The commentary has said it all along. The devs have quietly *hoped* we'd all just ride it out. And enough water has passed, and certainly enough time in the wild with critical feedback that maybe, just maybe, now was the right time for CD Projekt RED to unleash upon the masses a softly rebooted Cyberpunk 2077 -- next-gen ready, PC sharpened, OG vision realised.


Okay, maybe that last bit is just there for some colour, but IIRC there was a moment in The Witcher 3's life where a similar thing happened -- the game had issues from launch, and was hotfixed together like so much duct-tape with CDPR promising that everything would be addressed, balanced and optimised soon. That the game would be its promised self at some point. Then it happened, and that soft reboot of one of best open-world games of all time became the true foundation from which the rest of the game's life would be judged, and played anew.

More colour, sorry.

Ahem. So anyway, overnight and without a huge amount of fanfare or grandstanding, CDPR hosted a Twitch stream. Something new was promised, but nothing officially stated on what we'd actually be witnessing -- gameplay demos of Cyberpunk 2077 running stunningly on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. And throughout the tell-all stream, the team revealed that this isn't as simple as having added the "best version of the PC and made it for console", rather this latest next-gen update focuses specifically on each machine and its features, taking full advantage of added things such as haptic feedback with the PS5's DualSense controller (and its speaker), as well as much more.

CDPR has released two gameplay videos of the game running on each platform, watch them embedded below:

Cyberpunk 2077 Xbox Series X Update

Cyberpunk 2077 PlayStation 5 Update
In addition, Patch 1.5 features a host of updates ragardless of system, and too numerous to post here. But for the Patch Noters out there, click here.

And finally, in the spirit of this essentially standing as something of a soft reboot for the game, CD Projekt RED is offering a free 30 day trial of the 'new' next-gen version of Cyberpunk 2077, which includes five hours of gameplay on both the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

And so confident is the pinata'd studio of this latest update, it has let V express to the cynical community at large its thoughts on it all...

"The City's promise... not everone's buyin' it. But if you wanna know for sure, you just need to try it for yourself."

We of course reviewed the game on PC (and a very high-end PC at that), stating that:

As per CDPR’s masterpiece that is The Witcher III: Wild Hunt, Cyberpunk 2077 shines brightest when the focus is squarely on its excellent storytelling. The various people you meet, and the Street Stories you discover, serve as that interaction point lacking elsewhere - adding context, history, and presence to the wider Night City. From investigating political corruption that then leads into a surprising and deeply confronting exploration into the life and memory of a serial killer, to putting on one last show for a bunch of aging rockers as the setting for a tale about letting go.

A lot of this side of Cyberpunk 2077 carries the feeling of playing something that will stick with you for years -- it has that quality. Each major story adds to the world, the setting, the mystery. Throw in PC visuals that are easily some of the most impressive you’re likely to see this year or next, it’s the one part of the experience that lives up to the futuristic setting and promise seen in the many pre-release gameplay slices and trailers.

As someone who held off once it was clear the game had launched too early, I've been champing at the bit for this soft reboot, and intend to play the game from the beginning.

Stay tuned for more on this new lease on life for Cyberpunk 2077.