CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077 has been one of the most anticipated open-world RPGs of recent memory, which is no surprise coming off of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, one of the most beloved games of this generation. However, given the nature of the 'cyberpunk' genre and CD Projekt Red's unwillingness to shy away from maturity in their games, it comes as no surprise that Cyberpunk 2077 has already come into its fair share of controversies, even over 4 months away from its release. Thankfully, it seems like the game will see absolutely no censorship upon its release on September 17th, 2020.
As the game reaches the final stages of development, CD Projekt Red has began submitting the game to classification ratings boards such as the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) and Pan European Gaming Information (PEGI). One particular ratings board that games like Cyberpunk 2077 struggle to pass is the Australian Classification Board, which has previously outright banned mature titles such as Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number and Manhunt, while only granting titles such as Saints Row IV and South Park: The Stick of Truth classification with censored content.
Thankfully, despite its extreme content, CD Projekt Red's Kuba Kutrzuba confirmed to GameSpot today that Cyberpunk 2077's Australian release will not be receiving such censorship. The game has received an 'R 18+' rating in Australia, with a leaked Brazillian classification board posting listing that the game will feature all sorts of mature content such as 'nudity', 'prostitution', 'intense sexual relation' and 'suicide'. Discussing the successful classification with GameSpot, Kutrzuba stated:
Receiving an age rating in Australia was an important milestone on our way to releasing the game in September. We're creating a mature title for a mature audience, so we were expecting R 18+. We haven't had to alter the game in any way and Australian gamers are set to enjoy the full Cyberpunk 2077 experience.
In an interview with GameSpot last October, CD Projekt Red's John Mamis voiced confidence in Cyberpunk 2077's likeliness of receiving a rating from the Australian Classification Board, as the team feels like they are handling the mature content on display in a tasteful manner. Previously CD Projekt Red's The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt received an 'R 18+' rating from the Australian Classifications Board, with The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings receiving an 'MA 15+' rating after first being denied classification and needing to receive a re-submission after the team was forced to censor the game.
Glancing at the leaked Brazillian classification notes very quickly shows that Cyberpunk 2077 will be a very mature game, and while the North American ESRB rating and the European PEGI ratings have yet to be released, CD Projekt Red has confirmed that the game has been submitted for their approval already.
Most importantly, this reveals that Cyberpunk 2077 really is nearing the end of its development, with CD Projekt Red already stating that it isin the final stages of fixing up the game before it is ready for release. Thankfully it will not be long now before players get to take to Night City, and players will likely get another look at the game soon, with it being confirmed to make some sort of appearance at the Summer Games Festival taking place from May to August 2020.
Cyberpunk 2077 will launch on Google Stadia, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on September 17th 2020. An Xbox Series X version has also been confirmed, however it will not be ready for the system's launch.
Source: GameSpot