Co-CEO of one of Europe’s most celebrated RPG studios, CD Projekt Red, is hoping that The Witcher 4 can change the minds of fans who are still burned up over Cyberpunk 2077‘s historically bad launch.
Cyberpunk 2077’s launch dealt a big blow to CD Projekt Red’s reputation
It’s no secret that Cyberpunk 2077 had perhaps the worst launch in the history of video games when it was released in 2020. Leading up, it was one of the most highly anticipated games ever and promised to deliver a sci-fi adventure the likes of which have never been seen before in the medium. When it finally dropped after years and years of hype, gamers quickly ran into a slew of bugs and glitches that made the game borderline unplayable, especially on some older platforms, and a storm of disappointment and frustration was hurled CD Projekt Red’s way.
In the years to follow, CD Projekt Red did a brilliant job fixing up Cyberpunk 2077 with a 2.0 update and the Phantom Liberty expansion that made the game feel more like what gamers were promised in 2020. This helped the studio claw its way back into the favor of gamers as it prepared to reveal The Witcher 4 in late 2024.
Can the witcher 4 complete Cd projekt red’s redemption?
Many gamers would argue that CD Projekt Red has redeemed itself after fixing up Cyberpunk 2077 to the extent that it has, but the studio’s CEO Michal Nowakowski would hesitate to agree. In an interview with Edge Magazine, Nowakowski shared his skepticism that the studio is back in everybody’s good graces, as he believes there are still a sizable portion of gamers who are still upset at the studio over Cyberpunk 2077‘s disastrous 2020 launch.
“I’m convinced we lost the faith of some people indefinitely, and that’s a fair thing… I do hope we will be able to make it back – if not with The Witcher 4, then with whatever comes next.”
The Witcher 4 is CD Project Red’s next big RPG, and despite the debacle with Cyberpunk 2077, it’s one of the most highly anticipated upcoming fantasy RPGs next to the likes of Bethesda’s The Elder Scrolls 6 and Xbox’s more imminent Fable reboot. It’s important to remember that CD Projekt Red had a ton of goodwill stored up from The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which was considered by many to be a masterpiece and one of the best RPGs ever made. While Cyberpunk 2077 squandered a lot of that goodwill, the Ciri-led follow-up to The Witcher 3 has an opportunity to win back the former fans of the studio who still haven’t let CD off the hook.
If The Witcher 4 does manage to meet gamers’ expectations and win back all the rest of CD’s lost fans, it would put the studio in a much better position moving toward its next big RPG, which very well might end up being Cyberpunk 2077‘s sequel. If everything goes smoothly for CD, hype for Cyberpunk‘s follow-up could near pre-2020 levels once again. A 2.0 update and DLC are one thing, but a whole new game launch in The Witcher 4, if it lands right, could be the medicine Nowakowski and CD Projekt Red need to bury 2020 in the past for good.
The Witcher 4 is in development for Xbox, PlayStation, and PC.
The post CD Projekt Red CEO Hopes The Witcher 4 Brings Back the Fans They Lost Because of Cyberpunk 2077 appeared first on VICE.
