CD Projekt Red, the team behind the Witcher and upcoming Cyberpunk 2020 games, has taken a firm stance against microtransactions.
In a recent interview, CD Projekt Red CEO Adam Kicinski stated that the company’s upcoming RPG, Cyberpunk 2020, would have some online elements to it. This sparked fears that the company would be embracing a “games as service” model involving heavy use of DLC and microtransactions.
As anyone who’s been following the recent controversy surrounding Star Wars: Battle Front II knows, microtransactions and DLC have become dirty words amongst gamers. EA’s decision to create a “pay-to-win” system for its latest Star Wars shooter sparked such a backlash that EA temporarily suspended all microtransactions.
Though a relatively small studio, CD Projekt Red has earned a lot of goodwill in the gaming community for its Witcher series. In addition to being well-made games, the studio’s policy of providing a steady stream of free DLC, combined with fairly-priced expansion packs for the Witcher III, has made it one of the more consumer-friendly companies in the industry.
That’s why so many people were concerned about the possibility of the company embracing a “games as service” model that many believe is nothing more than price-gouging. On Sunday, the CD Projekt Red team took to Twitter to make it clear that Cyberpunk 2020 would feature, among other things, “no bullshit.”
The company’s commitment to a single-player game comes as a relief since many companies, such as EA, have basically declared single-player games dead. However, CD Projekt Red took things a step further by declaring that there would be no hidden catches and that gamers would “get what you pay for.” In a world where AAA games often release with multiple editions, season passes, and microtransactions, it is refreshing to a see a company committed to bucking that trend.
While the tweet did not mention EA, you may wonder if the “we leave greed to others” crack was a direct shot at the disaster surrounding Battlefront II ‘s microtransactions.
