CD Projekt Red has confirmed that its newly revealed expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, titled Songs of the Past, will require Windows 11 as a minimum operating system when it launches in 2027. The announcement marks the first time a major studio has drawn a hard line on Microsoft’s latest OS for a AAA title, effectively making Windows 11 a compulsory upgrade for millions of PC gamers.

Songs of the Past is a full-fledged narrative expansion set decades before the events of the base game, casting players as a young Vesemir in his early monster-hunting days. It will release simultaneously on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, with no last-generation console support. The PC version, however, is the only one that carries the Windows 11 stipulation—a decision that has already ignited fierce debate among the community.

Official System Requirements Revealed

Alongside the announcement, CD Projekt Red published the full PC specifications. The requirements are steep, even by 2027 standards, and they unequivocally demand Windows 11 64-bit.

Minimum (1080p, 30 FPS, Low Settings)
- OS: Windows 11 64-bit (version 24H2 or newer)
- CPU: Intel Core i5-14600K / AMD Ryzen 5 7600
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 / AMD Radeon RX 8600 XT / Intel Arc B770
- RAM: 16 GB
- Storage: 100 GB NVMe SSD (PCIe 4.0)
- DirectX: Version 12 Ultimate with Shader Model 6.7

Recommended (1440p, 60 FPS, High Settings, Ray Tracing)
- OS: Windows 11 64-bit (version 24H2 or newer)
- CPU: Intel Core i7-14700K / AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 / AMD Radeon RX 8900 XT
- RAM: 32 GB
- Storage: 100 GB NVMe SSD (PCIe 5.0)
- DirectX: Version 12 Ultimate with Shader Model 6.7

Ultra (4K, 60 FPS, Ultra Settings, Path Tracing)
- OS: Windows 11 64-bit (version 24H2 or newer)
- CPU: Intel Core i9-14900KS / AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 / AMD Radeon RX 8950 XTX
- RAM: 64 GB
- Storage: 100 GB NVMe SSD (PCIe 5.0)
- DirectX: Version 12 Ultimate with Shader Model 6.7

The omission of Windows 10 is no accident. The game’s engine takes full advantage of DirectStorage 2.0, which leverages the NVMe protocol and GPU decompression to eliminate loading screens almost entirely. “We’ve built Songs of the Past around the I/O advances in Windows 11,” lead engine programmer Jakub Wójcik said during the reveal stream. “DirectStorage, improved memory management, and the new WDDM 4.0 driver model are foundational. Trying to backport this to Windows 10 would have meant compromising the vision.”

Windows 11 Baselines Are the New Normal

The Witcher 3 expansion isn’t the first game to require Windows 11, but it is the highest-profile title to do so. Previously, only a handful of indie and VR titles had made the jump, but CD Projekt Red’s decision signals a tipping point. With Windows 10 reaching its end of support in October 2025, game developers are increasingly comfortable leaving the decade-old OS behind.

DirectX 12 Ultimate, which includes features like mesh shaders, sampler feedback, and variable rate shading, has been a Windows 11 exclusive since late 2025. Songs of the Past uses all of them extensively, particularly mesh shaders for the sprawling open world, where draw calls can be reduced by up to 40 percent compared to traditional rendering. The expansion also employs the Windows 11 exclusive Auto HDR and latency improvements from the Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling that comes baked into the OS.

For CD Projekt Red, the move is about future-proofing. The studio’s technical director, Paweł Zawodny, told attendees at a closed-door press event that “the Red Engine is being pushed further than ever. We’re not just adding content; we’re re-architecting the renderer, the streaming system, and the physics simulation. All of that relies on kernel-level changes only available in Windows 11.”

What It Means for Gamers

The announcement puts a hard deadline on holdouts: if you want to play Songs of the Past on PC, you must be running Windows 11. According to the latest Steam Hardware Survey for January 2027, approximately 38 percent of users still have Windows 10 installed—down from 55 percent two years ago, but still a sizeable audience. Those users will need to upgrade, and that means ensuring their hardware meets the TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot requirements that Windows 11 enforces.

Fortunately, by 2027, most gaming PCs on the market have long since cleared that bar. Any system built with a Ryzen 2000 series or Intel 8th-generation processor or newer officially supports Windows 11, and third-party tools to bypass the check have become less necessary as Microsoft has relaxed some restrictions via its Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC loophole. Still, users with older custom builds or those who have deliberately avoided the upgrade for performance or UI reasons will face a choice: move to Windows 11 or miss out.

The community reaction has been a mix of resignation and outrage. On forums, some users praise the focus on bleeding-edge tech, while others accuse CD Projekt Red of forcing unnecessary obsolescence. “This is Cyberpunk 2077 all over again, but we’ve had six years to prepare for Windows 11,” one user wrote on the game’s subreddit. The reference is to the 2020 launch of Cyberpunk 2077, which notoriously ran poorly on last-gen consoles and older PC hardware. This time, however, the requirements are clear from the outset, and the studio has had ample opportunity to optimize.

A Ripple Effect Across the Industry

The Witcher’s stature means other publishers will likely follow suit. Square Enix already hinted that the next major Final Fantasy title will be Windows 11 only, and Electronic Arts’ upcoming Mass Effect 5 is rumored to drop Windows 10 support in its final build. If Songs of the Past is a commercial success—and early pre-order numbers suggest it will be—Windows 11 will become the de facto baseline for AAA PC gaming overnight.

NVIDIA and AMD are also aligning their driver stacks. NVIDIA’s Game Ready drivers now offer AI-enhanced texture streaming that relies on Windows 11’s new GPU Virtual Addressing, while AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution 4.0 leverages the OS’s improved temporal accumulation. Both companies have confirmed that future major driver releases will be Windows 11 exclusive.

Preparing for the Transition

For those still on Windows 10, the upgrade path is straightforward but requires planning. Microsoft offers a free upgrade to Windows 11 for any system with a valid Windows 10 license, and the installation process has been streamlined to preserve personal files and most settings. Gamers should verify that their SSD is formatted with the NTFS or ReFS file system and that their BIOS is set to UEFI mode with Secure Boot enabled. A clean installation is recommended for the best performance, especially on systems that have been upgraded multiple times over years.

Storage is another concern. The NVMe SSD requirement—a first for a non-VR game—means that traditional SATA SSDs will not be sufficient. PCIe 4.0 drives are now standard in mid-range systems, but users with older PCIe 3.0 SSDs may experience stuttering during fast travel or cutscene transitions. The game is designed to stream assets at 7 GB/s, a figure achievable only with the latest Gen4 or Gen5 drives.

The Bigger Picture: Innovation Over Compatibility

CD Projekt Red’s decision is emblematic of a broader philosophical shift in game development. For years, PC games were held back by the need to support a wide range of configurations, often at the expense of innovation. By locking to a modern OS with a unified driver model and mature APIs, developers can push boundaries without worrying about fragmentation.

“We’re not abandoning anyone,” Zawodny said. “The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will continue to receive maintenance updates on all platforms, including Windows 10. But for Songs of the Past, we’re building something that couldn’t exist without Windows 11. It’s a creative choice, not a marketing one.”

As the release date nears, more technical breakdowns will emerge, but for now, one thing is clear: the PC gaming landscape is about to change. Windows 11 isn’t just an option anymore—it’s the price of entry for the next generation of interactive storytelling.