GDANSK (Reuters) -Poland’s biggest game developer CD Projekt on Wednesday reported a 148% year-on-year rise in third-quarter net profit compared with the previous year thanks to strong sales of games from its back catalogue, mainly “Cyberpunk 2077” and its “Phantom Liberty” expansion.
BY THE NUMBERS
Its net profit was 193.5 million zlotys ($53 million), beating analysts’ expectations of 159 million zlotys seen in a Reuters poll.
Revenue for the period rose 53% year-on-year to 349.1 million zlotys.
The total sales of the company’s blockbuster game “Cyberpunk 2077”, which debuted in December 2020, surpassed 35 million units.
In the third quarter, investments in future releases amounted to 118 million zlotys.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
CD Projekt has in its portfolio two huge franchises – Cyberpunk and Witcher.
“The Witcher 4”, a successor to “The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt”, is currently in the production phase, with the release date expected after 2026. As at October 31, the company had 447 developers working on the game.
The sequel to “Cyberpunk 2077”, “Cyberpunk 2”, is in pre-production phase with 135 developers working on it.
CONTEXT
CD Projekt is facing a period without a major game release and its revenue for the next quarters will mainly come from the sales of existing games.
It typically takes the company five to six years to develop a big-ticket AAA game from the time early ideas are first discussed.
The key activities for the studio will include further development work related to ongoing projects, the continuation of “The Witcher 4” information campaign, and the development of the CD Projekt RED team’s activities in Boston.
KEY QUOTES
“We are very happy and satisfied with the fact that – despite the passage of time – Cyberpunk 2077 remains such a well performing title and continues to attract new players,” the company’s joint CEO Michał Nowakowski said in a statement.
“Owing to strong cash flows from our core business, we are able to make bold investments in future projects, and continue developing our Boston team, which will power our further growth,” CFO Piotr Nielubowicz said.
($1 = 3.6487 zlotys)
(Reporting by Adrianna Ebert, editing by Ed Osmond)
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