Cyberpunk 2077: CD Projekt Red promises uncertain refunds, reports 8 million pre-orders

CD Projket Red, the Polish game publisher and developer responsible for one of the most-awaited video games for the year, Cyberpunk 2077 has been in the limelight for all kinds of reasons. The game left the internet divided when it came to the state that it was launched in. In addition, the launch itself broke several records when it came to preorders or the number of concurrent players on distribution platforms such as Steam. Beyond this, the company has also faced stark criticism for the quality of the game on last-gen consoles. Several reports have noted that the game has some serious performance issues on older consoles including Xbox One and PS4.

Days after the criticism, the company went ahead and acknowledged the performance issues in the game. In addition, the company also made an announcement to address these concerns including promises about fixes in future updates. It also shared some information about the sales figures of the game. According to the initial set of tweets after the launch, the company saw “more than 8 million” pre-orders. Out of the 8 million pre-orders, more than three-fourths are digital copies of the game. Let’s check out the details around Cyberpunk 2077 here including quality issues on last-gen base consoles, refunds, pre-orders, and more.

CD Projekt Red addresses and admits Cyberpunk 2077 performance issues, details

Looking at the information available online, CD Projekt Red admitted that it “should have paid more attention” to the game on PS4 and Xbox One. It also apologized for not showing the gameplay footage for Cyberpunk 2077 on PS4, and Xbox One before the release of the game. This move would have helped players make an informed decision around their pre-orders. The game publisher stated that it will work to fix the “most prominent” issues in future updates in the coming months. But it noted that these updates won’t make the game as better as it is on a high-end PC or the latest generation consoles.

However, it also stated that unsatisfied players can return the game to get a refund. Some early reports stated that come last-gen console owners have successfully returned their copies. Players with physical copies of the game are requested to contact the places where they purchased the game. CD Projekt Red also set up a dedicated email address for players who are unsuccessful in returning the digital copy of the game.

It looks like the company could foresee the problems in returning the digital copies of the game. This is because several reports have shared how a large number of players have not been able to return their game. CD Projekt Red confirmed that it has not established a special arrangement with Microsoft or Sony to make the returns easier. This means that the players are at the mercy of the console makers for a successful return.

Both the platforms note that players should not have started the download or streamed the game before attempting the return. They did note that exceptions apply if the content is faulty but there is no clarity on what compromises this statement. Players are reporting an easy return experience on Xbox as compared to PlayStation.

Cyberpunk 2077 pre-orders, development costs, and stock in Poland; details

As highlighted above, the company shared that it saw more than 8 million pre-orders for the game. CD Projekt Red also stated that its sales figures crossed the $50 million mark on Steam about 2 weeks back. It also stated that the revenue from digital pre-orders has already covered the production costs for the game. The production costs also include marketing and promotion for the year.

We also saw reports that the CD Projekt Red stock is taking a beating back in Poland due to all these controversies. The messy launch and bad handling of Cyberpunk 2077 have pushed the stock “more than 33 percent” since early December. Though, according to a tweet from Daniel Ahmad, a noted analyst, this slip is likely because the market is not sure about the future prospects of the company. Some reports have also underplayed this drop noting that the company will be fine in the long term.