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Cyberpunk 2077 sequel gets Fable and Hitman talent – plus first hints at gameplay-Adam Starkey-Entertainment – Metro
Developer CD Projekt has announced a wave of new talent joining the follow-up to Cyberpunk 2077, including the narrative lead behind Fable.
Night City is only just getting started (Picture: CD Projekt)
Developer CD Projekt has announced a wave of new talent joining the follow-up to Cyberpunk 2077, including the narrative lead behind the new Fable.
After confirming the existence of a Cyberpunk 2077 sequel in October, studio CD Projekt has announced the addition of five veteran developers to the team.
The sequel, codenamed Project Orion, is currently in early development at CD Projekt Red North America, with many developers behind the original and its expansion Phantom Liberty leading the project.
As shared by creative director Igor Sarzyński, the sequel has added Dan Hernberg as an executive producer. His past credits include being the head of production at Amazon Games and the lead product manager at Blizzard Entertainment, contributing to titles like New World, Diablo 3, and Apex Legends.
The most significant addition may be Anna Megill as lead writer, who was previously the narrative lead behind the new Fable from Playground Games before she departed last year. Although she claims it wasn’t as a result of issues on Fable, it still seems odd to leave a project so soon before it’s out.
Alexander Freed has also joined the writing team on the sequel, who previously worked as lead writer on various BioWare games, including Star Wars: The Old Republic.
Ryan Barnard, who served as game director at Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft, along with being a gameplay director at Hitman developer Io Interactive, is on board as design director. Mortal Kombat veteran Alan Villani, meanwhile, has joined as engineering director.
‘And here’s our Orion Edgerunner crew,’ Sarzyński wrote on Twitter about the announcement. ‘The amount of talent on board is truly mind-melting. It’s like renaissance but with laser katanas.’
The studio is also hiring for several other positions, with the various jobs listings giving some small hints as to the sequel’s direction.
A post for lead systems designer confirms crafting will return as a mechanic, while ‘crowd and population systems’ will also be a key component.
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It seems there will be a greater emphasis on the open world at large, with a posting for senior quest designer describing work on ‘open world events’.
The original Cyberpunk 2077 largely lacked spontaneous systems or events in the open world, which was improved on in the Phantom Liberty DLC with revamped police, but this might suggest a more reactive world in the sequel.
Another posting also mentions a ‘unique scene system’, which might suggest some overhaul in the way cinematics work.
As production is only just getting underway, it will be a few years before we see anything concrete from the sequel. The original Cyberpunk 2077 had a disastrous launch too, so CD Projekt might give the sequel more time to cook, to avoid a similar scenario.
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