CD Projekt Red Says Cyberpunk 2 Will Use a Different Approach After Cyberpunk 2077 Launch Issues

Version 1.0 is well remembered not only by PC and console players, but by developers as well.

At launch, Cyberpunk 2077 did not run very well. It took CD Projekt RED a long time to polish the game and fix various technical issues. The team has taken this experience into account, so while working on the sequel, they are using not only the new Unreal Engine 5, but also a new development approach.

CD Projekt RED recently published a podcast in which Cyberpunk 2 Creative Director Igor Sarzynski stated that the Boston studio will continue to build upon the workflow improvements introduced during the creation of the Phantom Liberty expansion, noting that the developers “completely changed their approach.”

The developers realized that they used to make overly long-term plans for specific elements. Previously, CD Projekt RED tried to schedule work years in advance in the vein of, “and in 2.5 years, a certain lighting effect will appear right here.”

Now, a hybrid development model is used. The team relies on sprints (short periods of time, usually lasting from 1 to 4 weeks) and milestones. During the process, the creators of Cyberpunk 2 decide whether specific ideas should be implemented:

There are certain stages of the project, sprints, and milestones where a situation arises like: “Okay, we have a lot of good ideas here, a lot of different things, but we need to make a decision. We need to lock this in.”

While creating Cyberpunk 2077, different departments often worked relatively independently, but now various specialists—spanning audio, narrative, visual design, and more—interact closely with each other.

Cyberpunk 2 does not have a specific release date or launch window yet. CD Projekt RED plans to release The Witcher 4 in 2028, meaning the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel should clearly not be expected before 2029.

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