CD Projekt will soon be releasing a new DLC expansion for Cyberpunk 2077 and it is hoping that Phantom Liberty will let the studio fix its relationship with players. After the disastrous launch of the game in 2020, the studio is aware that it disappointed a lot of its core fans and that their trust needs to be regained.
Phantom Liberty will be a new beginning for the game and CD Projekt
CD Projekt’s VP of PR and communication Michał Platkow-Gilewski told GamesIndustry.biz about this big expansion and how the team is using it to prove itself to the fans once again. He said that the expansion should be “visibly big” and is a “big chunk of content that we care about.”
This push to go big is part of the reason why Idris Elba has been brought on board, according to Platkow-Gilewski. After casting Keanu Reeves in the main game, the studio needed an actor that would demonstrate how big Phantom Liberty is. The spy thriller-themed story also has a different vibe to the main game and that Elba carries a “Bond vibe,” according to Platkow-Gilewski. This is one of the reasons the team felt he would be a perfect match for the Solomon Reed character.
Phantom Liberty also allows the team to improve a lot of things in the base game. Platkow-Gilewski explains why he considers this “new beginning” to be important to repair the relationship with fans.
“Yes we were expecting a different launch for Cyberpunk, but now we have another chance in front of us,” said Platkow-Gilewski. “For me, as the person responsible for communication, I want to rebuild the connection with gamers, because we had people following us for years and they were disappointed. That’s, for me, is the biggest thing. We have to make the game for them.
“After the release it was tough, but I knew that we had the same people. The gamers are the same. We just need to fix our relationship. The only thing we can truly do is just deliver what we are capable of. I have a feeling that soon we will be able to do that and hopefully that will be a new beginning for everyone.”
CD Projekt has also restructured to make sure the company itself does not make the same mistakes in terms of crunch and spreading itself too thin. There are a lot of projects in progress at the developer in addition to Cyberpunk 2077, including the game’s sequel, three games in The Witcher universe, and a new IP. All of these projects are at different stages to make sure there isn’t too much work for the studio and there is a healthy “strategy for the years to come.”
