The Change 2 is right here, together with the primary wave of launch titles. Cyberpunk 2077: Final Version is an enormous shock — partly as a result of so little was recognized concerning the Change 2’s {hardware}. It’s a serious second to see a large-scale, graphics-intensive recreation introduced (although perhaps it shouldn’t be such a shock, given The Witcher 3 made it to the unique Change). Now that it’s out, it’s time to jack in and survive Evening Metropolis.
You play as V, a personality whose origin story you select — shaping how they meet their partner-in-crime and greatest buddy, Jackie, and the way they arrive to name Evening Metropolis residence. After a heist goes fallacious, you find yourself with Keanu Reeves in your head, taking part in Johnny Silverhand — a long-dead rocker and terrorist. You’re in bother with some very highly effective folks, and also you’ve acquired a rogue consciousness attempting to overwrite your individual. Welcome to Cyberpunk!
This (principally) first-person shooter/RPG offers you a wide range of strategies to carve your manner by means of the Metropolis. V lives in a world filled with weapons, a wide range of firearms and melee weapons. Though a bullet or blade isn’t the one method to survive. Utilizing Netrunning skills, you’ll be able to hack into close by digital gadgets or enemies to distract or injure, particularly useful if you happen to choose a extra stealthy strategy. As you stage up you get factors to place in the direction of perks and attributes, whether or not it’s constructing a V who can rip a locked door off its hinges or to hack by means of with technical ability. Cyberpunk is forgiving with the way you construct your V, permitting you to reset and redistribute your factors everytime you need.
I preferred the aid of not having to fret I used to be making a ‘unhealthy construct’, whereas additionally having the ability to readjust to completely different circumstances. Accompanied together with your cybernetic enhancements there are such a lot of choices and methods to essentially amp up the way you strategy the sport. Personally, I’m a sucker for traversal enhancements, give me double bounce, air dashing, or something that provides some verticality to the world. Relying on the place you spend your factors in addition to relying in your chosen origin story, you’ll be able to typically have some additional dialogue choices which assist flesh out the characters and acknowledge the place your V began.
I really feel I ought to give a heads up, regardless that I do hope in spite of everything these years it’s much less of a shock, Cyberpunk 2077 is just not a recreation for teenagers. Though the sport doesn’t conceal its extra grownup nature, between the sport’s age classification, fairly seen intercourse and violence on show on prime of being made by the developer who’s greatest recognized for The Witcher collection. In the event you’ve not delved into the promoting and all that, simply know that Evening Metropolis earns the R18+ score. Its depictions of violence in its completely different kinds will be confronting if you happen to’re not ready for them, and even then I daresay it should make folks really feel uncomfortable.
On prime of the primary recreation, included right here is The Phantom Liberty – the growth the place V finds themselves working with the Federal Intelligence Company following an assassination try on the President. On prime of Johnny Silverhand/Keanu, you’re additionally now coping with Agent Solomon Reed (portrayed by Idris Elba). Whereas each the primary and growth’s story received’t set the world on fireplace, they’re nonetheless entertaining and filled with cool moments. The Cyberpunk setting is made for themes taking over the Company overlords and a little bit of cyber espionage, whereas persons are simply attempting to make a dwelling or need to be bigger than life in an unforgiving and uncaring world.
Cyberpunk’s story is as concerned or brisk as you need it to be. If you wish to simply comply with the primary story threads, you’ll be able to principally dash in the direction of the end line. It could be doing your self an enormous disservice but it surely’s an possibility. There may be loads to do round Evening Metropolis that builds on the world and the characters that inhabit the Metropolis and its environment. Additionally, in order for you the enjoyable upgrades for fight and traversal you’ll want the Eddies (money) to improve. There’s loads of regular aspect stuff to do like racing, brawling for Eddies, arcade video games and a few bounty searching, if you wish to wring each second of outing of the sport.
Together with the brand new Change 2 comes new strategies of management in order for you some choices exterior of the same old controller settings. Gyroscope mode is precisely what you’d anticipate, which is nice information for gyro management gamers. I don’t usually choose gyro for aiming in video games, nonetheless, Cyberpunk acquired me on board.
Movement sample controls really feel like Wii movement controls, utilizing movement gestures alongside gyro aiming. It labored properly sufficient, even after I awkwardly stumbled into deciding on the mode in coaching and needed to prop up the hand held display and handle the controls. The management scheme jogged my memory of Pink Metal on the Wii, with the difficulties round correct movement controls nonetheless current in 2025. It’s cool that there are a number of methods to regulate the sport to swimsuit what you favor, nonetheless, Movement Patterns Controls wrestle to be greater than a novelty.
The brand new Pleasure-Con 2 with its inbuilt mouse controls are included as an possibility right here and offers you a extra PC-like expertise. In the event you don’t really feel the opposite management strategies do the job for pace and accuracy then mouse management ought to have you ever lined. Given that you simply nonetheless want to make use of the mouse-orientated Pleasure Con’s buttons too, it’s not fairly so simple as level and clicking ought to it’s worthwhile to do something greater than shoot. There’s additionally Contact management, though that is extra for interfaces and the menu. It’s a pleasant contact if you happen to’re in handheld mode for navigating the map or simply getting across the menus shortly.
Now for the primary purpose, loads will probably be wanting on the Cyberpunk opinions for – how does it run on the Change 2? As we’re coming into a brand new period of Nintendo {hardware}, there may be nonetheless going to be a must mood expectations. In the event you’re going to carry this (or the Change 2) as much as a high-end PC, the Xbox Collection X, or PS5 then you definately’re in for a few years of disappointment proper out of the gate. As for Cyberpunk 2077 on the Change 2 in handheld or docked, it seems nice. It’s no peak of visible constancy, but it surely does a very good job contemplating the sport’s bumpy historical past and less-than-ideal legacy on older platforms.
One space many individuals will probably be interested by is the framerate. The sport runs at 30 to 40fps, relying on whether or not you’re taking part in docked or handheld, and whether or not it’s set to Efficiency or High quality mode. For probably the most half, the framerate holds up properly, and the sport stays constantly playable—any dips have by no means impacted gameplay in a significant manner. Some areas do see extra noticeable drops, relying on the placement. Fight and driving sequences can sometimes present indicators of pressure, however general, the efficiency is spectacular—particularly contemplating this isn’t working on a PS5 or Collection X.
On the visible aspect, if something stands out, it’s the same old sort of buginess you’d anticipate throughout any model—largely because of the sheer scale of the world and the complexity of its programs. Shadows may pop out and in, hair can clip by means of clothes, and a few NPCs sometimes behave oddly. Whereas you’ll discover these quirks, they don’t detract from the general expertise.
Even at a decrease decision in handheld mode, the sport seems spectacular. Cyberpunk‘s world is visually wealthy, from the overcrowded, neon-drenched streets of Evening Metropolis to the huge, open stretches of the Badlands on its outskirts. The growth provides much more, introducing the walled-off district of Dogtown to an already densely packed world.
I did expertise the sport crashing just a few instances in a single part, which was unlucky. It could have been much more irritating if the autosave system hadn’t prevented me from shedding quite a lot of minutes of progress. Don’t get me fallacious—it’s nonetheless fairly irritating.
General, Cyberpunk 2077 seems and runs properly, and the Final Version is a strong demonstration of what the Change 2 can deal with. As builders develop into extra aware of the {hardware}, I can think about they’ll be capable to push it even additional. With Cyberpunk and different attention-grabbing ports on the way in which, it’s off to a promising begin. The one draw back round launch was the announcement of an upcoming 2.3 patch. At this level, we don’t know the way it will have an effect on the sport’s stability or efficiency. Nonetheless, the truth that it’s being held again till it’s prepared suggests there’ll be numerous enhancements, additions, and changes to the sport general.
Cyberpunk 2077: Final Version is the fruits of years of laborious work to beat the sport’s tough launch again in 2020. Change 2 house owners now get to benefit from the outcomes of that effort, bundled up and able to play wherever — or, in fact, on the TV. In the event you haven’t had the prospect to expertise this huge open-world RPG but, there’s no higher time than now.
Ranking: 4/5
