With the recent releases of the Cyberpunk Edgerunners anime series and an Edgerunners update patch, CD Projekt Red’s most controversial game, Cyberpunk 2077 is once again making rounds everywhere. Fortunately, this time it is gaining attention for all the right reasons. With improved game mechanics, new quests, bug fixes, and a restored fan base, the game is doing far better than when it was initially released. The numbers on Steam show that Cyberpunk 2077 has currently retained a player base of over 100,000 active players.
Although the game has improved significantly since its launch, the memes that went viral during Cyberpunk 2077's release have made it hard to forget just how messy the game initially was. In the wake of many recent events, however, it is time to look back at some of the most hilarious Cyberpunk 2077 memes and see if the game has truly outgrown them or not.
7 The Rushed Release
It is not a surprise to see games face delays, but when a game has been in development for 8 years, fans are bound to grow tired of the wait. On December 10th, 2020, Cyberpunk 2077 was finally launched but as a rushed, unfinished, and broken mess. The bugs and glitches outright made the game unplayable on the then-current generation consoles and the outcry was massive.
The game was bombarded with bad reviews, especially on the PS4 and Xbox One X. Players demanded refunds, and memes ran rampant on the internet. Since its release, however, Cyberpunk 2077 has received major updates and patches which have significantly improved the game.
6 Expectations Versus Reality
The expectations from CD Projekt Red’s sci-fi epic were massive considering that they were the ones who developed one of the most critically acclaimed games to date, that is, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. But how the mighty have fallen. Following the release of Cyberpunk 2077, fans were outraged because the game they received shared little similarities to the one showcased in the trailers. In fact, the backlash was so massive that Sony even offered refunds on the copies bought from their digital stores.
This meme above perfectly portrays the disappointment faced by many players who had to play Cyberpunk 2077 at launch. Instead of a modern RPG, what they received felt like a prank. Fortunately, the game has since come a long way and as of September 2020 has sold over 20 million copies.
5 PC Superiority
Considering how “breathtaking” Keanu Reeves is, it is not a surprise that he has been at the center of many memes following the rocky launch of Cyberpunk 2077. One such includes the following meme which boastfully takes a hit at console players as the console version of the game was simply unplayable at the time of release. The visuals were awful, the character models were ugly, and the glitches were game-breaking.
Keeping in mind that the game began development targeting the PS4 and Xbox One, this was insufferable. The user review score of the game on Metacritic speaks volumes about its early state on previous generation consoles. Although the console versions of Cyberpunk 2077 for these platforms have improved significantly, they are still not as good as the PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X versions.
4 Hair Problems
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Cyberpunk 2077 was hyped up as a futuristic marvel that would offer hundreds of character customization options to the players. While this claim remained true to some extent, CD project red’s rushed game choices could not be more evident than with the following meme. It pokes fun at the game developer’s decision to have so many customization options, but not allowing the players to change their hairstyles outside the initial character creation screen.
At the time of the game's release, this was a massive disappointment for the fans. Thankfully the hair customization problems have been fixed with a recent patch (1.5). Now players can play with their hairstyles anytime they want by looking into a mirror.
3 The In-Game Character Models
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What is the point of having hundreds of personalization options for a player's in-game character model if it is going to look like a blob? Cyberpunk 2077, as the name suggests, was meant to be a tale set in a futuristic dystopian world and as such, one would assume that it would at least look the part.
Sadly, the visuals upon release were awful with the in-game models constantly facing glitches that would blur them out. The PC version did not fare that well either, but the graphics on the console version of the game were comparable to that of android mobile games. The glitches have since been fixed, and the models look way better now, but they have left quite a sour taste for many players
2 No Pre-Orders
After the initial debacle of Cyberpunk 2077’s release, fans have mixed feelings about the recent announcement of Project Orion made by CD Projekt Red. This project will serve as a sequel to Cyberpunk 2077, continuing and expanding its lore but moving away entirely from last-generation consoles. The announcement also hinted that the Phantom Liberty DLC which is slated to be released in 2023 will be the only major expansion added to Cyberpunk 2077.
This means that the developers are going to shift their entire focus to Project Orion. While the news is most certainly intriguing and has many players excited for what is to come, fans are not wrong to hold back on preorders of any kind, seeing CD Red’s track record.
1 No More Fixes
Despite the more than disheartening early reviews of Cyberpunk 2077, fans have continued to wait for updates and fixes. The wait has been long, but the recent patches have given the game a major overhaul in almost every way. The game saw major improvements in gameplay and graphics, especially after the addition of patch 1.5. Now players want more updates so that they can experience the Cyberpunk 2077 universe in its full glory.
While PC, Ps5, and Xbox Series X players will continue to enjoy the improved version of Cyberpunk 2077 and will receive a new DLC expansion in 2023 namely, Phantom Liberty, it seems that last-generation console players have been left to bite the dust. The Edgerunners update along with patch 1.6 will be the last major update added to the Ps4 and Xbox One versions of the game.