Cyberpunk 2077 players put on notice as big gameplay changes confirmed

CD Projekt Red has opened up on big Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay changes that happened in development, after seeing some fans were concerned it may suffer as a result. However, one developer has moved to reassure them – making a comparison to The Witcher 3. 

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After being announced 8 years ago, Cyberpunk has faced an awfully long time in development. It’s not all been continuous though, serious waves only started being made after CD Projekt Red wrapped up the critically-acclaimed The Witcher 3 in 2015.

During that period, Cyberpunk 2077 has slowly been revealed through various trailers and gameplay specials. But it’s only natural that things may not have necessarily made it to the final cut.

So, on Cyberpunk’s official Discord channel, the game’s Senior Level Designer publicly addressed the potential of Cyberpunk 2077 undergoing big gameplay changes.

Cyberpunk 2077 dev explains situation

To reassure fans about the status of the game, one of the game’s developers – Miles Tost – has written a statement regarding the game.

Naturally, fans have been worried about the idea of material being cut and how that might impact things for launch, but he’s swiftly moved to reassure the community.

“We never had dual wielding and I have said my words on techie so often; not sure what else to say about it other than that if you unsure, please wait for reviews, check whoever you trust after it launches and get their input. Not every game is for everyone, we don’t have the power to change that, haha. No one is forcing you to buy the game day one and no one at CDPR wants you to be disappointed with a game you might not enjoy.

“Having said that, on the topic of cut features: cutting features and scope is a very normal part of development. You can witness it so openly with our game, because we happily gave in to community wishes and showed you that 2018 demo. Think about it. The game – 2 years from release.

“Of course, we iterate and change stuff and of course we also will have ideas that sound great on paper but then doesn’t end up working out well in the game with all the other features.”

CD Projekt Red outline further delays

Adam Badowski & Marcin Iwiński spoke out to the community today to expand on the further delay and push back of the game’s release. “The biggest challenge for us right now is shipping the game on current-gen, next-gen, and PC at the same time, which requires us to test 9 versions of it (Xbox One/X, compatibility on Xbox Series S/X, PS4/Pro, compatibility on PS5, PC, Stadia)… while working from home.”

We will surely find out more as we approach that revised December 10 launch date, but it’s good to see developers take such a transparent approach with the community it seeks to build.

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The game devs have obviously had huge success with their projects in the past. You only have to look at Witcher 3 to know that, and Tost even used that franchise as an example of how things typically evolve during development.

“Witcher 3 we also cut a ton of stuff, but in the end all of it made the game better – now I understand, this is disappointing for everyone when it happens and also difficult to understand without all the context of development environment, but in this case I just kindly ask you for your trust. Just look at stories of so many other games you might enjoy.”

What it means for Cyberpunk 2077

Game development pretty much equates to that of film development, where plenty of film footage ends up on the cutting room floor. It makes sense that not every feature was going to make it into the final game.

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A potentially risky comment was suggesting that people wait for reviews before buying the game. But the game has already gone gold anyway, which shows the dedication to the game already. So, perhaps CD Projekt Red isn’t too afraid of that. In general terms, cut content – here and there – won’t make a huge difference to the direction or execution of a AAA game.