A Gig in Night City: An Updated Look into Cyberpunk 2077
On June 25th, CD Project Red released their first episode of Night City Wire, their video series that gives gamers around the world a new look into the world of Cyberpunk 2077. As mentioned in previous posts, Cyberpunk 2077 is a title that is the next highly anticipated game from the developers of the Witcher series. As a fan of the CDPR’s work, I am very excited to get my hands on the game based on Mike Pondsmith’s tabletop RPG. Cyberpunk 2077 puts you in the body of your created character, V, who is working to stay alive as they work their way up the ranks in Night City and look for the key for eternal life.
What’s in the New Episode:
The host, Hollie Bennet, introduced the latest trailer for Cyberpunk 2077. After the trailer, we hear from Lead Quest Designer, Pawek Sako. Similar details are expressed about the ripperdocs that we knew from previous trailers. For those who don’t know, ripper docs are back alley surgeons that can help V upgrade and install new cybernetics. These cybernetics can help V increase his/her capabilities and attributes like hacking and fighting. Hollie also introduced the new anime that is being planned for Netflix but will not be released until 2022.
The next gameplay element that they presented was braindance, a unique way people in the Cyberpunk world can experience the total experience of another person. While some viewers compare it to the Detective Vision from the Batman Arkham games, this experience is far more advanced. For more insight about braindance, Hollie asked more information from Patrick Mills, a Senior Quest Designer. He explained how the different braindances were used for different experiences in this world, from therapy to entertainment. The one in the demo was a flatliner, an experience of someone that died at the end of the recording. The purpose for V to use braindances is to be able to investigate
What do we know about the different backgrounds so far?
The three main backstory you can choose from are: Corporate, Nomad, and Street Kid. When we saw the first long form gameplay footage, it appeared that the version of V played was a street kid. The male and female V appeared to have a similar attire to the inhabitants of Night City. All of the new footage was mentioned to have been based on the prologue of the game. No matter which background you choose, Jackie is still going to be someone you work with during the prologue. We are not sure if the background you choose for your V will impact the type of relationship you have with Jackie and if you can even trust him. We also briefly see a few new named characters.
Claire, a bartender at the Afterlife
Evelyn, the mysterious blue haired woman at Lizzie’s Bar
Judy , a new ripperdoc that we haven’t seen before
There’s also a scene where it appeared that V and Jackie were trying to steal the same car. When they were busted by police, a man named Kaoru wants them disposed of quickly. As mentioned in the video from Game Informer, the police are somewhat familiar with you in this scenario and decide to let you go… after a beating to remind you not to steal cars again.
Thoughts on the Presentation
While I understand that more people wanted more footage, I was content with what was shown. Part of the appeal of the world in Cyberpunk 2077 is how new everything is to the viewer. To keep things from being spoiled, it makes since for CDPR to not give out too much information. For those who want to see more details about the preview build that some gaming media has played, the videos are linked below.
Digital Foundry goes into great detail about the visual presentation while Game Informer gives great details about the three different paths you can choose at the beginning of the game. One additional odd thing that became available were new screenshots on their website (which are located at the top of the page). Most of these images are not from the footage from the presentation or any new footage that has been released. Maybe CDPR wanted to reward those looking for more details with a few glimpses of things to come. Continue to check back to our site as we continue to learn more information about Cyberpunk 2077.