This is maybe the biggest glow-up I've ever seen for a game. 90% of my memories of Cyberpunk were just untextured, funkily dressed NPCs running down streets absolutely devoid of any life shouting choom at the top of their lungs. But with literally every element getting a huge facelift and whole aspects of the game being rebuilt from the ground up, now I'm itching to replay the whole thing. Cyberpunk 2.0 is exactly what it needs to be. Just a super engaging, story-focused RPG that's devoted to immersing you in a gripping world while offering punchy combat as a side plate, and Phantom Liberty specifically is the piece de resistance of the entire experience.
Honestly, this stands on its own as a damn good piece of sci-fi fiction. It's 12 hours of futuristic, spy thriller goodness, with some of the best writing I've seen in a game this year and a host of unbelievably cool setpieces. Having watched Cyberpunk: Edgerunners when it came out and thinking, I kinda wish Cyberpunk 2077 was more like this, Phantom Liberty feels like an extension of the calibre of storytelling Edgerunners was operating on. It's dark, unforgiving and purposefully murky; every character has their own agenda and motive, and more often than not, the game never strays into giving you clear answers about who's right or who's wrong. In truth, by the end, you realise all of these fuckers are more wrong than right, and it turns into a surprisingly tragic tale that allowed me to shape my V and figure out how I felt they'd react as a character.
And as such, it made the finale of Phantom Liberty really impactful for me. There are a ton of really dope moments in here that shouldn't be spoiled, but when you reach the final act (at least in the ending I got), it quickly becomes this bittersweet swan song for Cyberpunk that hits hard. The OG Cyberpunk campaign was good at dealing out the feels, but man, Phantom Liberty has some real emotional weight. Outside of story, everything else is good. The blessings of next-gen have been wielded to make some wild-ass set pieces, the plane crash at the start and the party infiltration mission being two of the best. Still think there are a few things that grind my gears though.
For one, Idris Elba, my dude. If you tell me one more goddamn time that you're gonna ring me in two in-game days to progress the story, I'll cry. SURE. I COULD JUST SLEEP FOR TWO DAYS. BUT THAT'S NOT REALISTIC, IDRIS. JUST GIMME THE NEXT MISSION AND LET'S GET ON WITH IT. I literally completed every available side mission before his lazy ass analysed the data and called me back the first time.
But yes, liked this very much. I think a testament to how much I liked it is that when every single NPC I'd meet would jam the word "choom" at the end of a sentence, I wouldn't crawl into the fetal position and cry anymore.
Honestly, this stands on its own as a damn good piece of sci-fi fiction. It's 12 hours of futuristic, spy thriller goodness, with some of the best writing I've seen in a game this year and a host of unbelievably cool setpieces. Having watched Cyberpunk: Edgerunners when it came out and thinking, I kinda wish Cyberpunk 2077 was more like this, Phantom Liberty feels like an extension of the calibre of storytelling Edgerunners was operating on. It's dark, unforgiving and purposefully murky; every character has their own agenda and motive, and more often than not, the game never strays into giving you clear answers about who's right or who's wrong. In truth, by the end, you realise all of these fuckers are more wrong than right, and it turns into a surprisingly tragic tale that allowed me to shape my V and figure out how I felt they'd react as a character.
And as such, it made the finale of Phantom Liberty really impactful for me. There are a ton of really dope moments in here that shouldn't be spoiled, but when you reach the final act (at least in the ending I got), it quickly becomes this bittersweet swan song for Cyberpunk that hits hard. The OG Cyberpunk campaign was good at dealing out the feels, but man, Phantom Liberty has some real emotional weight. Outside of story, everything else is good. The blessings of next-gen have been wielded to make some wild-ass set pieces, the plane crash at the start and the party infiltration mission being two of the best. Still think there are a few things that grind my gears though.
For one, Idris Elba, my dude. If you tell me one more goddamn time that you're gonna ring me in two in-game days to progress the story, I'll cry. SURE. I COULD JUST SLEEP FOR TWO DAYS. BUT THAT'S NOT REALISTIC, IDRIS. JUST GIMME THE NEXT MISSION AND LET'S GET ON WITH IT. I literally completed every available side mission before his lazy ass analysed the data and called me back the first time.
But yes, liked this very much. I think a testament to how much I liked it is that when every single NPC I'd meet would jam the word "choom" at the end of a sentence, I wouldn't crawl into the fetal position and cry anymore.