Cyberpunk 2077’s Release Meant 75% CD Projekt Stock Falls

According to Business Insider Poland, CD Projekt stock falls after a disastrous launch and is now worth less than 10 billion Polish złoty (around $2.1 billion). This is because of the release of Cyberpunk 2077 on December 10, 2020. Before the launch, the Polish video game developer was valued at over 40 billion Polish złoty and was touted as Europe’s most valuable game company.

Currently, CD Projekt is trading at its 2017 value and is no longer Poland’s most valuable game company. Techland, the developers of the Dying Light franchise, has taken its place. Although its numbers aren’t traded publicly, it is still estimated to be worth approximately 10.6 billion złoty, says Polish-language daily newspaper Puls Biznesu.

The business newspaper said that the redemption of 15 million shares for a consideration of 900 million PLN (Polish zloty) resulted in a single share having a value of 60 PLNs. When you assume that the number of company shares was pegged at 175.94 million, the valuation of Techland will be at 10.56 billion PLNs.

Cyberpunk 2077

The Cyberpunk 2077 launch was one that many fans were anticipating and excited about. It was talked about as one of the most critical releases of the last console generation. It was released alongside PS5 and the Xbox Series X. However, unexpected things happened, and the launch went terribly wrong.

The highly anticipated RPG for PC and consoles was released after three delays. It saw a slew of technical issues, which resulted in refunds. The game was then pulled out from the PlayStation Store because of this.

Patches were designed to improve the game but took the company six months. It then went back to Sony’s online marketplace in June 2021. This happened after CD Projekt stated that it believed the performance of Cyberpunk 2077 had reached a satisfying level. 

In early 2022, CD Projekt claimed to have sold over 18 million copies of the game. They also announced that they are working on a significant expansion and a new storyline for Cyberpunk 2077. 

CD Projekt Stock Falls After Disastrous Launch

To date, Cyberpunk 2077’s launch is probably one of the most disastrous events in video gaming history. This, after building up a tremendous amount of hype. Not only that, the game was full of bugs and traces of a rushed development process. 

CD Projekt once enjoyed a first-rate reputation with its development of The Witcher 3. But now, it seems all is lost as their numbers have fallen short of the 25 to 30 million sales expected for the game in the first year of its launch.

Now, it seems that CD Projekt RED is at the same level it was after its launch of The Witcher 3. DLC for Cyberpunk 2077 is on its way but is still rife with problems. The studio has The Witcher 4 in its upcoming slate and is already in pre-production. However, the disaster it experienced in the launch made gamers back out and will probably take something unique to bring them back.

Currently Developing

CD Projekt brings development in-house as a new generation patch for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is in the works. They have also taken in-house the development of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S editions of the game to complete it in time. Saber Interactive is handling the external development of the game. 

They were the company that handled its Nintendo Switch port previously. Today, a new entry in The Witcher franchise is in pre-production. 

To get back on track, the company should reconsider returning to The Witcher. The upcoming new entry in the series may just be the ticket.

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