Details have emerged about the new, original IP from the makers of The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077, as CD Projekt juggles multiple projects.
Everyone’s attention might be on The Witcher 4 right now, but developer CD Projekt has several games currently in development.
Along with the fantasy role-player, which is expected to launch in 2027, the studio is cooking up a sequel to Cyberpunk 2077 and another game set in The Witcher universe codenamed Project Sirius. A remake of The Witcher 1 is also in development, albeit at an external studio.
The most mysterious project in the pipeline is Project Hadar, which we know nothing about except that it’s an original IP. However, thanks to a new job listing, we now have some basic details on what to expect.
As spotted on Reddit, the job listing is for a Senior Gameplay Designer at CD Projekt’s main studio in Warsaw, Poland. The job description mentions it is for Project Hadar specifically, which is described as being in ‘its early days’.
‘This is an exciting opportunity to join a team that’s building a universe from the ground up where your ideas, experience, and creativity can directly shape the project’s vision, identity, and direction,’ the description reads.
While there aren’t many concrete details, the post states Project Hadar will be built in Unreal Engine 5. Elsewhere, it implies the game is an action role-player with an emphasis on melee combat.
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Under the ‘qualifications’ segment for the role, it reads: ‘At least 5+ years of professional experience in a similar role, preferably in RPG/action titles with melee-orientated combat.’
While the genre isn’t surprising, considering action role-players are CD Projekt’s bread and butter, the focus on melee combat suggests it might be closer to The Witcher than Cyberpunk 2077. The latter had melee combat but it was largely secondary to the gunplay and hacking.
The big question for Project Hadar is the game’s setting, considering the studio has already covered fantasy and sci-fi in a big way. If it does lean on melee combat, it could potentially pre-date guns, so perhaps a historical game akin to Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2?
Melee combat is usually the weakest element in CD Projekt’s games so this could be a purposeful attempt to address that head-on. The description brings to mind something like God Of War but whether that’s specifically what they’re aiming for is impossible to tell at the moment.
Whatever it is, it’s likely Project Hadar will be many years away yet. After The Witcher 4, the studio’s next game will be Cyberpunk 2, which might not be out until 2030, so Project Hadar could be a decade away depending on how things shake out.
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