CD Projekt Red on Cyberpunk: 2077 Microtransactions

[hanselthecaretaker]

Cyberpunk 2077 Dev Says Multiplayer Microtransactions "Won't Be Aggressive"

CD Projekt Red says the goal in the multiplayer mode is to get people to spend extra money and be happy about it.

www.gamespot.com

"Well, we're never aggressive towards our fans!" he said. "We treat them fairly and we're friendly. So of course not--we won't be aggressive--but you can expect great things to be bought. The goal is to design monetization in a way that makes people happy to spend money. I'm not trying to be cynical or hide something; it's about creating a feeling of value."


...Okay. Sounds like they have big plans for the MP, so I’ll reserve criticism until it’s out in the wild. They’re apparently also planning on free single player DLC.

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

I'm willing to give CD Projekt the benefit of the doubt due to how consumer friendly they generally are.

 

[deleted20220709]

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[Mister Mumbler]

"We won't be aggresive"


Anyway, so it begins, another good developer getting roped into the pony show that is the modern microtransactional market.

 

[Satinavian]

microtransactions on a not even properly announced multiplayer version ?

Don't care, honestly. Will stick to single player anyway.

 

[Iron]

They're trying to pull a GTA Online or RDR 2 Online cash-cow.

 

[Neuromancer]

The more I hear about Cyberpunk, the more skeptical I become of the game. I am not convinced on the single player either at this point.

 

[Bob_McMillan]

CDPR... pls... dont leave us

Seriously tho, they are THE poster child for making extremely profitable games with the groundbreaking method of not being greedy assholes. No matter what these microtransactions are, even if they are "good", my respect for the company has taken a huge hit.

God, sometimes I just want the video game industry to crash so we can start all over again.

 

[BrawlMan]

Anyway, so it begins, another good developer getting roped into the pony show that is the modern microtransactional market

Honestly, the cracks were already shown when the confirmed rumors about crunch for The Witcher 3 was true. And then you have the crunch for Cyberpunk. I am not really surprised.

God, sometimes I just want the video game industry to crash so we can start all over again.

Remember in 2012 and 2013 when everyone and the market analyst's mom we're talking about an inevitable crash happening? That was a lot of shit. I see your reasoning though. Even if a crash were to happen, the same thing would just happen again years later down the line.

 

[deleted20220709]

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[Tireseas]

Here's the Reddit thread with the highlights from the call:
Here's my take: There's ways of doing microtransactions that are acceptable and not acceptable and, unlike the loot box scandals and the various pay-to-win schemes of the past, it appears the industry is moving away from certain practices. CDPR's call suggests that they're currently more focused on pushing units of the main game before tackling the final details of the multiplayer. For the most part, the information itself is vague and could mean anything from a battle-pass type of system for multiplayer (which would be reasonable considering the single-player is the main selling point of the game) to individual cosmetic purchases or the duel-currency (one earned, one paid) system a lot of games employ. My hope is that it's limited to a portion of the cosmetics and does not include any particular weapons, mods, or abilities behind a cash-only paywall (as appropriate as that would be for the setting).

I've already pre-ordered the game and was uninterested in the multiplayer to begin with, so if it turns out to be kind-of meh, either due to the mechanics or the player population, I'm not seeing it as a loss from my perspective as the main draw of the game is the single player for me.

 

[Kae]

Guys, you do realise the irony in hoping a big multinational corporation is going to be good and totally not exploitative when discussing a game called Cyberpunk?

 

[Tireseas]

Guys, you do realise the irony in hoping a big multinational corporation is going to be good and totally not exploitative when discussing a game called Cyberpunk?

It's a value question. CDPR has, generally, not engaged in such practices, resting its laurels on the quality of its products, the biggest sellers of which do not use microtransactions and have not harmed the company financially for their absence. When inquired about it three years ago, they were adamant that their single-player games would not contain such practices and would remain their core product. Because of this and because of their reputation with the Witcher series, more potential players are willing to give CDPR the benefit of the doubt similar to what Bioware had in the past.

Bioware itself provides a cautionary tale: do not squander that good will. After ME: Andromeda was shipped clearly before it was ready (the game itself was fine, even if the premise was a bit squandered) and Anthem turned a potentially awesome sci-fi RPG into a mediocre Destiny games-as-service clone of a disaster, their good will evaporated. CDPR appears to be taking those concerns very seriously, both with CP2077's delay to further polish the game and making sure the expectations game doesn't get out of hand.

We'll see in November and whenever they launch the multiplayer if that trust is well-placed, but at this time, they've at least earned the benefit of the doubt for many players.

 

[CaitSeith]

Guys, you do realise the irony in hoping a big multinational corporation is going to be good and totally not exploitative when discussing a game called Cyberpunk?

Are they pushing the immersive cyberpunk experience a little too far?

 

[SilentPony]

"We won't be aggressive" sounds like the AAA developer equivalent of "It's just the tip"

 

[lil devils x]

I understand why even good developers are pushed to resort to microtransactions in order to be able to continue to update their games, provide content and remain competitive. It costs money to bring in and retain talent in the industry. That doesn't mean I like it, but I understand they have bills to pay as well.

 

[MrCalavera]

If it's not in the singleplayer campaign, i don't care.

Not surprised, BTW. CDPR/consumers honeymoon was bound to eventually end.

 

[CriticalGaming]

Well here is the thing. CDProjecktRed has a huge amount of good will from me thanks to the Witcher 3 being amazing, and the 16 free DLCS, and the cheap ass expansions bigger than many other full price games. So while it's always worrying to see microtransactions listed as a thing that's coming to the game. If anyone in the industry does MT's without being a bunch of scum fucks, then I think CDPR is our best bet. And frankly if they keep it to cosmetics or whatever, then fine.

But if it's shaddy shit then I'll gladly call it out.

Here's the thing though. CDPR is still trying to be pro-consumer. Look at the call list above.

Next gen versions $59.99 as opposed to every other publisher trying to increase the prices on next gen games. They could easily jump on that too and they aren't.

They are clearly going to support the shit out of this game, especially if it has multiplayer. And hopefully the Cyberpunk expansions will be just as good as The Witcher's

 

[Phoenixmgs]

There's nothing inherently wrong with microtransactions. If you make content for a game that's legit after release, people should have to pay for it just like they did for the content in the main game. Though CDPR making a multiplayer mode is pretty cringe because their gameplay is not near on par for a good multiplayer game.

The more I hear about Cyberpunk, the more skeptical I become of the game. I am not convinced on the single player either at this point.

I don't get why any of their games have been hyped to begin with, they've yet to prove themselves to make good gameplay yet and they had 3 tries with action combat RPGs. Now Cyberpunk is going to be a FPS immersive sim RPG and it's their first time making a shooter or immersive sim game, what's the chances it turns out to be good?

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

There's nothing inherently wrong with microtransactions. If you make content for a game that's legit after release, people should have to pay for it just like they did for the content in the main game. Though CDPR making a multiplayer mode is pretty cringe because their gameplay is not near on par for a good multiplayer game.


I don't get why any of their games have been hyped to begin with, they've yet to prove themselves to make good gameplay yet and they had 3 tries with action combat RPGs. Now Cyberpunk is going to be a FPS immersive sim RPG and it's their first time making a shooter or immersive sim game, what's the chances it turns out to be good?

Well, considering there’s only so much gameplay to be had from point and shoot mechanics and first person melee, it stands to reason the rest of the game will need to be on point, which they’ve already proven capable of doing in the past.