It’s been a rough few days for anyone who purchased CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077 for either the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One. Due to several issues, such as the buggy AI and performance-related issues, neither console version of the game has provided owners with a pleasant experience. As someone who has played Cyberpunk 2077 on both consoles, I can attest to this.
However, things aren’t completely bleak as both Sony and Microsoft have started offering refunds to anyone who purchased the game digitally from the PlayStation or Xbox online stores. Originally Sony was offering refunds, but since CD Projekt Red has come out and provided a detailed outline regarding the state of Cyberpunk 2077, Microsoft has followed suit.
pic.twitter.com/jtF5WKCiroDecember 14, 2020
As of this morning, CD Projekt Red is also directing owners of the game to reach out to Sony and Microsoft directly to request a refund. Simultaneously, those who purchased physical copies should try to request a refund at the store where the game was purchased and reach out to CD Projekt Red directly if they aren’t able to do so.
“Finally, we would always like everyone who buys our games to be satisfied with their purchase. We would appreciate it if you would give us a chance, but if you are not pleased with the game on your console and don’t want to wait for updates, you can opt to refund your copy. For copies purchased digitally, please use the refund system of PSN or Xbox respectively. For boxed versions, please first try to get a refund at the store where you bought the game for boxed versions. Should this not be possible, please contact us at helpmerefund@cdprojektred.com and we will do our best to help you. Starting from today, you can contact us for a week up until December 21st, 2020.” — CD Projekt Red
Happily Sony gave me fully refund pic.twitter.com/JZgIyHu6tUDecember 10, 2020
That said, both Sony and Microsoft are no doubt going above and beyond what they are legally required to do. Per their purchase and pre-order policy, once someone has downloaded a game to their console, they can no longer request a refund. There’s no doubt that the game’s numerous issues have prompted Sony and Microsoft to intervene, and it’s good to see the companies working to accommodate its user base.
Neither the PS4, PS4 Pro, or the Xbox One can provide a steady 30 frames per second, and segments that involve driving and gunplay can see drops as low as 20 frames per second. It’s clear that there is still some optimization work to do, and CD Projekt Red has its work cut out for it with getting the console versions to an acceptable and playable level.
As for Cyberpunk 2077, while I feel the game has potential and I am enjoying it on my PC, it is hard to recommend anyone playing this on the base version of the PlayStation 4, the PlayStation 4 Pro, or Xbox One for that matter. The best way to play the game, is via PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One X (runs better than the PS4 Pro and better image quality), or Google’s Stadia, which runs surprisingly well. In the meantime, CD Projekt Red has acknowledged the issues and has already released an update that addresses several game-breaking bugs.
Also, the company has recently announced its plans to “correct” the current status of the game across the last-generation of consoles. However, there are still numerous bugs that have yet to be patched, as many of us are well aware of.
“Together these should fix the most prominent problems gamers are facing on last-gen consoles. We will be informing you about the contents of each patch ahead of their release. They won’t make the game on last-gen look like it’s running on a high-spec PC or next-gen console, but it will be closer to that experience than it is now.”
For now, you’ll have to decide if you’ll either hold on to your copy of Cyberpunk 2077 or if you’ll request a refund and see how the situation plays out. But if you ask me, perhaps going the refund route is the best bet for now.