In a shock release from CD Projekt Red, yesterday the company showed off 45 minutes of gameplay footage from Cyberpunk 2077.
It started from V’s humble apartment, taking us into the bustling Night City, and even included a playthrough of a quest including a tense negotiation.
And after watching that incredible footage, which you can watch above, it looks like CD Projekt Red can do no wrong. We recently stated 5 reasons why you should return to The Witcher 3, and Cyberpunk 2077 looks just as brilliant. It could well be a masterpiece just waiting to happen.
Cyberpunk 2077’s gameplay footage revealed so, so, much. You may even need to cybernetically upgrade your brain capacity to keep up with all the new details. But don’t book an appointment with a Ripper Doc just yet; we’ve picked out the 5 biggest reveals from Cyberpunk 2077’s new gameplay trailer. There’s no need for cybernetic upgrades… yet!
Night City’s locations and inhabitants feel alive
It’s the year 2077, and lead character V lives in Night City, California. According to the gameplay footage, it’s “a world that is interactive”. Everything has a “purpose and is believable” within each location. The city design shown off for Cyberpunk 2077 looks breathtaking, and is described as the “most believable city in any open world today.”
Night City is hugely populated. Hundreds of NPCs saunter through the city, and all walk with a distinct purpose. From the diners to shops, each location is full with people going about their daily business. No NPC is just standing around and waiting to interact with V. There’s so much life to Night City, and this is added to by the immersive first person viewpoint.
Punk isn’t dead
Customisation is key within Cyberpunk 2077. You can deck out V in a variety of different ways, making them as punk as you want. But there’s so much more to V. At the very beginning of the game the player gets to edit V’s appearance, sex, and even background. Through what looks like a series of questions, V’s personality and history is written, which will play into how the story develops and how other characters view them.
The player can even choose the outfit for V, and clothing is much more than just dressing to impress. Each item of clothing will have different stats for attributes like defence and attack, meaning V’s outfit will have to be picked carefully. But style matters in Night City. Your street cred will also be linked to how you dress.
Cyberpunk 2077 is an RPG like no other
Cyberpunk 2077 is described as a “narrative driven, open world RPG”. Choice is king. The way the player decides to customise V will have an impact on how characters interact with them, and even what quests are available. Completing certain secondary quests will build up V’s street cred, which can change what shops and items are available to the player.
Of course, V’s customisations affect the gameplay, too. The fighting in the gameplay footage initially showed off a simple cover and shoot system, with an array of powerful weapons available. But, as shown later in the footage, when V is upgraded, the player can go into slow motion to unleash a range of deadly melee attacks. V can even hack into enemies when at a certain level, which means V can gain intel from them, or even make them unable to shoot.
In The Witcher 3, Geralt has Roach in order to get around, but it seems that V will have many more options for transport. Players will be able to “explore Night City freely in cars, bikes and other transport.” The footage also showed how fast paced combat can be when in a car. Sadly we didn’t get to see V driving through the streets in a Grand Theft Auto style: it’ll be interesting to see what the consequences are for breaking the rules of the road, and how the authorities react to this.
There’s more than one way to approach a Quest
Cyberpunk 2077’s new gameplay footage highlighted that there’s many possibilities within the game, and even in the quests. Before starting a quest, the player gets to choose how they want to approach it. For example: they can go in guns blazing, or take the more subtle route. But choice is included throughout the quest, with the mission playing out in different ways depending on V’s choices.
One quest shown in the gameplay footage revealed that there are scavengers willing to kidnap people and harvest their implants. V’s job was to save them, which resulted in fighting against the scavengers. Morality is probably going to play a big part in Cyberpunk 2077’s quests.
Your actions will have consequences
Cyberpunk 2077 puts the player in the driving seat through the variety of choices available. Whether it’s a dialogue choice, a decision on how to complete a quest, or a customisable option; what the player does will impact their experience. Random encounters happen as consequences for the player’s actions, as the world lives and revolves around V and their decisions.
It’s not just about dialogue choices and actions taken though; Night City is full of people who have cybernetically enhanced themselves. V will be no exception to this, with the gameplay footage showing a Ripper Doc who’s an illegal street doctor able to upgrade cybernetic additions, or even install new ones. These additions come with in-game benefits too: upgrade V’s eyes and the player can scan the area and people; upgrade V’s arms and they become more powerful.
Cyberpunk 2077’s amazing new gameplay footage reveals just how huge and immservie the world will be. And with a huge range of customisation options available, it’s a game catered towards player choice and actions. Cyberpunk 2077 may well set a new bar for RPGs, and perhaps even the gaming industry as a whole.
