Cyberpunk 2077 wins 'Labor Of Love' at Steam Awards

It’s undeniable that Cyberpunk 2077 had one of the most controversial launches in video game history.

Back in 2020, amongst other very serious worldly happenings, gamers everywhere were anxiously anticipating the release of CD Projekt Red’s next big RPG. Cyberpunk 2077 was set to be revolutionary - perhaps even change gaming how we knew it. And yes, it definitely made an impact, but not in the way we were expecting.

Check out the trailer for Cyberpunk 2077’s upcoming DLC expansion, Phantom Liberty, below.

Since then though, the game has made quite the comeback. Thanks to a combination of bug fixes, significant updates, and an anime series to get everyone back in love with the world again, we’re now at a point where people are actively excited about the Phantom Liberty DLC and sequel (assuming that they take their time with them, anyway). Try telling that to someone in December 2020. Now, players everywhere have recognised that effort, and have voted Cyberpunk 2077 as the winner of the 2022 Steam Awards’ ‘Labor of Love’ award, beating Dota 2, Project Zomboid, No Man’s Sky and Deep Rock Galactic.

This category was made to celebrate the efforts of devs who haven’t given up supporting their games, even after years have passed since release. Its description reads: “This game has been out for a while. The team is well past the debut of their creative baby, but being the good parents they are, these devs continue to nurture and support their creation. This game, to this day, is still getting new content after all these years.”

Over on Reddit, a number of users have pointed out that it feels pretty soon for Cyberpunk 2077 to be winning an award like this when it’s only been out a couple of years: “This category needs a minimum age of the game, like four-five years old so that we are awarding commitment to the game instead of fixing bugs,” one said.

Even so, there’s no doubt that the devs will be thrilled about this. Hopefully, Phantom Liberty’s release later this year will help justify the win further.