The Witcher 3's 'cow demon' is being discovered by remaster gamers for the first time

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Remastered has given fans an excuse to play through the game again, but for many it's their first time in the Continent.

As they get to grips with who Geralt is, how to craft oils, and which literary genius wrote the Bloody Baron questline, they’re also learning about the game’s hilarious defence mechanism for extreme cow-tipping.

Now cows are actually the quickest way to make a fortune in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Martin Feuille’s Homestead is the number one spot to farm crowns thanks to its hefty supply of bovine, so it’s not uncommon to find players using the cattle to get ahead in life.

Be warned, however, as the game has an ingenious way of dealing with players who are outright cruel to the animals: the Chort.

Reddit user u/bokin8, perhaps jokingly, made a post outlining what they initially believed to be a bizarre bug.

“Why is this Chort in White Orchard? It's on a rampage … I’m only level 3” read the player’s experience.

As you'd expect, the comments were rife with other players accusing u/bokin8 of being a cow killer.

Joke or not, the post did make me chuckle. It then made me realise hundreds, if not thousands, of new players were about to meet the Bovine Defense Force Initiative for the first time thanks to the remaster.

Simply put, the Chort spawns in when you haphazardly slaughter the local cow population. The beast is immensely powerful, which is why it’s always hilarious to see it tear apart a low-level player. It seems like an obvious callback to games such as The Legend of Zelda, which would send a swarm of angry Cuccos your way if you abused their feathered friends.

Now I myself would never hurt an innocent animal, except for the pig I blew up in my Join Us hands-on preview. I’ve atoned for my crimes since though; I’ve not eaten bacon since out of respect for the poor thing.

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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Remastered standout Easter eggs

The Bovine Defense Force Initiative is just one of the many secrets and Easter eggs new, and returning players are going to find in the remaster.

There’s a Monty Python and the Holy Grail reference found near a cave, with a bunch of bloody, skeletal remains guarded by a white rabbit.

Over in Velen, you can find two angel statues that remain stationary when looking at them, but move when you turn away. These are nods to the infamous Weeping Angels from Doctor Who.

Game of Thrones fans can also find a corpse resembling Tyrion Lannister near Skellige.

My favourite is the Dark Souls-esque bonfire you can find in the Blood and Wine expansion.

There’s plenty to see and do in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Remastered, and now is as good a time as any to play or replay the game.

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