Witcher 3 devs hired by indie studio

A pair of Witcher 3: Wild Hunt lead developers have made a major career change. CD Projekt Red lead gameplay designer Maciej Szczesnik and gameplay producer Marek Ziemak have joined independent development company 11 bit studios, it was announced today in a press release.

Szczesnik joins 11 bit studios, creator of the Anomaly franchise, as its new lead designer for an unannounced project. At the company, he'll be responsible for the "entire design" of a new game, and he said it's a "really exciting feeling" to build a new world from scratch.

11 bit studios isn't ready to announced what role Ziemak will play at the company, though he commented that he admires the indie scene's "creativity and freshness." Expect news about what 11 bit studios is working on sometime in March, he said.

Szczesnik and Ziemak didn't have to go far at all to join 11 bit studios after leaving CD Projekt Red, as both companies are based in Warsaw, Poland.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt launches for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC this year. The game is not coming to Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 because releasing a fully featured version of the game on those consoles would be impossible, CD Projekt Red said previously.