Cyberpunk 2077 Isn’t As Big As The Witcher 3, But That's Okay

CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077 is nearly upon us, but it’s not going to have a map as big as that of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Thanks to a video published by YouTuber BlackWoodz ,we now know the size of the Night City map, and while it’s not larger than the world of The Witcher 3 that’s totally fine. The Witcher 3 included the huge areas of Novigrad, Skellige and Velen, and while Night City is smaller, the world of Cyberpunk 2077 is still huge!

Woman in a bar in Cyberpunk 2077 — Credit: CD Projekt Red

The map of The Witcher 3 is said to be around 136 square kilometres in size, however we should take into account that much of the map is made up of water.

Night City, by comparison, is said to be around 75 square kilometres, which on paper seems much smaller than The Witcher 3.

BlackWoodz also used the comparison of GTA 5’s Los Santos which comes in at 127 square kilometres.

Johnny Silverhand looking sad in Cyberpunk 2077 — Credit: CD Projekt Red

While Night City sounds small, it’s important to note that it’s also explorable vertically as well as horizontally. The vertical map is far more densely populated, with various tiers including the underground, the surface and the high-rise upper class districts.

I’ve also found in so many open-world games that a bigger map doesn’t automatically mean it’s a better game. Take 2014’s Assassin’s Creed: Unity for example. It offered a big open-world, but it was overwhelmingly filled with litter and filler.

A Cyberpunk boss wielding a weapon — Credit: CD Projekt Red

Another series that comes to mind that offers smaller maps but is filled with meaningful activities is SEGA’s Yakuza series. The maps in this series may be smaller than other games in the genre, but you will never run out of fun activities in the city of Kamurocho and beyond.

As the old saying goes: “quality over quantity”.