Cyberpunk needs more time in the cyber-oven. Developer CD Projekt Red revealed today that it is going to take more time to polish up its sci-fi role-playing adventure. To that end, the company is delaying the release of Cyberpunk 2077 from September 17 to November 19.

CD Projekt Red made the announcement in a post on social media today. Heres a piece of the statement from cofounder Marcin Iwiski and studio head Adam Badowski:

Those of you who are familiar with the way we make games know that we wont ship something which is not ready. Ready when its done is not just a phrase we say because it sounds right, its something we live by even when we know well take the heat for it. At the same time, we are fully aware that making such a decision costs us your trust and trading trust for additional time is one of the hardest decisions a game developer can make. And despite that we think its the right decision for the game, wed still like to apologize for making you wait longer. Our intention is to make Cyberpunk 2077 something that will stay with you for years to come. In the end, we hope you understand why we did what we did.

This delay puts Cyberpunk 2077 squarely in the likely launch window of both next-gen consoles. Sony and Microsoft plan to launch the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, respectively, this holiday. But while you can get your Cyberpunk action on those systems through backward-compatibility mode, you may have to wait for newer optimized versions.

This delay isnt about adding more content into the game. Iwiski and Badowski note that Cyberpunk 2077 is done in terms of gameplay and quests. Instead, the issue is that it has so much content that the developer is worried about players having a smooth experience.

With such an abundance of content and complex systems interweaving with each other, we need to properly go through everything, balance game mechanics, and fix a lot of bugs, reads the statement. A huge world means a huge number of things to iron out, and we will spend the additional time doing exactly that.

In the meantime, CD Projekt Red is sending out preview codes to the media. That should give fans the best insight yet into exactly what to expect from the follow-up to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

We are eager and quite stressed to hear [the medias] opinions, as we as see your reactions when they publish their previews right after we air Night City Wire on the 25 of June, reads the statement. We hope this will satisfy some of your hunger for the game as we work to polish it for the November launch.

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Cyberpunk 2077 delay moves release into November - VentureBeat