A game developer uploaded a video on YouTube which he says is inspired by Cyberpunk 2077's Night City, and it's got fans thinking about what the CD Projekt Red game could have been if it was developed using Unreal Engine 5.
cyberpunk 2077 steam
The video, uploaded to game developer Saher Tarek's YouTube channel, used UE5 combined with assets from the Unreal Engine Marketplace, Kitbash 3D, and CG Trader, reports GameRant. The end result is a video of a character walking through the streets in 3rd person view, and it looks absolutely amazing:
It is not a faithful recreation of Cyberpunk 2077 by any means. But it is a cyberpunk-style world as you can see there. There are neon lights, cyberware on ordinary folks, stereotypically futuristic drones and ads, and flying cars. It's as cyberpunk as Cyberpunk 2077 can get - but on Epic Games' next-gen game engine.
Aside from that, the character is viewed in third person - which is somewhat controversial back when it was revealed that CP2077 will be a first-person shooter.
But while this reimagining could have been what CD Projekt Red's troubled RPG was, it can never be that way. Unreal Engine 5 was released only last April, while CDPR has been working on Cyberpunk since 2013 when they first teased it with a trailer. All they had then were current-gen game engines, though they ended up using their own in-house RedEngine for the game moving forward.
When that game released, it basically provided one of the best visual experiences that current-gen gaming tech had to offer. Say what you want about Cyberpunk 2077, but the game looked good - though not as good as this Unreal Engine 5 recreation.
This now presents the potential of what future games could look like, more so with UE5 becoming more popular among game developers. Even CDPR has already bought in on the new engine, though it will take some time before games start looking like this across every single capable gaming system.
Read also: The Day Before Zombie MMO Delayed To Next Year, But Will Move To Unreal Engine 5
You Won't See Cyberpunk 2077 On Unreal Engine 5 Anyway
Saher Tarek's recreation of a cybrounk-style city looks astounding, but it's not something you'll see anytime soon with CDPR's game. And the studio already made it very clear recently.
Case in point, CP2077 is still waiting for the release of its big story expansions. Many people assumed that it will use Epic Games' new engine after CDPR announced a new Witcher game being developed using Unreal Engine 5. But according to a news release, the studio will still be using their in-house RedEngine to develop the expansions instead of UE5.
cyberpunk 2077 steam
RedEngine has gonne through so many updates ever since it was first used during the 2011 game The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings. It was also used to build the award-winning juggernaut that is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, as well as Cyberpunk 2077.
Considering how tough it is to move from one engine to another, CDPR's decision to stick with their in-house engine makes a lot of sense. This means that they won't have to divvy up the work for Witcher 4, while also ensuring that CP2077's expansions will be developed without too much of a hassle.
Related: Cyberpunk 2077 Expansions Are Still Coming, Confirms CD Projekt
Story posted on GameNGuide
Written by RJ Pierce