CD Projekt Red has announced that it will no longer be appearing at PAX West in person, and will be hosting a Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay livestream on the convention’s first day instead. Regardless of how CD Projekt Red makes its appearance, this year’s PAX West is set to be an important one for the developer.
The big news is the gameplay demo of Cyberpunk 2077. Fans already got a look at Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay after E3 2018, but only through a tightly controlled demo that felt more like a scripted presentation than an example of how the final game would really play out. Cyberpunk 2077’s quest director, Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz, said earlier this year that the game has changed quite a bit from last year’s presentation, which makes the new gameplay reveal even more important. PAX is also set to host the second round of the Cyberpunk 2077 costume contest, a massive undertaking from CD Projekt Red that will feature worldwide qualifying rounds and culminate in a final round with a $40,000 prize pool.
According to CD Projekt Red, the livestream will feature a 15-minute edited version of the Cyberpunk 2077 demo that’s currently being shown at Gamescom, followed by interviews with the game’s developers. The studio said that the interviews will share information on the game’s setting, details on possible playstyles, and insight into how the developers made certain creative decisions. The stream will be available for anyone to watch on the developer’s Twitch and Mixer channels when it goes live on August 30 at 11 a.m. Pacific. Despite the switch to streaming, the developer said it’s still trying to deliver on as many of its PAX plans as possible, and the second round of the Cyberpunk 2077 costume contest is still on the schedule.
CD Projekt Red said that there are both logistical and creative reasons for it not appearing at PAX West, but didn’t go into more detail. Given that Cyberpunk 2077’s release date is now just eight months away and the studio is in the middle of its Gamescom presentation, which features behind-closed-doors media previews, it’s not surprising that it has a lot on its plate. It’s also entirely possible that issues popped up during the Gamescom presentation that CD Projekt Red decided needed an immediate fix.
With the April 2020 release date creeping ever closer, fans may be getting restless to see more of the game. To be fair, it’s not completely out of the ordinary not to have much gameplay to show this far out from release, but The Witcher 3’s success put a huge spotlight on CD Projekt Red for its next venture. Given the sheer complexity of the game and several missteps recently made by people involved in it, it makes sense that players would want to know if they’re putting their hopes in the right game. Thankfully, CD Projekt Red’s need to pull out of PAX West hasn’t actually jeopardized that happening, and consumers will know more about Cyberpunk 2077 soon.
Next: Witcher 3 Switch Release Date of 15 October Announced at Gamescom 2019
Source: CD Projekt Red
