The best Witcher 3 Remastered PC settings depend on one switch: path tracing. It is the most demanding feature in the update and the first thing to turn off if you want a steady 60 FPS. After that, HairWorks and your upscaler mode make the biggest difference. Check which tier your card fits in the Witcher 3 Remastered system requirements, and update your graphics driver before you start, as CD Projekt Red asks.
New Witcher 3 Remastered PC graphics features
- Path tracing for fully traced lighting.
- NVIDIA DLSS 4.5 with Ray Reconstruction.
- AMD FSR 4 with Frame Generation and Anti-Lag 2, on Radeon RX 7000 cards and newer. Older cards fall back to FSR 2.
- Intel XeSS 2.0 with Frame Generation and Low Latency.
- Ray-traced HairWorks for better hair lighting.
- Native DirectX 12 with multithreading, ray-traced local shadows, GTAO ambient occlusion, a new HDR calibration panel and a reworked motion blur.
- DualSense haptic feedback on PC.
The rest of the update, from combat to loot, is in the Witcher 3 Remastered patch notes.
Path tracing performance: RTX 5080 at 4K
Final Boss tested an RTX 5080 at 4K with DLSS Performance:
| Setup | No frame generation | With frame generation |
|---|---|---|
| Path tracing, everything on | about 30 FPS | about 59 FPS |
| Path tracing, HairWorks off | about 44 FPS | about 80 FPS |
| Ray tracing without path tracing | about 55 FPS | - |
Turning HairWorks off alone took the path-traced run from about 30 to about 44 FPS. If you want path tracing on anything below an RTX 5080, expect to need frame generation as well; that matches the path tracing requirements, where frame generation is part of the top tier.
Best upscaler mode: DLSS, FSR 4 or XeSS
- Quality at 1440p or 4K with standard ray tracing, when your card has headroom.
- Balanced for 4K with demanding ray tracing settings.
- Performance for 4K with path tracing.
For a steady 60 FPS: path tracing off, HairWorks off, then the highest upscaler mode your card holds. Add frame generation only if you want path tracing back.
Playing on a console instead? The PS5 and PS5 Pro guide compares the Ray Tracing and Performance modes, and the Switch 2 guide covers mouse and gyro controls.
Witcher 3 Remastered PC settings to change in the menus
- Settings, Video, Interface: hide herbs, boats and corpses from the minimap. This section used to be called HUD Configuration.
- Settings, Gameplay: turn on loot grouping, or turn off the new loot feed.
- Settings, Controls: the new horse control sensitivity slider.
- Accessibility: a new menu that holds the Bard's Ballad preset.
- Photo mode: on PC the mouse cursor now shows in it; the photo mode guide covers every new option.
Graphics mods made for the old version may duplicate the remaster's new textures; read the mods guide before you add them back.
Witcher 3 Remastered PC settings FAQ
What are the best Witcher 3 Remastered PC settings for 60 FPS?
Turn path tracing off first, then HairWorks, and use your upscaler in Quality or Balanced mode. Check your card against the system requirements to see which tier it fits.
Can AMD cards use FSR 4?
Yes, on Radeon RX 7000 series cards and newer. Older AMD cards get FSR 2.
How much does HairWorks cost?
In Final Boss's RTX 5080 test at 4K with path tracing, turning it off raised the frame rate from about 30 to about 44 FPS.