Cyberpunk: Edgerunners helped push CD Projekt to 'the best third quarter in our entire history'

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Cyberpunk 2077 was an infamous disaster for CD Projekt, except that it really wasn't. It was a huge sales hit straight out of the gate, moving 13.7 million copies in 2020 (and remember, that covers just small chunk of the year—Cyberpunk 2077 was only released in December 2020), and despite its well-publicized troubles it continued to sell, surpassing 20 million copies sold in September 2022. And in its most recent financial report, CD Projekt revealed that the success of the Edgerunners anime helped drive sales even further, and pushed the studio to a new quarterly financial record.

"In terms of financials, this was the best third quarter in our entire history, with consolidated revenues at zł246 million ($54.3 million), mostly owing to strong sales of Cyberpunk," CD Projekt chief financial officer Piort Nielubowicz said. "The group posted zł99 million ($21.8 million) in net profit."

CD Projekt has made significant progress in whipping Cyberpunk 2077 into proper shape, but the success of the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime on Netflix has been instrumental in its recent resurgence. Our senior editor Wes Fenlon recently said that watching Edgerunners made him want to give the game another shot, and CD Projekt has effectively capitalized on the opportunity it provided by releasing an "Edgerunners" update—technically version 1.6—which along with new gigs, weapons, cat pics, and a transmog system, also includes "secrets" connected to the anime series.

"This 10-episode series co-developed by CD Projekt Red in collaboration with the Japanese Studio Trigger stole the hearts of millions of fans of the universe all over the world," Nielubowicz said. "The series was praised by critics and hit the Netflix top 10 lists in 19 countries. The popularity of the anime series, along with the positive reception of the [Edgerunners] update, visibly affected unit sales of Cyberpunk."

CD Projekt echoed that sentiment in its full quarterly financial statement. "A significant increase in the amount of the Group’s Sales in the third quarter of 2022 in relation to the reference period was mainly due to a good reception of the Cyberpunk Edgerunner update 1.6 which preceded the release on Netflix of the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime series," the studio said. "The update included additional content for the game related to the series (side quests, locations, items, an arcade game) and a number of updates and technical improvements to the game. These events supported by a marketing and communication campaign contributed to an increase in the Sales of products in the CD Projekt Red segment."

CD Projekt has previously said that it has no plans for a second season of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, although given the response to it I would guess that it's very much a "never say never" situation. Edgerunners is headed to the world of tabletop RPGs, however, as a mission kit for Cyberpunk Red, the latest edition of Mike Pondsmith's TTRPG series. CD Projekt, meanwhile, has confirmed that Cyberpunk 2077 will get a full-on sequel, although for now the studio is concentrating the bulk of its efforts on the upcoming expansion, Phantom Liberty. All in all, it's not a bad turn around for a game that was such a mess it got kicked off the PlayStation Store for half a year.

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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.