Earlier today, Microsoft revealed additional information about the upcoming Xbox Series X, focusing on the compatibility between the Xbox family of devices, and it looks like the highly anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 will be a frontrunner for cross-generation compatibility. CD Projekt Red took to Twitter to announce that anyone who purchases the futuristic RPG on Xbox One when it launches later this fall will receive the upgraded Xbox Series X version free of charge when it becomes available.
Gamers should never be forced to purchase the same game twice or pay for upgrades. Owners of #Cyberpunk2077 for Xbox One will receive the Xbox Series X upgrade for free when available. https://t.co/nfkfFLj85w
— Cyberpunk 2077 (@CyberpunkGame) February 24, 2020
“Gamers should never be forced to purchase the same game twice or pay for upgrades,” says CD Projekt Red. “Owners of #Cyberpunk2077 for Xbox One will receive the Xbox Series X upgrade for free when available.” Prior to today, Cyberpunk 2077 was only confirmed for current-gen consoles and PC, with no Xbox Series X version in the works, but now the company has seemingly confirmed a next-generation version of the ambitious game.
However, the company stated that there would be an Xbox Series X “upgrade,” skirting around the confirmation of a full $60 second version, and this could be related to the other information Microsoft revealed about the Series X today. “Smart Delivery” is Microsoft’s new technology that will allow people to “buy a game once and know that – whether you are playing it on Xbox One or Xbox Series X – you are getting the right version of that game on whatever Xbox you’re playing on.” The technology will be implemented on all Xbox Game Studios titles, including Halo Infinite, and third-party developers can choose to utilize the technology as they wish.
It’s unclear if the upgraded version of Cyberpunk 2077 will be an entirely new version created from the ground up for Xbox Series X or merely an enhanced port of the Xbox One version, similar to many “Xbox One X Enhanced” versions of games today. It’s very possible that there could just be one version of Cyberpunk 2077 on store shelves, but with an indicator on the box that states the game is playable on both consoles, similar to rereleases of backward compatible games for Xbox One such as Fallout 3 and Red Dead Redemption. Regardless, Xbox Series X owners can expect to be able to play Cyberpunk 2077 with a smoother framerate at a higher resolution among other graphical tweaks.
The wording of the announcement suggests that the upgrade functionality that Smart Delivery offers may be able to be monetized by other developers if they so choose, although nothing is confirmed at the moment. CD Projekt Red specifically mentions the Cyberpunk upgrade will be free, but Microsoft seems to be allowing companies to pick and choose whether they’d like to employ the Smart Delivery technology, which could lead to various pricing models for upgrades. Last generation titles like Call of Duty: Ghosts and Battlefield 4 allowed early adopters to upgrade to the current-gen versions of the game for a $10 fee, so it wouldn’t be the first time companies provided upgraded versions of their games for a fee.
Cyberpunk 2077 is slated to launch for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on September 17. The Xbox Series X will be available this Holiday, but the release window for the enhanced port of Cyberpunk remains to be seen. For more on the Xbox Series X, check out everything we currently know about the console, including the newest details about hardware specs.
