Cyberpunk 2077‘s release is a few days away, but the earliest reviews of 2020’s most anticipated game are already here.
While the reviews are generally positive, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they’re just mixed enough to cause some fans to be upset that a reviewer doesn’t agree with what they think their feelings about the game will be. What is a little surprising is that the controversy in this instance seems to be focused on a few major points.
To help you make a little more sense of the madness that’s floating around at the moment, here is our read on why early Cyberpunk 2077 reviews seem to be controversial.
Not Everyone Got to Review Cyberpunk 2077
One of the earliest Cyberpunk 2077 concerns actually involves the people who haven’t gotten to play it.
While we don’t know the criteria for CD Projekt Red’s selection process, the fact is that even some major outlets and critics will not receive review copies of Cyberpunk 2077 ahead of the game’s launch. This has created the perception that critics were chosen based on potentially biased criteria.
However, that doesn’t seem to be likely considering that even outlets that have been vocally critical of the game in the past received review copies. Instead, the limited number of review copies can seemingly be attributed to fears over leaks and perhaps Metacritic involvement.
Some People Worry Cyberpunk 2077 Reviews Came Out to Quickly
We don’t know how long Cyberpunk 2077 is, but the idea seems to be that you can spend hundreds of hours playing the game if you’re willing to do so.
That’s why some fans seem worried that early Cyberpunk 2077 reviews came out as quickly as possible. These worries are amplified by the fact that some reviews leave fans with the impression that the reviewer mostly only played the game’s campaign.
However, quite a few reviews did mention the game’s side content, and it seems that those who did receive a copy of the game for review likely got their copies weeks before the embargo date.
Fans Believe Some Cyberpunk 2077 Critics Have an Agenda
This is one of those concerns that never goes away and is always ugly.
Simply put, there’s no getting around the fact that some gamers believe that outlets and individual reviewers have an agenda that will pre-determine their review of Cyberpunk 2077. It’s a concern that has formed the basis of some of the most worrisome groups in the gaming industry.
While there’s a level of subjectivity in the review process which makes it hard to guarantee that some level of bias wasn’t a factor in some reviews, it’s worth noting that some outlets which were previously critical of Cyberpunk 2077 came away with positive impressions of the final game and vice-versa.
Some Worry That Cyberpunk 2077 Reviewers Didn’t Know What the Game Really Was
This is one of the more interesting concerns that we’ve seen emerge since the first Cyberpunk 2077 reviews started to hit.
Basically, there’s an idea that some critics went into Cyberpunk 2077 expecting a first-person shooter or even a sci-fi version of The Witcher 3. When they got a game that many feel is spiritually closer to the Deus Ex series, some think that they reacted based on their own mismanaged expectations rather than the game itself.
Like we said, this point is actually kind of interesting. There do seem to be some reviews that leave you with the distinct impression that there was a fundamental misunderstanding of what Cyberpunk 2077 was supposed to be.
Generally speaking, though, most reviews seem to be judging the game on its own merits with the odd review which feels a bit misguided in certain places being notable outliers.
Some Fans Feel Cyberpunk 2077 Reviews Don’t Know What to Do About the Bugs
One thing that you’ll find in every Cyberpunk 2077 review are references to the game’s various bugs. While pretty much everyone assumed that Cyberpunk 2077 would be a buggy game, it does sound like the number of bugs in the final title has even managed to surprise the most understanding of critics.
What’s funny is that different outlets seem to be weighing the bugs differently than others. There are concerns on both sides with some fans arguing that bugs are being too accepted by reviewers and others saying that the bugs are being factored too heavily in the review scores given that they’re likely going to be patched out in the near future.
Like so many other elements of early review controversies, this really comes down to personal preferences and your own tolerance for glitches.
