along with 2.0, this expansion pushes cyberpunk 2077 into full imsim, and i feel at this point that i can comfortably say this is among my favorite games. also, v is among my favorite characters, particularly as voiced by cherami leigh. the new 'happy' ending crushed and now haunts me, and i just want to find v among the crowd and give her a long hug.

of course, i also went back to an earlier save to choose the arguably more righteous, more courageous path — the one truer to the game's somber exploration of mortality, culminating in imo the best ending from the original game: the 'star' ending, where v faces an uncertain future, one where she may yet die young, though it'll be among friends standing with her all the way. where perhaps saving songbird from a life as the nusa's property is the karmic push v needs to survive after the events of the game, living out there as a nomad. that's what i'd like to think, anyway...