Photo: CD PROJEKT RED
Now that Cyberpunk 2077 is done and finished, for all intents and purposes, we finally got some delicious financial stats from publisher and developer CD PROJEKT RED about how much the game cost to make and repair post-launch through major content updates. If you're genuinely passionate about the inner machinations of the gaming industry and how it works, this is a perfect chapter to dive into.
Before getting to Cyberpunk's budgetary damages, let's first revisit an old friend who has yet to make an official appearance. I'm talking, of course, about the illusive Grand Theft Auto VI or GTA 6, as the younglings call it.
After the disastruous Sept. 2022 leaks, it was revealed that making Grand Theft Auto 6 cost roughly $2 billion. While the ongoing trend is to believe that it costs that much to develop the game, the more likely truth is that initial development plus marketing would top $1 billion, while the leftover billion would be to ensure the longevity of the game through updates and extra content, including the Online modes.
While publisher and developer CD PROJEKT RED recently revealed how much it spent on Cyberpunk 2077 during and after development, DLC Phantom Liberty included, it's still chump change compared to GTA 6's lifetime allocated budget.
The first batch of the development and marketing, which led to the 2020 disastrous release of CP 2077, was worth around $316 million. The Witcher 3 (2015) cost roughly $81 million, a lot cheaper than GTA 5's (2013) $265 million.
To fix the game, the nice folks over at RED spent another $41 million on significant updates like Edgerunners and the game-changing Update 2.0, which was nothing short of amazing. As for the Phantom Liberty DLC or expansion, CD PROJEKT RED had to cough up another $84 million, give or take. Add them up, and you get a cool $125 mil., as they say.
The effort the devs have put into remaking the game slowly formed one of the most significant u-turns in the gaming industry. Usually, it used to be Ubisoft that put out a technically challenged game and spent years turning the tides in their favor, like Rainbow Six: Siege or Assassin's Creed Unity.
Fortunately for players and the Polish-based company, Cyberpunk had a fantastic sendoff with Phantom Liberty, with no hiccups whatsoever. It was an amazing experience from start to finish, with dialogue and acting direction leagues ahead of the base game.
The game brought in more than $500 million in pre-orders alone, so CD PROJEKT RED was in no financial trouble, regardless of the initial deplorable condition of the game.
Cyberpunk 2077 sold over 25 million copies, and Phantom Liberty raked in over 3 million downloads in its first week alone. This raises the publisher's total title count to a whopping 100,000,000 units sold. That includes the entire Witcher series.
After the disastruous Sept. 2022 leaks, it was revealed that making Grand Theft Auto 6 cost roughly $2 billion. While the ongoing trend is to believe that it costs that much to develop the game, the more likely truth is that initial development plus marketing would top $1 billion, while the leftover billion would be to ensure the longevity of the game through updates and extra content, including the Online modes.
While publisher and developer CD PROJEKT RED recently revealed how much it spent on Cyberpunk 2077 during and after development, DLC Phantom Liberty included, it's still chump change compared to GTA 6's lifetime allocated budget.
The first batch of the development and marketing, which led to the 2020 disastrous release of CP 2077, was worth around $316 million. The Witcher 3 (2015) cost roughly $81 million, a lot cheaper than GTA 5's (2013) $265 million.
To fix the game, the nice folks over at RED spent another $41 million on significant updates like Edgerunners and the game-changing Update 2.0, which was nothing short of amazing. As for the Phantom Liberty DLC or expansion, CD PROJEKT RED had to cough up another $84 million, give or take. Add them up, and you get a cool $125 mil., as they say.
The effort the devs have put into remaking the game slowly formed one of the most significant u-turns in the gaming industry. Usually, it used to be Ubisoft that put out a technically challenged game and spent years turning the tides in their favor, like Rainbow Six: Siege or Assassin's Creed Unity.
Fortunately for players and the Polish-based company, Cyberpunk had a fantastic sendoff with Phantom Liberty, with no hiccups whatsoever. It was an amazing experience from start to finish, with dialogue and acting direction leagues ahead of the base game.
The game brought in more than $500 million in pre-orders alone, so CD PROJEKT RED was in no financial trouble, regardless of the initial deplorable condition of the game.
Cyberpunk 2077 sold over 25 million copies, and Phantom Liberty raked in over 3 million downloads in its first week alone. This raises the publisher's total title count to a whopping 100,000,000 units sold. That includes the entire Witcher series.
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