http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/172242/From_The_Witcher_to_Cyberpunk_Making_a_complex_story_more_accessible.php

From the way they speak about it, I get the feeling that the game is still in pre-production and we won't see any actual footage until 2014... which would be bad for those of us anxious with news. Or maybe I'm pessimistic by nature.

If it's as good as KOTOR 1/2, or even better, i'll be happy.

Also, there's this interview (part 1) over at RockPaperShotgun.

Gracias, I'm more optimistic now, as they mention there they'll show more by the end of this year. Looking forward to part 2.

Second part of the interview is up. A bit of a letdown, though, no more talking about future plans, just a bit of back and forth about sex in videogames.

I'm sorry, they already had my money when they said "Cyberpunk RPG".

I kinda blacked out after that.

I really perked my ears when I heard the announcement of Cyberpunk. It really might be the first game that CDP makes that I can get into, I couldn't stand the Witcher games for personal reasons of not caring for the Dark Fantasy world, the Hero and the use of sex (it really cemented the hero as a Mary Sue more than adding any depth to the Hero.)

A couple of things I would want in the Cyberpunk game:

1: to create a character with the option of gender at the least. (this is a big one, I've decided I won't WRPGs that force a male hero on me, WRPGs are about playing who I want to play and I think we need the choice and the passed WRPGs I've played were just so dissapointing I could skip that. I'm a bit worried since European RPG makers tend to like to force gender and race.)

2: I want a deep story, but more than that, I want a story with some meaning beyond tying up loose ends and filling plot holes (which seems to be the only way people judge video game stories these days.) The cyberpunk genre in science fiction is probably the richest for exploring the human condition and I really hope it's one of the games that uses it to some effect like Deus Ex: Human Revolution did.

I quite agree with that one but I think CDProject will pull it of, more or less altough I have a feeling they will prioritize on a great gameplay experience rather than focusing on a deep and complex storyline.

I don't know if it will stop me from buying the game, but I also really want the option to play a woman in the game. Both for personal reasons if I want to play as one, but also to see what CDPR do with a female protagonist and if they can handle it.

I like both Witchers, and the way that they created Geralt was well done I thought, and so I'd really like to see them pull off a really good female character (that isn't just a male clone with boobs) considering the two games so far have been so character driven (by virtue of having a set character for the player to play).

More than that, I want character customization. Be it facial, clothes, etc...

Yeah, for me it's just a vote with my wallet deal to do my little part to try and stop the loss of character customization in gaming. I remember when it wasn't rare to not only have choice of gender but a character of the fantastic races if there were any. I'm just a little worried that WRPG will end up like action games with the 30 something brown haired gritty hero or JRPGs and stuck with the girly boys. (the JRPGs got so bad I can't enjoy the genre anymore.)

I really think you picked the wrong game for that. The Witcher is a continuation of story from books that were about Geralt of Rivia. You're basically saying that CDP 'did it wrong,' even thou their reasoning is perfectly good (you know, you can hardly create a continuation of story of a certain character without actually using the character,) so you're basically missing a really good game for no good reason :-P

I agree. Though I think it is a perfectly acceptable reasoning for Cyberpunk since it doesn't come from the established canon of a certain character that is already defined by an author. I just hope the leeway that is given is at least there (unlike in something like Deus Ex) but still pulls off the characterization aspect, which I think a lot of games fall flat in. And while I don't wholly dislike the blank-slate character model, where we as the player have to project whatever we would like onto him/her, I would really like to see a good happy-medium built that really pushes the (admittedly low) standards of game writing to allow for both customization and characterization.

It goes beyond the Witcher, though I was more talking about Cyberpunk which is based on a Pen and Paper system so character creation is a big part. I still find it a big part of WRPGs and I don't think that I have to give money to play a character that I don't like. I didn't care for Geralt and I couldn't empathize with him, so I just can't really enjoy stories with him as the main protagonist. I'm not saying he's a bad character, just not my type.

And that is what makes it "dangerous" for an RPG to force you into a certain character role. If the player doesn't like the character (from what they see in trailers, etc) they are unlikely to buy the game; whereas with a blank-slate character the buyer is more influenced by things like environment and world and art and such. Not to say that in something like The Witcher those things aren't important purchasing points, but they are considered in addition to another variable. And if the character is really not the person's cup of tea, then a sale is lost.