15 Months of Post-Launch Support - Cyberpunk 2077 vs The Witcher 3 Infographic
Cyberpunk 2077 did not get off to a successful start. However, if you compare the latest game by CD Projekt RED studio to The Witcher 3, you can come to the conclusion that the developers are still deep in the woods and they are not getting out anytime soon.
Tomorrow will mark fifteen months since the release of Cyberpunk 2077. During this time we have received twelve updates, which introduced 1403 improvements. It's not easy to deny CD Projekt RED's good intentions, but it's even harder to resist the impression that the game's post-launch support is a mess. Especially in comparison to the team's previous game, The Witcher 3.
Wild Hunt was the team's ticket to the big league. The hype for the game was considerable, but it was far from the hype that was created around Cyberpunk 2077. This is evidenced by the number of pre-orders placed - 1.5 million for the third Witcher and 8 million for Cyberpunk - and subsequent sales figures. The latter game had an advantage from the very beginning, and - comparing the first fifteen months of both games' life - constantly increased it.
These periods are shown in the infographic below.
Cyberpunk 2077 vs. The Witcher 3 in numbers
Different start
Cyberpunk 2077's advantage increased despite its poor launch and initial technical condition, which - to put it mildly - left much to be desired. However, the hype has done its job, as reflected by the number of reviews on Steam in December 2020, when 326,820 people expressed their opinion about the game (more than 60% of the total). Later - not counting a one-time spike in November 2021, caused by attractive discounts - there were fewer and fewer buyers, but still more than those who rated The Witcher 3 in the first months after launch.
However, it can be concluded that it's not quantity, but quality that counts. Wild Hunt never went below 93% positive reviews on Steam, while in March 2021 Cyberpunk 2077 had just 58% of those. If you take a look at the infographic above, you will notice an even lower percentage in March 2022, but the reason for this is the review bombing by Russian gamers after CD Projekt RED pulled its games from sale in Russia in the wake of the country's attack on Ukraine.
No big story DLCs
Nevertheless, even leaving aside recent events, The Witcher 3 has significantly better ratings than Cyberpunk 2077. It seems that this is not only a result of the quality of the game itself, but also of how the developer supported it. The free DLC pack was released three months within the game's release. At that time, the game - which also had its problems - was in principle already fully "patched". Still, even more patches appeared, and above all - large story DLCs.
Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine were released respectively five and twelve months after the release of the base game. At the same time Cyberpunk 2077 received one modest DLC and a handful of fixes. For the next update, which can be mischievously described as a patch 1.0, the next-gen version and additional DLCs we had to wait a total of fourteen months. Only one more month was needed by the team to release The Witcher 3's GOTY edition.
New-old content
It is worth noting that the 10 DLCs released with patch 1.5 - new apartments for V, the option to change their old apartment, and the appearance of the character - are nothing more than the content promised before the release. More tellingly, we still haven't received everything the developer declared. Running on walls may yet be added. Similarly, the multiplayer mode, which the team keeps changing their minds about - first, it was to be an integral part of the game, then a separate mode, finally they started to backpaddle, to finally say that it will be introduced gradually. The subway, however, is a lost cause.
Keanu Reeves and marketing hype
The developer promised too much and that's a fact. Another fact is that they did not live up to those promises. The bitterness was exacerbated, especially in hindsight, by the overblown marketing of Cyberpunk 2077, beginning with the employment of Keanu Reeves. Such a popular actor had to attract crowds to the video game, and he did. Materials posted on the game's YouTube channel, in which he appeared - such as Seize the Day or No Limits - have been viewed by millions. The former has almost 18 million views and is second only to the English-language launch trailer of the game.
Even individual episodes of Night City Wire were watched by an average of 1-2 million people. It can be justified by the fact that, due to the lack of Cyberpunk 2077 as such, fans grabbed whatever was available. This explanation, however, seems adequate only for the first episode - later we already knew that we were in for more than a quarter of an hour of conversations from which not much comes... and yet we watched anyway.
Last chance?
Why then the next-gen version trailer of the game was watched by "only" 326 thousand people, and the thank-you video from the team by 246 thousand? Could it be Cyberpunk 2077 is losing its popularity and interest? Patch 1.5 breathed some life into it, but it seems that in order to be able to talk about a real ressurection, CD Projekt RED must offer players large story DLCs - like in the case of The Witcher 3. And as soon as possible, before the magic of Night City burns out completely.
