CD Project RED is currently at the height of its success after the studio revitalized Cyberpunk 2077 and sold 25 million copies. Other releases from the developer, including The Witcher 3, have reached similar success, selling over 50 million units.
Much of this entry’s success came from the evolution of RPG elements and the open-world formula compared to prior games, and CD Projekt RED hopes to evolve the already announced Cyberpunk 2077 sequel similarly.
Why it matters: Following recent changes, CD Projekt RED has regained its reputation as a phenomenal RPG developer, leading to high expectations for its future releases once again.
In an interview with PCGamer, the Cyberpunk 2077 narrative director described that the team wants an evolution for the franchise similar to The Witcher IP. He said:
“Consider the Witcher games and how much they changed with each installment. We want a similar evolution here.”
The Witcher franchise has gone through drastic changes over its 15-year-long history.
One significant change was made to the combat. While the franchise originally had a rhythm-like point-and-click approach to battles, The Witcher 2 pushed the series toward a real-time combat system, which was later refined in the latest entry.
Other changes came in the form of the dynamic open world. This was arguably the biggest strength of The Witcher 3, but something that was not always a part of the IP, with earlier games presenting a more linear narrative.
Compared to The Witcher, Cyberpunk 2077 already has an excellent foundation, with CD Projekt RED carrying nearly two decades of RPG experience to the next game. However, there is still a lot of room for improvement.
While Night City is gorgeous, we expect a sequel to present a more reactive and living open world. Despite being full of NPCs, Cyberpunk 2077’s world can sometimes feel numb due to its NPC behavior.
Other elements, like the previously announced subway system and multiplayer game modes, can also be added for an evolution in the next games. Such mechanics were already planned for this entry, but CD Projekt RED later scrapped the systems after the terrible release led to a morale hit for the team.
We believe CD Projekt RED should focus on making the next game’s world more realistic by focusing on NPC interactions and organic side missions that play a part in the overarching narrative.
Side quests could use more work since we found Cyberpunk 2077’s offerings lacking compared to The Witcher 3.
Nonetheless, Cyberpunk 2077 has already made plenty of leaps with the Phantom Liberty expansion. Changes like the rebuilt progression and AI systems have already brought massive improvements to the game.
Therefore, we have faith that CD Projekt RED will deliver a worthy sequel for this beloved franchise.
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[News Reporter]
Bawal is an MBBS student by day and a gaming journalist by night. He has been gaming since childhood, growing fond of the creativity and innovation of the industry. His career as a gaming journalist started one year ago, and his journey has allowed him to write reviews, previews, and features for various sites. Bawal has also been cited in reputed websites such as Screenrant, PCGamesN, WCCFTech, GamesRadar, and more.
