Gwent: The Legendary Card Game is an upcoming physical version ofThe Witcher 3’sbeloved TCG, and I think that’s a completely justified title. Gwent may not have had the staying power of games like Hearthstone orMagic: The Gathering Arenaas a standalone collectible card game, but when you think about the legacy of Gwent, it’s pretty astounding that a mini-game from an open-world RPG birthed an entire card game franchise, which includes the live service game, theRogue Magesingle-player expansion, andThronebreaker, my favorite Witcher game of all time.
Gwent is indeed a legendary card game, a fact I was reminded of when I sat down for a game at PAX East last month. The physical version of Gwent is an authentic recreation of the original game as you remember it from The Witcher 3, with everything you could ever need to fully experience the game packed into a single box. This is an amazing collectible for The Witcher fans, and the best way to re-experience a fantastic card game.
Welcome Back To The Continent
A lot of digital card games do things that a physical card game could never do, but Gwent translates to tabletop so perfectly, it’s shocking that something like this has never existed before. Gwent: The Legendary Card Game is a complete-in-box deckbuilding game that includes 443 cards, a score tracker, a few handy reminder tokens, and a folding poster that can be used as a playmat as you learn (or re-learn) how to play Gwent.
The five original factions are each represented - Northern Realms, Scoia’tael, Monsters, Skellige, and Nilfgaard - with pre-constructed decks that you can pick up and play right out of the box. If you’re interested in deckbuilding, or even recreating your favorite deck from The Witcher 3, you’ll have plenty of additional cards to work with, all of which are perfect recreations of the original cards from the game.
Sitting down for a real-life game of Gwent is a little surreal. I’ve traveled across the land from tavern to tavern to challenge the locals to a game of Gwent as Geralt, and I’ve spammed more matches of the standalone game on my phone during business hours than I’d like to admit (sorry boss). But sitting across the table from a real person, holding the cards in my hand for the first time, hit me with a huge wave of nostalgia. Even though I’ve played hundreds of hours of Gwent, it took me a moment to remember the rules simply because it’s such a different way to play - even though the game is exactly as you remember it.
And I meanexactly. I can’t say for certain that there have been no balance adjustments (I don’t remember all 120 Gwent cards off the top of my head), but I know the busted ones are still there. Remember Mysterious Elf, the 0-strength spy card? Or Thaler, the 1-strength spy card? Or basically any of the spy cards?
It’s true that the original Gwent wasn’t a particularly balanced game, and if you want to terrorize your friends, you can build all your favorite spy-decoy-revive decks. It’s good that this is an authentic recreation of Gwent just as you remember it, but studio No Loading Games had the foresight to include a variety of game modes and rule sets to ensure this version of Gwent is as competitive as you want it to be, too.
A Thoughtful Physical Port
There are a lot of ways to play this new version of Gwent. The Witcher 3 fans will already be familiar with Classic Mode, which follows the rules and deckbuilding restrictions of the original game. Initiation Mode uses the pre-constructed decks, which is the best way to learn the game and jump in for a quick session. For those looking for a more competitively balanced experience, Advanced Mode adds additional deckbuilding restrictions, limiting the number of special, spy, and medic cards you’re allowed to have in a deck.
Tournament mode uses the Advanced Mode rules in a best two-out-of-three format, with each player building three different decks. There are also rules for 2v2, and a free-for-all multiplayer mode for up to five players. No Loading Games has put a lot of work into making sure you’ll get the most out of this box.
As a TCG fiend, I’m most excited for the Ballad Heroes booster packs. These boosters don’t contain any unique cards, but rather a random set of foil, alternative art cards you can use to glam up your decks. Ballad Heroes was a free DLC for The Witcher 3 that was essentially the same thing, so it’s great to see these chase cards carried over into the physical version.
Note: If you, you can get a free booster pack.
There’s more to be revealed about Gwent: The Legendary Card Game before its August 2025 release, of which I’m sworn to secrecy, but suffice to say, collectors will be very pleased. This is a fantastic tribute to one of my favorite card games, and it feels like it’s everything you could want from a physical card game, other than perhaps a chance to play with Geralt himself.
