wanted to be.
Critical slow motion combat mod
If you want to savour the moment when Geralt successfully decapitates a bandit, then look no further than this mod.
When Geralt lands a critical hit, time slows down to show off how brutal his attacks can be. You could pair this with KNGR's More Blood mod which makes a bit gory mess. Brilliant.
If playing on Deathmarch isn’t enough for you, then you might want to check out this mod.
Enemies of Rivia scales up enemy combat to a ridiculous degree. As enemies level with you, they’ll display new combat behaviours and attacks, making battles much more challenging and varied.
If you’ve managed to bag Grandmaster Ursine gear then this mod is really going to shake things up for you as you won’t be anywhere near as overpowered.
The CD Projekt Red E3 2014 showcased a battle between Geralt and a water hag with what was deemed the perfect dodge system. For one reason or another, the dodge system was overhauled for release, adding in a few more pirouettes and flair.
This mod recreates the dodge system from the E3 showcase, keeping the rest of the combat much the same. It makes targets easier to hit as Geralt and his sword are always pointing forward, as opposed to rolling away and facing the other direction accidentally.
Eating food during or after battles is a great way to regain health, particularly if you have the Gourmet perk active. You can always hunt game and sell their meat for a small profit.
If you're tired of running around looking for animals to kill, this mod will increase the loot dropped by animals. You could end up with half a dozen bear skins in one go, so it's lucky you installed that weight increase mod early, eh?
If repairing weapons is too laborious a task for you, then this mod should make your playthrough a little easier. The entire weapon degradation system is pulled from the game with this mod, which means you won't need to waste precious kits on repairing broken weapons before selling them.
It's a relatively small change in comparison to some of the other mods on this list, but it's a welcome one nonetheless.
The Witcher 3 Enhanced Edition
If you've played through New Game+ on Deathmarch a few times and are looking for an even bigger challenge, then check out the Enhanced Edition mod.
It adds new animations, new ways to charge and flank your enemy and even new ways to parry. Every attack has a chance of causing you and your enemy an injury, so you might end up with a broken arm or leg depending on what happens.
You'll also see major changes in alchemy, signs, the levelling up systems and certain items. It's a big mod so we'd recommend making sure you have no other mods installed before attempting to install the Enhanced Edition. We don't want you to break your game.
Evergreen list
The best games of each platform
- Best 3DS games
- Best PS4 games
- Best Xbox One games
- Best PC games
- Best Nintendo Switch games
- Best free Steam games
- Best Epic Game Store games
- Best free PS4 and Xbox One games
- Best PS4 exclusives
Best of series and misc