When Stephen Hawking passed away almost three years ago, he left behind a legacy of revolutionary thinking in astrophysics and a life story that would inspire pretty much anyone. But according to a recent statement from the Stephen Hawking Foundation, there’s one way the genius’s legacy was also sadly incomplete: He passed away with a mere 91% completion rating for CD Projekt Red’s The Witcher 3.


For Stephen Hawking’s admirers, knowing the inspirational figure came up short in the 2013 RPG classic seeking out some Places of Power and rare Gwent cards goes to show that even great geniuses struggle to finish everything before their time is up.

Now, none of this is to understate the scope of what Hawking did in his lifetime: It’s an incredible accomplishment just to get this far in The Witcher 3 when most novice gamers simply push through the game’s main story arcs while brushing aside the majority of Witcher contracts and side missions. In fact, what’s most tragic about all of this is realizing that the author of Brief History Of Time finished both the “Of Swords and Dumpling” and “Master Armourers” side quests without ever uncovering most of the game’s Bear Armor diagrams.


It’s heartbreaking to imagine how unfulfilled Hawking must have felt as he took his final breath knowing full well that there was a small corner of the Skellige Island’s mountainside that he hadn’t yet explored. It was probably a small solace to know that he had overcome debilitating ALS to inspire millions worldwide while transforming astrophysics with his prediction that black holes emit radiation, especially given that his place in history would forever be haunted by that 9% of The Witcher 3’s rich world that he had failed to fully explore.

In a press statement, Hawking’s estate stressed that the famous physicist had been committed to maxing out Geralt during his life, spending hours every night in his Cambridge study and often prioritizing game sessions over family responsibilities and research into black-body radiation. In fact, in the months leading up to his death, Hawking apparently became obsessed with finding a way to retry the failed “Cave of Dreams” quest, unwilling to accept that this one misstep on his Death March difficulty playthrough would forever cost him completion perfection.


It’s sad to say, but many gamers will no doubt question what they ever found inspiring about Hawking’s life story now that they know he came up short in parts of the Novigrad fistfight circuit.

Thankfully, the late science icon’s foundation appears to be taking these concerns seriously and has already announced plans to spend $3.5 million setting up a charitable foundation to help kids around the world attain a 100% rating in CD Projekt Red’s upcoming Cyberpunk 2077. Here’s hoping that means no one will ever have to experience the searing disappointment Stephen Hawking must have felt at the end of his life.