Cyberpunk 2077 Devs Talk LGBT+ Representation

As we edge closer to the announcement of Cyberpunk 2077’s next delay, it’s only natural that more interviews and such will start showing up in our news feeds as devs and executives try to hype the game. And while we’ve all learned quite a bit about the upcoming RPG in the past few months, particularly about the gameplay and world, Katarzyna Kucharczyk of the Rzeczpospolita Daily, who interviewed CD Projekt Red’s own Adam Kiciński and Adam Badowski, had something else in mind during her chat: social rights and LGBT+ representation.

A big deal for us, arguably, but an even bigger deal in their native country of Poland, where LGBT issues are still a hot-button issue and fairly divisive, to the point where most big companies simply won’t comment on it.

The whole interview is worth a read, but if you just want to know how the issue of LGBT+ and representation will be tackled in the game itself, I’ve got you:

Our games depict the consequences of stigmatizing otherness, reveal the link between social inequality and xenophobic sentiment, and show what humans are capable of when they believe they can act with impunity. There is a similar vibe in “Cyberpunk”. For example, Mike Pondsmith’s manual, published in the 1980s and providing the source of inspiration for our game, is quite liberal when it comes to gender modification. The whole issue is regarded as relatively minor compared to the need to express one’s personal style — and this provides for much greater fluidity. I truly hope that, much like in the case of The Witcher games, Cyberpunk 2077 will surprise everyone with how many bold, mature and astute narratives can be conveyed by the video game medium. I will gladly come back to this issue after the November release once I’m at liberty to share more information.

Dope, but not surprising. Which, for once, is the good kind of unsurprising.