Thanks to Cyberpunk 2077, CD Cyber Red achieved record sales and sales figures for the 2020 financial year despite the problematic release of the game. The developer has announced (PDF) over 2.14 billion Polish zlotys (PLN) or total sales of Reaching around $ 563 million, which is four times more than in 2019. This is mainly due to Cyberpunk 2077 which had sold over 13.7 million times by the end of 2020, making it the largest game in the company’s history.
The retro-futuristic role-playing game was the developer’s most anticipated game since Witcher 3. It was released with great reviews until players got their copies, and revealed the numerous bugs and groundbreaking glitches that plagued the console versions of the game. Sony had to make the decision to get the game off the PS store, where it is not available for purchase, and offer refunds to anyone who wanted one. Microsoft soon followed suit, offering full refunds to Xbox gamers who bought a copy.
However, these refunds hardly weighed on the developer’s revenue. As Ars Technica notes, the “Other Provisions” section of the company’s full financial report (PDF) shows that in 2020 the company will pay $ 10.65 million in reimbursements from digital and physical retailers and $ 2.23 million for has issued direct refunds through its own company. “Help me get the refund” campaign. When the company was spending $ 60 per copy, it processed a total of 215,000 refunds, or about 1.6 percent of the total units sold. CDPR also expects an additional $ 38.34 million loss for additional refunds and lost revenue, including the impact of the game’s continued absence from the PS Store this year.
Overall, $ 51 million isn’t that big of a figure when compared to total sales and even net income of $ 301 million. However, the company’s shares fell after the refund programs were announced, and they haven’t rallied yet. While Cyberpunk 2077 was clearly CDPR’s main breadwinner last year, according to The Witcher series, there have been strong sales as well. The Witcher 3 had the second best year in its history with sales of over 30 million in 2020.
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