The release of ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ surely has not lived up to the hype that CD Projekt Red has been generating since that first trailer in 2013. The game has had a mixed reception on PC and quite negative on previous generation consoles, until the point that the Polish studio has had to rethink its release strategy for the future.
Through a publication on its official blog entitled “CD Projekt updates its strategy“, the company has confirmed that changes are coming “in the way it develops video games.” These changes will allow CD Projekt “to work on multiple AAA games and expansions in parallel.” They have also announced the expansion of their experience in the area of online games, although from the words of the study it seems that that independent multiplayer that ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ was going to have is a little up in the air.
A new CD Projekt Red
One of the main points of the new version of CD Projekt Red is the purchase of the Canadian Digital Scapes studio. CDPR has been working with this studio for three years, which has actively collaborated in Cyberpunk 2077. They affirm that CDS is a good pillar to constitute CD Projekt Red Vancouver and that this new study will join the three development teams that CDPR already has in Warsaw, Krakow and Wroclaw.
The next point of the strategy is to modernize the “areas for which the CTO (Director of Technology) is responsible”. They claim that REDengine technology, CDPR’s game engine that was used to develop ‘The Witcher 2’ and CyberPunk 2077 (REDengine 4), will “be improved and centralized,” while the studio will be reorganized to focus more on “proactive”. In the words of Paweł Zawodny, CTO and Head of Production at CD PROJEKT RED:
“We want to be sure that we can work with two global brands at the same time, while ensuring the highest quality of our products. We emphasize technological advancements and want to configure versatile teams that combine diverse specializations and competencies. These teams will have the Additional assistance from a group of cross-project experts who, due to their expertise, can contribute to key aspects of development. All of these changes are aimed at allowing us to work on multiple AAA games and expansions in parallel, starting in 2022.“
Single player games will remain the main focus of the Polish studio because, after all, it is where they have experience. Michał Nowakowski, senior vice president of business development and board member of CD PROJEKT, explained that single- player role-playing games “have been, are and will continue to be our priority”, although they see in ‘The Witcher 3’ and Cyberpunk 2077 ‘a huge potential that can be expanded to include new areas, media and types of content.
That’s where online features come in. We have been waiting for that multiplayer of ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ that, in principle, was going to be an independent game. However, his future is up in the air. Adam Kicinski, CEO of the studio, has said that “we previously hinted that our next AAA would be a multiplayer Cyberpunk game, but we have decided to reconsider this plan given our new, more systemic and agile approach.”There are no further details, but the official statement specifies the following:
“CD PROJEKT RED will develop online technologies that can be integrated into future development processes. This technology will drive the online features that the studio will gradually implement for its games. It will also foster the growth of online communities, based on the GOG GALAXY platform, which brings together fans of CD PROJEKT RED video games, as well as external productions”.
That is to say, that although it is true that it is not expressly mentioned that the independent multiplayer of ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ has been canceled, it is suggested that right now it is not a priority, which could lead to delays or, more, to a future complete cancellation. Maybe there are online functions within the game, but we will have to wait to find out.
And speaking of waiting, from the study they have wanted to address the way they advertise games. One of the main problems that ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ has had is that the Polish studio had been generating hype since 2013, launching content pills and giving details with droppers, something that in the end has played against it seen what was seen with the launch of the final version of the game.
From the study they assure that “future marketing campaigns will be much shorter, with promotional content released closer to the actual launch of the given game, presenting its performance on all compatible hardware platforms.” Recall that CDPR never showed the performance of the game on the previous generation consoles, which make up a large part of the current console park, and the results were what they were: bugs, glitches, poor performance and, ultimately, the withdrawal of the game from the PlayStation Store.
Finally, CDPR wanted to address issues related to the employment situation of employees. The implementation of crunch has not been explicitly mentioned, but it has been mentioned that “for years we have underlined our belief that our greatest asset is our team. CD Projekt will continue to be an inclusive and diverse workplace, however we also want to emphasize the physical and mental well-being of our employees and provide them with opportunities for professional and personal development. “There is no mention of what changes will be implemented going forward .
