CD Projekt Red Forcing Crunch Time For Cyberpunk 2077
Easily one of the biggest video game titles that fans are anticipating is CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077. This is from the same folks that brought out The Witcher trilogy which proved that the studio can make a compelling RPG title. Cyberpunk 2077 is their next big video game after The Witcher video games and we’re thrilled to get a chance to enjoy the game when it launches in November. However, it looked like the studio was having some issues getting the title out into the market as Cyberpunk 2077 did get a good share of delays.
Cyberpunk 2077 was last delayed into November and it looks like the studio is prepping to get the game out into the marketplace this time around. In fact, there is plenty of talk in the past of how the studio has a complete game but was more or less getting the final pieces together such as eliminating bugs or glitches. In the past, CD Projekt Red seemed like a studio that wouldn’t fall into the realm of other companies that forced employees through the crunch, but now a new report is coming out that the studio is doing just that.
Crunch is an ugly term that most studios hope to avoid. Overall, crunch refers to development studios working long hours with very few breaks. Some studios are a bit bad at this as well which forces employees to endure these poor conditions without offering much more in terms of pay or job security. As mentioned, there were reports that Cyberpunk 2077 wouldn’t put the studio in a crunch, but a source to longtime video game industry insider, Jason Schreier, has revealed that the studio is putting employees into six-day workweeks. According to the report, it seems that the studio is at least paying for the overtime.
Since this report has gone up, head of the studio Adam Badowski had confirmed the studio was in a crunch on Twitter. However, he states that this is the last six weeks for the studio to work on the game and that the employees are being well compensated for overtime. Furthermore, it’s been highlighted that 10% of the annual profit the company generates in 2020 will be split directly among the development team.
While this is certainly going back on the previous statements claiming the studio wouldn’t see the launch of Cyberpunk 2077 through the crunch, it looks like the studio is pushing to ensure that they can get the anticipated title out in November. Cyberpunk 2077 hits the marketplace on November 19, 2020, for the PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One platforms.
