In a letter posted to CD Projekt Red’s official Twitter account, the studio announced an increased effort to lend support to Ukraine. That starts with the end of all CD Projekt Red game sales in both Russia and Russia’s ally, Belarus. To that effect, CD Projekt is currently working with its distribution partners to pull its library of games, including Cyberpunk 2077 and the Witcher franchise, from digital platforms. It’s also working to cease shipments of physical copies of CD Projekt Red games to the two countries. It will take time, but the actions are already in motion.
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As CD Projekt also owns the GOG digital distribution platform, it can extend its efforts beyond just the sale of its own games. The letter also confirms that all games available on the GOG platform will no longer be available in either Russia or Belarus. GOG is home to over 5,000 games.
The impact of this decision can’t be understated. Closing off the availability of CD Projekt Red games in both Russia and Belarus will lead to a meaningful financial punch to the company. Russia and Belarus account for 5.4% of CD Projekt Red’s overall revenue, as well as 3.7% of GOG’s revenue. It may not lead to any material changes at CD Projekt, but it’s clearly not a decision made without thought.
As for why CD Projekt decided to make this decision, it says straightforwardly that the company “stands firm with the people of Ukraine.” CD Projekt says that while it does not aspire to be a political entity, it does believe that “commercial entities, when united, have the power to inspire global change.” It does acknowledge that there will be players in both Russia and Belarus who won’t have access to CD Projekt Red’s catalog of games, but is confident in the need to move forward with this decision regardless.
Russia and Belarus’ invasion of and war with Ukraine began on February 24 and remains ongoing. Dozens of game studios across the industry have made clear statements in support of Ukraine, made substantial donations to humanitarian efforts, or have gone further, as CD Projekt has done.
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