Cyberpunk 2077‘s bungled launch back at the tail end of 2020 continues to have lasting effects on CD Projekt RED’s finances.
Prior to release, the sci-fi RPG (based on Mike Pondsmith’s tabletop game of the same name) had generated a massive amount of buzz for itself, not least due to the quality of its creator’s previous work. Considered one of the finest games ever made, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt set expectations for future titles from the developer incredibly high and ultimately ended up being a bar that no degree of expert marketing would help it meet.
Shipped with numerous bugs, egregious performance issues and obvious instances of cut content, Cyberpunk 2077‘s day one woes quickly prompted a media circus and overwhelming negativity among fans, many of which accused CDPR of knowingly deceiving customers with regard to last-gen console versions.
In an attempt at damage control, the studio ultimately offered to refund – either directly or through digital store operators – anyone dissatisfied with their purchase in a move that may ultimately end up costing the company in excess of eight figures. A recent financial report states that just over $50 million has been set aside for reparation efforts, though it’s worth noting that this is a projection rather than the current total, so the final number could be a bit lower. Even so, said estimate will have been agreed upon as the likely outcome and is still a drop in the ocean compared to the net profit of $303 million so far accrued via sales of Cyberpunk 2077 across all platforms.
Were you one of thousands to request your money back out of frustration and disappointment, though? Let us know if you intend to reconsider down the line in the usual place below!
