The Polish game development powerhouse CD Projekt Red has officially confirmed that its upcoming original intellectual property, codenamed Project Hadar, will be an immersive, open-world experience, signaling a continuation of the design philosophy that defined The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Cyberpunk 2077. This confirmation surfaced through a recently published job advertisement for an Engineering Director, a role intended to spearhead the technical foundations of a franchise that represents the studio’s first foray into a completely original universe not based on pre-existing literature or tabletop systems. The job description explicitly states that the successful candidate will help "push the envelope" for the next "immersive game in the Hadar world," specifically aiming to create an "emotional, open-world experience that will stay with gamers."
This revelation provides the first concrete detail regarding the gameplay structure of Hadar since the project was initially teased during a strategy update in late 2022. While the studio has remained tight-lipped about the setting—whether it be fantasy, science fiction, or a contemporary genre—the commitment to an open-world framework suggests that CD Projekt Red (CDPR) intends to leverage its established expertise in large-scale environmental storytelling and complex narrative branching. The move reinforces the company’s long-term strategy to establish a "third pillar" alongside its two existing blockbuster franchises, diversifying its portfolio and reducing its reliance on the Witcher and Cyberpunk brands.
The Evolution and Chronology of Project Hadar
Project Hadar was first introduced to the public in October 2022 during a comprehensive long-term strategy update. At that time, the project was described as being in the "conceptual phase," with the intellectual property being developed entirely in-house. Unlike The Witcher, which is based on the novels by Andrzej Sapkowski, or Cyberpunk 2077, which is based on Mike Pondsmith’s tabletop RPG, Hadar is a 100% original creation of CD Projekt Red.
By late 2023, the project remained in a very early incubation stage. However, a significant milestone was reached in March 2026, when joint-CEO Michał Nowakowski announced that the studio had officially "established the foundations" of the project. This transition from abstract concepts to foundational development marked the beginning of more active prototyping. According to internal data shared during the company’s fiscal year 2025 earnings call, the team dedicated to Hadar consisted of 26 developers as of February 2026. While this is a small fraction of the studio’s total workforce—which exceeds 600 employees—it represents a specialized "strike team" tasked with defining the core mechanics, lore, and visual identity of the new world.
The current recruitment drive, which includes the high-level Engineering Director position, indicates that the project is transitioning out of pure conceptualization and into a more robust prototyping phase. This stage involves testing specific gameplay elements directly within the engine to verify their viability before moving into full-scale production.
Strategic Shift to Unreal Engine 5
One of the most critical technical aspects of Project Hadar is its development on Unreal Engine 5. In early 2022, CD Projekt Red announced a multi-year strategic partnership with Epic Games, moving away from its proprietary REDengine, which powered The Witcher 2, The Witcher 3, and Cyberpunk 2077. This shift was motivated by a desire to streamline development pipelines and leverage the cutting-edge features of UE5, such as Nanite (virtualized geometry) and Lumen (dynamic global illumination).
The Engineering Director for Hadar will be tasked with optimizing these tools to facilitate an "emotional" narrative. In the context of CDPR, "emotional" typically refers to high-fidelity character animations, cinematic storytelling, and a world that reacts dynamically to player choices. By utilizing Unreal Engine 5, the studio aims to avoid the technical hurdles that plagued the initial launch of Cyberpunk 2077, which was largely attributed to the difficulties of adapting the REDengine for a dense, vertical urban environment.
Michał Nowakowski emphasized this technical transition in his March 2026 statement, noting that the team is "creating multiple prototypes and implementing them directly in Unreal Engine." This allows for real-time verification of mechanics, ensuring that the "open-world experience" promised in the job listing is technically feasible within the desired visual fidelity.
Workforce Distribution and Project Hierarchy
To understand the scale of Project Hadar, it must be viewed within the context of CD Projekt Red’s broader production pipeline. As of the most recent quarterly reports, the studio’s resources are distributed across several high-profile projects:
- Project Polaris (The Witcher 4): This is the studio’s primary focus, with the largest portion of the workforce (over 400 developers) currently in the pre-production and early production stages. Polaris is intended to kick off a new trilogy.
- Project Orion (Cyberpunk 2): Development for the Cyberpunk sequel is being led by CD Projekt Red’s newly established North American hubs in Boston and Vancouver. This project is in the conceptual and early design phase, staffed by veterans of the Phantom Liberty expansion.
- Project Sirius: A separate Witcher-related title being developed by The Molasses Flood, which has undergone several reboots to align with the studio’s quality standards.
- Project Canis Majoris: A full remake of the original The Witcher game, being developed by third-party studio Fool’s Theory using Unreal Engine 5.
- Project Hadar: Currently the smallest of the internal projects in terms of headcount, but arguably the most significant for the company’s long-term identity as an original IP creator.
The gradual ramp-up of the Hadar team suggests a "staggered production" model. As Project Polaris moves toward completion, it is expected that staff will be transitioned over to Orion and Hadar, allowing for a continuous cycle of releases that avoids the long periods of silence between major titles that characterized the previous decade.
Official Responses and Management Outlook
CD Projekt Red leadership has been cautious but optimistic regarding the potential of Hadar. During the fiscal year 2025 earnings presentation, management clarified that the studio is not yet ready to reveal the setting or the "genre" of the game in traditional terms, though the "open-world RPG" label is now effectively confirmed by the recruitment criteria.
"We are very excited about Hadar because it is the first time in our history we are building something from the ground up," Nowakowski stated. "This gives us unparalleled creative freedom, but it also requires a very disciplined approach to world-building. We are not just making a game; we are building a franchise that we hope will be as enduring as The Witcher."
The emphasis on an "emotional" experience aligns with the studio’s historical focus on "mature" storytelling. Analysts suggest that this wording implies Hadar will likely target the same adult demographic as the studio’s previous games, featuring complex moral dilemmas and character-driven narratives rather than a more traditional "sandbox" approach seen in other open-world titles.
Broader Impact and Industry Implications
The confirmation of Project Hadar as an open-world title has significant implications for the gaming industry and CDPR’s market position. For investors, the development of a third IP is a risk-mitigation strategy. By owning the intellectual property entirely, CD Projekt Red avoids licensing fees and gains total control over transmedia expansions, such as television series, films, and merchandise—a strategy that proved highly successful with the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime and The Witcher Netflix series.
Furthermore, the decision to stick with the open-world format confirms that CDPR is doubling down on its core competency. While some studios have moved toward more contained, "hub-based" designs to manage rising development costs, CDPR is betting that its ability to create massive, atmospheric worlds remains its primary competitive advantage.
However, the "open-world" label also brings immense pressure. The industry standards for the genre have been elevated by titles such as Elden Ring and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. For Hadar to succeed as a new IP, it will need to offer more than just a large map; it will need to innovate on the "emotional" connectivity and immersion that the studio has promised.
As work continues on Project Polaris and the North American team begins the heavy lifting on Project Orion, Hadar remains the "wild card" in CD Projekt Red’s deck. With the foundations now laid and the search for an Engineering Director underway, the industry moves one step closer to seeing what the creators of Geralt of Rivia and V can do when they are no longer bound by the rules of an existing universe. For now, gamers can look forward to a new Witcher 3 expansion and the upcoming Witcher 4, while the "Hadar world" continues to take shape in the shadows of the studio’s Warsaw headquarters.
