Posted February 08, 2014
The former lead gameplay designer of Witcher, Maciej Szczesnik, and the former Witcher gameplay producer, Marek Ziemak, have taken today (Feb 6) new positions at 11 Bit Studios.
Szcześnik will be the lead designer of a new game in development at 11 Bit.
"I'll be responsible for the entire design of a game that took shape in my imagination. It's a really exciting feeling to create a new world from scratch, make its characters and rules and to know that I have this blank page to fill with my ideas and then bring them to life."
Ziemak’s role at 11 Bit will be announced soon. Judging by a comment released by Ziemak, new position could be related to indie games:
"I've been watching the indie-game scene for quite some time and I love its creativity and freshness. Without going into details, expect some hot news from us around March."
11 Bit Studios was formed back in 2010, by several veterans from CD Projekt and Metropolis Software. Based in Warsaw, the independent studio is headed by managing director Grzegorz Miechowski, who was previously chief executive for Metropolis Software. The indie collective at 11 Bit Studios are known for their work on mobile games Anomaly 2 and Sleepwalker's Journey but will focus on the development of multiplatform releases as well.
Grzegorz Miechowski: "We make games in small teams where creative input is the key. It's great to have these two talented guys on board. This absolutely takes 11 bit to a new level."
Polygamia.pl managed to contact the devs for comments.
Maciej Szcześnik: First of all, I would like to reassure fans of The Witcher - the third part of the saga will surely be the best game of the series. Game design was closed a long time ago and development works are in full swing. CDP has a team of extremely talented people, and it will ensure the success of the game. The decision to change the studio during the project was very difficult for me, but together with colleagues from CDP we made sure that my transfer did not affect the quality. I worked on The Witcher series for nearly 10 years. I wanted to try other challenges for a long time. 11 bit studios offered me a job on the games, which I long dreamed of building. I am a fan of independent productions and I now have a chance to work on such games. I also have the opportunity to create a game from start to finish and have an impact on all of its aspects. This allows me to better realize myself, take on topics and issues that bother me. I can also work on other game genres, something that I always dreamed of. I hope you will like it.
Marek Ziemak: My departure from CD Projekt Red is due to a lot of personal and professional factors. Of course, such a decision was extremely difficult for me and it cost me "a few" sleepless nights. As a result, the comfort of working in a company in which I grew up, and which I know quite well, lost to the temptation of starting a new adventure in a new environment, and based on different rules. In addition, the creation of indie games, and that's what I will be doing now, is extremely interesting to me, both from the perspective of player and producer. The production process of such games is governed by different rules than the production of AAA games and I want to give it a go. I think that the experience that I'll gain at the current (new) position will help me to develop skills and give a chance to look at the production process from another, slightly more global perspective.
Poly: What will you be doing specifically? Will it be a bigger game than previous productions of 11 bit studios?
Marek Ziemak: We will not be making a big AAA shooter, that's for sure. The way I see it, is that the scale of the game is not determined by the number of people involved, but by the number of people who are enchanted by the game's world. That's why both The Witcher and Prison Architect are big games. The project I am working on at 11 bit has a huge potential.
Poly: You abandon Witcher 3 at the end of the production process, before the launch. Aren't you sad?
Marek Ziemak: I do not want to consider this in terms of abandoning anything. My adventure with The Witcher game series lasted quite a long time - since the end of 2006 (excluding a short break to manage my own business/company). I feel that this was a period of hard work, during which I had the opportunity to learn and acomplish a lot. I leave The Witcher 3 project after almost two years of intensive development, at a stage where I feel comfortable with that, and that certainly does not hurt the remaining work. Our decision was not a surprise to the company, and the exact date of departure stemmed largely from game production schedules and the time required to transfer the duties to our colleagues. I do not feel sad. Although I will not be present at RED during the premiere of The Witcher 3, I still feel as a co-author, and I will remain friends with many developers from our team. I am extremely pleased that I could be a part of this incredibly talented team and that I can use the experience I gained in my future carer.
Witcher:
CDPR studio head Adam Badowski made what seemed like a pretty definitive statement: "People may ask if this is really going to be the last Witcher game. Yes, it is. Why? Because we believe that we should end the series on a high note."
Turns out that when CDPR studio head Adam Badowski said The Witcher 3 would be the last Witcher game, what he really meant was it would be the last game of this trilogy.
"This is the last part of the trilogy, in which there will be a great finale of the story. However, this doesn't mean the end of franchise," CDPR CEO Adam Kicinski told Polish Press Agency.
A spokesperson of CD Projekt RED confirmed to press: "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will wrap up the saga of Geralt of Rivia, but we do leave open the possibility of returning to the Witcher world."
sources:
News:
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2014/02/06/witcher-leads-depart-for-11-bit-studios.aspx
http://www.twinfinite.net/blog/2014/02/06/witchers-maciej-szczesnik-marek-ziemak-join-11-bit-studios/
http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23296
http://www.siliconera.com/2014/02/06/witcher-developers-leave-cd-projekt-red-new-project/
http://www.polygon.com/2014/2/6/5385384/the-witcher-3-gameplay-designers-leave-to-join-indie-mobile-studio
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/210209/
Devs' comments: (post 15)
[url=http://neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=99860633 ]http://neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=99860633 [/url]
[url=http://polygamia.pl/Polygamia/1,107162,15408212,Transfer_miesiaca__tworcy_Wiedzmina_przeszli_z_CDP.html ]http://polygamia.pl/Polygamia/1,107162,15408212,Transfer_miesiaca__tworcy_Wiedzmina_przeszli_z_CDP.html [/url]
Witcher:
[url=http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/06/the-witcher-3-may-not-be-the-last-witcher-after-all/ ]http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/06/the-witcher-3-may-not-be-the-last-witcher-after-all/ [/url]
Szcześnik will be the lead designer of a new game in development at 11 Bit.
"I'll be responsible for the entire design of a game that took shape in my imagination. It's a really exciting feeling to create a new world from scratch, make its characters and rules and to know that I have this blank page to fill with my ideas and then bring them to life."
Ziemak’s role at 11 Bit will be announced soon. Judging by a comment released by Ziemak, new position could be related to indie games:
"I've been watching the indie-game scene for quite some time and I love its creativity and freshness. Without going into details, expect some hot news from us around March."
11 Bit Studios was formed back in 2010, by several veterans from CD Projekt and Metropolis Software. Based in Warsaw, the independent studio is headed by managing director Grzegorz Miechowski, who was previously chief executive for Metropolis Software. The indie collective at 11 Bit Studios are known for their work on mobile games Anomaly 2 and Sleepwalker's Journey but will focus on the development of multiplatform releases as well.
Grzegorz Miechowski: "We make games in small teams where creative input is the key. It's great to have these two talented guys on board. This absolutely takes 11 bit to a new level."
Polygamia.pl managed to contact the devs for comments.
Maciej Szcześnik: First of all, I would like to reassure fans of The Witcher - the third part of the saga will surely be the best game of the series. Game design was closed a long time ago and development works are in full swing. CDP has a team of extremely talented people, and it will ensure the success of the game. The decision to change the studio during the project was very difficult for me, but together with colleagues from CDP we made sure that my transfer did not affect the quality. I worked on The Witcher series for nearly 10 years. I wanted to try other challenges for a long time. 11 bit studios offered me a job on the games, which I long dreamed of building. I am a fan of independent productions and I now have a chance to work on such games. I also have the opportunity to create a game from start to finish and have an impact on all of its aspects. This allows me to better realize myself, take on topics and issues that bother me. I can also work on other game genres, something that I always dreamed of. I hope you will like it.
Marek Ziemak: My departure from CD Projekt Red is due to a lot of personal and professional factors. Of course, such a decision was extremely difficult for me and it cost me "a few" sleepless nights. As a result, the comfort of working in a company in which I grew up, and which I know quite well, lost to the temptation of starting a new adventure in a new environment, and based on different rules. In addition, the creation of indie games, and that's what I will be doing now, is extremely interesting to me, both from the perspective of player and producer. The production process of such games is governed by different rules than the production of AAA games and I want to give it a go. I think that the experience that I'll gain at the current (new) position will help me to develop skills and give a chance to look at the production process from another, slightly more global perspective.
Poly: What will you be doing specifically? Will it be a bigger game than previous productions of 11 bit studios?
Marek Ziemak: We will not be making a big AAA shooter, that's for sure. The way I see it, is that the scale of the game is not determined by the number of people involved, but by the number of people who are enchanted by the game's world. That's why both The Witcher and Prison Architect are big games. The project I am working on at 11 bit has a huge potential.
Poly: You abandon Witcher 3 at the end of the production process, before the launch. Aren't you sad?
Marek Ziemak: I do not want to consider this in terms of abandoning anything. My adventure with The Witcher game series lasted quite a long time - since the end of 2006 (excluding a short break to manage my own business/company). I feel that this was a period of hard work, during which I had the opportunity to learn and acomplish a lot. I leave The Witcher 3 project after almost two years of intensive development, at a stage where I feel comfortable with that, and that certainly does not hurt the remaining work. Our decision was not a surprise to the company, and the exact date of departure stemmed largely from game production schedules and the time required to transfer the duties to our colleagues. I do not feel sad. Although I will not be present at RED during the premiere of The Witcher 3, I still feel as a co-author, and I will remain friends with many developers from our team. I am extremely pleased that I could be a part of this incredibly talented team and that I can use the experience I gained in my future carer.
Witcher:
CDPR studio head Adam Badowski made what seemed like a pretty definitive statement: "People may ask if this is really going to be the last Witcher game. Yes, it is. Why? Because we believe that we should end the series on a high note."
Turns out that when CDPR studio head Adam Badowski said The Witcher 3 would be the last Witcher game, what he really meant was it would be the last game of this trilogy.
"This is the last part of the trilogy, in which there will be a great finale of the story. However, this doesn't mean the end of franchise," CDPR CEO Adam Kicinski told Polish Press Agency.
A spokesperson of CD Projekt RED confirmed to press: "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will wrap up the saga of Geralt of Rivia, but we do leave open the possibility of returning to the Witcher world."
sources:
News:
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2014/02/06/witcher-leads-depart-for-11-bit-studios.aspx
http://www.twinfinite.net/blog/2014/02/06/witchers-maciej-szczesnik-marek-ziemak-join-11-bit-studios/
http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23296
http://www.siliconera.com/2014/02/06/witcher-developers-leave-cd-projekt-red-new-project/
http://www.polygon.com/2014/2/6/5385384/the-witcher-3-gameplay-designers-leave-to-join-indie-mobile-studio
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/210209/
Devs' comments: (post 15)
[url=http://neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=99860633 ]http://neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=99860633 [/url]
[url=http://polygamia.pl/Polygamia/1,107162,15408212,Transfer_miesiaca__tworcy_Wiedzmina_przeszli_z_CDP.html ]http://polygamia.pl/Polygamia/1,107162,15408212,Transfer_miesiaca__tworcy_Wiedzmina_przeszli_z_CDP.html [/url]
Witcher:
[url=http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/06/the-witcher-3-may-not-be-the-last-witcher-after-all/ ]http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/06/the-witcher-3-may-not-be-the-last-witcher-after-all/ [/url]
