CDPR tries its hand at F2P with standalone version of The Witcher's GwentCDPR tries its hand at F2P with standalone version of The Witcher's Gwent

Polish developer CD Projekt Red is dipping a toe into the waters of console/PC free-to-play game design with Gwent, a standalone digital version of the collectible card (mini)game in the studio's 2015 hit The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

We already had an inkling that CDPR was interested in producing a digital CCG based on Gwent, but the fact that it's now been pitched to the world as a free-to-play venture is notable -- and perhaps unsurprising, in light of Blizzard's remarkable success with F2P digital CCG Hearthstone. 

CDPR aims to launch Gwent into beta later this year ahead of a full release across PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. It will be the studio's first console/PC F2P game, though it has already tried the scheme on mobile with the (now defunct) iOS/Android MOBA The Witcher Battle Arena. 

Gwent may be entering a slightly crowded market, as Bethesda's own digital CCG, Elder Scrolls Legends, is currently in beta and is also expected to release this year. For more on how the original Witcher 3 minigame was created, check out this talk from the Gwent designers.