CDPR boss hopes The Witcher 4 wins back fans still put off by Cyberpunk 2077's disastrous launch: "I'm not 100 percent convinced we went through the full redemption arc" : pcgaming

[–] Switorik@sh.itjust.works 55 points 1 day ago (11 children)

I'm going to have an unpopular opinion, brace yourselves.

I had a good pc when cyberpunk released. I waited a few days after release to purchase it. I saw the bad reviews and went ahead to see if it's truly that bad. I experienced a single bug in my first playthrough. This to date, is one of my favorite games. I loved the story, the atmosphere, the art, the gameplay, exploring..

It didn't deserve the hate it recieved. I don't think they would have had the reception they did if they didn't release it for older gen hardware.

[–] 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 hour ago

They overhyped the open world. I was expecting a living world, but everything was pretty dead. NPCs dont really react to anything or do anything.

I was (wrongly) expecting a living, breathing world like RDR2

[–] binarytobis@lemmy.world 5 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

I played it a few weeks after launch on a high end pc and it was so unacceptably buggy I had to stop playing after ten hours or so. I think you might have gotten lucky.

That said, the game as it currently stands is one of my favorites of all time. I felt a noticeable lack when it was over. I’d buy their next game even if the reviews were awful.

[–] Switorik@sh.itjust.works 2 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago)

I had a 1060 6Gb video card and it ran great. I didn't have to adjust any settings. Maybe I did get lucky. I did have a very beefy ~~32~~12 core CPU though. None the less, I didn't experience all the bugs people were claiming.

[–] iamthetot@piefed.ca 14 points 1 day ago

It didn't deserve the hate it recieved. I don't think they would have had the reception they did if they didn't release it for older gen hardware.

And yet, they did. They took people's money happily knowing how it ran on last gen software. It was so goddamn bad that Sony removed it from their store after launch. I don't recall that happening ever before or since, let alone to a high profile, highly anticipated game like Cyberpunk.

[–] n4sdaq@lemmy.dbzer0.com 18 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I don't think they would have had the reception they did if they didn't release it for older gen hardware.

You're probably right. I'm sure that factored in. Who knows how much dev time went to old console hardware that was never going to run the game well.

I had a similar experience playing on PC with what was a nearly brand new PC build. I ran into a few bugs but nothing broke the game. It was a lot of fun.

I think many people took issue with the launch features CDPR promised that weren't delivered until much later. I haven't kept track but maybe some weren't delivered at all.

[–] prettybunnys@piefed.social 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Having never played it and largely ignored it beyond the hype and disappointment … what kind of game is it?

Like play style wise, is it fast paced or slow? Strategic or arcade?

I know it’s a RPG of sorts but …. ?

[–] SuiXi3D@fedia.io 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

First-person action RPG. Main weapons are guns, but there are quite a few melee options. Gameplay-wise, it's honestly probably closest to something like Watch_Dogs though obviously different in enough ways to count. Somewhere between Watch_Dogs and Farcry 5.

[–] prettybunnys@piefed.social 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (2 children)

I was really really hoping you were going to say it played like deus ex, I had my fingers crossed.

Unsure how watch dogs plays, but I’m thinking a more interact with the things gta?

[–] LostCarcosan@lemmy.today 3 points 1 day ago

Kinda like GTA but an RPG with "overload the enemy's cybernetics and set them on fire" instead of "cast a fireball that sets enemies on fire" type of 'magic'

[–] SuiXi3D@fedia.io 1 points 1 day ago

Eh... Yeah, add Deus Ex in there as well. It's a nice mish-mash of a lot of things that come together to form a really satisfying, cohesive whole.

[–] makyo@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago

It wasn’t the bugs that I was disappointed by it was the years of teasers for a largely different game than we got. It’s still a very good game but not the one I was anticipating.

[–] boatswain@infosec.pub 7 points 1 day ago

I had enough bugs to render it unplayable on launch, but I was also using much older hardware and running Linux. Returned it on launch, bought it on sale a year or two later after a big hardware upgrade, and I've played through it twice now and loved it.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

Most people with early problems were on console.

Well, the people with the most problems were on console, anyway.

[–] Whitebrow@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago

Similar experience.

I had 2 bugs that I noticed explicitly, one being a T pose on a character and the other being props just existing behind invisible walls or floors (like money that you can’t pick up on the floor)

The rest of it, performance was spotty at times when it was spawning mobs but mostly without issue, I also ran it from a HDD so that might’ve had something to do with it.

It also crashed every so often, sometimes an hour in, sometimes 4, but I think that’s an issue with the nvidia drivers more than anything because even gothic 1 remake does that to me.

I did hear that people experienced more issues if they ran the game on medium or low settings, so while I had mine cranked up to max, I think I was averaging 50-55 fps, but at the same time, nothing that prevented me from finishing the game

[–] FauxLiving@lemmy.world 1 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago)

Same. I saw a civilian car bug out with some weird physics and some texture pop-in issues and that was pretty much it.

It felt like it needed some more polish/balance in the combat system/mob AI system (esp the cops). I thought I became powerful too quickly, playing Netrunner I could just pull up in a car outside and use the cameras to kill everything in the area before walking in and collecting the loot.

It was fun, it just didn't feel too challenging. The balance pass that came with the expansion is much better.

My friend was playing on a Playstation and his experience mirrors the social media complaints.

[–] Gonzako@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Remember the hype about the game tho? It was lauded as the next coming of Gaben

[–] Switorik@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 day ago

I was excited for it to come out which is why I bought it despite the reviews being bad. I have no regrets.

[–] DupaCycki@lemmy.world -1 points 1 day ago

Bugs are sometimes very individual. I played many games considered broken, and experienced few issues. I tried playing Cyberpunk multiple times, and the game was completely busted every time.

As someone who has worked in the video game industry for a few years, including in QA - I don't have an explanation for you.

It didn't deserve the hate it recieved.

The game? Maybe it did. Maybe it didn't. CDPR as a company, however, absolutely deserved all the hate and more. They have an extensive history of blatant lies in marketing, then gaslighting players who notice it. It wasn't just Cyberpunk, but it was the worst. So far, at least.

The company is awful and deserves to go bankrupt.

[–] ordnance_qf_17_pounder@reddthat.com 2 points 16 hours ago

I can't get into CDPR games at all. They're just such a chore for me to play.

Cyberpunk especially. I hate the RPG damage system. I hate the lack of customisation for basically everything except V at the beginning. I hate the lack of things to do in the city outside of missions. The black, red, and cyan UI is so annoying to look at and that "glitch effect" irritates me so much. The background you choose for V at the beginning has virtually zero effect on anything in the game apart from the intro. There's no verticality to the world which is a sin for a game with high rise buildings and flying "cars" whizzing around the city. They threw away what could have been some cool missions with Jackie at the beginning and replaced them with a cutscene.

For me simply fixing the bugs does not rehabilitate the game. It's fundamentally flawed and they're going to need to change a lot about it for me to be interested in the sequel.

[–] Fedegenerate@fedinsfw.app 6 points 21 hours ago

Cyberpunk launch: buggy as fuck.

Witcher 3 launch: buggy as fuck.

Idk about other cdpr games. You should wait for reviews regardless of publisher, but particularly CDPR, for whom you should wait for the GoTY edition.

[–] orioler25@lemmy.ca 13 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I mean, all they'd have to do is treat their workers with more respect and maintain realistic expectations for features with that in mind. 2077 was a fucking disaster because they were on crunch almost the whole time and leadership kept adding in features mid development.

[–] anyhow2503@lemmy.world 8 points 21 hours ago (1 children)

The pre-release marketing was also written for an entirely different product. Even the narration of the extensive gameplay footage they showed was completely dishonest, at a point in time where the product was very close to its release state.

[–] Couldbealeotard@lemmy.world 2 points 19 hours ago

If I remember correctly, it was advertised as a third person game where you could use your claws to scale walls. When it came out it was a first person shooter with no walk climbing mechanics at all.

[–] rozodru@piefed.world 18 points 1 day ago (3 children)

My guy, you've redeemed yourselves.

Cyberpunk 2077 is one of my all time favourite games and the expansion was incredible. I replay it all on a yearly basis with different builds. I do EVERYTHING in the game. it's the only game I 100% every time. It's a game I just don't want to end and I avoid going to Embers like the plague every time. You grow attached to the characters (minus River). One of my favourite missions if not my most favourite one is "Pyramid Song" where you go to Julies old town that is now at the bottom of a lake. it's beautiful. then when you get out you're sitting at the dock with her and she tells you she's leaving. and then...you just leave an the way it's designed where its' a long road to that dock you can walk away and then look back and she's still there sitting at the dock and it's absolutely beautiful, it's so cinematic and it tears me up every time. I don't want her to go.

The way Johnny starts out as a total prick and by the end I honestly don't want him to go either, I feel bad that he's stuck in my head and we're both dying as a result.

it's an emotional roller coaster of a game. it's awesome. one of the best.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm amazed when I read stuff like this because I don't understand where people find the time.

Although I'm really glad you like it so much and get so much out of it

[–] DebatableRaccoon@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I think it's mostly being a quick typer.

Title

/s

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

Boo

[–] AmbiguousProps@lemmy.today 1 points 19 hours ago

God, turning away to leave the lake gets me every fucking time. Even just reading about it makes me tear up.

[–] SillyDude@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I've never actually finished it. I've gotten to what I think is almost the end, I've done every task and mission and everything else, all that's left is just driving around or finishing the game, and I don't want it to end and restart.

[–] thingsiplay@lemmy.ml 3 points 22 hours ago

I see where you coming from and don't worry. The save file before the last mission to end the game, is still your active save file after finishing the game. So what happens is (no spoiler), you go into the mission, a warning is displayed that you cannot go back. You do the stuff, play through and end the game. Then you get some special rewards for finishing the game. After that, you load your save file from before last mission and can use the rewarded items. So you can finish the game at any time you want again. I did all the other side missions and so after finishing the game. Your save file is safe (until your delete or save over it manually)!

If you came so far and did all that, you owe to yourself to finish the game. You cannot live a life with an unfinished business as close as this!

[–] Dzheyk@sh.itjust.works 1 points 23 hours ago

What a silly dude

[–] SuiXi3D@fedia.io 10 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It was in development for eight years and probably could've used at least two more, but leadership was urged by investors to get the game out sooner rather than later. I hope that the investors and leadership both learned their lessons.

[–] boaratio@lemmy.world 21 points 1 day ago

Narrators voice: they did not, in fact, learn their lesson.

[–] TerdFerguson@lemmy.ca 12 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

When it launched, I had it Day 1 on PS4.

It was fuuuuuuuuuuuuccccccccccked. Crashing, performance was shit, bugs galore, janky textures. There were a lot of people who ended up with a dogshit product from a playability perspective.

I played through it and beat it while it was still in rough shape, because I loved it so much anyway. Obviously, it improved later and it ran well when I upgraded to PS5 (and better when there was a PS5 version released). This game is currently on my PC, because I bought it again just to keep playing it there. It runs great on Linux.

CDPR used to just be a name you trusted because they built a reputation. They hurt their rep with the launch for CP2077, especially after their marketing "Out when it's ready." But they have also done the woork to rebuild it, we'll see with Witcher 4. Big promises to fulfill for that one.

[–] emeralddawn45@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 1 day ago

Yeah everyone I've seen complaining about the launch had it on consoles. I played it on PC a couple days after launch and played through the whole thing in a week or so because I was off work, and don't remember having a single crash or issue.

[–] Agrivar@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I really think they're overestimating how bad the CP2077 launch was. Compared to No Man's Sky it was just a slightly bumpy start. That said, what turned me off was the lack of a 3rd-person perspective and the general setting. A dystopian corporate hellscape "future" is just too close for comfort in reality! I'm sure I'm not the only gamer excited to return to the fantasy world of the Witcher.

[–] DupaCycki@lemmy.world 13 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Comparing Cyberpunk to No Man's Sky is unfair too.

No Man's Sky is an indie game, who's team - normal people - simply made mistakes, and later made up for them.

Cyberpunk is a product (or service) from a multi billion dollar company that made 100% calculated and deliberate decisions.

This is a very important distinction to make when judging these two (and many other) titles and studios.

[–] architect@thelemmy.club 1 points 17 hours ago

They didn’t make mistakes. Their studio flooded and they lost everything.

[–] ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca 10 points 1 day ago

People are too kind in hindsight. What was promised and what was delivered were two completely different games.

[–] renegadespork@lemmy.jelliefrontier.net 4 points 1 day ago

I got it at launch and while I didn’t experience nearly as many bugs as others did, I found the gameplay really awkward and confusing, so I bounced off it.

I picked it back up around the 2.0/Phantom Liberty Launch, and I loved it! Most of the game had been overhauled at that point, so it was a completely different experience.

[–] alphabethunter@lemmy.world 1 points 23 hours ago

It was bad at launch, but the game itself is mediocre at best. Except the art of it (acting, graphics, sound...), which is amazing, the game itself is boring, fairly lackluster progression systems during launch (I heard they got revamped later, but never went back), the narrative is limited and uninspired, and there is literally nothing innovative about it. Just your bog standard AAA shoot shoot game with big budgets and small ideas. I doubt Witcher 4 will be any different, just swords and spells instead of guns and hacking.

[–] warm@kbin.earth -1 points 1 day ago

UE5 slop.

[–] cerebralhawks@lemmy.dbzer0.com 0 points 1 day ago (2 children)

CDPR did nothing wrong. PS4/XB1 were hobbled by hard drives. Put SSDs in them and they get a lot better. Same with PCs from the same era. Also, tech was not ready for their game. Not their fault for not letting it hold them back. Excluding consoles would have been worse for them.

They support Mac with CP77, which is worth a lot of goodwill for me. It plays better on my XSX, so I play it there. The Witcher 3 doesn’t support Mac, but I got it on the XSX for ten bucks. I’m happy. I already owned it on Steam, but I’m not mad. I got out of White Orchard for the first time! Looking forward to spending some quality time in the world.

[–] Toneswirly@beehaw.org 4 points 1 day ago

This is ignoring the glaring problems with the half-baked design that was missing any kind of innovation in open world design that had occured since witcher 3. It just felt bland and unfinished in a lot of ways, not to mention bugs galore that had nothing to do with the hardware running it. Cant blame all the glitches on the machine not being powerful enough....

[–] iamthetot@piefed.ca 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Excluding consoles that could not handle their game would have been worse than them happily taking consumers' money for a game that was so broken that Sony removed it from their storefront?

[–] cerebralhawks@lemmy.dbzer0.com -1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

At the other hyperbolic extreme, should games be allowed to exist that can’t run on the Switch?

I think it’s okay to make games that the technology doesn’t support yet. I bought the XB1 version of CP77. It upgraded to next-gen on my XSX. Runs great.

I mean, I have Macs they can barely run the game but I appreciate them supporting the platform.

[–] iamthetot@piefed.ca 4 points 1 day ago

What about my comment was hyperbolic? Are you implying that Sony did not in fact remove it from their store due to the atrocious state of the game?

Why are you bringing up the Switch? Cyberpunk 2077 did not launch on the Switch, is still not available for the Switch, and we're talking about Cyberpunk 2077 here.

[+] MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip 0 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

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