Cyberpunk 2077 Sold 13.7 Million Copies In 21 Days, 30,000 People Got Refunds

CD Projekt has announced its latest earnings results, and Cyberpunk 2077, despite its technical issues and PR debacles, has proven to be an enormous success for the company. The game sold 13.7 million copies in 2020 alone, making it one of the most successful RPG launches in history. This figure factors in those who returned the game for a refund, as well.

The game released on December 10, 2020, which means it sold all those copies in the space of three weeks, or just 21 days. A huge launch for Cyberpunk 2077 was no surprise, as the game achieved 8 million pre-orders and sold 13 million copies in its first 10 days.

Cyberpunk 2077's release in December was marred with issues, particularly for its last-generation editions. The problems were so bad that Sony pulled the game from sale on PSN, and it's still MIA. Since launch, CD Projekt Red has explained the game's technical issues, continually supported the game with patches, and promised to change its ways in the future.

In a post-earnings call, CD Projekt Red management confirmed it processed 30,000 refunds. In total, CD Projekt Red said it spent around 8.46 million PLN ($2.23 million) for its "Help Me Refund" program, according to GI.biz.

The launch issues with Cyberpunk 2077 also reportedly led to CD Projekt Red's decision to back away from its planned standalone multiplayer game. The future of Cyberpunk 2077's multiplayer officially remains uncertain, however.

CD Projekt Red has said it remains committed to fixing Cyberpunk 2077 so the game can continue to sell for years into the future. CD Projekt Red also reaffirmed during its earnings briefing that the bespoke PS5 and Xbox Series X|S editions of Cyberpunk 2077--and The Witcher 3--remain on schedule to launch in the second half of 2021.

In terms of sales by platform, PC led the way with 56% of sales, or 7.67 million copies. PS4 came in at 28%, or 3.84 million, while Xbox One rounded out the group with 17% of sales, or 3.84 million units, as shared by CD Projekt Red and relayed by analyst Daniel Ahmad.

Also in the report, CD Projekt Red disclosed that Cyberpunk 2077's budget was about 1.2 billion PLN, which works out to around $315 million USD.

You can read CD Projekt Red's full 2020 sales report here.

CD Projekt Red also disclosed that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt had its strongest sales year in 2020 since the game was released in 2015. The game has now sold more than 30 million copies, while the Witcher franchise overall has now passed 50 million units sold.

In terms of how much money CD Projekt Red made during 2020, the company pulled in 2.14 billion PLN and a profit of 1.15 billion PLN for the year. Both figures are up dramatically compared to the prior year, reflecting the positive impact of Cyberpunk 2077's sales.