Several CD Projekt Red veterans have announced the formation of a new games development studio called Blank, which will focus on producing “unique” experiences for players.
Mateusz Kanik, game director of Cyberpunk 2077 and co-game director of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, is co-founding the new games studio alongside The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 executive producers, Jędrzej Mróz and Marcin Jefimow, and Rookiez from Warsaw S.A’s Mikołaj Marchewka.
The team says that it is aiming to create “beautifully” crafted games that are impactful, and another core part of Blank’s game development philosophy is a focus on individual creativity, healthy work-life balance, and delivering polished video games on launch.
“After working for years in an increasingly conservative industry, we’re ready to make bold, impactful projects that share our unique creativity and values,” said Kanik. “Where the industry champions a dictatorship of the creative individual, we want to give ownership to the team. Where the industry leans on crunch culture, we prefer work-life balance. Where the industry says bigger is better, we’re setting our sights on highly polished games with a focus on emotion, story, and craftsmanship.”
As for Blank’s debut game, the studio is keeping information on that under wraps for its upcoming post-apocalyptic adventure. A single piece of concept art for it has been released and shows off a road trip vibe, some structurally unsound architecture, an adorable plush, and a well-used baseball bat.
Alongside Blank’s founders who’ll occupy various director, producer, and managerial roles, the studio has also added Michal Dobrowolski (CD Projekt Red) as design director, Artur Ganszyniec (CD Projekt Red, 11 Bit Studios) as narrative director, and Grzegorz Przybyś (Division 48 Studio, Artificer) as art director. The studio will be headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, and it’s aiming to expand its staff from 10 to 60 employees.
“Over our many years of making games, we’ve seen the importance of marrying inspiring ideas with well-defined scope, that’s supported by a strong team and realistic budget,” Mróz said. “We’re committed to quality craftsmanship and running the studio in a sustainable way; we plan to increase our projects’ scope as we expand the team and its capabilities.”
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