Tech

14 months later, Cyberpunk 2077 gets next-gen console patch, free 5-hour trial

Virtual Keanu Reeves rests on his laurels after the latest <Em>Cyberpunk 2077</em> patch. But should he get up and do more before relaxing? We look into it.

Enlarge / Virtual Keanu Reeves rests on his laurels after the latest Cyberpunk 2077 patch. But should he get up and do more before relaxing? We look into it. (credit: CD Projekt Red)

A surprise Tuesday presentation from game studio CD Projekt Red confirmed that its historically buggy 2020 game Cyberpunk 2077 is finally getting a “current-gen” patch for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles. Then the studio immediately launched the patch.

In a move that reeks of either confidence or desperation, CD Projekt Red celebrated the milestone by offering a free, five-hour trial of CP77 on current-gen consoles. Interested players can now download the game in its entirety for free, though upon boot, a timer will appear at the screen’s bottom-left to indicate how much time remains before the game is locked by a full purchase price. Since this trial doesn’t lock down any of CP77‘s regions or content beyond a timer, players could conceivably speedrun the game; slower players, meanwhile, should know that this timer runs even while the game is paused or in menus. So lean on “sleep mode” or other ways to stop the timer, slowpokes!

Based on my tests of the patch on both PS5 and Xbox Series X, I would say CDPR is being more confident than desperate, though CP77 is by no means ironclad this many months after its December 2020 premiere.

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