During a recent investor call, CD Projekt RED co-CEO Michał Nowakowski said that it is still too early for the company to start talking about the sequel to Cyberpunk 2077. Nowakowski reveals that the company’s game development pipeline usually involves somewhere between four and five years for a title to go from pre-production all the way to its final release date.
“Our journey from the pre-production to the final release date takes four to five years on average,” said Nowakowski when asked about whether the studio’s current development pipeline for The Witcher 4 – which the studio has said won’t come out before 2027 – is also an indicator for what we can expect for a Cyberpunk 2077 sequel.
“Having said that, and keeping in mind that each project is unique and there are many variables that influence the final outcome, I will not lead you into specific years.”
Assuming that the development for The Witcher 4 is currently on track, and the company will be able to make its 2027 release window, the Cyberpunk sequel – codenamed internally as Project Orion – is likely still in its pre-production phase.
It is also worth noting that the studio hasn’t officially announced a Cyberpunk sequel so far. Rather, the few details we have about the game largely come from CD Projekt RED’s attempts to expand its development teams through job postings.
A job posting from back in February for a lead encounter designer indicated that Project Orion will once again feature an open-world. The job posting also noted that the game will feature “the most realistic and reactive crowd system in any game to date.” As for the job itself, the lead game designer will be in charge of developing experiences that can offer “divergent experiences” for players that decide to go with multiple play styles.
Another job listing, also spotted in February, indicated that Project Orion will once again go with a first-person perspective, much like its predecessor. The job listing was for a senior gameplay animator. Potential applicants would have to provide “an animation reel demonstrating immersive 1st person view model animation,” which indicates that the company will once again be opting for first-person gameplay.
Cyberpunk creator Mike Pondsmith noted earlier this month that we might get to see a new city in the game’s sequel. In an interview, Pondsmith mentioned that the new city would feel like “Chicago gone wrong”, rather than the Blade Runner-inspired vibes that Cyberpunk 2077 went for with its setting of Night City.
“There’s another city that we visit. Night City is still there, but I remember looking at it and going, ‘Yeah, I understand the feel that you’re going for, and this really does work,’” said Pondsmith. “And it doesn’t feel like Blade Runner. It feels more like Chicago gone wrong. I said, ‘Yeah, I can see this working.’”
In the meantime, CD Projekt RED is currently gearing up for the release of Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition as one of the launch titles for the Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5.