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Continue your old save if you still care about its unfinished story, quests, or choices. Start a regular New Game if you want to replay from the beginning with clean progression. Choose New Game+ after completing the main storyline when you want a fresh campaign that retains skills and items from a previous regular playthrough.
Before deleting anything, load the existing save, read the quest log, inspect the map, and play for a short session. Many “restart” decisions are really problems of reorientation after time away.
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![NAMCO - CD Projekt Red - The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt - Complete Edition, Playstation 5 [English Edition]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51dWUfwFl5L._SL160_.jpg)
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NAMCO - CD Projekt Red - The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt - Complete Edition, Playstation 5 [English Edition] | $36.93 | Buy on Amazon |
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Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition - Xbox One | $27.99 | Buy on Amazon |
The decision at a glance
| Your situation | Best choice | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| You have unfinished quests or still want the current version of the story | Continue the old save | You keep its quest state, choices, character build, inventory and world progress. |
| You want to experience the narrative again with a clean progression path | Regular New Game | You begin at the start without relying on New Game+ carryover. |
| You completed the main storyline and want another campaign with your developed character | New Game+ | CD PROJEKT RED describes it as the mode for starting a new game with skills and items from a previous playthrough. |
| You are changing platforms or installing a current edition | Check transfer and save compatibility first | The exact procedure depends on the platform pair; do not delete the source save until the destination copy works. |
The official New Game+ support guidance is available from CD PROJEKT RED. The mode is not simply a “restart” button: it has a completion prerequisite and a specific save restriction.
What continuing the old save gives you
An existing save preserves the particular playthrough you already shaped. That includes the point you reached in the main story, side-quest status, decisions, relationships, explored locations and character development. If your hesitation is mainly “I cannot remember what I was doing,” continuing is usually less disruptive than replaying the opening hours.
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Reorient yourself before committing
- Load the most recent usable save rather than immediately overwriting it.
- Open the quest log and identify the active main quest, tracked secondary quest and contracts.
- Read the latest quest entries for names, locations and stated objectives.
- Open the map and check the tracked marker, nearby notice boards and fast-travel points.
- Play one short session. If the controls, build and story come back naturally, keep going; if the run feels like an obligation, then consider restarting.
This approach also lets you discover whether the real problem is a forgotten objective, an inconvenient difficulty setting or a build you no longer enjoy. None of those automatically requires abandoning the save.
When an old save is the wrong fit
- You want to make fundamentally different story decisions and do not want to reload dozens of hours.
- You have forgotten so much context that every quest feels like homework after the trial session.
- Your character progression was built around a play style you no longer want to use.
- You want a deliberate second run with a different difficulty, role-playing approach or quest order.
If one of these describes your goal, a clean New Game can be more satisfying than forcing yourself to recover an old campaign.
Regular New Game versus New Game+
Regular New Game
A regular New Game is the straightforward fresh start. You replay the opening, rebuild Geralt’s abilities and equipment and make decisions again without the New Game+ carryover system. Choose it when the journey itself is what you want to revisit, especially if you want your second run to feel like a new interpretation rather than a continuation of a powered-up character.
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New Game+
New Game+ is intended for a new campaign that starts with skills and items from a previous playthrough. CD PROJEKT RED says it becomes available from the main menu after you finish the main storyline. The support article’s wording establishes the broad carryover, not an exhaustive item-by-item inventory rule, so do not assume that every quest flag, recipe, diagram, resource or individual item behaves identically without version-specific documentation.
A crucial restriction is easy to miss: a save that is already in New Game+ cannot be used to start another New Game+ run. You need a save from a regular game. In practical terms, keep the completed normal-playthrough save that you intend to use until New Game+ has been created successfully.
New Game+ availability by edition
For the base version, the official support article says the New Game+ DLC must be downloaded on your platform. The Complete Edition/Game of the Year version has that DLC embedded. If the option is missing, check the edition and downloadable-content installation before assuming the save is defective. The original 2015 announcement described New Game+ as the game’s 16th and final free DLC at that time and provided platform-specific download directions: CD PROJEKT RED’s announcement.
A decision process that matches your reason for restarting
If you mainly want to remember the plot
Try the old save first. The quest log and map can restore enough context to continue without replaying the prologue and early contracts. A regular New Game is worthwhile only if the short reorientation test still leaves you detached from the characters and stakes.
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Use a regular New Game when you want those choices to develop naturally from the start. Reloading a much older save can change one branch, but it may not provide the clean role-playing experience you are seeking. Preserve the old run as a separate save so your first set of decisions remains available.
If you want your developed character again
Use New Game+ after the main storyline is complete and the required DLC is available. This is the case the mode was designed to address. Start from a regular-game save, not from an existing New Game+ campaign.
If you are restarting because of an edition change
Check compatibility before starting over. CD PROJEKT RED’s current game FAQ says save files remain compatible and Cross Progression remains functional following the edition change. It also explains that Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine are included in the base game for players who did not already own the expansions, while existing owners keep their library entitlements. Standalone starts for the expansions remain available from the main menu. See the current game information at the official Witcher 3 page and the detailed expansion FAQ.
What actually carries over in New Game+
The official description confirms skills and items in broad terms. It does not publish a complete category-by-category transfer list in the cited support material. Treat the following distinction as the safe interpretation:
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| Element | What is established | How to plan |
|---|---|---|
| Skills | Skills from the previous playthrough are carried into the new game. | Expect to retain your character development, but review the build before beginning the campaign. |
| Items | Items are described as carrying over broadly. | Do not infer exact rules for every weapon, armor piece, diagram, recipe or resource unless official documentation for your version specifies it. |
| Quest and story state | The support description does not provide an exhaustive transfer list. | Plan for a new campaign’s quest progression rather than assuming completed quests remain completed. |
| Existing New Game+ status | An existing New Game+ save cannot be used to create another New Game+ run. | Retain a suitable regular-game save. |
Make a manual backup or keep an additional usable save before creating the new campaign. That protects the original run if the result is not what you expected.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Moving a save to another platform
Transfer instructions are not universal. The documented PlayStation 4-to-PlayStation 5 procedure is a useful example, not a template for every pair of platforms. For that transition, CD PROJEKT RED instructs players to:
- Update the PlayStation 4 version to patch 4.04.
- Connect both versions to the same CD PROJEKT RED account through My Rewards.
- Create a save on the PlayStation 4 version so it can be uploaded.
- Open the PlayStation 5 version and load the uploaded save.
The full platform-specific directions are at CD PROJEKT RED’s transfer support page. Verify the current instructions for your exact platform pair, keep the source save intact and confirm that the destination version loads before treating the move as complete.
When an edition change is not a reason to restart
The current FAQ states that saves remain compatible and Cross Progression continues to function. Therefore, an upgrade or edition change by itself is not evidence that your campaign must be abandoned. Check the account link, installed content and destination version first. If your old save appears missing, troubleshoot the transfer or profile connection before beginning a replacement playthrough.
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The PC manual includes an Import The Witcher 2 saved game option. It imports choices from The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings into The Witcher 3. If an applicable Witcher 2 save is not present in the relevant folder, the Prologue can simulate those choices. This feature affects background decisions; it does not import an earlier Witcher 3 campaign or restore your old Witcher 3 progress. The distinction is documented in the PC game manual.
Save-management checklist before you restart
- Keep the old save instead of deleting it immediately.
- Create a separate manual save at your current point.
- Confirm whether you completed the main storyline; New Game+ requires that milestone.
- Check whether you are starting from a regular game or an existing New Game+ save.
- Verify the edition and whether New Game+ DLC is installed.
- If moving platforms, link the correct account and follow instructions for that specific transition.
- Load the new campaign once before removing any original files.
Recommendations for common player situations
You stopped after several months with many unfinished quests
Continue the old save for one short session using the quest log and map. Restart only if the story remains incomprehensible or the character no longer feels enjoyable to play.
You finished the main story and want to see more of the game
Choose New Game+ if retaining skills and items is important. Use a regular New Game if you specifically want the challenge and pacing of rebuilding from the beginning.
You are halfway through and want a different romance or political outcome
Start a regular New Game while preserving the current campaign. A clean run makes your decisions coherent from the opening rather than forcing you to reconstruct a branch from an old checkpoint.
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Check the current compatibility and expansion FAQ first. The documented policy says saves remain compatible, so investigate edition, account and transfer status before discarding progress.
You want to replay New Game+ again
Remember the restriction on chaining New Game+ saves. Keep a completed regular-game save available as the source for a new New Game+ campaign.
Bottom line
For most returning players, the least-regret path is to load the old save and test it before restarting. Continue when the unfinished story still matters; choose regular New Game for a genuinely clean replay; choose New Game+ after completing the main storyline when you want the next campaign to retain skills and items. Protect the original save, check your edition and platform requirements, and do not assume that a Witcher 2 choice import or an edition upgrade is the same thing as restoring a Witcher 3 campaign.
Quick Recap
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