Cyberpunk 2077 removed from PlayStation store, with Sony to offer refunds

Record-breaking blockbuster game has been plagued by reports of bugs and performance issues

Cyberpunk 2077 has been removed from Sony’s PlayStation store, and players will be offered refunds for the game if desired.

The year’s most hotly anticipated video game launched just over a week ago, but has been plagued by reports of bugs and performance issues, especially on past-generation console versions.

CD Projekt Red, the company behind Cyberpunk, announced last week that they would be offering refunds to dissatisfied customers, but reports suggested fans had struggled to obtain refunds from the PSN (PlayStation Network) store.

As a matter of policy, Sony does not issue refunds for games unless they qualify as “faulty”.

On its website, Sony Interactive Entertainment wrote: “SIE strives to ensure a high level of customer satisfaction, therefore we will begin to offer a full refund for all gamers who have purchased Cyberpunk 2077 via PlayStation Store. SIE will also be removing Cyberpunk 2077 from PlayStation Store until further notice.”

Cyberpunk 2077 is set in a future dystopia called Night City (CD Projekt Red)

The board of CD Projekt Red has also posted a statement about the decision, writing: “All copies of the game previously purchased digitally on PlayStation Store remain available for use by their respective buyers. Gamers can still buy physical versions of the game in retail and mail order stores.”

CD Projekt confirmed that existing Cyberpunk players on PlayStation console will “continue to receive support and updates”.  The Polish studio outlined its plans for performance-improving updates on PS4 and Xbox One consoles last week, revealing that two large patches in January and February will go some way towards fixing the most egregious bugs and issues.

The decision to pull the game from the PSN store is unprecedented in the world of gaming for a release of this magnitude. The move is widely expected to be temporary.

Early reviews for the game, including a four-star write-up in The Independent, were based on the PC version of the game, which runs considerably smoother than the console versions.

The worst afflicted versions were those on “base” PS4 and Xbox One, with the PS5 and Xbox Series X releases faring considerably better.