Despite an unpleasant launch, Cyberpunk 2077 was still a financial success for CD Projekt Red. DayZ creator Dean Hall shared his thoughts about Cyberpunk and its impact on CD Projekt during a recent Kiwi TalkNZ podcast episode.
During the 54-minute interview, the host asked the New Zealand game designer how he thought Cyberpunk 2077’s launch compared to No Man’s Sky in 2016. Hall agreed with the host that the situations are similar. He also argued that's as positive for CD Projekt Red.
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Much like Cyberpunk 2077, No Man’s Sky is an ambitious game that was not at all ready for launch when it debuted in 2016. However, despite the widespread and mostly justified criticism, No Man’s Sky went on to be a resounding success for its developer, Hello Games. To quote Hall, “No Man’s Sky made a fortune, and Cyberpunk made many fortunes, so it’s difficult really to swing it as anything other than a resounding success.” And it’s true, No Man’s Sky continues to attract millions of new players, while Cyberpunk 2077 is already one of the best-selling RPGs of all time.
Hall expressed a similar attitude when asked if he expected Cyberpunk 2077 to cause CD Projekt Red problems in the future. He compared the studio to Bethesda, whose games are infamous for their buggy releases. That doesn’t mean Hall doesn’t see the game’s issues as a possible learning experience for the industry. He noted how the glitches were drastically worse on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of Cyberpunk 2077. Hall blames this primarily on CDPR’s scramble to release multiple editions simultaneously. He hopes other developers are more willing to space releases out if they need to.
Overall, though, Hall stressed that Cyberpunk 2077 was a massive success for CD Projekt Red. Even the unprecedented rush of refunds and returns does not overshadow the game’s monumental sales. Hall believes that CDPR and other developers will take note of Cyberpunk’s difficult release. However, he doubts the industry will remember it as a cautionary tale.
In some ways, Hall seems to be mirroring the opinion of CD Projekt’s CEO Marcin Iwinski. In January, Iwinski released a statement blaming the problems primarily on overambition and the last-gen releases in particular. However, many of the developers who worked on Cyberpunk 2077 laid much of the blame on company leadership. Given the range of issues development faced, and how common they are across the industry, a cautionary tale might be just what AAA gaming needs.
For now, though, CD Projekt is far from hobbled. Cyberpunk 2077 has multiple DLC on the way. Some or all of it will be free according to the developer’s 2021 roadmap. The studio also plans to add a multiplayer component, which should go live sometime in 2022. Hopefully, CD Projekt is a little more patient with development this time.
Cyberpunk 2077 is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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Source: GameSpot