Cyberpunk 2077 getting free DLC in early 2021 — what you need to know

Cyberpunk 2077
(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)

If you jump on over to Cyberpunk 2077’s website, there’s a page that states DLC will be dropping early 2021. But given the fiasco surrounding it’s buggy launch, the game being pulled from the PlayStation store, refunds being given to buyers, and an impending investor lawsuit, that timeline might have shifted. Here’s what we know so far. 

As Engadget’s Richard Lawler pointed out, the page linked above actually went live the same day as the game itself, before the controversy around the game began. Since the game’s launch, a lot has happened. And right now, developer CD Projekt Red is working hard on getting two major patches sent to players before it can likely focus on anything else.

Cyberpunk 2077 DLC Screengrab

(Image credit: CD Projekt Red)

Per an investor call, CD Projekt Red president and co-CEO Adam Kicińksi said it was “too early to judge” when DLC might go live. 

“At the moment please let us handle the situation, and please let us make some more assessments –that’s still ahead of us; we don’t know yet, and we’re now focused on improving Cyberpunk,” said Kiciński during an investor call.

As for multiplayer, which was initially planned for 2020 but moved to 2021, it will likely take some time to arrive. According to Kiciński, Cyberpunk 2077’s multiplayer is huge, and is being treated as its own product, much like Grand Theft Auto Online has taken on a life of its own. 

"So, first, we don't call it modes," said Kiciński on an investor call in November (translated by Seeking Alpha). "It's a separate dedicated production, a big production. We think about it as a standalone product."

Given everything that’s occurred since the game’s launch, we suspect that CD Projekt Red wants to get the multiplayer right. Meaning that the development team will want to launch multiplayer in a state that won’t set the internet on fire. 

As for when DLC might launch, CD Projekt Red has stated the rollout would be similar to The Witcher 3's. For that game, 16 free DLC updates rolled out after soon following the game's launch. It included a few cosmetic upgrades and smaller quests. This suggests that the free DLC was likely largely done before the launch of The Witcher 3, and that CD Projekt Red piecemealed it out as a way to keep fans engaged before the launch of much larger paid DLC's which added hours of new content. 

So, if the same is true for Cyberpunk 2077, then the free rounds of DLC are most likely complete, and once the game is stable across all consoles, then fans should start seeing drops. 

Imad Khan

Imad is currently Senior Google and Internet Culture reporter for CNET, but until recently was News Editor at Tom's Guide. Hailing from Texas, Imad started his journalism career in 2013 and has amassed bylines with the New York Times, the Washington Post, ESPN, Wired and Men's Health Magazine, among others. Outside of work, you can find him sitting blankly in front of a Word document trying desperately to write the first pages of a new book.