Cyberpunk 2077 has now sold more than 35 million copies, 'a better result than The Witcher 3 was able to achieve in the same post-release time frame'
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CD Projekt's once-troubled cyber-RPG is now CD Projekt's "main source of income."

Remember when Cyberpunk 2077 launched in late 2020, and it was basically the worst videogame ever? That’s obviously a gross overstatement made for comedic effect, but it was really bad—which is why the subsequent turnaround on it is so damn remarkable. We’ve said at least a couple times in the past that Cyberpunk’s redemption arc is complete, but here I am to say it again, because yet another big milestone is now in the rear-view.

Cyberpunk 2077 has now sold more than 35 million copies, and that’s a hell of an accomplishment for any videogame, but it’s still way off the 60 million mark set by The Witcher 3 back in May. As CD Projekt CFO Piotr Nielubowicz explained, however, Cyberpunk has actually surpassed The Witcher 3 in one important measure: It got there faster.

[Cyberpunk 2077 35 million copies sold

(Image credit: CD Projekt (Twitter))](https://x.com/CDPROJEKTRED_IR/status/1993715326782251511)

“Gamers have now purchased over 35 million copies of Cyberpunk 2077,” Nielubowicz said in comments released as part of today’s financial report. “That’s a better result than The Witcher 3 was able to achieve in the same post-release time frame.”

Nielubowicz added that Cyberpunk 2077 is now CD Projekt’s “main source of income,” having recently received a boost from releases on the Nintendo Switch 2, Macs, and PlayStation Plus, which helped juice sales of the very excellent Phantom Liberty expansion (and really, you should play it if you haven’t, it’s like a whole separate game) on PlayStation consoles.

That in turn has powered a big bump in CD Projekt’s revenues and profits: Nielubowicz said CD Projekt turned a net profit of 193 million zloty ($53 million), “near two and a half times more than in the past year, and nearly as much as in 2023, which is when the Phantom Liberty expansion was released.” Phantom Liberty, you’ll recall, was a big moneymaker for CD Projekt in its own right.

So there you have it: Geralt is still out in front, but V is catching up. For a game that once triggered lawsuits, a regulatory investigation, and a multi-billion-dollar kick in the ass that saw its valuation tank by more than 75%, that’s quite a turnaround indeed.

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    • brucethemoose@lemmy.world
      1·
      4 days ago

      On the contrary, they might’ve canned 2077 with stricter release standards.

      Pretend you’re CDPR overseeing the project from a high level, well before release; it barely works on PC. It doesn’t work on the PS4-gen consoles and probably never will, since the CPUs are too weak. It’s a bespoke engine that’s turned into a manhattan project, sucking up dev time before even building the actual game, yet it is not working.

      The company is not exactly financially secure, with squirrel-brained investors watching. And you’ve made a lot of promises.

      …If I had to guarantee a solid release, I’d certainly consider canning the project. Or perhaps downsizing it. I hate to say it, but ‘squeaking by’ with a crap launch seems much less daunting.

      They should have delayed it some, but still.

      Hence, I think it’s a case for sticking with a game if the bones are good, and that is a big ‘if.’ This isn’t 2007; AAAs can have long sales tails, and even at release, there was a lot of good stuff in the game beyond the actual game being busted.