Former Cyberpunk and Witcher developers forge new studio

Former CD Projekt Red developers and 11 Bit Studios have formed a new studio called Blank based in Warsaw.

The studio is developing a character-driven story set during an apocalypse with unexpected twists.

Stating that the team has filled up with “huge, super-complicated games with open worlds” and is focusing on simpler goals like uniqueness, thrills, quality, and refinement.

The studio consists of co-founders Mateusz Kanik (game director), Jedrzej Mroz (executive producer), Marcin Jefimow (executive producer) and Mikolaj Marchewka (general manager).

Michal Dobrowolski is the Design Director, Artur Ganszyniec is the Narrative Director, and Grzegorz Przybys is the Art Director.

“After working for years in an increasingly conservative industry, we are ready to make bold and impactful projects that share our unique creativity and values,” said Kanik.

“Where the industry advocates a dictatorship of the creative individual, we want to give ownership to the team. Where the industry leans on critical culture, we prefer work/life balance. Where the industry says bigger is better, we’re aiming at highly polished games with a focus on emotion, story, and craft.”

“Our philosophy of game development comes from our own stories and experiences,” Jefimow said. “With Blank, we want to build a space where we can honor our stories and be fun and open to new inspiration as we collaborate creatively.

“We already have a head start on a new project in the making that we can’t wait to share with players and build with new team members.”

The studio is “eagerly waiting” to share what it’s working on and will do so when the time is right. Until then, you can check out some teasers above.

The studio currently has 10 team members, but is looking to expand to nearly 60 people to support development of the unannounced project.