PC and Google Stadia players can get a slight head start playing Cyberpunk 2077 after developer CD Projekt Red released specific preload and release times for gamers around the globe. Cyberpunk 2077 is arguably the most anticipated release of the year, years after its original teaser trailer dropped as the studio decided to focus on the highly-acclaimed The Witcher III: Wild Hunt. After a troubled development cycle that resulted in multiple delays and death threats being sent to the developers, the game is finally set to release this Thursday – and even earlier than that for some lucky players.
Cyberpunk 2077 is based off a series of table-top role-playing games, set in the neon-infused dystopia of Night City. Players create their own character, explore the city, and tackle quests with great rewards and severe consequences for the choices they make. It is a massive game, with one CDPR developer claiming to have amassed a 175-hour and counting runtime, which in turn results in a very large file size. With the day one patch alone clocking in at 43GB, those who have pre-ordered the game are eager to pre-load the game so they can prowl the streets of Night City as soon as possible. The hype is so high that CD Projekt Red has specified down to the hour when players across the globe can do jump into its latest (and, hopefully, greatest) RPG adventure.
CD Projekt Red posted a tweet displaying a map of global release times for PC and Stadia players. The PC release is centered on December 10, 12 AM GMT. This means that players in the eastern United States can play on December 9, 7 PM EST; for those on the West Coast, Cyberpunk 2077 will unlock at 4 PM PST. Console users will see their game unlock at midnight local time, meaning that American console players will have to wait a few hours longer than their PC counterparts, and vice versa for gamers in Oceania and Asia.
Preload times are even more spread out. Xbox players can preload their games now; PlayStation users can download on the December 8, with no specific time given; PC gamers on GOG can start their preload on December 7, 12 PM CET (3 AM PST), and those on Steam and Epic Games Store can start a few hours later at 5 PM CET (8 AM PST).
While the spread-out release times can certainly be a little confusing, the developer is doing its best to communicate and clarify exactly when the game can be downloaded and played. It’s a testament to the growing, near-uncontrollable hype for such an ambitious first-person RPG, so eagerly anticipated that CD Projekt Red has teamed up with Twitter for a countdown celebration of the game’s release. More importantly, by allowing some preloads already with others only days away, there is now no doubt that Cyberpunk 2077 will release on December 10. Probably.
Cyberpunk 2077 will be available for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC, and Google Stadia on December 10, 2020.
