Cyberpunk 2077 Has A Hype Problem

The Positives Of The Hype Train

The "hype train" has always been a difficult beast to master. Sometimes the hype is completely out of the developer's hands, and others it is a carefully constructed marketing machine.

By announcing a game early, the traditional idea is to garner interest and provide early details to try and amass a following. This gives the audience plenty of time to plan around the upcoming game, share it around to all of their friends, and in many cases spawn some sort of creativity (like cosplay, for example).

All of these community-based aspects of the hype build a relationship between the devs and the customers. In Cyberpunk 2077’s case, this has resulted in a few competitions such as PC case designs, cosplay and art showcases. Before lockdown, you’d be hard-pressed to go to any convention without spotting the odd V cosplayer or punk'd out versions of Geralt and Ciri.

Overall, this sense of camaraderie in a shared excitement for all things Cyberpunk has led to some incredible projects, with people seeking out things they may not have before. As an example, there has been a large influx of Cyberpunk 2020 players, diving into the original pen n' paper RPG that 2077 is carrying on from.

From a community perspective, the build-up towards Cyberpunk 2077 has been one of expression and creativity.

Even over at r/cyberpunkgame the subreddit continues to be as much about news from the game, as it is promoting original content created by fans.