CD Projekt Red
About CD Projekt Red
Founded in 2002 in Poland’s Warsaw (HQ), Kraków and Wrocław, CD PROJEKT RED began as a small studio driven by passion for video games, and now employs more than 800 people from around the world, setting industry standards for RPG game quality.
Note
This is an educational project and it is not affiliated with CD Projekt Red or any of its parent companies, titles, or entities.
Objective
“We see ourselves in the industry as the Northern Cardinal, intrepid, bold, and confident, with cardinal RED representing our inner fire and creativity, inspired by the mythological Raróg bird.”
- Free like a bird
- Bold
- Fearless
- Rebellious
- Passion, Energy – Fire
Current Logo
- Free like a bird
- Bold
- Fearless
- Rebellious
- Passion, Energy – Fire
Problems
The logo captures CD Projekt Red’s identity perfectly but has flaws in terms of readability and functionality.
- Very detailed
- Works barely on small sizes
- Brittle extensions
- Logotype is not well aligned
Change the Look and keep the Identity
The Goal
To preserve the company’s cultural heritage, I extracted the key elements from the existing logo and utilized them as design guidelines. The objective was to streamline the logo for optimal performance across different sizes and colors.
- Northern Cardinal
- Rebellious
- fire & passion
- firebird: raròg
Result
To address alignment issues at the bottom of the logo and create a more compact and bolder typeface, a customized logotype was implemented. As for the logomark, a simple shape of a northern cardinal bird spreading its wings, resembling a flame, was created. This symbolizes passion and energy, aligning with the brand’s message.
- CARDINAL RED
- cmyk 5, 100, 100, 0
- rgb 220, 13, 21
- hex #dc0d15
- CORAL RED
- cmyk 0, 83, 81, 0
- rgb 249, 66, 58
- hex #F9423A
- RICH BLACK
- cmyk 75, 68, 67, 90
- rgb 12, 9, 4
- hex #0C0904
- VELVET BURGUNDY
- cmyk 0, 97, 93, 61
- rgb 99, 3, 7
- hex #630307
- PURE WHITE
- cmyk 0, 0, 0, 0
- rgb 255, 255, 255
- hex #FFFFFF
Before & After
Upon comparing the two versions of the logo, the changes made to address the issues of the current logo are evident. In order to provide more context and depth to the new concept, mockups were utilized to showcase the logo in various applications, demonstrating its proper presentation.
The Futur
I presented this rebranding concept live on a youtube stream for the channel called “The Futur” back in 2020 and refined it in 2022. If you want to see the great Chris Do and me in motion, simply click the button below.
