Cyberpunk 2077 Returns to PlayStation Store

After having been removed from the platform last year, Cyberpunk 2077 has returned to the PlayStation Store — sort of. The game can now be wishlisted or followed the same way one would an upcoming game, but new copies can't be purchased.

The game, which sports the "Just Announced" tag, can be re-downloaded from the store if a player owns the digital version of the game. The version downloaded is up to date with the latest 1.22 patch to the game.

Sony pulled Cyberpunk 2077 from its storefront in December. Although it did not provide a reason at the time, the decision likely came as a result of Cyberpunk's well documented plethora of bugs and performance problems, particularly on consoles. The removal was an unprecedented step for a game of Cyberpunk's scale, and a massive blow against it on launch. Sony also offered players full refunds for their purchases.

Sony didn't share a timeline for when the game would be restored to the PlayStation Store. Now that the game has returned to the storefront, there's no indication of when they will be able to buy new copies of the game.

Analysis

Despite Sony's decision to take Cyberpunk off its storefront and the myriad other challenges the game faced on launch, CD Projekt Red still managed to sell 13.7 million copies of the game by the end of 2020. That was good for the largest launch in the developer's history, and contributed a major part of the company's $563 million in total sales revenue, quadrupling the company's 2019 revenue.

Refunds cut into that revenue, but not by much. CD Projekt Red spent $10.65 million in refunds made through digital and physical retailers in 2020, plus another $2.23 million in direct refunds. That accounts for around 215,000 copies of the game, per Engadget, good for about 1.6% of all units sold. The game still managed $301 million in net profit.

CD Projekt's financials aren't in such a bad place; its real trouble comes on the PR and investor confidence front. Its stock price has tanked in the wake of Cyberpunk's release, and it's yet to recover to pre-Cyberpunk levels, let alone the peak it hit when the game was newly released — before it all collapsed. Now, one group of investors has reportedly called for CD Projekt's CEO and deputy leave the company. As a result, CD Projekt's number one priority is likely restoring the confidence of its investors.

To that end, the company has announced a new business model in which it splits its development teams among multiple projects, rather than betting it all on a single major release at a time. It remains to be seen if that strategy will pay off.

UPDATE: CD Projekt Red says Cyberpunk 2077 will be purchasable from the PlayStation Store starting Jun 21.