'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
In an interview with TV New Zealand, president and co-founder of Valve, Gabe Newell, defended CD Projekt Red (CDPR).
Most notable for being a co-founder of Steam, Newell is also considered an industry thought leader. In the interview, Newell stated that he sympathized with the developers of CDPR about the controversy surrounding Cyberpunk 2077. He claimed to have enjoyed playing the game during the interview and praised the studio for their ambitious project.
He quoted, "There are aspects of the game that are just brilliant, and it shows a tremendous amount of work — it’s unfair to throw stones at any other developer because just getting something as complex and ambitious as that out the door is pretty amazing.”
Newell is confident that the studio will honor its commitment to fixing the game.
A sour beginning
CDPR has been under constant fire since the launch of Cyberpunk 2077. The open-world RPG was one of the highly-anticipated games of 2020. But after a botched launch, the studio has been under extreme pressure from investors and gamers.
Console players were aghast because the game was nearly unplayable on older devices. The backlash led to the immediate removal of Cyberpunk 2077 from Sony's Play Store. Moreover, Xbox and Sony offered refunds for all digital copies sold.
Trouble kept mounting for CDPR as the studio was hit with two class-action lawsuits. All this turmoil resulted in the studio losing 50% of its market value. A few months ago, CDPR was the most valuable company in Poland.
A player's perspective on Cyberpunk 2077
Newell's words will resonate with gamers who are well-aware of industry issues that have tarnished video games in the past. But this situation is debatable. The future is not looking bright for the studio. Recently, US retailers started offering hefty discounts on Cyberpunk 2077. This is an unprecedented move for a new game that was highly anticipated.
Rumors of a buyout or the news of a governmental inquiry into CDPR may have also played a role in the retailer's decision.
CDPR's co-founder Marcin Iwiński has promised gamers that the studio will keep improving the game's performance for the PC and console versions. In the meantime, the original plan of free DLCs post-launch has been dropped. The studio will be focusing on essential fixes first.
Patch 1.1 is expected to be dropped soon, followed by subsequent patches and maybe then free DLCs. The next-gen update for the PS5 and Xbox Series X will arrive sometime in the second half of 2021.
The developers are confident about fixing all game-related issues. However, the studio is unsure about how to get the game back into Sony's Play Store.
