CD Projekt Red settles lawsuit over Cyberpunk 2077’s launch fiasco

CD Projekt RED has settled the class action lawsuit filed against it for the disastrous launch of its mega-selling RPG Cyberpunk 2077 for USD 1.85 million, which is only a small fraction of the potential damages.

The lawsuit against CD Projekt Red relating to Cyberpunk 2077’s rocky launch has been resolved. On January 3, California District Judge Fernando M. Olguin approved a settlement in which CDPR would pay a portion of $1.85 million to the company’s investors. Everyone who bought CDPR shares on the open market between January and December 2020 is qualified to receive settlement funds, which amount to approximately $0.49 per share. 

The settlement fund was determined by the parties’ expected damages as a result of CDPR’s choice to postpone the game repeatedly and conceal the PS4 and Xbox One versions’ bugs. An expert for the plaintiffs first estimated the maximum possible damages to be $11 million.  

CD Projekt Red’s fumble with the launch of Cyberpunk 2077 

The initial complaint, filed in December 2020 by a group of investors via the Rosen Law Firm in New York, claimed that the Polish developer had misled clients and investors about Cyberpunk 2077’s release and its compatibility with Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Because of a significant number of bugs, the game was essentially unplayable on both of the consoles, which were top platforms at the time of the release.

Following the release of the game, several other lawsuits were also brought against CD Projekt Red, one of which was resolved in December 2021 for the same $1.85 million sum. According to the investors, the developers failed to disclose to investors the game’s extremely buggy quality, which cost them money when the developer’s stock price declined in late 2020 after the release of the game’s mixed launch-day reviews.

Despite losing the case, Cyberpunk 2077 is still on the winning track

Fortunately for CD Projekt Red, the popularity of Cyberpunk 2077 has increased considerably over the last two years. The performance of the game is no longer hampered by bugs and visual glitches after countless hotfixes. The fantastic Netflix series Cyberpunk: Edgerunners has also helped a lot in reviving interest in the title, and as a result, many fans now seem to have forgotten about the disastrous release of Cyberpunk 2077.

It was one of the most played games on the Steam platform over the last year thanks to CD Projekt Red’s constant updates and dedication to the game, which earned the developers the “Labor of Love” award at the 2022 Steam Awards. The title will soon receive Phantom Liberty, the first premium expansion for Cyberpunk 2077, which is already in development. It will be available exclusively on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S at some point this year.

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