The Witcher 3 remastered: CD Projekt Red advises turning off HairWorks for PC performance issues
CD Projekt Red tells PC players of The Witcher 3 Remastered to disable NVIDIA HairWorks amid performance issues.
- A shared comparison showed three settings: HairWorks off, HairWorks on, and HairWorks on with path-traced hair.
- Kotaku also points to the mod Path Tracing and Ray Tracing Optimization (Remastered) as a second temporary fix; modder HourLines says it can be up to 30% more efficient in some areas.
What happened
CD Projekt Red responded to reports of performance problems in The Witcher 3 Remastered on PC with a straightforward workaround: disable NVIDIA HairWorks. The message came through the official Witcher account and was accompanied by a comparison of three hair settings for Geralt.
The comparison reportedly showed how the game looks with HairWorks OFF, HairWorks ON, and HairWorks ON + Path Traced Hair. That makes it clear that the hair setting is playing a concrete role in the game’s current PC performance.
Kotaku also mentions a community mod as a second temporary solution: Path Tracing and Ray Tracing Optimization (Remastered). According to the article, modder HourLines says it can improve efficiency by up to 30% in some areas, although the source does not provide a full test setup or hardware list.
Timeline
29 September 2026 — The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Remastered is released, according to the provided context.
30 September 2026 — Kotaku publishes an article about two temporary fixes for the PC performance issues.
30 September 2026 — The official Witcher account advises players to disable HairWorks until a patch is available.
30 September 2026 — A comparison with HairWorks off, HairWorks on, and HairWorks on with path-traced hair is shared via X/Twitter.
Background
HairWorks is an NVIDIA technology for more realistic hair, but in the provided sources it is explicitly named as a feature that can affect the performance of The Witcher 3 Remastered. CD Projekt Red’s official comparison suggests the studio has identified the issue around that setting.
The second workaround comes from the mod scene. Path Tracing and Ray Tracing Optimization (Remastered) is mentioned in the Kotaku article as a tool for players who want to speed up the remaster on PC. The source cites a possible gain of up to 30%, but does not confirm figures for every system or graphics card.
The available sources do not yet name a fixed date for a patch that will permanently solve the HairWorks issue. However, the reporting says CD Projekt Red is working on further optimizations.
Related GAME-scanner articles
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered divides players over its visual style
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered: the key facts at a glance
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered gets an official list of improvements from CD Projekt
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Remastered gets patch notes with PC and console differences
Sources
- Kotaku, Try These Two Things To Fix Witcher 3 Remastered Performance On PC — 30 September 2026
- X/Twitter, @CDPRED_Support — comparison with HairWorks off, on, and on with path-traced hair
- X/Twitter, @ItsNikfor — shared comparison of the three hair settings