CD Projekt Red’s action game Cyberpunk 2077 has surged in sales and player count following the release of spin-off anime series Edgerunners.
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Cyberpunk 2077 launched as such a buggy mess in 2020, with issues with graphics, gameplay, and basic functionality. Montages of the glitches were soon shared online, further harming the game’s reputation.
It was removed from sale on the PlayStation Store, both Sony and Microsoft attempted to offer refunds, and class action lawsuits accused CD Projekt of false advertising and deceiving investors. A whistleblower would later claim the outsourced quality assurance company Quantic Lab lied about their work.
After the release of Cyberpunk 2077: Edgerunners on Netflix earlier this month, it seems the game’s fortunes have turned around. CD Projekt announced at the end of September that Cyberpunk 2077 hit 20 million in sales (a reported growth of 18 million since April), and had seen one million daily players.
When looking at Steam DB, a third party website that monitors Steam, we see the game has had a rise on concurrent players since September 1st. We also see via Twitch Tracker that the game has seen a 234% increase in the number of streamers playing the game from the prior month, along with a 329% rise in viewers.
Speaking on Twitch, Quest Director Paweł Sasko became emotional over how well the game was now being received compared to launch, seemingly holding back tears while somber music played. A clip of the moment was later shared on r/Cyberpunk.
“When I was sitting there in that armchair, listening to the questions, and thinking what the hell I’m supposed to say… It’s hard to express y’know?” Sasko confessed. “Like, when you’re putting so much heart and soul into something. And you know for some of us it’s been like, what? Six, seven, eight years sometimes. You know, especially for those who started at the very beginning.”
“So like, to have this moment, of actually people liking something that we did is really… It’s really feeling a bit unreal. That finally there are people appreciating it.” Sasko paused several times when speaking to gather himself. “After the release, I couldn’t believe, y’know! Like after sometime of course I did, but at the beginning I just couldn’t believe.”
“And I remember Sapphire, who was with me at that time, my dear girlfriend, she was seeing me f–king completely wrecked.” After a long pause Sasko added “Yeah but it’s… It’s good to be back. It’s f—king good to be back, honestly. I was really so… It was heartbreaking. ”
Will CD Projekt Red benefit from these new “chooms” seeing Cyberpunk 2077 in an improved state? Will sparks fly when the honeymoon period wears off? And will gamers phrase critique differently, as developers are more honest about how a bad release can impact them?
NEXT: Netflix Reveals ‘Cyberpunk: Edgerunners’ Release Date With New, Fast-Paced Trailer