Cyberpunk 2077 PS5 Upgrade Release Date: When Will The Next-Gen Cyberpunk Update Release, And Is It Free?

There are reports circulating about the release date for the next-gen update for Cyberpunk 2077. And this reports are...inconclusive. Unless you have been living in Jared Leto style isolation, you will already be aware of the, ahem, difficulties that Cyberpunk had when it launched. After a lot of hard work behind the scenes, the game is at least now in a playable state. But where the hell is the Cyberpunk 2077 PS5 upgrade?

There's still lots of excitement around the prospect of a fully optimised Cyberpunk 2077 PS5 upgrade, fully optimised for next-gen. We know that CD Projekt Red are working feverishly to have these ready. So what's the story in terms of a release date? Here's what we know.

When will the next-gen Cyberpunk update release?

Along with a next-gen upgrade to The Witcher 3, Cyberpunk 2077's own upgrade has been scheduled for the back-end of 2021. But there's a but. According to a report in VGC, the release of the game was discussed in a recent results call to investors. During that conversation, Michał Nowakowski (SVP of business development) told shareholders that:

The target is to release the next-gen version of Cyberpunk 2077 late this year. At the same time, keeping in mind the lessons we have learned during the past year and taking into account that this project still remains in development, we can’t say with full certainty that the production schedule will not change.

In other words, after the omnishambles that was the release of Cyberpunk 2077, they don't want to make the same mistake a second time. And we'd probably all agree, we'd rather they delayed the game for a relatively short time, instead of having a game so riddled with bugs it was unplayable. They also confirmed they have around a third of their workforce focussed on the next-gen version.

Read More: Cyberpunk 2077’s 1.2 patch will improve last-gen performance

Update

In recent days, CD Projekt Red has confirmed that the PS5 upgrade for Cyberpunk 2077 will not now be released until 2022. In a Twitter post on October 20th, they stated that the decision to postpone was based on recommendations from the development team of the game. The revised release timetable is now the first quarter of 2022.

While this may be slightly disappointing news, it is by no means unexpected. As we highlighted above, they had already mentioned the possibility of a delay to the release schedule, rather than rushing out an imperfect product. And indeed, they finished their Tweet by saying:

Apologies for the extended wait, but we want to make it right.

https://twitter.com/CDPROJEKTRED/status/1450845753996455944/photo/1

They have also stated that a 'major' update for the game is being worked on, which is also due for release at the same time as the next-gen version of the game. While the details are thin, they also make reference to a Cyberpunk 'expansion'. So there's clearly a lot of work going on behind the scenes. Hopefully it will be worth the wait.

Is the Cyberpunk 2077 PS5 upgrade free?

Back in June, CD Projekt Red stated on Twitter that:

You can play the game on PlayStation 4 Pro and PlayStation 5. Additionally, a free next gen upgrade will be available for all owners of the PS4 version of Cyberpunk 2077 in the second half of 2021.

https://twitter.com/CyberpunkGame/status/1406924590555799556

There is no reason to think this has changed. It is also consistent with the stance they took back in February, when they said that:

Gamers should never be forced to purchase the same game twice or pay for upgrades.

https://twitter.com/CyberpunkGame/status/1231961469669068800

We might be waiting a little bit longer than hoped for the release of the next-gen version of Cyberpunk 2077. But at least we won't be forced to put our hands in our pockets a second time. Unlike some games we could mention *cough Ghost of Tsushima cough*.

Read More: Rumour – Cyberpunk 2077 DLC could be announced soon