Published , by TJ Denzer
Published , by TJ Denzer
CD Projekt Red may have delayed Cyberpunk 2077, but that doesn’t mean the pressure is off the developers to take their time and get the game done at a reasonable pace. The studio has been noted in the past for the strain of development crunch and it would appear it’s going to be the same for Cyberpunk 2077 leading up to its launch. CDPR announced in a recent call that the studio will be crunching even to get Cyberpunk 2077 ready for September.
The reveal came out in a recent question-and-answer conference call with CD Projekt Red Joint-CEO Adam Kiciński, CFO Piotr Nielubowicz, and Board Member and publishing lead Michał Nowakowski. When asked about comparisons between the development cycle of Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077, and about the matter of studio crunch, Kiciński answered that crunch would unfortunately factor into the lead-up to Cyberpunk’s launch.
“To some degree, yes - to be honest,” Adam answered when asked if the development team would be required to put in crunch time. “We try to limit crunch as much as possible, but it is the final stage. We try to be reasonable in this regard, but yes. Unfortunately.”
It’s worth noting that CD Projekt Red has faced criticisms for crunch in the studio’s past when anonymous employees reported stiff working conditions and straining amounts of overtime to company review and search site Glassdoor. Despite this, Cyberpunk 2077 has also been a pinnacle project for CD Projekt Red. With years of development on the studios hands and so much anticipation for the game, it may be safe to say that there’s an astronomical amount riding on Cyberpunk’s success for CDPR.
Even so, the recent delay of Cyberpunk 2077 to September 2020 makes even more sense now. If the studio was going to need to crunch just to get the game out by September (not to mention the multiplayer component, which CDPR revealed in the call won’t be ready till after 2021), then there’s no telling what kind of strain the team would have been under to finish by April.
Stay tuned to Shacknews as we follow this story and further information and developments on the upcoming launch of Cyberpunk 2077.