Following the disastrous release of Cyberpunk 2077, there was some speculation that developer CD Projekt Red could face legal action, and on Christmas Eve, news broke that two law firms had filed suit against the Poland-based video game developers, citing that the devs made misleading statements prior to the game’s release.
After being delayed several times, speculation regarding the delays focused on how poorly the game was running on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and in response, CDPR said that the game is running “surprisingly good” on Microsoft and Sony’s consoles.
“Of course a bit lower than on pros, but surprisingly good I would say, for such a huge world,” said CD Projekt Red’s CEO Adam Kicinski back in November. “So, bit lower, but very good. That’s the answer.”
Unfortunately, those playing the game on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One had to find out the hard way that the game doesn’t run well on those platforms, and while it runs better on newer hardware — PS4 Pro, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S — there are still several issues with it.
This gets us to the two lawsuits — one by a Los Angeles-based Schall Law Firm and the other by New York-based Rosen Law Firm. Below are a few brief quotes from the two firms that describe why they’re filing suit against CD Projekt Red.
Schall Law Firm:
“The Company made false and misleading statements to the market. CD Projekt’s hotly-anticipated video game Cyberpunk 2077 was essentially unplayable on current-generation Xbox and PlayStation consoles due to an overwhelming number of bugs and other problems. Sony, Microsoft, and the Company were forced to offer refunds to customers who bought Cyberpunk 2077, resulting in Sony removing the game from its PlayStation Store. The Company’s reputation was harmed significantly by the botched launch of Cyberpunk 2077. Based on these facts, the Company’s public statements were false and materially misleading throughout the class period. When the market learned the truth about CD Projekt, investors suffered damages.”
Rosen Law Firm:
“Defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Cyberpunk 2077 was virtually unplayable on the current-generation Xbox or PlayStation systems due to an enormous number of bugs; (2) as a result, Sony would remove Cyberpunk 2077 from the PlayStation store, and Sony, Microsoft and CD Projekt would be forced to offer full refunds for the game; (3) consequently, CD Projekt would suffer reputational and pecuniary harm; and (4) as a result, defendants’ statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.”
As of this writing, CD Projekt Red hasn’t publicly responded to the two lawsuits, but they have noted that they’re intending to have the game completely fixed by early-2021 via two big updates, one coming in January, and the other coming in February.
