CDPR Unreal Engine 5 Switch Won’t Force Game Development From Scratch

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Abiyan

At Tech4gamers, I cover all sorts of gaming news. Whether it’s a leak of any upcoming game or an update, an announcement, or a rumour, I like to write about it all. Over the weekend, I sit and write features where I talk about games that I miss or want to see return.

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Cyberpunk 2077 has just had its last hurrah with the Phantom Liberty expansion. The content update has enticed many players to revisit the game, allowing it to peak at over 246K concurrent Steam users this week.

Both the game and its expansion are also dominating the Steam top sellers after the recent release, leading to the best period for Cyberpunk 2077 since its launch nearly three years ago.

In addition to Cyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt RED is ready to say goodbye to the REDengine, moving all development to Unreal Engine 5. However, this transition will not force the studio to start from scratch.

Why it matters: CD Projekt RED had already achieved great feats with its in-house engine, and many believed that the switch to Unreal Engine would be a setback for the studio.

The Cyberpunk 2077 director recently discussed the studio’s decision to adopt Unreal Engine 5 for future development.

Like CD Projekt RED, many other studios have shifted development to this engine, adopting it as an industry standard due to promising technologies for the future of game development.

However, in CD Projekt RED’s case, the previous engine had already served the team well. Cyberpunk 2077 is among the best-looking games out today, incorporating the latest technologies like ray tracing, path tracing, and more.

Therefore, the loss of progress became a common concern for the studio’s next games. However, Gabe Amatangelo told PCGamer:

“It isn’t starting from scratch.”

He explained that some parts of Unreal Engine 5 are similar to the studio’s own engine while others are different. However, CD Projekt RED’s engineers feel Unreal Engine 5 opens up more possibilities for the creatives at the studio.

The Cyberpunk 2077 director also pointed to the REDengine’s strengths and said:

“There are some things that REDengine does better, we’re working with Epic to bring to that engine as well.”

While he refused to elaborate upon the specific benefits of working with Unreal Engine 5 over the REDengine, the opportunity to explore new technologies has been refreshing for CD Projekt RED.

The studio’s REDengine has been used for over a decade, bringing the beautiful worlds of The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 to life.

Nonetheless, the team hopes that this transition will open up more possibilities for its games, allowing it to produce more detailed and lifelike RPGs in the coming years.

Unreal Engine 5 will power The Witcher 4, the sequel to Cyberpunk 2077, and the rest of CD Projekt RED’s future lineup. While the studio is shifting to a new engine, it will continue to pursue cutting-edge visuals for immersive RPG experiences in the coming years.

Abiyan

[News Reporter]

Abiyan is on track to complete his Computer Science bachelor’s degree. His enthusiasm for writing and gaming motivates him to keep readers and gamers updated with the latest information from the industry. In his free time, Abiyan enjoys playing Dota 2 and Rocket League. Abiyan has also been cited in reputed websites such as Kitguru, Comicbook, GamingBible, Eurogamer and Gamingbolt.