Those who have been keeping up with Cyberpunk 2077 news will be aware that the game was set to launch without a multiplayer mode. This had been confirmed by Polygon as early as January 2020. In a call with investors, CD Projekt Red’s senior vice president of business development revealed that “2021 appears unlikely as a release date for the Cyberpunk multiplayer”.
CD Projekt Red has now further clarified that Cyberpunk‘s multiplayer is not a “mode” but instead should be thought of as a “standalone product”. This was revealed in a recent call with investors transcribed by Seeking Alpha. Adam Kiciลski, President and Joint CEO of CD Projekt Red, claimed that the multiplayer portion of the game is “a separate dedicated production, a big production” and is being handled by an “independent team of people”.
Although disappointing, it is not particularly strange for the multiplayer portion of a game to have a post-launch release. 2020’s Ghost of Tsushima, for example, was released on the 17th of July. The multiplayer expansion, Ghost of Tsushima: Legends, was only released on the 16th of October. As KeenGamer has explained, the multiplayer offers co-op play and features locations and enemies inspired by Japanese folk tales. Best of all, it is a free download for all owners of Ghost of Tsushima. Similarly, The Last of Us Part 2, released on the 19th of June 2020, has a multiplayer portion that has yet to be released.
Whether Cyberpunk 2077‘s multiplayer will require an additional purchase for those who already own Cyberpunk 2077 has yet to be confirmed. However, we do know that the multiplayer game will feature microtransactions. With only a few days until the release of Cyberpunk 2077, we will soon see whether this hotly anticipated game lives up to the hype.
Cyberpunk multiplayer/online, which is a separate project, will have some microtransactions, but we said that a year ago already. Like always, expect us treating your money with respect.
— Cyberpunk 2077 (@CyberpunkGame) September 7, 2020
