Cyberpunk 2077 a ‘flop’ as Sony pulls game from PlayStation store

Fans hated the multiple delays designed to fix the game before it launched. Many people are now saying it should have been delayed longer.

Sony has announced it was pulling much-hyped game Cyberpunk 2077 from PlayStation stores around the world after a flood of complaints. Picture: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP

Sony has pulled Cyberpunk 2077 from its PlayStation store following widespread complaints about glitches in the futuristic video game.

Sony Interactive Entertainment, the Japanese tech giant’s gaming division, announced on Thursday evening that it was removing the game from its digital store “until further notice.”

The company also set up an online form for players to claim refunds for the game, which Cyberpunk developer CD Projekt Red said it would offer following gripes about the problems that have plagued the title since its launch last week.

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Cyberpunk 2077 was supposed to be the game of the decade. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP

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Sony Interactive Entertainment “strives to ensure a high level of customer satisfaction, therefore we will begin to offer a full refund for all gamers who have purchased Cyberpunk 2077 via PlayStation Store,” the company said on its website, adding the refund process may vary depending on the buyer’s payment method and financial institution.

In a statement on Friday, CD Projekt Red said it had a discussion with PlayStation before Cyberpunk was yanked from the store. But Sony did not immediately respond to an email seeking more details about why it decided to pull the game and when it might return.

“We are working hard to bring Cyberpunk 2077 back to PlayStation Store as soon as possible,” CD Projekt Red said, noting that physical copies of the game are still for sale in stores and online.

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Cyberpunk 2077 has been removed from the PlayStation store. Picture: Philip Fong/AFP

The game’s removal from the PlayStation store delivered another blow to CD Projekt, the Polish company that spent eight years hyping Cyberpunk 2077 only to see it crash and burn.

The firm’s shares on the Warsaw Stock Exchange had plunged about 12 per cent to 271.40 Polish zloty, or $74.14, as of 11.03am on Friday.

While early reviews indicated the open-world role-playing game performed decently on PCs and the new PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X systems, players complained that it was “totally broken” on older Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles.

CD Projekt Red co-founder Marcin Iwinski in Poland before the game launched earlier this month. Picture: Wojtek Radwanski/AFP

After gamers shared videos of various glitches such as a vehicle driving through walls and characters with blurred-out faces, CD Projekt Red apologised for the problems and admitted it “should have paid more attention” to improving the game’s performance on older consoles.

Gamers who were waiting for the game for eight years are now calling it a “flop”.

it was funny to see cyberpunk flop at first but now I feel worse and worse for the devs like...imagine being shackled to a project for that long only for it to be completely ruined at the end? and it’s not even your fault??

— C 🕸 stream spiderverse (@cyleidah) December 20, 2020

I was spot on with my Cyberpunk prediction of this launch being a massive flop. pic.twitter.com/CCed0ug5cx

— Papi (@GoodBrotherGame) December 19, 2020

Is it safe to say Cyberpunk 2077 is the worst hyped game flop of the last decade? Any others I'm forgetting about?

— Sean Thomas Larkin 廖肖恩 (@TheLarkInn) December 18, 2020

Never in my life have I witnessed a bigger flop than cyberpunk, this is tragic lmao.

— ❄️Kara 🦋 @ BOFXVI "Sleep Deprived Collective" ❄️ (@KaraDTM) December 18, 2020

so cyberpunk was a flop? 💀

— Aaron 🌻 (@Ayotund3) December 18, 2020

Sony did not immediately respond to an email early on Friday asking why it decided to yank Cyberpunk from the PlayStation store and when the game might return.

It’s also uncertain whether Microsoft will similarly pull the title from its Xbox store. Neither Microsoft nor CD Projekt Red immediately responded to requests for comment.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission