CD Projekt wants to use AI in development ‘but not replace people’
New Witcher game also enters pre-production
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CD Projekt’s new joint CEO Adam Badowski revealed plans to incorporate AI into the studio’s development cycle and also offered updates on the upcomingTheWitcherandCyberpunk 2077sequels.
In aninterview with Reuters, Badowski revealed that CD Projekt has formed a team to look at the applications of AI for game development. “We think that AI is something that can help improve certain processes in game production, but not replace people,” said the joint CEO.
Badowski also dropped some hints as to how the nextWitcherandCyberpunkare doing. CD Projekt aims to start production on ‘Polaris’ - the codename for the nextWitchergame - this year. “We’d like to have around 400 people working on the project by the middle of the year,” elaborated Badowski.
TheCyberpunksequel, codenamed ‘Orion,’ is still in its conceptual phase according to CD Projekt’s other joint CEO Michal Nowakowski. That said, the studio’s aim is still to have 80 people working on the project by the end of the year. Reuters also reported that CD Projekt was considering the inclusion of multiplayer elements for theCyberpunksequel, but gave no further details.
Badowski was also keen to stress that the studio had learned lessons fromCyberpunk 2077’s tumultuous, bug-ridden launchback in 2020. “We believe that in the future we’ll avoid a premiere like the one we faced withCyberpunk 2077,” he said.
CD Projekt isn’t the only game developer to announce a turn towards AI in recent days. Japanese industry powerhouse Square Enix recentlyannounced its intention"to be aggressive in applying AI and other cutting-edge technologies to both our content development and publishing functions."
This isn’t CD Projekt’s first foray into the world of AI either.Cyberpunk 2077’swell-receivedPhantom Libertyexpansionused AI toreplace a deceased voice actorwho played Viktor Vektor, one of the game’s key supporting characters.
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Whatever shape this new push towards AI takes for CD Projekt, we sincerely hope it doesn’t lead tomore layoffs like we saw last year.
CD Projekt is responsible for some of thebest RPGsandbest story gamesever made.
An editor and freelance journalist, Cat Bussell has been writing about video games for more than four years and, frankly, she’s developed a taste for it. As seen on TechRadar, Technopedia, The Gamer, Wargamer, and SUPERJUMP, Cat’s reviews, features, and guides are lovingly curated for your reading pleasure.
A Cambridge graduate, recovering bartender, and Cloud Strife enjoyer, Cat’s foremost mission is to bring you the best coverage she can, whether that’s through helpful guides, even-handed reviews, or thought-provoking features. She’s interviewed indie darlings, triple-A greats, and legendary voice actors, all to help you get closer to the action. When she’s not writing, Cat can be found sticking her neck into a fresh RPG or running yet another Dungeons & Dragons game.
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