CD Projekt spoke to PC Gamer about the loot box controversy that came to a head in 2017.
In November, CD Projekt Red CEO Adam Kiciński proposed its long-awaited Cyberpunk 2077 will include online elements to ensure its long-term success. With this in mind, I ask the developer’s co-founder Marcin Iwiński where he and his team stand with loot boxes—suggesting the controversial mechanic has dominated the conversation around single-versus-multiplayer games in the last 12 months.
“'Conversation’ sounds way too nice to describe what was happening last year. I would rather call it community backlash,” says Iwiński . "And this time around, it wasn’t just the hardcore community, there were a lot of really pissed off gamers out there and they decided to speak up. Where we stand is quite simple and you could see it with all of our past releases—most recently The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and GWENT. If you buy a full priced game, you should get a big, polished piece of content, which gives you many, many hours of fun gameplay.
CD Projekt will be sticking with its model of paid expansions and free DLC for full-price games, but also brought nuance to the argument by allowing for free-to-play models that respect gamers’ time and wallets — like CD Projekt’s own GWENT.
There needs to be transparency from developers and publishers so that players can make informed decisions with their money.
On The Witcher, GWENT, and Cyberpunk 2077
“We’ve devoted a big part of our lives to The Witcher and it means a lot to us, so we’re definitely not abandoning this universe,” Iwiński says. “If you miss your favourite characters—give GWENT a go. If you’re a fan of storytelling, there’s Thronebreaker coming out in the near future. However, in terms of big RPGs, it’s time for Cyberpunk 2077.”
On that point, I ask how CD Projekt Red deals with the hype and excitement brough by a single-word, six character-long tweet.
“It’s a huge responsibility and a lot of pressure,” says Iwiński. “We know we need to deliver. And we will.”