Cyberpunk 2077has seemingly completed its journey with the release of thePhantom LibertyDLC and various updates that have markedly improved the player experience since its somewhat disastrous launch. Now that players have sunk dozens if not hundreds of hours into the coreCyberpunk 2077experience, clearing up every Gig, NCPD Scanner Hustle, and side quest, they’ll be looking to the next entry in the soon-to-be series.
Fortunately, CD Projekt Red has confirmed that there will be aCyberpunk 2at some point, even despite the fact that the first game is one of manyvideo games unfairly criticized. There is plenty of speculation surrounding what the sequel could be about, where it might be set, and what new features it will introduce. However,while a lot of the originalCyberpunk 2077experience is amazing, a lot of it needs to be removed in order to make the sequel shine.
10NCPD Scanner Hustles
They’re Inconsistent With V’s Character
The NCPD Scanner Hustles inCyberpunk 2077are short side missions that really just require players to kill a group of enemies and occasionally read something.They’re light on story and content, largely existing to offer busyworkfor those who are content roaming around Night City with a vengeance. However, NCPD Scanner Hustles aren’t bad because of their lack of meaningful content, but rather because theyruin the immersion in Cyberpunk.
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V assisting the police in their quest to take down the various gangs of Night City doesn’t really play into their morally ambiguous character, especially when they’ve grown to generally distrust the NCPD. The missions with River are clear evidence of just how much V, at least initially, lacks any faith in the NCPD, and V often has conversations with other characters that also points to this. NCPD Scanner Hustles should therefore be removed in the sequel and replaced with more meaningful missions that better reflect the protagonist’s beliefs.
9First-Person Only
It Would Be Great To See V
Cyberpunk 2077absolutely works as a first-person experienceand is far better off for it. Witnessing the horrors of Night City from a first-person perspective is not only more immersive but also helps players revel in the minute details that make the city such a special place to explore. Removing the first-person perspective inCyberpunk 2would absolutely be a mistake, as it is largely integral to the overall experience.
However, it often feels likeCyberpunk 2077was, at one point, intended to be a third-person game, much like CD Projekt Red’s other series,The Witcher. The extensive character customization options, the fact that players can customize their clothes, and the ability to switch to third-person while driving - something that is missing in other first-person open-world games likeFar Cry- definitely speaks to this.Having the option to switch between both perspectives in the sequel at any time, not just driving, would make it a more accessible experienceand greatly increase the value of character customization.
8Pointless Factions
So Many Of Them Have Little To Do
Cyberpunk 2077has an incredibly rich and vibrant world, elevated by the source material it is adapting. It has had a number of spin-off media, including comics and a phenomenal TV show, that has greatly expanded the world and invited players to witness other sides of both Night City and its various factions. However,while all the surrounding lore absolutely makes the world ofCyberpunk 2077more interesting, the way the game handles its factions is disappointing.
Outside a handful of missions,none of the factions inCyberpunk 2077, from the NCPD and Trauma Team to gangs like The Mox and Tyger Claws, have anything to do. They’re fairly pointless beyond occasionally chasing V or popping up to antagonize them. Their effect on Night City is rarely felt, despite lore entries teasing something bigger, and V doesn’t get to interact with them in meaningful ways.Cyberpunk 2needs new gangsand must implement them better to make both the world feel more alive and the player more involved in it.
7Meaningless Gigs
They’re Detract From The Main Story
Gigs, much like the factions of Night City, have a lot of potential but rarely deliverit. These are short - although not as short as NCPD Scanner Hustles - missions inCyberpunk 2077that are completely optional and usually reward the player with a bit of money and XP. They are also tied to Fixers, characters with their own backgrounds who V interacts with every so often. These Fixers have a set number of Gigs for players to complete, after which they’ll hand out a rare reward and never show up again.
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The implementation of Gigs in the baseCyberpunk 2077game - not Phantom Liberty as that improved upon them slightly - is incredibly poor, as not only are the Fixers vastly underutilized, but the Gigs themselves are rarely challenging or interesting. While there are a few exceptions, Gigs largely devolve into the player visiting a location, killing a group of enemies, and reaping the rewards.Cyberpunk 2either needs more of the introspective character-driven Gigs or find a way of introducing more full-blown side quests likeThe Witcher 3.
6Night City
It Is Time For A New Setting
Night City is an incredible setting forCyberpunk 2077and is largely what makes it such a success. While a cliché, it is very much a character in and of itself, with each little detail, NPC interaction, and mission helping to further immerse the player in this awful yet occasionally hopeful world.Cyberpunk 2077is absolutely better off for being set in Night City, and its story is stronger for it too.
However, while Night City is the right location forCyberpunk 2077, its sequel should be set somewhere else. Of course, ifCyberpunk 2ends up being set in Night City, that’s no great shame, but there’s little new that CD Projekt Red can offer that players won’t already be expecting. Everyone already knows the key players and events, and going further into the future - or even back into the past - won’t change that too much. Instead,Cyberpunk 2should be set somewhere else to give the developers a new foundation to build upon and fans somewhere new to play with.
5The Life Paths
They Do Little To Elevate The Game
Cyberpunk 2077starts by letting players pick a Life Path, something that determines V’s background and changes which opening they experience. The Nomad Life Path, for example, sees players start off in the Badlands and have to navigate through border control with Jackie. It also makes relations with the Aldecaldos much easier thanks to the new dialogue options. However, whileCyberpunk 2077’sLife Pathsdo offer some replayability as well as an illusion of extra choice, their implementation isn’t the best.
The extra dialogue choices aren’t strictly necessary, as if players lack them, they won’t fail a mission or end up in a less appealing situation. Additionally, while a change in the opening sequence is fun, it also doesn’t really add much to the game, with players only bumping into some of the characters featured in them in optional missions.Life Paths should be removed inCyberpunk 2, and in its place, CD Projekt Red should allow players to simply choose their background information at the startand have it play a much greater role in the narrative.
4The Janky NPCs
They Ruin The Immersion Of Night City
Cyberpunk 2077had a buggy launch, and there is no escaping that. However, the plethora of patches and updates since its release has largely addressed those major issues, making it a far more playable and enjoyable experience.The work that CD Projekt Red put into improvingCyberpunk 2077should absolutely be commended, and players across the world are better off for it. Of course, that being said,Cyberpunk 2077’sNPCs make no sense.
It isn’t just the glitches that see them warp into one another or T-pose in an alleyway that makes them feel so artificial, but rather their reactions to the player and the way they’ll purposefully endanger themselves as if they’re on a mission to get V the highest Wanted rating possible. NPCs inCyberpunk 2077do not act like normal people, and no amount of patches can seemingly fix that. It’s understandable to an extent, especially considering the scale of Night City, butCyberpunk 2must find a way of leaving behind the dangerous behavior of Night City’s population.
Cars Handle Terribly In Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077’sdriving mechanics aren’t technically bad, but they don’t work within the context of an open-world gameor Night City. To an extent, driving inCyberpunk 2077is meant to feel more realistic, with the handling of fast cars going haywire the minute players attempt to blast around a corner at ridiculous speeds. This will almost always result in players crashing, being thrown from their car, or killing a civilian and earning themselves a Wanted star. The problem is that all the cars inCyberpunk 2077reach top speeds pretty quickly.
The fantasy of running amok in Night City and getting up to no good is quashed somewhat by having to drive at a snail’s pace just so players don’t crash.
This means players need to show a great amount of restraint when driving to maintain a respectable and law-abiding speed. Additionally,the fantasy of running amok in Night City and getting up to no good is quashed somewhat by having to drive at a snail’s pace just so players don’t crash. To make matters worse, NPCs drive incredibly slowly, far slower than the speed limit, which can make traversing Night City in a car specifically - motorbikes are far easier to stomach - a nightmare.Cyberpunk 2either needs to ditch cars altogether or make driving more arcadey.
2Buying Cars
It Makes Stealing Them Redundant
InCyberpunk 2077, players can buy cars to permanently unlock them. This includes the absolute worst cars imaginable, Akira-inspired motorbikes, and basically tanks kitted with machine guns and rocket launchers. Once purchased, fans can then access them from a handy menu and have them appear in a matter of seconds, ensuring that they’re never without their favorite car. In theory,this system works much like Roach inThe Witcher 3and gives players access to cool-looking cars as a reward for earning so much money.
In practice, however, it makes stealing cars a completely redundant featureas, not only can players not keep stolen cars - as they disappear whenever a main mission starts or if V goes too far away from them - but they can also just summon a car whenever they want, mitigating the need to steal one in a hurry. Removing this feature also robs the player of a further opportunity to be a criminal, something Night City should encourage, not dissuade. It’s a shame, especially afterCyberpunk 2077’ssurprise Update 2.2added a swathe of car customization options.
1Johnny Silverhand
He’s Too Connected To V’s Story
Much like a lot ofCyberpunk 2077’sfeatures,Johnny Silverhand is completely integral to the core experience. He not only makes V’s story all the more emotional, with their bond being the backbone of the entire narrative but his connection to the wider world and short-term absence from it give him a unique perspective that makes exploration and side quests all the more interesting. Johnny Silverhand is, unequivocally, one of the fundamental features ofCyberpunk 2077that has made it such a legendary game.
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However, as great as Johnny Silverhand is great - and he really is great -Cyberpunk 2will be far better off without him. Not only do some of the endings see him die, but he also feels far too connected to V’s story, something which similarly shouldn’t carry over toCyberpunk 2. Shoehorning him into the next game would only be a disservice to his role inCyberpunk 2077, and would take away from a fresher perspective that could introduce a new level of intrigue to the series.
