Netflix's fantasy series The Witcher features an interpretation of the franchise's protagonist, charming monster hunter Geralt of Rivia, which takes far more inspiration from the original books than it does the video games. Up until the streaming series' premiere, the CD Projekt Red games were the most popular Witcher adaptations out there. They were so popular, in fact, that many fans assumed that the show would tie in directly to the games. This ended up not being the case.
One of the first clear differences between the Geralt of the games and the Geralt of the show is that in the show Geralt only fights with one sword. In the game series his style of fighting with two swords - one steel for normal enemies and one silver for monsters - is an iconic part of his character and a core gameplay mechanic. Yet in the show, Geralt is seen mostly fighting with just his steel sword. That's not the only difference, either. The Netflix Geralt is much younger than the one from CD Projekt Red's games, and he's less adept with magic and less experienced as a Witcher in general. He also doesn't yet have his iconic facial scar. There's a very specific reason for all these changes, and it comes down to where each of these adaptations falls within the larger timeline of the Witcher franchise.
The video games are a much looser adaptation of the source material than one might originally expect, because it actually takes place after the events of the Witcher novels and short stories. It hews closely to the worldbuilding and lore of the franchise, but charts its own course in terms of story and characters. The Netflix series chose instead to go all the way back to the beginning and directly adapt the first short story collection, titled The Last Wish, which kicked off the entire series. It explains why the Geralts of the show and the games, while still very much the same character, are so different in terms of age and experience.
At this point in the books, Geralt is colder and more closed off from those around him, and Henry Cavill's performance in the show reflects this quite well. The show also depicts crucial moments in the books, such as Geralt earning the title of Butcher of Blaviken, and his first meetings with characters such as Jaskier (Dandelion in the books and games), Yennefer, and Ciri. These moments and relationships are what eventually shape him into the character he becomes by the time of the games. Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich also gives a practical reason for favoring the books over the games. She told TV Guide that, while she and her crew were all big fans of the games, she didn't want her show to end up being an adaptation of an adaptation.
It makes much more sense for the show, which proved to be an entry point into the franchise for many who were brand-new to the world of The Witcher, to want to go back to the original source material and meet characters like Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri at the true beginnings of their stories. Despite this, the Netflix show is still distinctly The Witcher, and Geralt is still distinctly Geralt. As the show goes on and the timelines of the two adaptations draw closer together, there'll no doubt be more and more that fans of the video games can recognize in this version of their favorite monster hunter.