2022 was apparently a very good 12 months for Cyberpunk 2077 and the corporate that made it. After probably the most disastrous blockbuster launches in latest historical past, the open-world sci-fi RPG went on to make much more cash final 12 months than the one earlier, signaling a staggering turnaround for a franchise that originally appeared lifeless on arrival. And the upcoming DLC Phantom Liberty isn’t even out but.
Developer CD Projekt Pink revealed its full 2022 earnings report earlier this week (through IGN), which confirmed whole income for Cyberpunk 2077 really grew 18 p.c year-over-year. Often that quantity retains happening after launch, however the uncommon turnaround ended up serving to make 2022 the corporate’s second-best 12 months on document when it got here to gross sales income.
An enormous a part of the rebound was clearly the sport’s huge 1.5 patch which added some new options and content material, streamlined others, and overhauled a bunch of bugs, efficiency points, and different issues. It notably launched alongside the free “next-gen” improve for PS5 and Xbox Sequence X as effectively, making February 2022 the unofficial finish of Cyberpunk 2077’s unofficial Early Entry interval. A graph in CDPR’s earnings presentation confirmed an inflexion level after the replace was launched the place destructive person opinions on Steam steadily declined whereas constructive ones skyrocketed.
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Learn Extra: There Is No Saving Cyberpunk 2077
However an excellent bigger issue contributing to Cyberpunk 2077’s gross sales revival in all probability needed to do with its super-popular Netflix adaptation, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. Set in the identical world however primarily based round completely different characters, the streaming anime offered lots of the compelling story beats some gamers had anticipated from the sport. It additionally satisfied lots of people who had by no means performed Cyberpunk earlier than to go and take a look at it out.
This Netflix impact was on show with The Witcher 3 as effectively. One other graph shared by CDPR confirmed its gross sales declining yearly after launch up till 2019, when the streaming adaptation starring Henry Cavill debuted. Gross sales then grew two years in a row and have remained increased ever since. (CDPR launched a PS5 and Xbox Sequence X/S improve for that sport as effectively in 2022, but it surely doesn’t appear to have had a lot of an influence on gross sales but.)
Cyberpunk 2077, in the meantime, may have an excellent larger 12 months in 2023. Its long-awaited paid DLC growth, Phantom Liberty, is predicted to reach someday within the second half. It’ll star Idris Elba and seemingly add new storylines and areas of the map to discover, growing the scale of an already (overly) huge sport. If it’s something like The Witcher 3’s Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions, it would find yourself feeling like a complete sport unto itself. We’ll know extra as soon as CDPR declares the complete particulars on Phantom Liberty at a showcase in June.
