Recent job postings from The Molasses Flood suggest the studio could be working on a Witcher multiplayer spin-off game.
In October 2021, the CD Projekt Group announced the acquisition of The Molasses Flood: an up-and-coming studio responsible for popular indie titles like Drake Hollow and The Flame in the Flood. In the last paragraph of the accompanying press release, it was revealed that the newly acquired studio would be independently working on an “ambitious project” based on one of CD Projekt’s existing IPs. Naturally, this led to a flurry of speculation.
Since the only notable IP addresses associated with the Polish powerhouse are the witcher and Cyberpunk 2077, most assume that the project in question must be related to one of the two. Since the former is the most popular franchise and already has some kind of extended universe, the witcher seemed like the strongest candidate, and the studio’s recent job postings back that up.
The Molasses Flood is currently looking to hire a multiplayer designer to work on an Unreal Engine built game based on an IP from CD Projekt. The listing suggests it will be a systems-heavy action game with a strong emphasis on multiplayer combat and procedural generation of some sort. Similar openings in the company indicate that the game has a leveling system and non-player enemies, as well as a mix of armed and unarmed combat.
This is not the only evidence that points to a multiplayer Witcher the game being in preparation either. During a Q&A session late last year, CD Projekt president and co-CEO Adam Kiciński confirmed that the company was looking to bring multiplayer to its two Cyberpunk 2077 and the witcher franchises in the years to come. With a free multiplayer update for the former having started development long before the acquisition was confirmed last year, it seems fairly plausible that The Molasses Flood project could be multiplayer. Witcher experience to which Kiciński was referring.
If that ends up being the case, the news will likely be welcomed by fans of the series, many of whom have discussed the possibility of multiplayer. Witcher game in the past. Admittedly, some have wondered if the integration of online multiplayer might somehow dilute the witcheris a proven formula, but knowing that The Witcher 4 is also under development should help alleviate these concerns.
From CD Projekt’s perspective, the idea of bringing multiplayer to the franchise via a standalone spinoff before implementing it in a mainline entry arguably makes a lot of sense. This would allow the company to understand what exactly an online multiplayer is Witcher game could look like without having to compromise the integrity of The Witcher 4.