Despite an unpleasant launch,Cyberpunk 2077was still a financial success for CD Projekt Red.DayZ creator Dean Hallshared his thoughts aboutCyberpunkand 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 thoughtCyberpunk 2077’slaunch compared toNo Man’s Skyin 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 likeCyberpunk 2077,No Man’s Skyis 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 successfor its developer, Hello Games. To quote Hall, “No Man’s Skymade a fortune, andCyberpunkmade many fortunes, so it’s difficult really to swing it as anything other than a resounding success.” And it’s true,No Man’s Skycontinues to attract millions of new players, whileCyberpunk 2077is already one of the best-selling RPGs of all time.
Hall expressed a similar attitude when asked if he expectedCyberpunk 2077to 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 ofCyberpunk 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 thatCyberpunk 2077 was a massive successfor 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 ofCyberpunk’sdifficult 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 thedevelopers who worked onCyberpunk 2077laid 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 2077has 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 2077is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
