As if the trailer for The Witcher 4 didn't expose the reality to everyone already, the once incredibly celebrated studio of CD Projekt Red (CDPR) now finds themselves in an all-too familiar position these days w/many other major AAA studios. Huge waves of many of the most important developers have decided to leave CDPR and instead, form their own alliances... new studios. All because they are sick and tired of the woke ideologies being forced upon them at their workplace.
Hey, maybe there's hope for gaming, after all?
This ongoing mass-exodus isn't just a basic shift in unimportant, meaningless employees. It's larger than that - and it's all a clear reflection to everyone witnessing of the much deeper cultural and operational issues within CDPR. The overwhelming stench of woke mindsets and toxic positivity has filled the hallways of the once prestigious organization. That in itself has stifled the exciting creative freedoms and team morale that was previously, some could easily argue... Industry leading.
Oh how the mighty have fallen.
Rebel Wolves
The most significant blow to CDPR's roster came with the formation of Rebel Wolves. Spearheaded by Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, the former director of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, this new studio was formed directly as a result of CDPR's recent incompetence of leadership.
Tomaszkiewicz, who left CDPR after allegations of bullying (which he denied and was later cleared of... because let's be honest, this is one of those tactics that the woke often employ), has reunited with other key figures from CDPR's past.
This includes, among many others, Bartłomiej Gaweł (above), the art director of The Witcher 3. They have come together to create what they are promising to be a "AAA dark fantasy RPG" saga using the Unreal Engine 5.
One of the points that stands out is a clear shot at the faulty direction that CDPR has been going...
We decided to create our own studio and run it on our own terms. Chief among them: the team comes first, always. Happy people make great games – games players want and deserve. Yes, it’s as simple as that.
The new studio secured a strategic investment from NetEase - which isn't without it's own controversies attached, being based out of communist China. You gotta take a step back with all this and see what's happening right before out eyes. "Wokeness" is destroying companies across the world at breakneck speed, and who always shows up in one way or another to swoop in and invest at the very bottom? China. They aren't even hiding it anymore...
“Funding provided by NetEase was the last missing piece needed to go full throttle. With resources available to build a world-class AAA game, we can now focus on what matters most: development.”
But here we are, with NetEase now ensuring they have the financial backing to pursue their vision without compromise. Tomaszkiewicz emphasized that the funding provided by them was "the last missing piece needed to go full throttle" and it signaling a rapid push towards development with a focus on creativity and independence from the corporate constraints they felt at CDPR.
Blank Studio
Parallel to Rebel Wolves, another studio, Blank, has also emerged from the ashes of CDPR's talent pool. Formed by Mateusz Kanik, who was both the game director for Cyberpunk 2077 and co-game director for The Witcher 3, alongside executive producers Jędrzej Mróz and Marcin Jefimow, Blank aims to redefine game development.
They're creating a studio with a philosophy rooted in collaboration over individual dictatorship, work-life balance over crunch culture, and quality over quantity. Basically, anything but woke.
In an article from VGC, Kanik stated:
“After working for years in an increasingly conservative industry, we’re ready to make bold, impactful projects that share our unique creativity and values.”
Kanik left CDPR after a 15-year tenure. The reason? Tired of being politically correct. He highlighted the studio's mission to create games that aren't just bigger... but better in terms of emotional impact, storytelling, and craftsmanship.
Blank has expanded from the original 10 to already nearly 60 members, all centered around a project still under wraps but promised to be bold and reflective of their collective experiences.
Currently, we are working on a character driven story from an apocalypse — with a twist or two. We’ve had our share of creating huge, super complicated games with open worlds. That’s why, we focus on simpler goals – Uniqueness, emotions, quality, and refinement.
We put all our passion and dedication into our craft, and we’re eagerly looking forward to letting you play the compelling narratives we are working on. Rest assured, we will share more details when the time is right.
In November of 2023, it was announced that Blank secured $17 million in investment from NEOWIZ, the South Korean game company best known for Lies of P.
The Underlying Issues
The ongoing mass-exodus from CDPR points to more than just 'professional disagreements' or career moves; it speaks to a gigantic cultural shift happening as we speak within the studio that many of these departing talents found unbearable anymore. Reports from former employees have suggested that the studio's environment had become far too saturated with what they allude to as 'excessive wokeness', where ideological alignments overshadowed their creative freedoms.
Add to all that - the constant push at CDPR for toxic positivity, where any real critique or dissent was seen as negative and/or bullying, has now led to an incomprehensibly stifling atmosphere that contrasted sharply with the creative, gritty DNA that once defined CDPR... and talented devs are leaving in droves because of it.
What Lies Ahead for CDPR?
For CDPR, the constant and ongoing loss of pivotal figures is foreshadowing for the declining creative output and a significant pivot in their entire development culture. The departure of these folks to start fresh with their own studios like Rebel Wolves and Blank isn't just a move out of sheer frustration, but also... a bright signal to the entire video game industry for the future.
As these new studios begin to lay down their markers in the gaming landscape, I'll be watching closely to see what comes from it. Will Rebel Wolves and Blank redefine what it means to make RPGs in the modern era? We can dream.
...And Dream big? I will.
Meanwhile, CDPR faces the challenge of rebuilding its team spirit and creative integrity, from the ground up - tasks made all the more daunting by the shadows of its former stars now shining elsewhere. Add to that, they've fully embraced the 'Girl Boss' motif in Ciri for The Witcher 4, I'd argue, it's already too late to change.
CD Projekt Red is cooked... but the ingredients from their original success are at least now being found elsewhere - at other new studios, used for something entirely new for all of us in gaming world to enjoy... and in that, there's hope for the future.
~Smash
