Developer CD Projekt Red isn’t ready to discuss release dates for their highly-anticipated, first-person RPG Cyberpunk 2077, but it seems like they are still building a team and pulling from some excellent talent. In a recent announcement, Tequila Works’ Lead Level Designer Manuel Mendiluce will be leaving the RiME development studio to go work with CD Projekt Red.
News comes from Twitter (though first noticed by publication GamingBolt), Mendiluce made the announcement ahead of the Christmas holidays. Mendulice highlights his eight “awesome years” working with Tequila Works when he worked on games such as Deadlight, The Sexy Brutale, and RiME. However, while somber, he noted that he will be joining CD Projekt Red (working on Cyberpunk 2077) beginning January 2019:
After 8 awesome years, developing @DeadlightGame, @SexyBrutale and @RiMEGame, I will leave @TequilaWorks this week with a big lot sad feel. But in January I will join in the @CDProjektRed with a lot ilusion and humility for the development of @CyberpunkGame
— Manuel Mendiluce (@ManuelMendiluce) December 17, 2018
Even better, joining in all the warm wishes was the official Cyberpunk 2077, that noted they will take good care of Mendiluce:
¡Te cuidaremos muy bien! <3
— Cyberpunk 2077 (@CyberpunkGame) December 18, 2018
On the plus side, this is a huge gain for both Mendiluce and CD Projekt Red’s development team. Though Tequila Works may not have the name authority that titles like The Witcher bring to the table, Mendiluce is a world-class level designer, something highlighted in RiME.
Heck, you can head back to our review of RiME from Spring 2017, where we awarded the game a 9.0 out of 10 and specifically made note of the difficulty curve and wit of puzzle design in the game. Though CD Projekt Red has some of the best developers in the world, this is easily another gain for both the team and the end product.
Meanwhile, Cyberpunk 2077 has been a stealthy stream of rumors. While a Polish analyst was predicting a Q4 2019 (i.e., Early 2020) release date, CD Projekt Red let their Holiday card do the talking specifically noting that the game will release “when it’s ready.” No complaints from us at DualShockers.
Cyberpunk 2077 still has no known release date but will be coming to PC, PS4 and Xbox One. If you want to spend some of your holiday gift cards, you can pre-order the game for on Amazon now. Meanwhile, RiME pick up that game from Amazonis available for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, and Xbox One and is a hidden gem on all platforms — you can as well.
The post RiME Lead Level Designer Joins CD Projekt Red to Work on Cyberpunk 2077 by Lou Contaldi appeared first on DualShockers.