The Witcher 3's first new quest in years is genuinely amazing

In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, in a muddy corner of the war-torn Velen, there is a pit. The Devil’s Pit, they call it, although you’ll see there’s nothing particularly evil about it if you happen upon it on your travels.

Aside from a gang of bandits that can be quickly sliced apart by Geralt, the only other thing of note in this pit is a mysterious door. This door that has remained firmly locked for seven years - until now. What’s behind it? A brand-new quest, arguably one of the best in the entire game.

You may have heard me waxing lyrical about The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt’s masterful new-gen update before now. I’ve been busy devouring the game (for I think the fourth time) on PlayStation 5, and I’m amazed by the amount of work that has gone into what is a free patch. We’re talking improved textures, smoother gameplay, better framerates, faster loading times, and so much more.

Developer CD Projekt RED had also promised ahead of launch that we’d be getting new quests and items inspired by Netflix’s The Witcher, although I hadn’t dared expect much. But as it turns out, the quest to get the armour Henry Cavill’s version of Geralt wears goes above and beyond anything you’d ever imagine a free update could offer.

The new quest is called ‘In the Eternal Fire's Shadow’, and it sees Geralt travel to the mine at the bottom of The Devil’s Pit to discover what evil has been locked away there. I won’t go into too much detail about what happens, but you can expect about 30 minutes of brand-new content that gets right to the heart of what always made The Witcher 3 such an amazing game.

CDPR could easily have just popped Henry Cavill’s Witcher outfit in a trunk at the start of the game and had us go on our merry way, but they managed to take this crossover and turn it into a gripping quest about long-forgotten secrets. There are two brilliant (and genuinely hard) boss battles, some tough choices to make, and the usual unintended consequences. The mine itself is also brilliantly creepy, and hearing the inimitable Doug Cockle put in another turn as Geralt is an absolute joy.

If you love The Witcher 3 but you’ve been wondering whether or not it’s worth jumping back in for this new-gen update, I promise you you’ll want to at least check out this new quest. ‘In The Eternal Fire’s Shadow’ is a short-but-sweet ride, and one of 2022’s most delightful surprises.