CD Projekt Red has made some of the greatest RPGs of all time. However, their launches aren’t always filled with roses. Cyberpunk 2077, on all platforms beyond PC, was a buggy disaster. The Witcher 3 didn’t launch in the greatest of shape, either. But now, with The Witcher 4 entering proper production, an engine swap hopes to help seal the deal on a successful launch.
‘The Witcher 4’ Is a Huge Shift in Several Ways
In an interview with Deputy Editor of Eurogamer, Chris Tapsell, questions involving the launch of Cyberpunk 2077, The Witcher 3, and other projects were answered by members of CD Projekt Red. When Tapsell asked about the state of the Cyberpunk 2077 launch in this exclusive interview, Charles Tremblay, CDPR’s VP of Technology, offered up this, quoted as saying:
“The first thing I want to say again, to be sure, 100 percent clear, is that the whole team, myself included, are extremely proud of the engine we built for Cyberpunk. So it is not about, ‘This is so bad that we need to switch’ and, you know, ‘Kill me now’ – that is not true. That is not true, and this is not why the decision was made to switch.”
It appears that it’s because of the number of projects currently being developed in-house. That is what’s causing the switch from Red Engine to Unreal Engine 5. Rather than focusing on one project at a time, CDPR is working on The Witcher 4, an unnamed sequel to Cyberpunk 2077, and an undisclosed IP under the codename Hadar.
With The Witcher 4 being years away from a release, it’s hopeful that its first UE5-powered game will be more stable than most. While Unreal Engine 5 is capable of delivering gorgeous graphics, its apparent stuttering issues have plagued many releases. Games like Silent Hill 2 Remake, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, and many more have seen issues on the current generation of consoles.
Something Borrowed, Something New
While the swap from RED Engine to Unreal Engine 5 may scare some, I’m optimistic. The partnership between CD Projekt Red and Epic Games should help tremendously. Or as much as it possibly can be for massive games like this. Fortnite, for example, runs quite well on current-generation hardware. And that’s a massive game that just keeps on growing.
It feels fitting, in a way. With The Witcher 4‘s protagonist swap, it feels somewhat fitting. If we ever want to revisit the world of The Witcher before its Unreal Engine 5 swap, we can easily do so. The Witcher 3 received a massive next-gen upgrade that makes it shine brighter than ever before.
And if you’re playing on PC? There’s a good chance you won’t need to worry much at all. Even at launch, Cyberpunk 2077 was fully playable. It was still littered with more bugs than an exterminator could get rid of in a week. But it was in much better shape than the Xbox One and PS4 versions of the games. Even if The Witcher 4 requires a little TLC at launch, it’s still bound to be one of the biggest and best adventures of all time.
The post “We Don’t Want to Go Back” – ‘The Witcher 4’ Promises New Engine, Bigger World Won’t Ruin Launch appeared first on VICE.
The post “We Don’t Want to Go Back” – ‘The Witcher 4’ Promises New Engine, Bigger World Won’t Ruin Launch appeared first on VICE.
