Attendees wait in line at the Cyberpunk 2077 booth during the opening day of E3, the annual video games expo revealing the latest in gaming software and hardware in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 11, 2019.
Attendees wait in line at the Cyberpunk 2077 booth during the opening day of E3, the annual video games expo revealing the latest in gaming software and hardware in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 11, 2019. Reuters / Mike Blake

Polish video game maker CD Projekt said on Thursday it would release an expansion of its flagship "Cyberpunk 2077" game next year, after announcing full-year net profit that topped expectations.

The studio also behind the Witcher franchise said its full-year net profit reached 208.9 million zlotys ($48.7 million), compared with 194 million expected by analysts.

Cyberpunk, which took eight years to make and cost 1.2 billion zlotys, was one of the most anticipated games of 2020, but after a bug-ridden start it was kept off Sony's PlayStation Store for six months.

The company's revenue came in at 888.2 million zlotys, driven by Cyberpunk sales, but was 58% down from the record 2020 figure it reported in the game's debut year.

"We think the (profit) beat may have been driven by solid sales of CP77 and Witcher titles, as gamer engagement appears to be improving across the industry," JPMorgan analysts wrote in a note.

Still, the planned 2023 release of the Cyberpunk expansion after a delay to "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt" version for next-generation consoles announced on Wednesday, may further worsen sentiment around the stock, they said.

CD Projekt had said it had taken work on the version back in-house and postponed the release, previously planned for the second quarter, though it said on Thursday there was no "monumental" delay.

The Polish company has been working on fixing Cyberpunk ever since its launch, and has released eight updates so far.

It said it had sold more than 18 million copies of the game so far, compared with more than 13.7 million it earlier said it had sold in its debut year.

"We are now satisfied with the game and encouraged by the gamers' reception of its next-gen console edition, which launched this February," Chief Financial Officer Piotr Nielubowicz said in a statement.

Cyberpunk is rated an average 6.5 out of 10 on review aggregator website Metacritic for its version on PlayStation 5, compared with a 3.7 score for the older generation version.

CD Projekt also said it had so far sold more than 65 million copies of its medieval fantasy The Witcher franchise, including more than 40 million copies of "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt."

($1 = 4.2901 zlotys)