While the delay for Cyberpunk 2077 from its 16 April release to 17 September may have left many fans gutted, there may be a silver lining in the proverbial clouds for this.
As it turns out, while CD Projekt Red has announced that the game is “complete and playable” for current-gen consoles, a source claims the need to optimise the game for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One was the biggest reason for the delay of Cyberpunk 2077.
The source, Polish insider Borys Niespielak spoke in a recent podcast in Remiguisz Maciaszek’s YouTube channel that revealed this rumour. The translation of the most key bits of info by Discord user Klawiaturodzierzca can be found below:
It appears that Cyberpunk 2077‘s performance on the first iteration Xbox One that released in 2013 was “extremely unsatisfactory”, so CDPR had no choice but to postpone the release of the game until it was polished enough to run on current-gen consoles, let alone next-gen ones.
Imagine if it were to be released and ported over to the upcoming PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and performed terribly in those new consoles. it would certainly reflect badly on CD Projekt Red now, would it?
Niespielak also claimed that Cyberpunk 2077‘s main storyline is complete, with development for side content still underway. He also speculated that it “will be shorter than The Witcher 3” in length, but a second and third playthrough will yield a more substantial and satisfying story.
Another really interesting nugget is that Niespielak also claimed that there were also rumours for a Witcher spinoff title “exclusive for Sony” featuring “Ciri [as] the main heroine”. Curious.
While we don’t know if this game is actually taking off, we do know that CD Projekt Red has extended its rights to the Witcher IP after signing a new deal with original creator Andrzej Sapkowski last month, so we can be assured of more possible Witcher games from the award-winning developer in the near future.
For now, Night City awaits, as Cyberpunk 2077 releases on 17 September 2020.
Maybe play a session of the Cyberpunk Red tabletop RPG or pre-order some Johnny Silverhand Funko Pops, for the time being?
Marion has a serious RPG addiction. Sometimes it bleeds into real life; he forgets to sleep because he thinks he has a Witcher’s body clock. Forgive him in advance if he suddenly blurts out terms such as “Mind Flayer” and “Magic Missile”, because never once does he stop thinking about his next Dungeons & Dragons game.
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