Cyberpunk 2077 Preview – What We Know So Far

The time is finally coming for us to enjoy the top-notch experience of Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay and, boy, do we have much to talk about. Developed and published by CD Projekt Red, the guys behind highly-praised The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Cyberpunk 2077 isn’t just a promise of a great AAA game; it may be the very definition of the evolution the gaming industry has achieved in a span of about 30 years. Read on for our Cyberpunk 2077 Preview

What’s the lastest about Cyberpunk 2077?

Allow us to get you up-to-date with the latest, summed up info about this giant title, which is coming to the PS4, XBox One and Google Stadia on the release date of April 16th, 2020.

After an amazing trailer featuring Keanu Reeves at E3 2019, more details have surfaced about the open-world gameplay of Cyberpunk 2077 and even its multiplayer aspect. There is so much to learn about it, it can be dazzling.

What is Cyberpunk 2077?

The idea of a society in which technology is so intrinsic to the everyday human being’s life is nothing new and has been executed in many games throughout the years, such as in Deus EX and more recently, Detroit: Become Human. However, the whole cyberpunk culture as itself has never been explored in so much detail as it’s going to be in Cyberpunk 2077.

The guiding motif of the cyberpunk subgenre of science fiction is “low life and high tech” , and the Cyberpunk 2077 story is delightfully drenched in that. You are going to play the role of V, a fully customizable mercenary – whose traits and even clothing choices will provide different reactions and relationships with NPCs – including romantic interactions. You will also be able to choose and guide the character’s skills, perks and attributes evolution as the game unfolds.

The story of Cyberpunk 2077 is set in the fictional Night City – a megacity in the Free State of California that is governed by authoritarian, internet-controlling corporations with different agendas that have a similar modus operandi of oppression of individual liberties. Naturally, as a cyberpunk, V will surf the underground waves of crime, managing to not get swallowed by oppression and one’s own corrupted desires of grandeur and wealth.

Cyberpunk 2077 Gameplay

When the E3 2019 presentation and trailer were made public, it became clear that the whole plot of Cyberpunk 2077 is crowned by excellence. CD Projekt Red has even gone to the lengths of adding freaking Keanu Reeves to its cast, having him as a character that will – as long as spoilers have let us know – support V through the ordeals the game present: Johnny Silverhand. The character models and scenarios look insanely beautiful, taking the entire graphical experience as close to photorealism as it can get.

Stunning graphics, captivating story and relatable characters, genuine and influential customization: Cyberpunk 2077 seems to have a killer formula for success.

It Goes Deeper, Further and Taller

Truly, the features mentioned above are a family-sized fun pack, but the cherry on the cake is the open-world gameplay of Cyberpunk 2077.

You’ll be freely roaming the Night City streets in 6 different areas:

• The City Center, where business and deals are negotiated in tall skyscrapers and the elite ruthlessly mine for wealth and power on the grounds where a nuclear explosion once took place;
• Watson district, a region long-used by a megacorporation and now home to Asian immigrants and their culture;
• Westbrook, home to the crop of the financial cream of Night City and the tourist trap of Japantown;
• Heywood, the latinos’ place, in which gangs have been rising to dominance;
• Santo Domingo, where industrial conglomerates run 24/7;
• Pacifica, the slums of Night City, home to those the city tries to hide and ignore.

While the whole map of Cyberpunk 2077 may be a bit smaller than the one in The Witcher 3, it will feel bigger because it’s way more densely populated with NPCs and places to go. They will extend into tall buildings and go deep underground, so there is plenty to do in a plethora of quests and sidequests or just enjoying the guilty pleasures Night City has to offer. Everything is being built manually, not procedurally, as CD Projekt Red Red’s lead cinematic animator, Maciej Pietras stated, so the player can expect carefully crafted locations that are both stunning and remarkable.

Aside from the physical world, a big part of the environment in any cyberpunk scenario is diving into the digital world, with the help of brain implants and gizmos of the sort. That is a reality in the Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay, although we do not know how exactly that is going to be represented in-game. We personally think they are saving a proper reveal of their NET environs for a later date, in order to keep the hype for the game as fresh as possible.

It has been confirmed by the devs that the entirety of the game will be played on a FPS basis – first-person view, but third-person view for specific cutscenes, so don’t worry about not having the chance of watching the results of your character customization in full glory. V will also be seen in other situations, such as when checking the inventory or driving.

Even so, the main experience runs as an FPS, with an extra coat of RPG progression while earning exp. points. The gameplay could be compared to an evolved form of what we see on the most recent Fallout games – except that one, as any comparisons to it sound more like offensive than praising. But I digress.

Cyberpunk 2077 Combat Prowess – Offline and Online

Combat in Cyberpunk 2077 is filled with options and cool features. Players who get started in the game and go trigger-happy all over will soon learn that it is not a recommended approach, as enemies have complex AI programming and can duck, get to cover and plan their moves to flank the player, just to name a few. Many of these have been briefly shown on the 2013 Cyberpunk trailer.

Naturally, the player will have a lot of controls to deal with enemies as well. They can sneak their way onto their target’s backs for a silent kill, use technological skills to manage shooting time (much like as in Red Dead Redemption), see through walls and many other abilities, which can be unlocked through the skill tree with exp.

Close combat has its own perks, as several attachments and transhumanist add-ons can boost V’s physical capabilities, augmenting what would normally be just a regular punch. And the gore from all these ways to deal pain is shown graphically, with dismemberment, decapitation and all the guts-blowing action that come as a consequence of fighting while laced with the best that technology has to offer.

Players can play Cyberpunk 2077 in its single-player mode  from the very start, but the multiplayer part of it is said to be brought at a later date in an update. Level designer Max Pears has stated in TGS 2019 that the team has struggled to make the multiplayer action connected to the lore of the single-player campaign, as for that, they have spent countless hours on research to make that goal come to fruition.

There aren’t many details on how Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer will play out since it is still under active development, but we will bring the info over whenever it pops up, so be sure to not miss it. For now, as Max Pears said: “The main focus is still single-player right now and we’re making sure that people understand that this world is more than big enough for single-player.”

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt can testify to CD Projekt Red’s quality control and fine world-building, so we can be sure that Cyberpunk 2077 is being constructed with all the care and attention it rightfully deserves – enough to have it be awarded as 2020’s Game of The Year in December 2020. We are calling it out now!

Get Your Hands on It ASAP

Cyberpunk 2077 Standard or Collector’s Edition? Pick your poison

While the release date for Cyberpunk 2077 is April 16th, 2020, several retailers are offering pre-orders for both the standard edition of the game and the collector’s edition. However, it should be noted that the scarcity of the collector’s edition is definitely a thing and is – at the time of this writing – currently out of stock for pre-ordering, but that may change in the coming months.

The Standard edition (which is being sold from $50 to $60) has a few digital goodies included and some physical ones, depending on where you make your pre-order. Now, the collector’s edition is almost 5 times more expensive (around $250) and has many treats, such as an exclusive artbook, a Quadra V-Tech keychain, metal pins, a copy of the Visitor’s Guide to Night City bagged in an NCPD evidence bag, a world compendium, embroidered patches and loads of other goodies – some digital, like the game soundtrack.

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So, which one will you be getting? If you have any questions, new info or comments about Cyberpunk 2077 and CD Projekt Red? Leave your impressions below, so we can discuss while we try to manage the crazy hype for this blockbuster of a game!