CD Projekt Red announced the anticipated next-gen console releases of both Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3 have been delayed into 2022. The news is disappointing for a lot of fans, especially Cyberpunk 2077 players who are waiting to see the game on a console that will hopefully be able to run it as well as on PC. Despite this disappointment, it is probably the right move for CD Projekt Red to make, especially after the blowback it suffered from Cyberpunk 2077's launch.
Cyberpunk 2077 launched in a poor state, sometimes unplayable at its worst. The game was in such bad condition that many platforms offered full refunds, and Sony ultimately decided to pull it from the PlayStation store for months. Since then the state of the game has been largely improved, but it still has issues running on the older PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles. Before this delay, the next-gen version of Cyberpunk 2077 was still expected to release this year, but it coming out next year instead is probably better in the long run.
CD Projekt Red's Damaged Reputation
The bad press that CD Projekt Red received from Cyberpunk 2077's sloppy release left a massive mark on the company. Its stock prices fell, there were calls for the company's CEO to resign, and CD Projekt announced there would be changes to how it was approaching development to ensure similar issues did not occur again. Perhaps the biggest impact was how it tarnished the beloved company's reputation. The Witcher 2 and especially The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt got the company in very good graces with the industry, especially for its stance on not including microtransactions. For many, that reputation has now been besmirched following the company's poor handling of Cyberpunk 2077, which was a hugely anticipated game for many years.
This issue has only been worsened by how CD Projekt Red has broken its promises with regard to Cyberpunk 2077. This year was supposed to see the release of free DLC and the next-gen version, and the developer has yet to offer any information on its long-announced multiplayer mode as well. This makes delaying the next-gen versions probably the best course of action for CD Projekt Red. Releasing next-gen versions of both Witcher and Cyberpunk is a great opportunity for the developer to earn back some of its good favor, which means failing to deliver could make more players write the company off completely - especially if those updated versions are just as buggy.
It would be great to see CD Projekt Red deliver next-gen versions that are worth the wait for fans who want them. If not, it will have to wait until it gets to expansions for Cyberpunk 2077 and its multiplayer mode to try and win back some of its fans, but for many the damage could be irredeemable by then. Hopefully players don't have too much longer to wait for them to release, and hopefully peple will get some news on when they will get their hands on the other announced content like Cyberpunk's DLC soon.
Cyberpunk 2077 is available on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One, with PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions in development.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is available now for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions in development.