Sony Pulls Cyberpunk 2077 From PlayStation Store and Will Offer Refunds - The New York Times

Both Sony and Microsoft, the maker of Xbox, said they would also offer refunds to gamers while the developer of the much-hyped title works to fix bugs and glitches.

Sony, the company that owns and operates PlayStation, announced late Thursday that it would offer refunds to people who purchased Cyberpunk 2077 and remove what had been one of the year’s most highly anticipated video games from its online store, after a week of negative reviews and criticism from users over its poor performance.

In a statement on PlayStation’s website, Sony said it would offer full refunds to users who purchased the game through the PlayStation Store. Cyberpunk 2077, the company said, would also be removed from the store until further notice. Microsoft, the company that owns Xbox, announced on Friday that it would also be offering refunds to people who purchased Cyberpunk 2077 through the Microsoft store.

The game retails for $59.99, and its developer, CD Projekt Red, had touted receiving eight million pre-orders of the game.

CD Projekt Red said Friday that Sony’s decision to “temporarily suspend” sales of the game came after a discussion with the company, which is based in Warsaw.

“All purchased digital and physical copies of the game will continue to receive support and updates as we continue to improve your experience,” CD Projekt Red said, adding that it was working to bring Cyberpunk 2077 back to the PlayStation Store.

Sony did not immediately return a request for comment on Friday.

Microsoft’s account for Xbox support said on Twitter that the company was expanding its refund policy “to ensure that every player can get the experience they expect on Xbox.”

“While we know the developers at CD Projekt Red have worked hard to ship Cyberpunk 2077 in extremely challenging circumstances, we also realize that some players have been unhappy with the current experience on older consoles,” it said.

A spokesman for Microsoft responded to an email requesting comment on Friday by referring to the tweet.

PlayStation’s move to stop distributing Cyberpunk 2077, a role-playing game set in a dystopian crime-ridden megalopolis that was long hyped as the game of the decade, came a week after the game was released and days after complaints from users about its glitches and poor visuals on some platforms drew attention.

On Monday, CD Projekt Red, apologized for not showing the game running on base models of last-generation consoles before it was released, removing the opportunity for gamers to make informed decisions about purchasing.

“We should have paid more attention to making it play better on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One,” the company said. Players have reported fewer gameplay problems on other platforms, including the latest generation of consoles, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, which were released last month but remain difficult to find.

CD Projekt Red pledged to fix the bugs and crashes that gamers complained about and said large patches would arrive in January and February.

“Together these should fix the most prominent problems gamers are facing on last-gen consoles,” the company said, adding that customers could also seek refunds.

“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,” the company said.

Concepción de León contributed reporting.

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