Rock Paper Shotgun attended a Gamescom preview of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's upcoming expansion, Songs of the Past, but came away more impressed by the combat overhaul in the game's free Remastered edition, arriving on 29th September ahead of the paid expansion. The preview, run jointly by CD Projekt Red and co-developer Fool's Theory, spent much of its time showcasing reworked combat, movement, UI and role-playing systems in the base-game remaster rather than the expansion itself, suggesting the free update could prove the more compelling draw for lapsed players.

Combat in the Remastered version reportedly looks noticeably more fluid, with smoother combos, faster strikes and improved camera targeting during group fights, addressing a long-standing criticism of the original 2015 release. Songs of the Past introduces a new silver chain weapon enabling dramatic finishing moves, alongside a new region called Letten, new monsters such as Thornblooms and Swarmions, and a plot hook built around the disappearance of Dandelion. However, the reviewer felt the expansion's narrative purpose remains unclear and that its content, while competent, didn't stir as much excitement as the remaster's combat improvements.