Cyberpunk 2077 (2021 Repost)

 

 Great ambition and even greater expectations.

Cd Projekt Red is a significant tale of the games industry, from their humble beginnings working on The Witcher to becoming a staple for many to adhere to and strive for. Their development is amazing and inspirational, slowly curating the image of upholding sincere values and thus becoming a freethinking bastion for the gaming masses. Striving to keep transparency and mutual respect above all else resulted in the community rooting for them, and consequently, they broke the barrier between publisher and consumer alike.  It is all the more devastating, therefore, that the product we have been waiting 8 years for was plagued with bugs, faulty AI, and abysmal optimisation. Simply put, the game is simply unfinished. My experience began on the PS4 Pro on its initial release and moved to the PS5 from the 18^th of December onwards. In writing this review, I will share my experiences with both consoles and draw my ultimate conclusion.

Optimisation – ps4 pro/ps5

My first time delving into Cyberpunk was during release day on the PS4 Pro. Cyberpunk initially ticked all the boxes for my gaming needs. An open-world RPG, developed by the people who made The Witcher 3, my favourite game of the past decade. Eager and wide-eyed, I had counted the days down to release, avoiding all content so I could form my own view and embrace all the game had to offer. What I was not prepared for was my experience. I will keep this short and simple: I would advise you to NOT play this game under any circumstances on the last gen consoles. My experience was marred with technical and optimisation issues alike. From stuttering frame rate during combat to the painfully slow rendering of textures from your surroundings. I experienced fewer hard crashes than on my PS5 playthrough, yet every instance felt disconcerting. Never in my life had I encountered a game rendered simply unplayable, and I knew if I played anymore on the pro, I would find myself simply detesting the game so much that I would never wish to revisit it again.    Shortly after, I moved onto my brother's ps5 (much to his dismay) and I was once again on a high, for the difference between consoles was simply astounding. Combat felt smooth and fluid without the constant frame rate drops I experienced beforehand. Texture rendering was still an issue, yet it required minimal waiting time to load accurately. Loading times were significantly quicker, and no longer did I have to resort to waiting for the menu to load or stall my car for the radio options to pop up. I could finally enjoy the game to its full capacity. However, there was still one glaring optimisation issue to be had on next gen ps5s’. The hard crashes. They happen usually within the span of 2-3 hours. Driving too fast? Crash. Using photo mode? Crash. Though it feels the game can relatively keep up well with everything going on, somewhat, unlike the ps4, the crashes were significant enough and continue to be so despite updates. So save regularly!
 Despite running smoothly for the most part, there were still technical bugs during my playthrough. Their consistency pulled me out of the immersion frequently as a result. From sound effects omitting completely, to a character’s mouth refusing to move when dialogue was spoken in key narrative moments. The game looked pretty enough, but the lack of polish was evident. From slow texture rendering to the ugly off-distance look of cars simply disappearing on the spot. I can excuse some instances of this, but nonetheless,  it marred my experience due to its overwhelming consistency.
 Tone and Atmosphere-

One of the more significant aspects of the Cyberpunk genre is how it conveys the tone of its new world. Its imagery must be new and intriguing to the modern eye, futuristic yet dark in its subtle underbelly and city streets. For the most part, Cyberpunk 2077 pays exquisite attention to detail. The disorientating array of neon-coloured streets, fog bellowing in the cramped, narrow alleys, and the subtle humming beat of the clubs all come together to form a cacophony of the Cyberpunk genre. With different parts of Night City to explore, the lighting and overall tone conveyed help to immerse you in the specific parts of the narrative. 

The more corporate parts of the city inhibit a cold, steel-grey exterior. Certain colours are implemented to clash with their backdrops, with rich gold and reds to garner the gamers attention and form a certain aesthetic. The more industrial outskirts similarly mould well with its surrounding narrative. With gunfights raging constantly and barrels of fire and dirt among the copious landfills. The concept and design of Night City and its characters feel like an accurate representation of its genre. Many times, I was left in awe at the winding roads and towering blocks, illuminated with the various advertisements on display. Unfortunately, the blurred textures in parts takes away from the mesmerising amount of detail on show, causing some parts of the city to look dull and ugly as a result. Nonetheless with the inclusion of an outstanding soundtrack and music, these forms all come together to present illuminating designs and concepts. From the blaring up-tempo music that plays in combat, to the more atmospheric tones of music that play throughout your time in Night City and its outskirts. For all these reasons, I feel the concept design for Night City perfectly conveyed its genre and brings together the narrative spectacularly.

Combat

 For the most part, combat feels versatile and fun. With the help of playing on the PS5, the pacing felt fluid and expansive movement-wise. However, what really makes it shine is the implementation of the skill tree and customisation of your character in order to give that extra edge in battle. Night City is home to many ‘Ripperdocs,’ people who, for a price, can provide new enhancements for your character. From movement capabilities such as slowing down time and double jumps, or adding extra RAM so you can hack more. Customisation options are copious, which only helps to expand the combat experience. Additionally, weapons can also be customised. From installing mods that inflict specific types of damage and range to tech and power weapons which fire elemental types of damage or versatile aiming. 

  With the implementation of a skill tree and perks, Cyberpunk 2077 adheres to the usual conventions of an RPG. You have six main attributes: Body, Cool, Intelligence, Tech and Reflexes. All focus on specific elements to curate the best playstyle. I personally went for the hacker and sneak route. As a result, I dumped many of my perk points in the intelligence and cool trees. As time passed, the skill tree only became more intricate and expansive, offering you many playstyle choices.

  Hacking helps to alter the environment around you, from shutting down cams to the more upfront techniques of burning your enemies alive or poisoning them in the shadows. This adds a tactical layer to combat; though I wished for more hacking options as was promised in gameplay footage, I also feel it is a fine line where it could have easily become overwhelming for the gamer. With the addition of blinding or deafening your opponents, one could then sneak into the foray to take enemies out from behind. I additionally invested some points in a critical damage build with my pistols and sniper rifles. With such a wide selection of weapons at your disposal, they all align with specific character builds in a multitude of ways. One example is heavy weapons and blunt melee for a more upfront annihilation build. Melee combat, for the most part, felt fluid, with the use of counterattacks I found flashy and fun. It isn’t amazing by any means, and there’s a lack of finishers and impact, especially when, in most instances, they were bugged. But I found it fun all the same. 

 Certain perks similarly extend to out-of-combat. Some examples include hacking, which with the right points, allows you to loot money and components from enemy access points and computers, or the tech tree, which allows you to engineer your own weapons from looted components to create your own specialised weaponry. Sadly, towards the latter half of my playtime, I found I didn’t quite need to utilise crafting due to the significant amount of loot dropped by your enemies, often a rare item is yours for the taking.

  There’s a variety of enemies you face. With mechs that require hacking skills for an easier takedown and boss battles that follow an alternate set path for the AI, keeping things fresh. One such example is the Cyberpsycho's, beefed up to a degree of instability; these fights are chaotic and frenzied, making the experience all the more exhilarating. They can dodge at triple the speed, favour an upfront combat style, and even render you immobilised by hacking. With the inclusion of the first person, it helps the combat to feel fluid and versatile. Shooting feels accomplished enough despite this being CD Projekt Reds' first foray into a first-person shooter. It would have been nice to implement the third person during dialogue scenes. To further encompass a role play aspect and direct more attention to the player. Often times I quickly lost interest in dialogue scenes for this very reason. So, having differing perspectives would have helped with this.

 All these intricate elements come together to make a satisfying combat experience. It is not revolutionary, but it satiates my need to not feel hindersome. The only aspect that sticks out like a sore thumb, and an integral one that fractures it entirely, is the enemy AI. Despite patches, it remains incredibly simplistic and awkward, detracting from the combat at hand and your immersion as a result. Enemies flurry to and fro in the line of fire, dazedly finding a barrier to hide behind and clipping into their surroundings when downed. It also makes hacking and sneaking incredibly hard due to the mistakes in their movement. Having been promised a profound dynamic AI, it is infuriating to see how lacking it is. Not only does it extend to combat, but also the everyday set paths of NPCS. There is no goal or destination to their needs. As a result, it feels merely non-existent. From firing a gun in your midst, the NPCS will all use the same cowering motion and disappear completely when you turn away. It is incredibly bizarre to witness and pulls you out of what Night City has to offer. The use of a police system in Cyberpunk also feels lacklustre and pointless. They appear on the spot when committing a crime rather than organically seeking you out. They are also easy to outrun. Many times, a chase never ensued despite the game alerting me of the police.  I focused on the narrative aspects of this game so it did not become a glaring issue. But it IS another broken aspect of the game that is simply too hard to ignore.

Narrative + Side quests

Despite being sold as the next coming-of-age open-world game, Night City feels hollow and lifeless, a mere backdrop to some of the most accomplished and interesting narrative storytelling.  My journey exploring the city through side quests and mere curiosity felt extremely conflicting. It was overwhelmingly evident so much was missing or omitted completely, resulting in a fragmented feel. From the renowned transit systems, to designing your own cars and buying apartments, all aspects not to be found in its final release. But this spans further than just recreational activities and appearances. Some side missions contain dialogue that hints at a choice to be made, yet is never ultimately presented to you, some even cutting off in an abrupt awkward manner. As a result, side quests follow a linear path, with only the illusion of choice or action that holds little to no consequence.
  Revelling in Night City could have gone a step beyond, with the many food markets allowing you to sit and eat or engage in the arcades you come across. It seems a shame for such a compact, bustling city to offer no opportunity to truly roleplay. There are a few street races and boxing fights to compete in throughout the city, which does add some variety, at least. Nonetheless, it essentially feels like there are simply too many missed opportunities.  This issue also extends to V’s backstories. You have the choice of picking from three starting points. Whether that be Corporate, a Street Kid or a Nomad, they present the idea of consequence but fail to do this. It would have been nice for V’s story to be elaborated upon, with significant differences between all three and extending fully into the main narrative besides a few additional dialogue options here and there. As a result, these backstories feel merely inconsequential.

  There are many different factions and gangs you come across in Night City. However, their stories, inclinations and dealings are rarely explained sufficiently, making them feel like mere placeholders to shoot down and continue onward. There is also no option to join them or engage in dialogue to further understand their reasonings during these many side missions. You will be tasked with rescuing or stealing from these gangs, with a lack of background information besides a few lines of texts picked up in messages and data pads. There is a heavy reliance in elaborating through these data pads, rather than seeing the backstory and narrative play out. This is another missed opportunity to flesh out the side content of Night City and the conflicts that arise between its residents.
  Encounters in Night City similarly feel limiting. Sometimes, you may be tasked with helping the police, or you are thrown into the foray of gang warfare. Yet the npcs in the midst ‘helping’ you rarely recognise your presence. You feel inconsequential to the occasions around you, a mere spectator only. However, it isn’t all bad. Despite these encounters there are also side quests that provide random happenings around the city. I came across a robbery and with my street kid background, was able to diffuse the situation with dialogue. However, during my time completing side quests, I encountered a multitude of progression halting bugs. Rescuing a body and dropping it to the ground, resulted in it disappearing and having to thus load back a previous save. One body to be discovered was clipped into the wall, so I again had to load back so it was in its right position for the mission to continue.  Night City contains the foundation for engaging content, yet restricts you from ultimately experiencing it, as a result feeling hollow and immensely frustrating.

 The Main Story itself, fortunately, feels compact and contained. The inclusion of Johnny Silverhand, a main character whom you will be acquainted with throughout your story and modelled by none other than Keanu Reeves, ultimately proposes an exhilarating premise. A fragment of a long-dead musician/terrorist psyche remains in a relic chip, one you just so happen to be stuck with due to unforeseen circumstances. A symbiotic friendship forms, your fates intertwined, and what ensues is the chaos of finding a way to remove the chip and also the alternate fighting forces who wish to ensnare it for themselves. Johnny’s memories, in which you play for yourself, are exquisitely presented and one of the more exhilarating moments of the narrative, providing much-needed backstory to his character. Side characters additionally feel fleshed out, with organic dialogue offering some of the best performances I have witnessed in a long time. As a result, I found myself caring for them immensely, which only helped enthral me deeper into the story. This was further reinforced with the multitude of cultural differences and accents between the residents of Night City, it helped to bring alive the characters with the detail of their performance. Cyberpunk additionally touches upon darker, more sensitive themes. I feel they were handled with delicate intricacy, while still portraying the darkness Night city inhibits, and its affect upon its residents. 

There is a substantial amount of background information to Cyberpunk that is not presented in the story alone. In the form of encryption pads and a blank wall of text, the backstory and world in which Cyberpunk resides is enriching and engrossing. I feel this could have been utilised more engagingly to truly showcase the potential of Mike Pondsmith's original concept and lore. It is undoubtedly supplied in parts, such as exploring ‘Clouds’ for the first time, an AI-implemented sex club to satiate your every desire, or ‘Afterlife’, a bustling club you frequent to meet critical characters. Ideally, I would have also liked more information on Cyberpsychos besides merely dropping walls of text on the data pads during side missions. The entire ordeal of net running (where one has access to the Net through an augmented interface from their own body and psyche) is also presented as a main proponent in the story. However, the main narrative never truly goes into detail about what it represents. I feel CD Projekt Red missed utilising such incredible world-building, so integral themes can be missed entirely. I point these circumstances out because I have fallen in love with the overall concept of Night City and all it has to offer.

Conclusion

Cyberpunk proposes amazing prospects that sadly falter at the finish line. One cannot deny the tireless work that went into this game, from stunning concept designs to engaging narrative writing and superb characters. It all points towards a generational winner, the beginning of a new era to open world gaming. Yet the myriad of optimisation issues, mission breaking bugs, and evident cut content, as well as my general frustration, simply outweighed my enjoyment and immersion as a result. This is incredibly conflicting for me to say, as I was still engrossed in the main narrative, and easily spent hours upon hours playing Cyberpunk 2077.  There is certainly hope for its future, with patches rolling out and continuing for months later. What concerns me far more is the cut content. I feel the fragmentation of the content offered in Cyberpunk will require more than just patches alone. Cyberpunk feels like a wound hastily covered with bandages, yet only deteriorates rapidly. It offers the glimmer of what could have been but fails in producing it. Despite enjoying my time with Cyberpunk, I could not shake the overwhelming disappointment.