After years of substantial patches and the Phantom Liberty DLC, work on Cyberpunk 2077 is finally at an end. For many players, the game has earned its redemption, coming at least close to what was promised ahead of its 2020 release. It's true that the costly salvation of Cyberpunk 2077 has resulted in a game that is more polished and feature-complete, but CD Projekt Red still has work to do with the Cyberpunk 2077 IP. Now, it's unlikely that Cyberpunk 2077 will ever be completely free from criticism.

While the game's reputation is undeniably better than it was at launch, it is still a game that needed to be fixed, rather than one that launched to universal praise. In some ways, the controversy of the game's release is a stain on its reputation, and while the stain has been covered up, it is difficult to completely forget about it. Indeed, some gamers will never touch Cyberpunk 2077, no matter how much it has been patched, due to its reputation. Still, the progress the game has made shouldn't be understated, and many fans are eagerly awaiting a Cyberpunk 2077 sequel, so it's clear that there's room for the franchise to keep growing. How CD Projekt Red handles this growth will be key to defining the Cyberpunk 2077 legacy.

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Cyberpunk 2077's Future Installments Can Fulfill The Series' Potential

CD Projekt Red has confirmed that a sequel for Cyberpunk 2077 is in early development. Given everything that the studio has learned from the release of Cyberpunk 2077, there's reason to believe that this sequel will stick the landing. After all, the company managed to salvage a good deal of its reputation by remedying and expanding Cyberpunk 2077, but only after committing a great deal of time and resources. CD Projekt Red won't want to repeat that history.

Virtually nothing has been revealed about Cyberpunk 2077's sequel's new features, setting, or general premise, but the context of the release will differ greatly from its predecessor. It may be hard to remember given everything that followed the game's release, but the hype for Cyberpunk 2077 was nearly unmatched at the time. CD Projekt Red threw all its weight behind marketing the game, and everything from the gameplay previews to the celebrity endorsements contributed to a sense of prestige, making many believe that Cyberpunk 2077 would be something akin to a revolutionary release. Of course, the reality of the game turned out to be much more complicated than that.

With a sequel, expectations from the gaming community will be more tempered, and perhaps CD Projekt Red can pull back on the hype and focus more on polishing the game, giving the Cyberpunk 2077 world a fresh start. If this sequel—along with subsequent Cyberpunk releases—can have a smooth, satisfying, and unproblematic launch, then the identity and legacy of the franchise have a chance at finally moving away from the legacy of the controversial 2020 launch. This could have long-reaching benefits, as CD Projekt Red wouldn't have to expend additional time and money to fix things post-launch. Instead, the company could continue to innovate and move forward with new entries in the series.

If Cyberpunk 2077 can successfully birth a standalone series free from major issues, it could greatly benefit the world of gaming. CD Projekt Red previously struck gold with The Witcher, with the third entry in that series generally being considered the best in the trilogy. If Cyberpunk 2077 continues to grow its world, lore, and gameplay elements with subsequent entries, perhaps it could end up seeing a similar progression, with the gaming community looking back on the 2020 release as a humble beginning for a franchise that grew into something far greater, more impressive, and greatly influential.

Cyberpunk 2077 is currently available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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