Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty's Chimera Tank took two years to design, CD Projekt reveals

The Chimera Tank boss fight in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty required two years of development to reach its final form, according to CD Projekt Red's creative leadership.

Speaking on CD Projekt's AnsweRED podcast, game director Gabe Amatangelo and creative director Igor Sarzyński detailed the production challenges behind the encounter, which pits V and President Myers against a Ghost in the Shell-inspired spider-tank in a Barghest facility during Phantom Liberty's opening act.

"Sometimes we're making content that's a nexus point of different disciplines; the Chimera is a great example of that," Amatangelo said. "It was gameplay, narrative, art, worldbuilding." He explained that the team wanted the tank to "terrify" players with its weapons and that balancing the sequence proved complex. "Sometimes it was too gameplay, sometimes it was too narrative, sometimes too art demonstration. It was about striking a balance and I think the three of us heavily got into it and went, 'Okay beat by beat, let's do this.'"

Art director Paweł Mielniczuk, who co-hosted the podcast episode, confirmed the extended timeline. "I think when we were iterating, it was two years to make this boss fight work," he said. "We were reiterating over and over." Mielniczuk noted that the tank underwent four separate redesigns involving changes to its equipment and weapons. Creative director Sarzyński called the Chimera "one of the most expensive art assets I think ever."

Amatangelo recalled collaborating with Mielniczuk by exchanging YouTube videos of military equipment and mini-guns to capture the overwhelming sound and visual presence of the rising tank. The extensive iteration reflects CD Projekt Red's broader approach to developing Phantom Liberty, the major expansion that launched in 2023 and has been widely praised as a significant improvement to the base game's narrative and mission design.