By now everyone is very aware of how arduous the launch of Cyberpunk 2077 has been. While the game was a massive financial success for CD Projekt Red, the company also ended up having to give refunds to some people. In addition, the game was also pulled from the PlayStation Store, both for the PlayStation 4 and 5. Fast forward to today and in recent earnings call, CFO Piotr Nielubowicz revealed that they have actually refunded only 30,000 copies of the game. He also mentioned that Cyberpunk 2077 sold 13.7 million units in the same month it launched, calling it “their largest release in history.”
The company also reported that they enjoyed some insane statistical sales for the year of 2020. For further clarification, CD Projekt Red’s own PC storefront, GOG, showed revenues of roughly $90.6 million with a NET intake of $5.4 million. This was partially due to the absolutely high anticipation for Cyberpunk 2077, which accounted for 10% of the store’s profit. CD Projekt Red also reported that they spent more than $2.2 million for the Help Me Refund program, which assisted customers who wished to get their money back after the disastrous launch. That number ended up equating to a mere 30,000.
It’s important to note that the 30,000 copies that were refunded does not include the amount that Microsoft and Sony gave back. That means that the number of refunds is likely much higher overall, but when you compare the number of units sold versus the number of units refunded by the company, it’s still a paltry comparison. As we already mentioned Sony gave the company the ultimate penalty by removing the game from their storefront. As of this writing, Cyberpunk 2077 has not returned to the PlayStation Store, making the situation that much more dire.
Still, CD Projekt Red is trying to salvage the title. They recently released an apology video along with revamped roadmap for future updates and content. They also finally uploaded the first major patch for the game, which fixed some issues and unfortunately caused some new ones. The company is also dealing with another problem, a massive class-action lawsuit which is being led by some of their own investors. Needless to say, CD Projekt Red has their work cut out for them.