Inside CD Projekt RED: Michal Nowakowski on The Witcher, Cyberpunk, and Gaming's Future
Explicit content warning
08/08/24 • 77 min
Our guest this week is Michal Nowakowski the co-CEO of CD Projekt Red, the renowned studio behind iconic games like The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077.
With nearly two decades at CD Projekt, Michal shares his journey from the early days of video game distribution in Poland to leading one of the world's most celebrated game development companies.
Beginning as a game distributor, CD Projekt went on to develop The Witcher, which sold a whopping 75 million units! Michal discusses the company's strategic decisions, such as developing the next Cyberpunk game in the US to capture an authentic American feel, and their ambition to create impactful, meaningful experiences for fans worldwide.
We talk Gwent, the funnest way to learn English and the "number one" way to get a job, this week!
Thank you for listening to our podcast all about videogames and the amazing people who bring them to life!
Hosted by Alexander Seropian and Aaron Marroquin
Find us at www.thefourthcurtain.com
Join our Patreon for early, ad-free episodes plus bonus content at https://patreon.com/FourthCurtain
Come join the conversation at https://discord.gg/KWeGE4xHfe
Videos available at https://www.youtube.com/@thefourthcurtain
Follow us on Twitter: @fourthcurtain
Edited and mastered at https://noise-floor.com
Audio Editor: Bryen Hensley
Video Editor: Sarkis Grigorian
Producer: Shanglan (May) Li
Art: Paul Russel
Community Manager: Doug Zartman
Featuring Liberation by 505
Our guest this week is Michal Nowakowski the co-CEO of CD Projekt Red, the renowned studio behind iconic games like The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077.
With nearly two decades at CD Projekt, Michal shares his journey from the early days of video game distribution in Poland to leading one of the world's most celebrated game development companies.
Beginning as a game distributor, CD Projekt went on to develop The Witcher, which sold a whopping 75 million units! Michal discusses the company's strategic decisions, such as developing the next Cyberpunk game in the US to capture an authentic American feel, and their ambition to create impactful, meaningful experiences for fans worldwide.
We talk Gwent, the funnest way to learn English and the "number one" way to get a job, this week!
Thank you for listening to our podcast all about videogames and the amazing people who bring them to life!
Hosted by Alexander Seropian and Aaron Marroquin
Find us at www.thefourthcurtain.com
Join our Patreon for early, ad-free episodes plus bonus content at https://patreon.com/FourthCurtain
Come join the conversation at https://discord.gg/KWeGE4xHfe
Videos available at https://www.youtube.com/@thefourthcurtain
Follow us on Twitter: @fourthcurtain
Edited and mastered at https://noise-floor.com
Audio Editor: Bryen Hensley
Video Editor: Sarkis Grigorian
Producer: Shanglan (May) Li
Art: Paul Russel
Community Manager: Doug Zartman
Featuring Liberation by 505
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Thank you for listening to our podcast all about videogames and the amazing people who bring them to life!
Hosted by Alexander Seropian and Aaron Marroquin
Find us at www.thefourthcurtain.com
Join our Patreon for early, ad-free episodes plus bonus content at https://patreon.com/FourthCurtain
Come join the conversation at https://discord.gg/KWeGE4xHfe
Videos available at https://www.youtube.com/@thefourthcurtain
Follow us on Twitter: @fourthcurtain
Edited and mastered at https://noise-floor.com
Audio Editor: Bryen Hensley
Video Editor: Sarkis Grigorian
Producer: Shanglan (May) Li
Art: Paul Russel
Community Manager: Doug Zartman
Featuring Liberation by 505
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Thank you for listening to our podcast all about videogames and the amazing people who bring them to life!
Hosted by Alexander Seropian and Aaron Marroquin
Find us at www.thefourthcurtain.com
Join our Patreon for early, ad-free episodes plus bonus content at https://patreon.com/FourthCurtain
Come join the conversation at https://discord.gg/KWeGE4xHfe
Videos available at https://www.youtube.com/@thefourthcurtain
Follow us on Twitter: @fourthcurtain
Edited and mastered at https://noise-floor.com
Audio Editor: Bryen Hensley
Video Editor: Sarkis Grigorian
Producer: Shanglan (May) Li
Art: Paul Russel
Community Manager: Doug Zartman
Featuring Liberation by 505
The Fourth Curtain - Inside CD Projekt RED: Michal Nowakowski on The Witcher, Cyberpunk, and Gaming's Future
Transcript
Michal: [00:00:00] I think that the whole nation was driven by that great will and hunger and desire to catch up with the world. And in my particular case, and I think that was true also for the guys who were in the very formative years of the CD Projekt, there was this ambition, but not a sick ambition, just a desire to do something, you know, out there in the world that's going to be meaningful and impactful.
And it's not going to be done in a way that's going to be Polish people catching
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