CD Projekt's Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.0 + Phantom Liberty Expansion Thread

[gurugeorge]

So, you are telling me it's a bad game?

I agree.

"Bad" is ridiculous hyperbole. It's not the RPG that was hyped, but it's a good game now, especially after the recent update. It's probably the best relaxing popamole around atm, and some of the questage and story is well done and even thought-provoking at times (if you were ever into cyberpunk and the themes around uploading/AI, etc., and how those would affect human lives - sometimes the game brings home the sense of, "what if all that were real?"). It's a game to hop into now and then for some enjoyable fool-blasting. There's a vast number of morsel-like combat encounters, and the weather combined with the day/night cycle multiplies the feel of them endlessly.

(It happened to me the other day again: I came across a fun encounter, and I only realized after reading one of the shards that it was the same as a memorable encounter I'd had before, but then it was in the night in the rain, and this time it was during the sunny day, and I'd come across the spot from a completely different direction, so I hadn't recognized it.)

I can't see myself getting bored of this game until I know the map and encounters too well for that illusion to work any more - which I estimate will take some time yet (I'm only just starting to get familiar with some of the areas and connections between them).

 

[Cyberarmy]

It is a bad RPG, hell a very bad "GTA clone" too but a nice shooter in a great looking cyberpunk city with lots of colourful (hehe) characters. It has it moments.

 

[JarlFrank]

V is as boring and generic as an NPC from a TES game.

Which is exactly what a blank slate RPG protagonist should be, so you can insert whatever personality you want to play as.

I'd rather play Mr. or Mrs. Blank Slate with no backstory and then go wild with different character builds and story choices, than a pre-determined character with a detailed history and expected behaviors like Geralt.

 

[BosanskiSeljak]

V is as boring and generic as an NPC from a TES game.

Which is exactly what a blank slate RPG protagonist should be, so you can insert whatever personality you want to play as.

Blank slate characters to insert personality don't work when there's voice acting. Even if the voice acting is amazing (already rare), that still prevents you from imaging personality because voice/intonation/etc. conveys a lot about a person.

Geralt works (no matter the personal opinion). A more blank slate character with voice acting like DA:I (yes, I'm being disingenuous using an example of shit game) gets the worst of both worlds.

 

[Quillon]

V is NOT a blank slate protag, yo

 

[gurugeorge]

V is as boring and generic as an NPC from a TES game.

Which is exactly what a blank slate RPG protagonist should be, so you can insert whatever personality you want to play as.

Blank slate characters to insert personality don't work when there's voice acting. Even if the voice acting is amazing (already rare), that still prevents you from imaging personality because voice/intonation/etc. conveys a lot about a person.

Geralt works (no matter the personal opinion). A more blank slate character with voice acting like DA:I (yes, I'm being disingenuous using an example of shit game) gets the worst of both worlds.

I've mentioned this before, but this is why the half dozen or so AI voice mods that have cropped up on Nexus are interesting to play with. They are a bit glitchy occasionally, and they can't bear really close listening on headphones or being played loud on good speakers, but just listening at an average volume on ordinary speakers, they're quite passable most of the time. And it's surprising what a difference a different voice makes, it really feels like a different V.

Scarjo is probably the best of them, because her accent and intonation are very much in the same ballpark as the voice actress'. But that famous sexy huskiness makes the experience totally different from the experience with the original voice actress' voice, and gives a more world-weary and cynical character to V.

The male ones aren't quite as successful as the female ones for some reason. Ryan Gosling is fairly good for the male, although more glitchy than Scarjo. The Geralt one is alright too.

There are some novelty ones like Rebecca from Edgerunners (which is surprisingly good, although obviously you'd be playing a very specific type of "crazy" character with her), and a few male novelties too.

The Rebecca Ferguson voice is interesting because her accent is kind of Norwegian-sounding or whatever it is, and it sometimes goes weird over its American base - there are a few others where the accents don't match, like the guy from Peaky Blinders, where again, the English accent "fights" with the American accent.

I highly recommend the experiment, it's interesting both in showing what a difference a different voice makes to a playthrough - even to the "meaning" of the dialogue responses - and in showing both the amazingness and limitations of the AI voice transformation (though I'm sure with time and better software, and a ton more attention to detail, it could be done better - these are amateur efforts after all.)

 

[JarlFrank]

I read the subtitles and skip the voice lines because I don't have time for that shit

 

[Tyrr]

V is as boring and generic as an NPC from a TES game.

Which is exactly what a blank slate RPG protagonist should be, so you can insert whatever personality you want to play as.

Blank slate characters to insert personality don't work when there's voice acting. Even if the voice acting is amazing (already rare), that still prevents you from imaging personality because voice/intonation/etc. conveys a lot about a person.

Geralt works (no matter the personal opinion). A more blank slate character with voice acting like DA:I (yes, I'm being disingenuous using an example of shit game) gets the worst of both worlds.

I've mentioned this before, but this is why the half dozen or so AI voice mods that have cropped up on Nexus are interesting to play with. They are a bit glitchy occasionally, and they can't bear really close listening on headphones or being played loud on good speakers, but just listening at an average volume on ordinary speakers, they're quite passable most of the time. And it's surprising what a difference a different voice makes, it really feels like a different V.

Scarjo is probably the best of them, because her accent and intonation are very much in the same ballpark as the voice actress'. But that famous sexy huskiness makes the experience totally different from the experience with the original voice actress' voice, and gives a more world-weary and cynical character to V.

The male ones aren't quite as successful as the female ones for some reason. Ryan Gosling is fairly good for the male, although more glitchy than Scarjo. The Geralt one is alright too.

There are some novelty ones like Rebecca from Edgerunners (which is surprisingly good, although obviously you'd be playing a very specific type of "crazy" character with her), and a few male novelties too.

The Rebecca Ferguson voice is interesting because her accent is kind of Norwegian-sounding or whatever it is, and it sometimes goes weird over its American base - there are a few others where the accents don't match, like the guy from Peaky Blinders, where again, the English accent "fights" with the American accent.

I highly recommend the experiment, it's interesting both in showing what a difference a different voice makes to a playthrough - even to the "meaning" of the dialogue responses - and in showing both the amazingness and limitations of the AI voice transformation (though I'm sure with time and better software, and a ton more attention to detail, it could be done better - these are amateur efforts after all.)

All I need is a Claudia Black one.

 

[Justicar]

I have expressed it in detail. It's your problem if you don't get it.

Your mother sucks dwarf cock.

 

[Justicar]

 

[GentlemanCthulhu]

I never knew a voice could sound punch-able until I heard fem-V's lines.

 

[Frozen]

V is as boring and generic as an NPC from a TES game.

Which is exactly what a blank slate RPG protagonist should be, so you can insert whatever personality you want to play as.

I'd rather play Mr. or Mrs. Blank Slate with no backstory and then go wild with different character builds and story choices, than a pre-determined character with a detailed history and expected behaviors like Geralt.

Except you can't do that outside of your imagination.

The problem of you TES-loving braindead fuckers is, you think that boredom and lack of quality is a feature.

If I need to use head cannon, the developers are doing it wrong.

 

[JarlFrank]

Cool story bro, the best RPG of all time with the most impactful choices has a blank slate character too (Arcanum).

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Cool story bro, the best RPG of all time with the most impactful choices has a blank slate character too (Arcanum).

Is it really a blank slate if the game lets you choose a background?

 

[lukaszek]

Cool story bro, the best RPG of all time with the most impactful choices has a blank slate character too (Arcanum).

Is it really a blank slate if the game lets you choose a background?

does it really?

Barbarian​

Available to all except elves and half-ogres.

You were raised among a wild barbarian tribe in a far away land. No one knows how or why you came to be passenger aboard the IFS Zephyr, but given your ferocious demeanor, no one tried to find out. You gain bonuses to Strength (+2) and Constitution (+1), and a slight bonus to Melee, while suffering penalties to Intelligence (-1) and Charisma (-2), and a penalty to Haggle. You also possess barbarian armor but less money than other characters.

ST +2 / CN +1 / IN -1 / CH -2 / Melee +1 / Haggle -2 / 100 Gold / Dark Barbarian Clothes

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Cool story bro, the best RPG of all time with the most impactful choices has a blank slate character too (Arcanum).

Is it really a blank slate if the game lets you choose a background?

does it really?

Barbarian​

Available to all except elves and half-ogres.

You were raised among a wild barbarian tribe in a far away land. No one knows how or why you came to be passenger aboard the IFS Zephyr, but given your ferocious demeanor, no one tried to find out. You gain bonuses to Strength (+2) and Constitution (+1), and a slight bonus to Melee, while suffering penalties to Intelligence (-1) and Charisma (-2), and a penalty to Haggle. You also possess barbarian armor but less money than other characters.

ST +2 / CN +1 / IN -1 / CH -2 / Melee +1 / Haggle -2 / 100 Gold / Dark Barbarian Clothes

That's a background innit?

 

[lukaszek]

That's a background innit?

was referring to whether choice is real

 

[Nathaniel3W]

I've been putting in a little more play time since 2.0 and it's growing on me.

The game used to be too easy at endgame. All the encounters were effortless. I generally dislike scaling difficulty, but with scaling difficulty, endgame encounters now require a little bit of skill and thought. When I started with 2.0, I played the way I used to: activate Sandevistan, charge in, massacre everyone, recharge 3 seconds, reactivate Sandevistan in case I missed anyone. That doesn't work in 2.0. Now I have to mix up my tactics a bit: sneak in, break some necks, activate optical camo, start slicing while invisible, and when the enemy gets a bead on me then I activate the Sandy, and when that runs out, I take cover and get out my assault rifle.

There is one really annoying thing that I haven't figured out how to handle yet. Animals bosses have Berserk modules that make them immune to damage. With a nethacker you can disable their chrome, but with a katana/sandy build I don't think you can defeat these guys.

Playing a netrunner is harder than before too, but in my opinion it's the easiest playstyle. Before 2.0, the short circuit quickhack cost a mere 2 RAM. An endgame netrunner could sit back in a deck chair, sip a margarita, hack a security camera, short circuit everyone in the whole building, then stroll in and grab whatever it was he came for. Now, with hugely increased RAM costs on everything, you can only upload two or maybe three combat quickhacks before running out of RAM. So if you only have two quickhacks you can use, it has to be contagion, then overheat, which ignites the gasses released by contagion and it's basically like launching a grenade. You can activate the cyberdeck's special ability--what's it called again? the ability that lets you keep spending RAM but it costs health--but it seems like no matter how I hack, I will need to switch to a sniper rifle or smart gun to finish off the enemies.

Berserk seems like the most fun so far and the most similar to how I used to play with a sandy. I activate Berserk, then charge in while I'm invulnerable to damage, smash some people up and use them as projectiles against their allies.

 

[Lord_Potato]

When I started with 2.0, I played the way I used to: activate Sandevistan, charge in, massacre everyone, recharge 3 seconds, reactivate Sandevistan in case I missed anyone. That doesn't work in 2.0.

It still kind of does with proper perks (and the best Sandevistan). During the endgame attack on the construction site with the Nomads I killed like 20 Militech troops on one charge of Sandy. It was a freaking ballet of death with the Errata between those unfortunate fuckers.

Killing Frank Horringan Adam Smasher took 3 charges, but only because there is a moment in his boss fight when he becomes immune to damage, so that he survives until phase 3. If not for this immunity, I'd cut him down in 2 charges.

Next time I'll try a stealthy netrunner, but this guns&blades juggernaut run sure was fun!

 

[gurugeorge]

V is as boring and generic as an NPC from a TES game.

Which is exactly what a blank slate RPG protagonist should be, so you can insert whatever personality you want to play as.

I'd rather play Mr. or Mrs. Blank Slate with no backstory and then go wild with different character builds and story choices, than a pre-determined character with a detailed history and expected behaviors like Geralt.

Except you can't do that outside of your imagination.

The problem of you TES-loving braindead fuckers is, you think that boredom and lack of quality is a feature.

If I need to use head cannon, the developers are doing it wrong.

 

[Nathaniel3W]

Where's this from? Looks amusing.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Where's this from? Looks amusing.

Looks like something outta transformers

 

[lukaszek]

Looks like something outta transformers

bollywoodformers

 

[Gerrard]

I never played this shit because V looked so generic and boring as a character, but it got me thinking...if Keanu was the player character from the beginning, do you think this game would be more interesting?

You realize there is a character creator in the game, right? There's a fair amount of latitude there to make him/her look however you fancy.

What the fuck is the point of a character creator if you're stuck playing the same character with insufferable personality anyway?

 

[gurugeorge]

I never played this shit because V looked so generic and boring as a character, but it got me thinking...if Keanu was the player character from the beginning, do you think this game would be more interesting?

You realize there is a character creator in the game, right? There's a fair amount of latitude there to make him/her look however you fancy.

What the fuck is the point of a character creator if you're stuck playing the same character with insufferable personality anyway?

I thought Frozen was talking about looks - turns out he meant "seems."