First impressions are important, and Cyberpunk 2077 players didn't get a good one – when CD Projekt Red's latest lots of work on Cyberpunk 2077 since then, but it's been the release of Cyberpunk Edgerunners on Netflix that's finally prompted players to return to the game.
After Edgerunners' debut September 13, CD Projekt Red says, a million players visited Night City every day of the following week. Judging from Cyberpunk 2077's Steam player data, that number is still trending upward – the peak player counts for the past three days have been more than 80,000, and that's not counting everyone playing the GOG version or on consoles.
Of course, that's nowhere close to the surge in late February following the 1.5 patch.
Edgerunners coincided with Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, which will see V embroiled in a "spy-thriller" set in an all-new district in Night City when it launches in early 2023.
Cyberpunk 2077's poor initial impact set the narrative for the game for the following year, and I've gone on the record as believing it could have been a lot different. Perhaps Edgerunners will be the catalyst for a major shift in how this fascinating game is thought of and discussed going forward.