I mean, shit, what is there even to say about one of the biggest RPGs of the modern era...
I held off on playing Cyberpunk for a long while after launch, purely because of the abysmal user experiences I'd seen and gameplay footage that looked like it was about to explode if it was unlucky enough to catch a slight breeze, but, after so many patches, CDP really did deliver on the game that they promised back in 2020.
Is it still glitchy as hell? At times. Is it perfect? Absolutely not (cars were buggy as hell and I had multiple crashes throughout the game back to back). Was it one of the best games I've had the privilege of playing spoiler-free in years, however, absolutely.
The story has this constant illusion of choice, in a world where V simply doesn't stand a chance, and yet, despite how utterly depressing that is once you figure it out, it still feels worth it to keep fighting. The world of Night City and the NUSA is a shitshow, the politics are, dare I say, scarily close to those of the current world, and the people within it are desperate for something to change.
Playing through each of the side-cast's storylines really brought a depth to what might have otherwise been a rather one-dimensional dystopian story. With Johnny constantly spouting anarchist mantra in your ear like a terrorist devil on your shoulder, it's easy to fall into the same nihilistic hole as much of the world around you.
And yet, V, a merc with a ticking timebomb strapped to their head and a life that was stolen far too soon over and over again by the same, soul-destroying corporation, still continues on. It's admirable. Misplaced, considering the game has always been rigged against their favour, and a true "happy" ending, will never be possible considering their plight. But admirable, nonetheless.
I played through every ending of the main story first, starting with the path of least resistance, the one that made me shutdown my PC, stare at the wall, and cry about Judy's last voicemail for V. Knowing that the easiest option, to put yourself and Johnny out of your misery for good, not even try and challenge Arasaka for all the harm its done, really does have a lasting impact on those around you. The friends that you made have a wide range of reactions, and watching each and every one of them grieve V in their own way was heartbreaking.
But, fuck man, Judy. Her best friend kills herself, she spends the entirety of the storyline trying to learn to get over it with the help of V... only for V to do the same. Carla Tassara did an incredible job of conveying just how empty Judy felt in that moment, how little she had left of her own support group now that V was gone. It made me feel truly guilty.
In the end, none of the endings for the main storyline are happy. Not really. There's no escaping the harm of the relic. There's no chance of living a long, fulfilling life, regardless of the choices V makes.
Side with Arasaka and take it out? Too damaged, brain's half fried anyway.
Side with the Aldecaldos and make your way out of Night City for good, bringing your lover with you and escaping the horrors of a life trapped so directly under the corporation's thumbs? The relic will degrade you until there's nothing left but Johnny.
The others all follow a similar format. I'm honestly not sure which of them I prefer. I like to think the "best" of them is to take off with the Aldecaldos, but I honestly think I'd have to give it to raiding Arasaka with Johnny and Rogue. It feels fitting, giving Arasaka one last middle finger and those two the chance to finish the raid they'd planned so long before. In turn, when you take your body back, your the legend of the Afterlife that you promised Jackie you'd be from the start... Even if Judy leaves you behind and everything still feels hollow.
After those, however, Phantom Liberty.
Incredible addition. It felt like CDP added a whole new game right onto the end of Cyberpunk's original campaign. The political intrigue of Myers, Reed and Songbird was compelling, the storyline twisted and tangled in ways where I'd always think I knew what was coming next, only to have the rug pulled out from me every time.
Of the two sides, Reed and Songbird, in my first, main playthrough of the DLC, I chose Songbird. Despite how she'd betrayed everyone around her over and over again, I wanted so desperately to trust her when she said she had a plan for the both of us, that she'd found a way we might have a chance of survival... Of course, you don't as a thief to watch your house when you're on holiday, and you don't trust a liar to tell to truth. She was lying to us from the beginning, only one panacea, only one of us could get it, and she'd reserved that spot for herself.
Despite that, I couldn't help but empathise with her plight. Myers and the FIA had been breathing down her neck for years, treated her like a labrat for a netrunning gig that was always going to kill her in the end, left her no choice but to claw for survival however she could. So I carried her to the ship she needed to escape and reach her cure regardless. I shot Reed for getting in our way. I couldn't stand the idea of her going back into FIA's custody again. Not after how long she'd fought against it in Phantom Liberty.
I like to think that's the true ending of the DLC. If not, however, a close second would be the King of Cups ending.
Watching the AI beyond the Blackwall sink its claws into Songbird, turn her into a weapon of its own design, and her fight tooth and nail to keep V out of it's grasps even when she's dying in the process. It cemented in me that, despite her actions, Songbird is far from a villain. She's in the same boat as V, desperate to survive, almost irregardless of the costs.
So, when we defeat the systems caging her, find her hanging in a bundle of wires and barely clinging to life, much like in my first ending, I couldn't bare to think of giving her back to the FIA. She begged for an ending that wouldn't leave her in the hands of the people who'd harmed her over, and over, and over again. I couldn't say no to that.
Putting Songbird to rest and freeing her of Myers' control felt right. It felt good. Even if it hurt. There was never any other option of freedom in that ending, Myers would have never let her go again.
The worst ending of the DLC, not in terms of quality, but for V themselves, however, had to be the Tower. It was the most depressing end I think was posisble for V.
To live, to get everything they'd fought for the entire time, only for it to have cost them everything and everyone they loved? That's no victory. V is left permanently disabled (of course, not awful on its own) unable to use combat chrome implants and left as a regular, fleshy, human in a world where they'll never be able to defend themselves physically again. But, far worse than that, everyone moved on without them. Trapped in a coma for two years after the surgery to remove the relic succeeded and Johnny was wiped from existence once and for all, Reed didn't once think to contact any of our loved ones.
Judy is married to someone else. Mitch tells us Panam would be better never speaking to us again. Vik sold out to Zetatech and lost the charm and warmth of his clinic. Misty is moving out of NC. Nothing is the same. Just as the Tower symbolises. A drastic, uncontrollable change, often with consequences we can't avoid.
Fuck does it hurt. Fuck Reed, fuck the NUSA and fuck Arasaka.
Cyberpunk has left a lasting impact. It's one of those games I won't be forgetting anytime soon.
Date of completion: 12/05/2026
Time to beat: 81 hrs 30mins
Level of completion: Main story + All side content
Trophies/Gamerscore: 57/57 Steam Perfect
Aaaaand, here's a few more screenshots I took along the way, for funsies.