Turning Emotions, Story, and Big Moments Into Gameplay

Lead Quest Designer Sarah Grummer’s defining work at CD PROJEKT RED is in creating the Judy questline in Cyberpunk 2077, but with over 12 years of experience at the studio, she has also worked on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and is now on Cyberpunk 2 in Boston. In this Meeting REDs, find out how Sarah turns stories into playable experiences, what principles guide her quest designs, and her love for the subtle art of evoking emotions in players.

Did you always want to make video games for a living?

I actually studied to be a geriatric nurse. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do after high school; first I took a year off, and then I thought “a geriatric nurse is a career in which I will always have a job, right?” But at home, the whole time, before and during my studies, I was not just playing but modding Neverwinter Nights — creating my own worlds and cities within it.

Why didn’t you consider a career in game dev in the first place?

I just didn’t know that was possible! I’ve always been a gamer, but it wasn’t until I randomly met a friend from high school, as I was finishing my nursing studies, that I found out. They asked: "You know you can actually make a living from this, right?” And I was like, "No, please tell me everything!” That’s how I found out about a school, Games Academy, in Berlin, and I studied there for a year to be a game designer. This helped me meet people in the industry, and that, paired with my modding experience, allowed me to find my first job as a Level Designer soon after.

What brought you to CD PROJEKT RED in 2013?

A colleague from my previous company began working at RED and suggested I apply there too. At the time the studio was kicking off The Witcher 3 production and needed more quest designers. I was hesitant as CDPR wasn’t as well known as it is today, and it would of course involve a move to Poland. But my dilemma disappeared when a while later my company went bankrupt. So I thought, “you know what? I’m going to send that application now!”

What’s most important about quest design for you?

We turn the story, the emotions, and the big moments we want players to experience — their entire journey — into something playable. Sometimes the direction we are given is broad. It’s up to us to work closely with the Story and Cinematics teams to decide what that means. We decide which challenges a player encounters, what leads to character development, which puzzles have to be solved, and which gameplay mechanics need to be used. We also think a lot about choices and consequences. The players need to know their actions always mean something. Even if they find that out hours later.

Is evoking emotions in players an important aspect of the job?

Here’s the thing: I really like to make players cry. When that’s the goal, I will do everything to make sure they are left feeling devastated and in tears at the end of a quest. It really gives me great joy because it means the quest works. But emotions are a spectrum. In our job you need to be able to bring about both the good and the bad ones.

How did you learn which heartstrings to pull on and when?

Emotions are one of the main pillars of our designs. And evoking them is a collaborative effort because emotions are felt through different mediums: dialogue, music, acting, gameplay… How do I train that? I guess at this point it’s mostly experience because I’ve created so many designs. Early on I received lots of good advice from colleagues like Paweł Sasko (using contrasting emotions was a big one). And I’m still learning from others on a daily basis.

Were there challenges in becoming a Lead Quest Designer?

I’m an introvert by nature. When I began at RED I was really shy and didn’t know how to present my ideas or how to tell people I needed something. I had to learn that. But once I got over it and became more comfortable with working in a group, suddenly everything became a lot easier. Soon after I naturally became the person who guides others and organizes quests. And now, years later, I’m leading a whole team!

What are qualities and characteristics you love to see in designers?

You understand narrative well, know what to look out for in your designs, and be good on the technical, implementation side. But you also need to be proactive, share your ideas and your knowledge, and get people together to work on creating or fixing something. It took me a while to learn, but I now realize that, as a designer, communication and collaboration are key. Don’t just sit alone in your room! Actively gather people around you, inspire them, be inspired by them, share your thoughts, and foster an environment where you want to do the same.

What’s your favorite part of the job?

Right now the collaborative effort is the thing I like most: sitting in reviews with all the other disciplines, playing through a quest, and getting inspired by feedback. If one department suggests something, another says, “then we can add this”, and another one says, “that would let us make the scene pop even more”. And it just goes on and on. I really enjoy these moments.

What are some of your goals for the future?

I very actively chose to work on the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel! I'm sorry to The Witcher people reading this, but I really love the dark future more. So I’m very happy and excited about the project. Goals? First off, to make this an amazing game! We have such an incredibly passionate team in Boston — a team that is still growing a lot — and it’s so exciting to be part of it. I’m determined to continue to uphold our company’s values with this group, and continue the special way we design quests at CD PROJEKT RED — a way that captures what is so unique about our storytelling.