CD Projekt Red revealed a new approach to developing Witcher 4 after the failure of Cyberpunk 2077.
- CD Projekt Red has switched to Unreal Engine 5 for Witcher 4.
- The game is already running on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
- In case of any error, work stops until it is fixed.
- The release is planned for 2028, promising a vast world.
Michał Nowakowski, one of the leaders of CD Projekt Red, shared in a recent interview with Game Developer what conclusions the studio has drawn after the issues with Cyberpunk 2077 and how these lessons are influencing the current work on Witcher 4.
The public launch of Cyberpunk 2077 in December 2020 was accompanied by widespread criticism for numerous technical failures, especially on consoles. The company was forced to offer refunds to customers and even temporarily remove the game from the PlayStation Store, which severely damaged its reputation.
In response to this experience, CD Projekt Red decided to switch to the Unreal Engine 5. According to Nowakowski, the new engine simplifies early testing and allows for quicker identification of issues across different platforms, which, in their assessment, should ensure more stable performance for the future RPG.
According to current data, two years before the planned release, Witcher 4 is fully functional on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. 'Come to the office, turn on Witcher 4 – it will run on any of these systems,' noted Novakovsky.
If a bug is discovered on one of the platforms during development, the team pauses work on all versions until the issue is resolved. This approach slows down the overall schedule but ensures there are no unresolved issues by the time of release.
Unlike Cyberpunk 2077, where the focus was initially on PC and it was assumed that adapting for consoles would only require lowering graphical settings, CD Projekt Red now considers each platform as equal. This helps avoid repeating past mistakes and rebuilds player trust.
Expectations for Witcher 4
The project launch is scheduled for 2028 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. The studio positions the game as 'the biggest, boldest, and most ambitious' in its history, promising a vast open world, dynamic gameplay, and a deep storyline.
Thus, CD Projekt Red aims to turn the lessons of the past into a foundation for a more reliable and high-quality product that can regain its lost positions in the video game market.
Source: 3DNews
