First off, I wanna stress that this is not gonna be a review of Cyberpunk 2077. I’m still working on playing through the game on PC. And I am very glad I am, for reasons I am about to get into.
Because this is not so much about Cyberpunk 2077 itself as it is about the way it has been released. Specifically how it was released onto the last console generation. You know, where a considerable amount of people pre-ordered the game in good faith.
And good faith was all they had. Because CD Projekt Red was extremely careful about handing out review copies of the console ports. So nobody had any idea what they were getting into when pre-ordering the game on PS4. The lack of review keys was an instant red light, but nothing could’ve prepared us for the absolute chaos that was to follow.
The Crunch
Leading up to the launch, CDPR told us in April that the game was playable and finished but that they needed some time to give it some polish. Apparently, that was a blatant lie because as we all now know, the game launched in a very much unfinished state.
CDPR further ruined the trust by claiming the crunch was to “get the game ready on current-gen consoles”. But the game launched in an almost unplayable state, so that begs the question if the crunch was even worth it.
That being said the crunch was clearly necessary. There is no way they could’ve gotten the game to run this well without working overtime in time for the release. But obviously, the release date was still way too soon. And, in all honesty, CDPR management shouldn’t even have announced the game’s release date to be so soon. It shows a lot of miscommunication between the developers and the heads of the studio.
Broken Promises
CDPR promised a lot of things for the game. I will get into more detail about what they promised versus what’s in the game in my review. But it’s obvious that a lot of what they promised isn’t entirely there.
Cyberpunk has a lot of issues with the AI, and if the game has all these advanced features then it doesn’t really show as well. It does a good job making you feel like it does until something happens and the AI just kinda gives up.
That’s of course not counting the fact that CDPR promised the last-gen console versions would be just as good as the PC version. Which is clearly not the case when the console versions had far more crashes and glitches compared to the same game on PC.
It lead up to the developers themselves asking the ones in charge why Cyberpunk was released in the state it was. According to an article by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, a meeting occured where the staff expressed their dissatisfaction with the leadership.
The Divide
So what CDPR needs to understand here is just how bad the situation is. Not only have they gotten their game delisted from the PlayStation Network, but they have also created essentially a divide between the fans. The majority of PC gamers love the game because of what it has to offer. But those on console have ended up with an experience that ruined the game for them.
So what we have is a sharp divide where console players will hate the game and consider it a failure, while those on PC consider it buggy but still a really good game. And that’s extremely sad considering this game has so much to offer.
You’ve truly ruined your reputation as well as the reputation of the game. What you’re paying for now is the incredible damage you’ve done. It is very hard to believe your empty promises at this point when so much trust has been broken.
The Future Of Cyberpunk 2077
The game’s future is now looking extremely shaky. CDPR is facing a class-action lawsuit for its practices. And this could easily lead to the company’s death in a worst-case scenario.
Hopefully, this does not mean the end for Cyberpunk 2077. While I don’t wanna go into too much detail because I am reviewing the game later, I do wanna stress that the game is very good. It has some of the best writing I’ve ever seen, coupled with utterly gorgeous visuals and addictive gameplay.
So it deserves better than this. And the developers who worked on it deserve better than this. Cyberpunk 2077 still has the potential to be one of the best games ever made. Dear CDPR, GET YOUR FUCKING SHIT TOGETHER!