CD Projekt has voted to rename its parent company CD Projekt Red, aligning it with the development studio behind The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 after 24 years of operating under two separate names.
- CD Projekt voted at its most recent general meeting to rename the parent company CD Projekt Red.
- The company says the change ensures brand consistency, easier global identification and better recruitment.
- CD Projekt was founded in 1994 as a games distributor; CD Projekt Red was created as a development studio in 2002.
- CD Projekt Red runs five studios across two groups — Europe (Warsaw, Wrocław, Kraków) and North America (Vancouver, Boston).
- The Warsaw studio leads The Witcher 4 while the Boston studio drives the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel.
CD Projekt is dropping the name it has carried since 1994 and becoming CD Projekt Red, matching the studio brand behind The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077. The Polish company voted through the change at its most recent general meeting, ending a 24-year split between the parent company and its development arm. The stated reasons are brand consistency, easier global identification and smoother recruitment.
As reported by Video Games Chronicle, citing Polish financial publication Bankier.pl and a machine-translated company statement, the vote sets the parent entity on course to share a single name with the studio that makes its games. For players in the UAE and across the GCC who have poured hours into these single-player epics, it changes nothing about the games — but it does tidy up how the company shows up on storefronts and job listings.
Why CD Projekt is changing its name
The company says aligning its corporate name with its studio name makes branding and recruitment more straightforward now that making games is its core business. In its statement, the Management Board explained the reasoning behind the move (via machine translation from Polish):
The studio’s activities currently correspond to the Company’s core operational activity, which consists of producing and publishing video games and managing the Company’s brands, including through the creation and licensing of accompanying product.
CD Projekt Management Board
It added that the unified name would “ensure consistency in the communication of the CD Projekt Red brand, which will, among other things, facilitate the identification of the company with its products on the global market and support recruitment processes.” In plain terms: one name, less confusion for investors, partners and prospective hires.
How CD Projekt and CD Projekt Red split apart
The two-name structure goes back to the company’s origins as a distributor of games. CD Projekt began in 1994 bringing foreign games into Poland and translating them for local players.
In 2002 it set up CD Projekt Red as an internal development studio so it could build its own titles instead of just publishing others’. Its first game, The Witcher, landed to critical acclaim and set the studio on its current path. For 24 years since, CD Projekt has been the company and CD Projekt Red the studio — a distinction that means little to most players but plenty to lawyers and recruiters.
A timeline of the rebrand
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1994 | CD Projekt founded as a games distribution company in Poland |
| 2002 | CD Projekt Red established as an internal development studio |
| 2002+ | First game, <em>The Witcher</em>, released to critical acclaim |
| 2020 | <em>Cyberpunk 2077</em> released from the Warsaw studio |
| Present | Five studios across two groups: CD Projekt Red Europe and North America |
| TBC | Company name changes to CD Projekt Red following the meeting vote |
How many studios CD Projekt Red has
The company runs five studios split across two parent groups. CD Projekt Red Europe covers the main Warsaw studio — known for The Witcher series and large open-world releases like Cyberpunk 2077 — plus the smaller Polish studios in Wrocław and Kraków.
CD Projekt Red North America is made up of CD Projekt Red Vancouver, formerly Digital Scapes Studios, and CD Projekt Red Boston, which absorbed the former studio The Molasses Flood.
What it means for The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk
The rebrand lands while the studio’s two biggest projects are deep in development. The Warsaw team leads on The Witcher 4, the next mainline entry in the series, while the Boston studio was formed to drive the sequel to Cyberpunk 2077.
None of this signals a shift in how the company makes games — it is a corporate name change, not a strategy reset. But arriving with a unified identity as those two flagship games take shape gives CD Projekt Red a cleaner brand to sell its next decade under.
A few details remain open. The source does not confirm the exact date the new name takes legal effect, nor whether the change touches the company’s Warsaw Stock Exchange listing or investor-facing identity. The quotes here are machine-translated from the original Polish statement.
FAQ
Why is CD Projekt changing its name to CD Projekt Red?
The company says the change ensures consistency in how the CD Projekt Red brand is communicated, makes it easier for global audiences to identify the company with its products, and supports recruitment, since making and publishing games is now its core business.
When did CD Projekt Red become a separate studio?
CD Projekt Red was established in 2002 as the game development arm of CD Projekt, which was founded in 1994 as a games distribution business that brought foreign titles into Poland.
How many studios does CD Projekt Red have?
Five, split across two groups. CD Projekt Red Europe covers Warsaw, Wrocław and Kraków, while CD Projekt Red North America covers Vancouver (formerly Digital Scapes Studios) and Boston (which includes the former The Molasses Flood).
What games is CD Projekt Red currently developing?
The Warsaw studio leads development on The Witcher 4, the next mainline Witcher game, while the Boston studio was formed to drive the sequel to Cyberpunk 2077.