CD Projekt RED is Stepping Up It’s Game
CD Projekt RED, the people behind the landmark Witcher games and the rocky launch of Cyberpunk 2077 have released an investors update as of the day of this writing. Instead of a traditional private investors call, CD Projekt decided to publicly post their plans moving forward on their site and YouTube channel.
With today’s investor presentation, CD Projekt RED mentioned several new game projects. Along with these games, Pitor Nielubowicz, CFO of the company, also announced that they would be partnering with Epic Games to work within the Unreal Engine. No more RED Engine for now, which was the basis of Cyberpunk 2077’s framework (and possibly its unstable launch).
Here Comes The Witcher!
There are at least five Witcher games being worked on with one being developed by an unnamed third party studio, as well as a sequel and DLC to Cyberpunk 2077. These projects go as follows:
First is Project Sirius, which will be developed by CD Projekt’s own Boston based studio “The Molasses flood”. This is a new game set in the Witcher universe that’s currently in pre-production, with around 60 developers on the project. It’s said to be an “innovative” and story driven take on the Witcher universe.
Project Polaris, developed by the core CD Projekt RED team, will be a new Witcher trilogy. Set in an open world RPG with all three games set to release in a 6 year period. This project is also in pre-production and has around 150 developers currently involved.
Project Canis Majoris, is a story driven open world RPG to be developed by a third party studio. The studio is not named, but is mentioned to have ex-Witcher dev veterans on the team. It sounds like this studio may have more leeway on this game than their in-house developer.
Project Orion, the big boy Cyberpunk 2077 sequel that will push the potential of the Cyberpunk universe. This along with Project Polaris will be developed by CD Projekt RED’s core studio.
CD Projekt RED will also be working on a new IP with Project Hadar, a standalone IP different from Witcher and Cyberpunk. Project Hadar will be developed entirely within CD Projekt RED’s own studio. It’s currently in its concept phases being led by a “small strike team” as described by CD Projekt in their presentation today.
As for what currently exists, Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer has been canceled indefinitely. However, CD Projekt plans to add multiplayer to “most” future titles.
Bringing Boston Some Love With “The Molasses Flood”
In addition to the Boston based studio opened last year named “The Molasses Flood”, CD Projekt will open a new studio HUB in Vancouver, and Boston, branching out in North America. Why’s their studio called the molasses flood? It’s a Boston thing, I think Sam O’Nella explains it best if you’re interested.
CD Project has also seen growth and interest in its Cyberpunk IP. Say what you want about how bad the launch was handled for Cyberpunk 2077. But now, with the launch of Cyberpunk Edgerunners on Netflix, the game has exploded in popularity. CD Project RED boasted that Cyberpunk 2077 has sold over 20 million lifetime copies. This comes with the more recent concurrent player count numbers on Steam sitting over 100 thousand. In the same press release, CD Project has announced plans for further expansion into TV, and other media. Expect more Netflix shows and maybe some YouTube shorts to go with these games going forward. Maybe you can get a plush of your favorite Edgerunners character in the future.
I’m looking forward to seeing what all these projects will bring! It especially excites me to see more game studios being opened in Boston, my own home city. I have high hopes for the growth it will bring to game development in North America. With luck, CD Projekt RED is set to become one of the biggest game companies in the world. They’ve shown their hand, now they just need to play their cards right.
