Equally compelling character and narrative direction. But succeeds more than the base game under the weight of smaller scope and tighter focus, sort of ala Witcher 2. Just the opening premise alone as an Escape from New York homage was enough to hook me more than the rest of the game. I think 3 years removed from the release hype does this justice. Gone are the expectations of it being a GTA killer. Welcomed are every other little thing it does well, namely the way it focuses on dialogue and character. It lacks the polish of a Rockstar game but it shines brighter with more heart and humanity. I also just think the city looks dope as fuck and in the years since I've grown to appreciate open world games more for using their locations as backdrops than fully interactive environments and Cyberpunk's world just kind of owns pretty much every open world game I've played since.

Good effort. Not unfairly maligned. It's still a game that tries too hard to be cool. It's still way too interested in impressing the wrong crowd. Cyberpunk 2077 shouldn't a showcase game for people who like shiny things and 'freedom in RPGs'. It should concern itself more impressing people who like narrative and human stories. That's its best assert. Hopefully the sequel improves on that.