The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. CD Projekt Red has marketed Cyberpunk in a very specific way, and hype has slowly been building up for years.
However, the game's marketing has been marred by several issues. Chief among these are the numerous reports of crunch at the CD Projekt. These reports came contrary to earlier statements by the company that there would be no mandatory crunch on Cyberpunk 2077.
Fast-forward to the launch of Cyberpunk, and reviews paint the game as riddled with bugs and glitches, some of which are downright game-breaking. Even with multiple delays, the state of the game at launch makes CD Projekt's crunch practices even worse, and show that Cyberpunk 2077 probably should have been delayed again.
Crunch Is Inexcusable, and CD Projekt Looks Worse Than Ever
Crunch is a problem that has plagued the video game industry for years, with games like seriously affect the psyche and health of developers. In the case of CD Projekt Red, the studio crunching is made so much worse because of that initial empty promise that it wouldn't happen. When the studio delayed the game to December 10, it was obvious that even more brutal crunch was coming in the nearly month and a half of extra time. Once again, reports turned out to be true.
With reviews and impressions out in the wild, it's clear that Cyberpunk 2077 needed more time in the oven, as it's riddled with bugs of all shapes and sizes. Bethesda-like levels of weird happenings," but nearly every review says something similar. Glitches and bugs are natural, and it's ultimately not something for fans to get riled up about, especially as things can be patched and fixed these days. However, in the case of Cyberpunk 2077, the state of the game at launch makes those months of crunch time feel even worse. The studio subjected developers to harsh hours for months on end, and still pushed out a project that's riddled with problems in the end.
Cyberpunk 2077 should have been delayed into 2021 to give the devs extra time to polish, time that's normal development and not filled with crunch time. As Polygon points out a leaked email from CD Projekt mandated six-day work weeks, while an anonymous employee said the studio has been working nights and weekends for more than a year.
CD Projekt Red has said that the day-one patch for Cyberpunk 2077 will address a ton of the bugs and glitches present, but it remains to be seen just how much still remains. This is especially true considering reviewers played the PC version of Cyberpunk, and not the console versions. Crunch is a destructive practice that really takes a toll on workers, and the bugs and glitches present in Cyberpunk 2077 make the studio look worse than ever before.
Cyberpunk 2077 launches on December 10 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. A PS5 and Xbox Series X version will launch sometime in 2021.
