Mere days after celebrating 40 million sales overall, CD Projekt Red reveals the RPG has hit its highest Steam player peak in three years.

That's right – CD Projekt Red just can't seem to stop winning. The neon light-laden gem has officially hit over 1,000 players on Steam (101,558, to be exact, as per SteamDB), which just so happens to be the highest number CD Projekt Red has seen for its game since 2023.

It isn't quite toppling the 274,526 player peak it saw then… but it's nonetheless an impressive figure, and the studio can't help but celebrate the milestone.

Lead quest designer and Cyberpunk 2 associate game director Paweł Sasko is thrilled, for one – and he's thanking the recent first look at Cyberpunk: Edgerunners season 2 and collab event with Wuthering Waves for the influx of new fans.

"Tons of new chooms seem to be discovering Cyberpunk 2077, thanks to Edgerunners and our collab with Wuwa," he writes. "Have fun, my dears, hope it’s going to keep you hooked, entertained, and inspired."

Global PR director Radek Grabowski notes the influx himself in a separate post, saying, "Today's peak player count on Steam surpassed 100k – the highest it's been since 2023. This is crazy! Thank you all for playing Cyberpunk 2077!"

He includes a screenshot of the Steam charts, highlighting this month's new peak. Joint CD Projekt Red CEO Michał Nowakowski then chimes in with a reply, dubbing it a "crazy player peak today."

He concludes: "So happy to see you all. Come and check out Night City. It's a really nice and cozy place to visit!" And, you know what? I'm inclined to agree, even if it's obviously a joke.

With the hundreds of hours you can sink into Cyberpunk 2077, it does oddly become cozy in a way – the same way The Witcher 3 does, I suppose. CD Projekt Red's fantasy RPG isn't struggling with some 30,000 players over a decade on, either.

Here's hoping Cyberpunk 2 – and other upcoming CD Projekt Red games, such as The Witcher 4 – impress as much as the studio's current RPGs clearly have.

Cyberpunk 2077 lead proves the RPG's "biggest scene" is so much more complex than The Witcher 3's that you can barely compare them

As the wait for Cyberpunk 2 continues, CD Projekt Red continues to celebrate wins with its 2020 RPG – in fact, Cyberpunk 2077 now boasts over 40 million sales.

That's a solid five million more than CD Projekt Red unveiled in November last year, when Cyberpunk 2077 outpaced The Witcher 3 in its five-year success with 35 million copies sold.

For just eight months or so (not to mention the fact that it's been a good six years since the game launched), jumping up to 40 million sales is worthy of celebration – and the developers are doing just that, sharing their excitement online.

CD Projekt Red joint CEO Michał Nowakowski stands as one of the folks celebrating, calling this "another big milestone for Cyberpunk 2077 sales" in a thread on Twitter. "Thank you for your continuous support! Night City welcomes all travelers."

He's not alone, though, with lead quest designer – and Cyberpunk 2 associate game director, might I add – Paweł Sasko chiming in with his own celebratory post on the website.

"Incredibly thankful for your amazing support, my chooms," writes Sasko. "You are the reason we can do all this work, entertain and delight you."

All of this speaks to the grand comeback Cyberpunk 2077 made, honestly. After an initially disastrous release, CD Projekt Red clearly put in the work to ensure the RPG's quality matched that of its other titles, like The Witcher 3… not to mention its incredible Phantom Liberty expansion.

Here's hoping Cyberpunk 2 – and other upcoming CD Projekt Red games, such as The Witcher 4 – impress as much as Cyberpunk 2077 clearly has now.

"Limitation sparks creativity": Cyberpunk 2077 quest lead turned one character's appearance into "part of the story" because CD Projekt Red couldn't afford the alternative.

Every so often, comparisons between The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 break out, as fans compare and contrast the two mammoth RPGs from CD Projekt Red. On the back of the latest round, a lead developer decided to shed some light on what makes the latter the more impressive project, at least when it comes to cinematics.

In this case, people are convinced Cyberpunk 2077 would've been better with some third-person cutscenes. Igor Sarzyński, cinematic director on the sci-fi RPG and senior cinematic designer on The Witcher 3, delivers an impassioned response on Bluesky.

"Doing third person cutscenes only sometimes would've been jarring af, I guarantee it," he writes. "And third person cutscenes for each scene is just, like, a completely different game."

He then points out that not having the power to use different angles in the way third-person allows is actually harder to implement. "Doing interactive, non-linear, real-time scenes with no cuts but camera, and often movement freedom is [three times] as difficult and expensive as doing old school cutscenes," he explains. "If we wanted to cut scope we would do [The Witcher 3] style scenes."

That's a bold statement, but then he shares a comparison between the editing bay of the largest scene in Geralt's third adventure, and the same for Cyberpunk 2077, and you can immediately see how much more complex it is. I'm a hobbyist video editor, and the layers and layers of effects and footage and whatever else in the Cyberpunk 2077 image would melt my brain.

btw

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-07-01T16:10:05.008Z

This all really just goes to highlight how hard it is to understand the craft involved when you're simply looking at the finished product. Oftentimes, what might look simple to you is far from it behind-the-scenes, but the right people can make it look effortless. Whatever you may think, The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 were huge endeavors, and the devs deserve some respect for that.

The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 devs put "a considerable amount of effort into side stories," Cyberpunk 2 lead says: "Quality in those was a must."

It's no secret that CD Projekt Red put a lot of work into Cyberpunk 2077 (before and after its shaky launch, that is) – but some of what we now commend as brilliant detail in-game stems from the studio's limited resources, believe it or not.

This story contains spoilers for Cyberpunk 2077 – read on at your own risk.

According to lead quest designer Paweł Sasko, anyway, that's the case with Meredith Stout and her dead body, which players can find underwater at the bottom of the bay north of Watson – should they make the decisions that lead to her brutal death, anyway.

You might notice that, if you do come across her corpse, her hair has been shaved off and her feet are cemented in a concrete block. It's (as grim as it is) a pretty cool detail. Fans seem to think so, too, with one's post about it prompting a response from Sasko himself. In it, he explains Stout's appearance there – and a little more about his design process in general.

"I love packing details like this into my quests," he writes. "It often takes time for the players to discover, but the thrill and satisfaction are unforgettable. It shows nobody is safe in Night City, there is always a bigger fish, and stakes are everywhere."

Sasko then gets into the nitty-gritty of Stout's hair (or lack thereof), saying, "Her head is shaved because rigging and animating hair to gently move underwater was out of available budget." In turn, he had to make something work.

"I had to be scrappy with my design, so I turned it into part of the story. Anthropologically, I liked it, because shaving hair is associated with losing honor, face, and being overshadowed by shame."

He concludes that it's just "one of the examples how limitation sparks creativity." That it certainly is.

It's nothing new for CD Projekt Red, either. I'm immediately reminded of what Sasko previously stated about The Witcher 3 and how the studio faced various setbacks while developing the legendary RPG – it's similar to the Stout situation, if you ask me… and it speaks to the team's resilience.

If something works, it works, and in this case, it worked out pretty dang well.

The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 devs put "a considerable amount of effort into side stories," Cyberpunk 2 lead says: "Quality in those was a must."

Did you know that CD Projekt is, in fact, a company that's distinct from CD Projekt Red? I did, but that's only because my days are often occupied with polite but firm emails from PR representatives who are quite particular about these sorts of minutiae. Thankfully, the company has recognized that this state of affairs is extremely confusing, and is unifying its name to make things more consistent.

CD Projekt (without the Red) was founded back in 1994 as a distributor bringing foreign video games to the Polish market. CD Projekt Red was founded in 2002, and that name represents the development studio responsible for The Witcher and Cyberpunk games. Over time, the two names became basically synonymous in the minds of players, and while CD Projekt Red was technically a subsidiary of the broader CD Projekt, the company had a heck of a time getting anyone to recognize the difference.

Now, as part of an effort "ensure full brand consistency and facilitate the identification of the Company with its products on the global market," the whole thing is going to be known as CD Projekt Red. The announcement was buried in one of the company's recent reports, but was soon noted by Polish financial site Bankier.pl (thanks, GamesIndustry.biz).

I choose to believe that we – that is, the general gaming world – have bullied the whole of CD Projekt into appending that "Red" by resolutely refusing to recognize the company and its development house as separate entities. Remember when CDPR insisted that The Witcher 4 was not called The Witcher 4, up until the very moment it was confirmed to be called The Witcher 4? Same principle. This is the power of refusing to accept corporate brand guidelines as a restriction on actual language.

Here are all the upcoming CD Projekt Red games you need to know about.

After Cyberpunk 2077's disastrous launch, CD Projekt Red's joint CEO Michał Nowakowski believes the "faith" of some fans was lost "indefinitely," but he's hopeful that the studio "we will be able to make it back" with The Witcher 4 or whatever comes after it.

It's strange to look back on the state of Cyberpunk 2077 when it was first released, when you consider how popular and well-loved it is now. In the time since that fateful December 2020 launch, it's received many big updates, as well as its Phantom Liberty expansion, and it even surpassed 35 million sales in less than five years. But back then, major technical issues put a huge damper on things, and many players were understandably disappointed.

Speaking in an interview for Edge's Knowledge newsletter, Nowakowski calls Cyberpunk 2077's rocky start a "heartbreaking" time for CD Projekt Red. Of course, the devs did everything they could to turn things around for the RPG – he saw the studio's reputation as its "biggest asset," after all – but even though it's safe to say they succeeded with their fixes, he still believes the situation has left some scars.

"I'm not 100 percent convinced we went through the full redemption arc," he explains. "I'm convinced that we lost the faith of some people indefinitely, and that's a fair thing. But I do hope we will be able to make it back – if not with The Witcher 4, then with whatever comes next."

Currently, The Witcher 4 doesn't even have a release window, so it feels very futuristic to think what could be beyond that. The Witcher 3 is getting a brand new expansion next year in the form of Songs of the Past, though, so we're definitely going to have something Witcher-shaped then, and the studio is also hard at work on other projects including the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel and the mysterious new IP, Hadar.

There's no doubt going to be a lot of pressure on CD Projekt Red for the launch of its next game after what happened last time, though. It'll be a moment for the devs to dispel any remaining concerns about the quality of their work, and label Cyberpunk 2077 (or rather, that initial version of it) a true outlier rather than a sign of things to come. But to do that, you really do want everything to be immaculate – I certainly can't imagine The Witcher 4 being rushed out of the door before it's ready, anyway.

Don't expect a Witcher 4 expansion: CDPR says "it would be difficult" to make extra content when it's already trying to squeeze 3 Witcher games into 6 years.

Over the past year or so, CD Projekt Red has welcomed quite a lot of talent – over 220 new developers, in fact – with a good few of them coming from RPGs like Baldur's Gate 3 and, of course, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 and its predecessor.

As work on The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2 presses on, CD Projekt Red is pulling in a good few new devs from other legendary studios. In December, an ex-Baldur's Gate 3 dev joined the team, while a former Mass Effect lead hopped on board as AI director in February.

In between, there have also been a couple of Warhorse Studios veterans making their way to CD Projekt Red, like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 designer Karel Kolmann.

It appears another past Warhorse dev is joining CD Projekt Red's forces now, too, as Zdeněk Glatz – a senior Kingdom Come: Deliverance designer and writer – reveals in an exciting post on LinkedIn.

Although he only leaves a few exclamation marks himself, attached is an image that reads, "I'm happy to share that I've joined CD Projekt Red." Glatz's new title is visible as well: senior open world designer. Which RPG is he working on, though?

Well, it's not exactly clear. The picture does mention that CD Projekt Red is the creator of Cyberpunk and The Witcher, but Glatz's actual profile doesn't detail which game he's going to be focusing on as a senior open world designer.

I'd imagine it'd have to be either The Witcher 4 or Cyberpunk 2 – or perhaps both – as they're the studio's two "big" projects right now, but only time will tell what Glatz will be credited with in the end.

There is also, unsurprisingly, some discussion on what this could mean for Warhorse Studios, as multiple devs have moved on to CD Projekt Red now. Over on Reddit, folks question if it "spells trouble for Warhorse's next game" – but I wouldn't bet on it, personally.

It's not uncommon for people to move around in the industry, especially when there are so many new games underway to work on. CD Projekt Red just so happens to be one of many.

As for Warhorse Studios, there are talks of a Kingdom Come: Deliverance movie or TV show in the air, as Daniel Vávra, studio co-founder, has stepped down from his position to focus on bringing the RPG duology to the big screen.

The Witcher 4, Cyberpunk 2 developer CD Projekt Red scoops up more industry talent as a Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 cinematics dev joins the team

Actor Erica Lindbeck hated Misty Olszewski, one of the characters she plays in Cyberpunk 2077, until developer CD Projekt Red gladly transformed her into someone completely different.

Before rewrites, fan-favorite tarot reader Misty was disappointing and completely "vapid," Lindbeck tells The Gamer in a new interview. The new age goth girl was limited to only a fistful of one-liners, and Lindbeck expected Militech manager Meredith to be the most significant example of her work on Cyberpunk 2077.

After all, "The character that I booked in Cyberpunk was Meredith," Lindbeck explains, "and then Misty was a random side character that they threw me." She made quips like, "Babe, your chakras are all out of whack!" and Lindbeck despised it.

"We recorded her several times because we didn't know what to do with her," she recalls. "I went, 'Oh, my God, what are we gonna do?'"

Then devs figured it out: the spiritually healing saleswoman Misty could just be a "soft, New Jersey Harley Quinn thing. And now she's one of my favourite characters I've ever voiced," Lindbeck says. "I love her so much. And they kept writing more and more and more for her, so that Misty became a much bigger character than Meredith."

I can't resist Ideal Misty, either (Lindbeck calls Cyberpunk's original Misty character "Punished Misty"). She provides the important counterbalance of old incense smoke in a city otherwise defined by cold, new technology. I just hope Lindbeck can forgive me for loving her Barbie: Dreamtopia voice a little more.

Cyberpunk 2077 is a better role-playing game than The Witcher 3.

No, it's not just you. Cyberpunk 2077 is one of those weird yet wonderful RPGs that, unless you've come prepared, seems to fight you at every turn. I'm not talking about the Tyger Claws running rampant on the streets of Japantown; rather, the mechanics themselves are a lot to wrap one's head around as a Night City newbie.

I first stepped into CD Projekt Red's thrilling open-world in 2024. A couple of weeks later, I ended up dropping it entirely for two months. There was nothing wrong with the game itself – I'd picked it up alongside then-new DLC Phantom Liberty, with Patch 2.1 very much intact – but something about it pushed back against my every attempt to fall in love.

Fast forward to 2026, and I called Cyberpunk 2077 the best RPG of all time, no exceptions. I thrive on a challenge, and that is precisely what Night City presented me with. It just so happens that challenging games are what Xbox Game Pass needs more of if Microsoft wants to justify that ever-climbing price tag – which is why I need you to give Cyberpunk, which is now on Game Pass, a shot.

Tinkering

Grind is life in some games, but a good game should not come with a reading list. No one should have to research the best builds for a given playstyle, or watch endless explainers to suss out an RPG system – not immediately, anyway. That's one area where, despite how much I love the overall experience, Cyberpunk 2077 falters.

I've mentioned in the past how Night City throwing you into the deep end resonates with the overwhelming muchness of life in the city. Everything is familiar yet alien in this dystopian future. If that just applied to worldbuilding itself, that would be one thing. But I had no idea how cyberware, crafting, Sandevistans, or the skill trees themselves truly worked or synergized until about halfway through the RPG. Nothing is explained, and very little is inferred. I pondered whether that is because so many returning players will have hopped back in (warily, most likely) following Cyberpunk's super buggy initial 2020 launch, but after reading up on how much of the game's systems have changed in the last 6 years, the lack of even basic signposting still strikes me as strange.

But therein lies the fun. For me, at least, having to prove myself to the game was incredibly satisfying. My two-month break was predominantly occupied by Gamescom 2024 prep, and once I'd cleared my plate of Work Games, I could return to a Fun Personal Challenge. That challenge was partly fueled by a refusal to have wasted £80 on a game I would never play, I'll admit. But it's also just how my brain works. I love to prove others wrong, and that includes myself.

Before long, I was able to lock into the game and stop fighting back. Instead, I used my damn brain for a change – and reminded myself how, since this is a CDPR game, it was bound to come with layers of lore-intensive systems to unpick. I had a similar issue with The Witcher 3's mutagen systems. If I could work out what to do with my many-colored monster samples, surely I could conquer a few bits of tech in Cyberpunk 2077?

Cyberhexed

The grind was worth it. I ended up playing four complete Cyberpunk playthroughs one after the other, utterly spellbound by the story, the place, and the characters I'd come to love so much. That makes it one of the best value for money games I've ever picked up, right alongside Baldur's Gate 3.

Cyberpunk 2077's launch on Game Pass has me excited for others to finally give it a go, too – especially if you're still paying for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate following the recent round of price hikes. With Cyberpunk joined by fellow grind-a-thon Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, dare I say that the subscription service actually sounds like pretty decent value again for meaty RPG fans?

Well, maybe. I'll admit right now that I dropped my own subscription down to the cheapest tier almost immediately, and since I already own Cyberpunk 2077, I have no intention of changing that. But I hope this move means that Microsoft is keen to bring longer, denser, more time-intensive experiences to Game Pass atop the slew of shorter entries, if only to reinforce why that extra $10 a month is necessary.

So fear not, fellow stubborn skeptics. Cyberpunk 2077 is extremely, eye-wateringly, mind-blowingly good, and it deserves your full attention – though don't be afraid to give maybe one or two guides a peek if you want to give yourself a cybernetic leg up in those punishing early hours.

Check out all these other games like Cyberpunk 2077 if you're hankering for some other futuristic tales.

Although Cyberpunk 2077 did get its big Phantom Liberty DLC back in 2023, developer CD Projekt Red allegedly had other expansions planned for the futuristic RPG – expansions that may or may not have topped the spy-thriller adventure.

Or, at least, that's what Cyberpunk 2 creative director Igor Sarzyński thinks – the success of any potential post-Phantom Liberty DLC, like the rumored "Moon" expansion, would just be dependent on various factors.

Sarzyński explains as much in response to a fan on Bluesky, who asks the lead, "Do you think the canceled DLCs could have topped Phantom Liberty?" He draws a comparison to a TV series' different seasons.

will the next season of your favourite series be better or worse than the current one? :) in other words, who knows, it depends on so many things

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-03-03T16:45:56.402Z

Sarzyński replies, "Will the next season of your favorite series be better or worse than the current one? :) In other words, who knows, it depends on so many things."

That checks out – although it never came to fruition, there's no real way to know how any conceptualized DLC would've performed as it… Well, it didn't at all. It might have been better than Phantom Liberty, which sits on Steam with "Very Positive" reviews, but who knows?

In a follow-up to the creative director, the fan asks something else about the scrapped DLC for Cyberpunk 2077: "I have a final and most important question, hope you can answer for this one. In canceled DLCs, would Songbird be a romance option?"

Interestingly enough, Sarzyński basically says yes – albeit in a roundabout way. "Let's just say we try to never tread the same path twice," he writes, adding a cheeky smiley face at the end.

let's just say we try to never tread the same path twice :)

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-03-03T16:45:56.539Z

Interesting… interesting, indeed. It does beg the question – just how will Cyberpunk 2 look and compare to 2077? Will its own DLC one-up Phantom Liberty, should there be any?

We sadly don't know too much about the mysterious sequel, aside from the fact that, you know, it actually exists. I'd wager it'll be downright massive myself, though, and any expansions to follow (if they follow, that is) probably will be as well.

Cyberpunk 2 lead says first-person POV "was better" for Cyberpunk 2077, as third-person is "for more defined characters" like The Witcher 3's Geralt and God of War's Kratos

Lucie Hennet, one of the cinematic animators who worked on Sandfall Interactive's record-breaking J'RPG, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, has joined CD Projekt Red's Warsaw studio under the same job title.

Hennet spent two years on-site with Sandfall, first as an intern and then as an independent contractor, working on the game's gorgeous cinematics. Among the turn-based RPG with a distinctly French twist's long, long, long list of awards, you'll find prizes for cinematic categories like Best Storytelling, Best Visual Design, and Best Art Direction.

As noted on her LinkedIn page, Hennet joined the team at CD Projekt Red as of this month, specifically working as a cinematic animator at the studio's Warsaw branch. This is the head office of the Cyberpunk and The Witcher creator, and as such has people working on every game in the developer's upcoming and ongoing library.

The post does not specify which project Hennet is working on, and we couldn't find mention of any particular game on other platforms. The Witcher 4 is exclusively developed at CD Projekt Red's Warsaw studio, but Hennet isn't necessarily working on this game. However, the other major named project currently in development, Cyberpunk 2, is mostly worked on at the company's Boston studio.

There is also currently a contracted position open at the Warsaw office for a gameplay animator showing that there's a recruitment drive for the upcoming fourth entry in similar roles. Though recently, CD Projekt Red has been bolstering all of its teams, filling roles on every game.

If Hennet has not been placed on development of The Witcher 4, then it is likely that she is working on the game currently codenamed Project Hadar. This is a completely new IP that's primarily being developed at CD Projekt Red's Polish studios.

CD Projekt Red welcomes new AI director, who joins The Witcher 4 studio "after 8 years of building memorable RPGs at BioWare" like Mass Effect 2 and 3

The first-person perspective CD Projekt Red employs in Cyberpunk 2077 works pretty well – and a large reason why, according to Cyberpunk 2 creative director Igor Sarzyński, has to do with the game's overarching narrative design.

It's difficult to grapple with the first-person perspective if you're used to other games like The Witcher 3, in which you view things from a third-person point of view, but Sarzyński thinks it was the best option for Cyberpunk 2077.

"Purely from narrative design POV, I think subjective FPP works well with '77 story, genre, and world," Sarzyński says in a Bluesky post According to the developer, it pairs nicely with the whole… you know, being V thing.

Also there's a digital ghost in your head that only you can see; a thing existing only in your subjective perception - rather than both of you being seen equally by an external, objective TPP cam.

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-02-02T17:31:13.372Z

"You're a mind trapped in a decaying body with only means of leaving it being through technological consciousness processing (cyberspace; soulkiller; projection into external devices; braindaces)," as Sarzyński puts it. "Also, there's a digital ghost in your head that only you can see; a thing existing only in your subjective perception – rather than both of you being seen equally by an external, objective TPP cam."

That doesn't mean a third-person perspective never works. In fact, there are plenty of games and characters that it does mesh well with. Sarzyński notes The Witcher 3, God of War, and The Last of Us as examples.

"Generalizing, imho, TPP is better for more defined characters – Geralt, Kratos, Ellie – where you play-replay someone else's story. FPP lends itself to more avatar-like player characters." V is "somewhere in the middle of this spectrum."

Disclaimeir to anyone wanting to spin this for clicks: this is about a specific narrative setup of Cyberpunk 2077. Not in any way a statement or suggestion or anything regarding Cyberpunk 2. It might be a play-doh stop-motion RTS for all we know.

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-02-02T17:31:13.408Z

He restates, however, that he feels first-person "was better for '77" – and, no, that doesn't mean anything about Cyberpunk 2 or what perspective it might feature. "This is about a specific narrative setup of Cyberpunk 2077," Sarzyński stresses.

"Not in any way a statement or suggestion or anything regarding Cyberpunk 2. It might be a Play-Doh stop-motion RTS for all we know." Now, that would certainly be something to see.

While you wait for more Cyberpunk 2 news, have a browse through our roundup of the best new games coming this year and beyond.

Don't expect Cyberpunk 2 to suddenly feature elaborate cinematic cutscenes or shift into third-person, as creative director Igor Sarzyński prefers the immersion of first-person cutscenes.

Over on Bluesky, Sarzyński posts some screenshots from the development of the first game's Phantom Liberty expansion, saying "gotta admit setting up cutscenes in this game would be extremely pleasant (coz everything looks mindblowingly amazing) but in the end I value our uninterrupted immersion more."

However, one user isn't entirely a fan, saying the choice to stick to first-person limited gamers who prefer third-person viewpoints, and that they disagree with the idea that experiencing a world from a character's point of view is crucial to immersion. Sarzyński explains that in his view, "when something is for everyone then it's for no one," while assuring that "it's OK to not vibe with our choices!"

Sarzyński also explains that the choice to make the game third person isn't exactly a simple task either, saying, "That simple 'choice' in terms of narrative / scene design and direction would add 75% scope." He adds that it's "not feasible."

Of course, as with almost everything, if you're playing on PC you can get around this. At the moment there's a work-in-progress third person mod for Cyberpunk 2077 that was first published back in January 2021 – less than a month after its original release, when the game was still somewhat of a flaming mess. So with a community on top of things like that, I wouldn't be shocked if the follow-up gets a mod of its own fairly soon after release.

Prolific modder behind Cyberpunk 2077 and Elden Ring VR conversions pulls all his work offline after another DMCA strike

The modder behind the Cyberpunk 2077 VR conversion has pulled all of his mods offline after being hit by another DMCA strike, this time aimed at parkour action game Ghostrunner.

Luke Ross is best known as the modder behind the R.E.A.L VR mod framework, which supported VR conversion mods for around 40 different games, including Elden Ring and Final Fantasy 7 Remake. At one point the list also included GTA 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2 mods before rights holder Take-Two Interactive got involved.

But Ross was back in the news more recently after CD Projekt issued a DMCA strike against his Cyberpunk 2077 mod, with the company's vice president of business development, Jan Rosner, explaining that CDPR took issue with the fact that the mods were paywalled behind a Patreon subscription, though there wouldn't be a problem if the modder accepted optional donations instead.

Now, in an email sent to subscribers (spotted by FRVR), Ross states that publisher 505 Games has taken similar legal action against a mod for Ghostrunner. "No mention of any terms of service violation this time," he writes. "Again Patreon automatically complied. I don't blame them; DMCA law is carefully worded to give infinite power to big companies, who only need to write on a slip of paper that they 'believe' their copyright has been infringed in order to nuke from the sky anything they don't like – and to give infinite headaches to creators like me, who instead have the only recourse of going to court, sustaining huge costs to get through the legal process."

As a result, Ross is "being forced to take immediate action" by "making unavailable all versions of the mods and also all the posts related to the wonderful work we have done here together for years, so that there will be no ground for further claims." He's also updated his Patreon page to make it clear that subscribing won't lead to access "to the 40+ conversions."

"Note that making the mod freely available is by no means the clear-cut solution that people on the Internet would make it to be, because DMCA superpowers given to big companies and payments/donations needed for complex projects like this one are two completely unrelated matters," he continued, pointing out that his Rockstar Games mods were "completely free" and were still subject to DMCA claims.

"Hopefully we'll find a way together, in the next few weeks," Ross continued. "But if we can't, we'll always have the memories of the wonderful times we spent in those beautiful virtual worlds. Oh and by the way: if you have existing copies of the mods that you downloaded here before all this drama, you will of course be able to use them indefinitely and without restriction"... as long as the relevant games don't receive mod-breaking updates in the future.

For now, check out the new games of 2026 and beyond.

The creator of the Cyberpunk 2077 VR mod that was recently taken down after a DMCA from CD Projekt Red isn't ruling out making it "free for everyone," but says it's become somewhat irrelevant since its removal has led to pirating, and some saying "I should be punished by having it stolen."

Modder Luke Ross is well known for his R.E.A.L VR mod framework, which brings VR support to over 40 games including Elden Ring, Final Fantasy 7 Remake and – once upon a time, before a separate DMCA from Take-Two Interactive – Red Dead Redemption 2 and GTA 5. However, his VR mod for Cyberpunk 2077 was recently pulled offline, with CD Projekt Red's vice president of business development, Jan Rosner, explaining that it's due to Ross charging for his mods, namely locking them behind a $10 Patreon subscription paywall.

This, Rosner said, "directly violates our Fan Content Guidelines," but "we are big fans of mods to our games" and would welcome its return if Ross made it free. Ross previously responded to say "I don't believe you are within your rights in demanding that my software needs to be free," but now, speaking to IGN, he says "I do not rule out releasing the mod" at no cost.

There are some immediate issues, though. "It would take time, because my software supports 40+ games and various completely different engines, which makes creating a version that specifically supports only Cyberpunk 2077 a non-trivial task," he explains. "Also, the people who have voluntarily given their money to me in order to support my development efforts for the framework might not be happy about seeing the mod being given away all of a sudden to everyone just because I've been bullied into it."

Besides, Ross says, "it's kind of become a moot point." According to the modder, after the Cyberpunk 2077 VR mod was "forcibly removed" from his Patreon page, "people afraid of losing VR support for their favorite games have started pirating and illegally exchanging the mod all over the Internet, brazenly saying that since I was not complying with CDPR's ToS, my work is now fair game and I should be punished by having it stolen. So in a sense CDPR already got what they wanted."

Looking around online on Twitter and on Ross' Patreon's page, it's certainly fair to say the modder has had his fair share of backlash. Some have called him "greedy" for wanting to charge for the mod, while others claim that they're going to "steal your mods from now on and tell everyone where to find them" in response to Ross not making the Cyberpunk 2077 one free to preserve its availability. I've also seen one person sharing a link to what they claim is a free download of the mod, which I'm not going to share here for obvious reasons, but you can understand Ross's frustration.

The modder still asserts that "I do not modify the content of the games, or try to sell an experience which is in competition with what the IP creators are producing," pointing out that "you always need to own the original game" to even use the VR mods. "In the end, when gamers are playing for example Cyberpunk in VR, they are not playing my mod. They are playing Cyberpunk, and loving it. How this could ever hurt the publisher and trigger free-or-kill reactions still baffles me," he says.

GTA feels more alive than Cyberpunk 2077 because Night City "doesn't feel like a real place," says former Fallout and Skyrim artist: "That aspect of it doesn't hit you on the same level at all."

As CD Projekt hits a Cyberpunk 2077 VR mod with a DMCA takedown over being locked behind a paywall, its creator says "I don't believe you are within your rights in demanding that my software needs to be free."

The famed VR mode modder known as Luke Ross has been adding VR support to popular games for years now – his R.E.A.L VR mod framework has been applied to everything from Elden Ring to Final Fantasy 7 Remake, GTA 5, and Red Dead Redemption 2. Those latter two were also hit with a DMCA takedown back in 2022, and now, Ross has found himself in a similar situation.

"CD PROJEKT S.A. decided that they would follow in Take-Two Interactive Software's steps and issued a DMCA notice against me for the removal of the Cyberpunk 2077 VR mod," Ross writes in a Patreon post. "At least they were a little more open about it, and I could get a reply both from their legal department and from the VP of business development. But in the end it amounted to the same iron-clad corpo logic: every little action that a company takes is in the name of money, but everything that modders do must be absolutely for free."

Ross claims that "as usual they stretch the concept of 'derivative work' until it's paper-thin, as though a system that allows visualizing 40+ games in fully immersive 3D VR was somehow built making use of their intellectual property," adding that "they cannot just be grateful about the extra copies of the title they sold" because of the mod. According to the modder, CD Projekt Red is "not planning to release their own VR port," either.

"Am I a little bitter about all of this? Yeah, you bet I am," he adds.

Over on Twitter, CD Projekt Red's vice president of business development, Jan Rosner, sheds a bit more light on the situation. "We have indeed issued a DMCA strike, as it was available as a paid mod (only accessible to Patreon subscribers). This directly violates our Fan Content Guidelines: we never allow monetization of our IP without our direct permission and/or an agreement in place," he explains. "We were in touch with Luke last week and informed him that he needs to make it free for everyone (with optional donations) or remove it.

"We are big fans of mods to our games – some of the work out there has been nothing short of amazing, including Luke's mod for Cyberpunk 2077. We'd be happy to see it return as a free release. However, making a profit from our IP, in any form, always requires permission from CD Projekt Red."

Ross isn't totally accepting of this response, though. After thanking Rosner, he states: "I'm sorry but I don't believe you are within your rights in demanding that my software needs to be free. It is not 'derivative work' or 'fan content': it supports a large number of games which were built upon different engines, and it contains absolutely zero code or assets from your IP."

He continues: "That said, I'm all for finding a win-win solution that makes it possible for your fans to keep enjoying Night City from the inside, in VR, but at the same time without causing harm to our respective interests. I said that in 2022 when we contacted you with the proposal of making the mod 'official' or at least sanctioned by your company, and I said the same last week when we spoke, almost four years later. I think the current state of affairs is not the best way to resolve this misunderstanding."

At the time of writing, Ross charges a monthly $10 fee on Patreon for access to all his VR mods. Back in 2022, The Verge reported that the modder made $20,000 a month from this, although of course this could have changed (for better or worse) in the years since. Certainly, though, this figure demonstrates the demand for his mods.

Regardless, it doesn't sound like Ross is willing to backtrack and make Cyberpunk 2077's VR mod available for free. In his Patreon post discussing the DMCA takedown, it's clear that he's already got his sights set on other things – namely, a Baldur's Gate 3 VR mod, which he's released in its current state already. "Maybe it will be a little rough around the edges, but we'll take care of that, as we always do."

GTA feels more alive than Cyberpunk 2077 because Night City "doesn't feel like a real place," says former Fallout and Skyrim artist: "That aspect of it doesn't hit you on the same level at all."

When it comes to games the size of Cyberpunk 2077, there's always a litany of possible changes that could potentially improve the experience for a certain subset of players. One such suggestion – making the first act longer – has been shot down by the creative director of Cyberpunk 2, because it would damage the pacing, no matter how much we'd like more time with Jackie.

In a thread on Bluesky, Igor Sarzyński, cinematic director on Cyberpunk 2077 and creative director for the follow-up, addresses whether extending Act 1 pre-heist would lead to a "better game." He believes not, unequivocally, and breaks down his logic across multiple points. "It's like saying we should spend more time on Tatooine with farmer Luke before he got involved with all this Jedi stuff," he starts.

A sound point to start with. Tattooine serves particular narrative purposes in Star Wars: A New Hope, and if you spend too long there, it would put the film off-kilter. That said, I think his second point holds more particular weight.

So would extending Act 1 (before the heist) in CP77 make the game better?1. No it wouldn't. It's like saying we should spend more time on Tatooine with farmer Luke before he got involved with all this Jedi stuff. (1/3)

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-01-06T17:29:39.979Z

"It's an open world game, some manage to squeeze 20 hours out of Watson," Sarzyński continues. "Pick your own pace."

This, to me at least, is where a lot of the endearment towards Jackie comes from. He's your partner during some pivotal early-game sequences, creating a sense of camaraderie you can strain for every last second if you'd like.

The next point feeds into that, as Sarzyński notes your motivation "is pretty vague" by design, and too long in that headspace would lead to a "meandering, unfocused experience." He adds there's a divide in the audience around if we get enough time for Jackie to seem consequential. "For some it is, for some it isn't," he says. "All things considered I think we struck a good balance."

I would tend to agree, personally, but I understand why someone wouldn't either. Frankly, I enjoy seeing a developer justify the creative decisions so openly – it makes me that much more excited for Cyberpunk 2, whenever it comes out.

No, Cyberpunk 2077's elevators aren't just loading screens in disguise, says lead: "The engine is a miracle. I will not accept slander."

After Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition mistakenly got a massive discount on Switch 2, CD Projekt Red has confirmed the mistake but is still honoring the purchases made.

Earlier this week, it seemed like CD Projekt Red had delivered an early Christmas present (or a last day of Hanukkah gift) when on December 22 the Nintendo Switch eShop displayed that Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition on Switch 2 was on sale for $17.49. While it's not uncommon to see the game on a heavy sale on other platforms, the Nintendo Switch 2 edition is only six months old and usually sells for $70, so it was a shocker, even weirder when people noticed that the much older The Witcher 3 on Nintendo Switch was $34.49.

And despite a press release saying otherwise, CD Projekt took to BlueSky to confirm that "The discounts for Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition displayed on Nintendo Switch 2 eShop in the Americas on December 22, 2025 were incorrect." saying that it was "a result of an error we made when submitting the discount."

The discounts for Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition displayed on Nintendo Switch 2 eShop in the Americas on December 22, 2025 were incorrect.The situation is a result of an error we made when submitting the discount.[1/2]

— @cdprojektred.com (@cdprojektred.com.bsky.social) 2025-12-24T10:23:52.659Z

When you look at the original discounts, Witcher 3 had a 42% discount while Cyberpunk had a 75% discount, and looking at the store pages now, those percentages have been swapped. So it looks like a case of submitting the wrong discounts for each game. However, if you're one of the lucky few who did manage to grab Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 at the $17.49 price point, CD Projekt is honoring those purchases, so congrats, you got the game at a massive deal and get to keep it.

No, Cyberpunk 2077's elevators aren't just loading screens in disguise, says lead: "The engine is a miracle."

Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition was a Switch 2 launch game back in June with a $70 price tag, and even at that price, it was an easy recommend for people who'd been holding off on playing it due to the sorry state of the game at launch, but that price has now miraculously plummeted 75% all the way down to $17 just in time for the holidays.

About twice a year, I stop doing my regular job of reporting hard-hitting stories and lend an assist to the wonderful GamesRadar+ hardware team during Prime Day and Black Friday, writing up posts about deals we agree are too good to pass up. This is not one of those stories. This is just an extraordinarily rare deal so staggeringly good that I felt a moral responsibility to tell y'all about it, not as a journalist or deal writer, but as a friend.

When the eagle-eyed deal chasers on Resetera first shared word of this deal, they labeled it a "price error," and although CDPR has confirmed via press release that it is not in-fact an error, how can you blame people for thinking this too good to be true? Switch 2 games typically take years to drop in price considerably, and although Cyberpunk 2077 first launched back in 2020, the Ultimate Edition with all of the bells and whistles (and polish, thank goodness) only hit Switch 2 six months ago. I don't know who or what is responsible for this price drop, but we owe them a debt of gratitude.

The Ultimate Edition includes the excellent spy-thriller expansion, Phantom Liberty, all DLC released so far, and of course, the essential 2.0 update that reworked all of the major issues people previously had with the game. It's worth noting that if you already own the base game and Phantom Liberty on another platform, you're not getting any actual additional content with the Ultimate Edition, so this deal is only relevant if you want all of that on Switch 2, or haven't jumped into the game at all yet.

To put a bow on all of this, if you haven't played Cyberpunk 2077, and you want to, and you own a Switch 2, I can pretty confidently say this is the best deal you'll find for a very long time, but if you're happy playing on other platforms and already own Phantom Liberty, you can probably, maybe find a better use for your $17... unless you want to gift someone a great game for the price of a double protein bowl at Chipotle. That's just a decision you'll have to reckon with.

No, Cyberpunk 2077's elevators aren't just loading screens in disguise, says lead: "The engine is a miracle. I will not accept slander."

A persistent belief about Cyberpunk 2077 is that the elevators help mask loading times, a common trick in game development. Not actually the case, apparently, as a prominent developer at CD Projekt Red has made very clear.

The creative director for Cyberpunk 2 and the cinematic director on Cyberpunk 2077, Igor Sarzynski, spoke about the rumor on Bluesky. "You really think you can traverse [the] whole city and enter a huge complex interior with no loading screens but we need to do elevator tricks to load a penthouse?" he says.

"[The] elevator is there because it makes sense," he continues. "We could make it transparent if we wanted. This engine is a miracle. I will not accept slander."

mini rant: no, elevators in cyberpunk are not 'cleverly concealed loading screens'. you really think you can traverse whole city and enter a huge complex interior with no loading screens but we need to do elevator tricks to load a penthouse?

— @srznsk.bsky.social (@srznsk.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2025-12-22T16:18:03.002Z

The Red Engine is definitely impressive when you see just how much can happen at once in 2077. Amid all the neon and NPCs and technological wonders, you're moving freely from location to location with rarely even a need to pause. It's quite remarkable.

As much does bring into question the assertion that the elevators, of all things, were allowing the game to catch its breath. But it speaks to our conditioning, since many blockbuster games, from Mass Effect to God of War, have employed transitional spaces, whether they're caves or moving platforms, to load out the gameworld.

I know I definitely just figure that's what's going on with these things most of the time now. The next time I play Cyberpunk 2077, I'll be even more impressed. Flaws and all, at least CD Projekt Red bucked the stereotype of using a lift for loading. Johnny Silverhand would be proud.

The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2 boss is skeptical AI can replace "industry talent" and can’' imagine "reducing headcount thanks to" the tech: "It’s not gonna be making The Witcher 5."

Unsurprisingly, CD Projekt Red had to pull off a total 180 when it announced it would be working on Cyberpunk 2077 back in 2012. Up to that point, the studio was mostly known for its work on The Witcher series, which followed a monster hunter in a distinctly European take on medieval fantasy. Designing a world in a completely different genre, it turns out, is a very different experience.

In an in-depth interview for The Gamer, Cyberpunk 2077's lead quest designer Pawel Sasko told the outlet that development on back-to-back Witcher titles had left the team in a pretty comfortable spot with the series and the feeling of making a fantasy world. However, the "novelty" of making a whole new world with new tools was "just exciting."

"It was like, 'Oh my god, I can have a car in the game now. I can have a gun in the game. I can have a phone," Sasko shared. As it turns out, it's really easy for us as players (and people of the modern world) to take these things for granted, but these constraints radically shaped CD Projekt Red's approach to quest design over the years.

As Sasko points out, "In the Witcher world, it's so difficult to give you a quest as a player. You always have to have someone that you met, or you found something, or there is a messenger that keeps running your way and you bump into them." That sounds…quite exhausting to design around if I'm being honest, but it was CD Projekt Red's bread and butter by the time that the studio had begun developing Cyberpunk 2077.

By comparison, Cyberpunk 2077 appeared to give the team brand new toys to play with that expedited things quite a ways, like a cell phone. While players will sometimes mock how often characters in the game try to get V on the phone, it must have been a miracle to the team to be able to cut down on all the traveling and precise maneuvering needed to get Geralt anywhere. In Cyberpunk, as Sasko puts it, a character, and more importantly a quest giver, can instead just "text you, they can send you a picture."

It will be a wonder to see how CD Projekt Red now takes its learnings from Cyberpunk 2077 and not only bolsters them for the upcoming sequel, but also adapts them for The Witcher 4. Just don't expect Ciri to suddenly have a magic pad that connects her to everyone she's ever met, though.

The Witcher 4 isn't just hiring Baldur's Gate 3 talent – CD Projekt Red is still expanding to "strengthen" its team, with various job openings for the RPG as well as Cyberpunk 2

Cyberpunk 2077's opening hours go to great lengths to show V and players the thrills of a crime-filled life. Fast cars, expensive guns, a new crib, drunken bar fights with bestie Jackie, and high-speed chases flash by in the game's introductory montage – but lead quest designer Pawel Sasko explains that developer CD Projekt Red intentionally pulled the rug from under players with its intro.

Then-designer and now Cyberpunk 2 director Pawel Sasko speaks to TheGamer about how the neon-sponged RPG begins by making players think they're in for a Grand Theft Auto-style adventure about the highs and lows of being a criminal. "Cyberpunk starts, and it pretends to be GTA," he says. "You are going to become a legend. And it's about getting money and cars and becoming a person in Night City."

That's until CDPR pulls a switcharoo, at least, with V swallowing a bullet by the time the prologue ends and the entire game instead turning into a fight for survival. "We are trying to trick you," Sasko adds. "We are trying to tell you this is your dream. And the thing is, that is all true until you get shot in the head. In that moment, we reset everything."

Despite being set in a capitalist nightmare where everyone's out for themself (and their wallet), Cyberpunk 2077 does eventually let you find joy in that fantasy. Buying fancier cars and bigger condos is part of the game's progression, after all, but Sasko is right in the sense that Cyberpunk 2077's main quest is in no way interested in being a rags-to-riches story by the time Johnny Silverhand's whispering revolutionary soundbites in your ear. In the end, all that money can't buy you a cure.

5 years on from Cyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt Red reveals why making Night City the "main antagonist" created an irresistible RPG: "Exploring the darker side of human nature is exciting"

Cyberpunk 2077's lead writer has explained who the true antagonist of the game is, and even with the likes of Adam Smasher or the Arasaka Corporation, it's Night City itself that takes the crown.

It's hard to believe that it's been five years since Cyberpunk 2077 was released after years of anticipation. And sure, it was a total mess that was released in such a state on consoles that it had to be pulled from storefronts, but it eventually became one of the best RPGs of the modern era thanks to a string of updates to turn things around. But one undeniable aspect of the game is how engrossing Night City is as a place to explore, and it sounds like that was very much intentional.

"Quite quickly, during pre-production of Cyberpunk 2077, we realized that Night City is going to be our main antagonist," says Cyberpunk 2077's lead writer, Tomasz Marchewka, speaking to GamesRadar+. "Some people [players] caught it quite quickly."

Obviously, V runs afoul of multiple people and groups over the course of Cyberpunk 2077's story, but the city itself takes no sides and takes no prisoners. "Of course, we've got Arasaka, we've got Adam Smasher and all the other guys, but actually it's Night City versus everyone else, even the big guys." Marchewka adds. "That's a cool concept to make the city the main antagonist."

While obviously the regular person is going to face the harsh realities of the city more than the corporations, it is a universal truth of the world that you aren't getting out unscathed, so I absolutely get what CD Projekt was going for.

Look back at the The Making of Cyberpunk 2077's metro system.

The Witcher might be a behemoth of an RPG series for CD Projekt Red, but it's official – Cyberpunk 2077 is now the "main source of revenue" for the company as it surpasses 35 million sales in just under five years.

In a new commentary video about the company's latest quarterly financial results, chief financial officer Piotr Nielubowicz confirms the hefty new sales milestone, adding (via English subtitles): "That's a better result than The Witcher 3 was able to achieve in the same post-release timeframe. Cyberpunk is now our main source of revenue, and we continue to expand its availability."

Of course, we've seen plenty of that expansion of availability happen this year, with the RPG's Switch 2 port and arrival on Apple Silicon-powered Macs. Nielubowicz also notes that Cyberpunk 2077's addition to the PlayStation Plus game catalogs for Extra and Premium subscribers "supported sales of the Phantom Liberty expansion on PlayStation consoles."

Even though Cyberpunk 2077 is now available to play via PlayStation's subscription service, Nielubowicz says CD Projekt has seen "stronger organic sales of Cyberpunk 2077 and Phantom Liberty on existing platforms compared to the previous year," so its PS Plus addition definitely hasn't been detrimental. As you'd expect, its sales were also boosted by the Switch 2 port.

All in all, it's a huge win for the team, which is sure to feel all the sweeter after the devs' immense effort to turn the RPG around after its notoriously rocky launch.

Looking ahead to the future, Nielubowicz also mentions The Witcher 4 – namely, its nomination for the The Game Awards 2025's "Most Anticipated Game" award. "This nomination – which comes despite the fact that we haven’t yet kicked off the game's proper marketing campaign – shows the extent to which the fourth instalment in The Witcher series is already hotly anticipated," he concludes.

Cyberpunk series creator Mike Pondsmith says he's watching Cyberpunk 2 closely at CDPR, just like he did with 2077: "People have been showing me what they're doing."

The creator of the Cyberpunk franchise, Mike Pondsmith, has been discussing his involvement with the development of the upcoming Cyberpunk 2077 sequel, teasing that, like in CD Projekt Red's 2020 RPG, he's very aware of what the devs are putting into the game.

In Cyberpunk 2077, amongst other things, Pondsmith is listed in the credits for "lore consultation," and he's been speaking about his role advising the developers throughout the making of the RPG in a recent special episode of CD Projekt Red's REDstreams on YouTube. Asked if he felt the devs got anything "completely wrong," Pondsmith says no, and "part of that was that I was involved in that process all the way."

He continues: "Because I was involved in it, what it meant was I could get my input into it and we could adapt and get it closer to what we wanted." He gives an example of being shown some "silver, blaster-like" guns that were originally planned to be added to the game, to which he had to explain that Cyberpunk guns were instead "big, nasty, black, scary things which occasionally have little lights on them that watch you like eyes, but they are not science fiction. They are brutal things from where we are that have been basically kicked up two or three notches."

Following this, Pondsmith was asked to explain this same concept to the devs at CD Projekt Red's Krakow studio. "The important part was everybody listened," he adds, and he later saw things matching up with the ideas he had in his head because the team kept asking his opinion on things.

"People had asked me the entire time, 'What do you think?' In fact, that still goes on now," he continues. "A good portion of the trip I've just taken out here to CD Projekt, people have been showing me what they're doing, they're showing me what's going to be happening in the new iteration of the game, they're showing me what's happening with, you know, some of the TV or radio or whatever stuff. And they ask me all the time. So it means that we stay in the same space, and we see the same outcomes."

Hopefully, then, that means that whatever CD Projekt Red is cooking up for Project Orion will line up with Pondsmith's vision and original universe. There's still no announced release date for the upcoming RPG – nor an official name, for that matter – but Keanu Reeves has already made it clear he'd love to return as Johnny Silverhand, somehow.

Keanu Reeves wants to find a way to play Cyberpunk 2077's Johnny Silverhand again, so series creator Mike Pondsmith quips "I have ways to do that, Keanu, contact me."

Keanu Reeves has been open about wanting to come back to the series as Cyberpunk 2077's (only sometimes) loveable rockstar/corporate resistance fighter, despite Johnny Silverhand already being long dead by the time the first game's events kick off. And, now, the series' creator has said he has "ways to do that" - probably not one involving a parasitic neuro chip, this time.

In a stream hosted by CD Projekt Red featuring the TTRP Cyberpunk creator Mike Pondsmith, the series maestro begun gushing about the game's celebrity actors, and he's just as into the idea of Silverhand returning to the ongoing story as Keanu himself is.

"Not that long ago, I saw that Keanu would like to find a way to come back from the dead and play Johnny again," he said. "I have ways to do that, Keanu, contact me."

Silverhand's return becomes a bit tricky considering, again, he's already been physically dead for decades, and the multiple endings of Cyberpunk 2077 makes his fate even murkier. Perhaps he's still kicking around beyond the Blackwall as an AI, but that risks canonizing an ending that was previously down to player choice.

"Let me get this straight. You got Keanu Reeves, then you get Idris Elba," Pondsmith added before offering another job out to another actor. "What's next?Scarlet Johansson?... Scarlet, you know, I have roles for you. You can do anything."

"But, seriously, two things hit me. One, they worked really well for the characters. Two, they were people, actors, who wanted to play those characters so they immersed themselves in it," he said, which probably explains why he's so open to Keanu coming back in Cyberpunk 2, currently in development.

Cyberpunk 2 multiplayer seems all but confirmed as CD Projekt Red looks to hire an engineer to build "high-performance online experiences" and "optimize multiplayer systems"

Cyberpunk 2077 didn't exactly boast the smoothest launch, with an unimpressive release that saw players grappling with all sorts of bugs – including Cyberpunk creator Mike Pondsmith himself, who ran into an absolutely hilarious problem before the RPG even dropped.

Pondsmith, the mastermind behind the tabletop RPG that started it all, recalls his first time playing Cyberpunk 2077: "I actually got to play it before the game came out." Explaining that he picked a male V as his female counterpart reminds him of his daughter, the game designer says he "got a cool car and drove around doing nomad-like things." In his own words, "If I was going to be in Night City, I was going to drive."

Driving is exactly what got him into a… well, interesting debacle. "My character got into his car, and I popped up in the T-pose with no pants," as Pondsmith amusingly describes. That's when he turned to CD Projekt Red developers to bring the buggy behavior to their attention. "But basically, I said, 'Okay, we're fixing that, right?'" The studio, of course, confirmed to him at the time: "Yeah, we're going to fix it. We're going to fix it."

The Cyberpunk creator notes once more that this hilarious situation happened "back before we had done release" – buuut, let's face it… T-posing and disappearing clothes actually did make their way into the launch version of the RPG. There were plenty of problems, in fact, with CD Projekt Red offering refunds to disappointed players back in 2020. It took over three years, but in April 2024, the devs were "finally happy" with the game.

It's safe to say that Cyberpunk 2077 isn't known for bugs like those Pondsmith encountered himself any longer, however. As of now, the game boasts a "Very Positive" rating on Steam and an incredibly dedicated community of modders. That's not to mention the devs who are still working on the RPG, with bits and bobs about the potential sequel floating about, and well-received 2023 expansion Phantom Liberty.

Looking for something else to play? Browse our roundup of the upcoming CD Projekt Red games, or check out a few of the most anticipated new games coming this year and beyond.

CD Projekt Red hasn't officially announced much about Cyberpunk 2 – it doesn't even have an official title yet – but one big detail about the new game has slipped out thanks to a job listing. The devs are looking to build some sort of multiplayer feature this time around, apparently making good on that cancelled Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer spin-off.

The studio is looking to hire a lead network engineer (via FRVR) for Cyberpunk 2 who "will play a pivotal role in designing and implementing the network architecture and online systems." This role is based in CDPR's Boston studio, which is leading development on the Cyberpunk sequel.

This lead network engineer will "ensure low-latency, high-performance online experiences for players," and lead a team to "to develop and optimize multiplayer systems, including matchmaking, and address challenges related to latency, bandwidth usage, and server performance."

While the gaming community does a lot of inferring about what new job listings at major studios can mean, this one does specifically call out Cyberpunk 2 and features like matchmaking. I'm putting down all the caveats I might otherwise raise on something like this, because it sure does sound like CDPR is taking an honest second run at Cyberpunk multiplayer here.

In 2021, CD Projekt Red announced it had "decided to reconsider" its direction for Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer, saying it would instead focus "on bringing online into all of our franchises one day." The Witcher is getting a standalone multiplayer release with Project Sirius, though that game has had its own development rollercoaster.

Here are all the upcoming CD Projekt Red games you need to know about. Or, you know, you can just pore over every tiny morsel of info we have about The Witcher 4.

No, Cyberpunk 2077 protagonist V is not 22… or 23, apparently. Senior quest designer and loremaster Patrick K. Mills is here to clear the air on the (confusing) matter, once and for all.

Having worked on the futuristic CD Projekt Red RPG designing quests and later on its DLC, Phantom Liberty, as the so-called "loremaster," it's safe to say that Mills knows exactly what he's talking about. While V's age has been changed before, namely after the 2.0 update, with past confusion around whether or not the male version of the protagonist shared a birthday with the female one popping up here and there, Mills now says the character is 27.

No ifs, ands, or buts about it, either. As he writes in a new Bluesky post, "I don't care what anybody says, V is 27, not 22 or whatever." That's not all – as it turns out, both the male and female versions of V do indeed share a birthday. "Also, masc and femme V have the same birthdays," assures Mills, saying, "It's just a mistake that they were ever different. THE LOREMASTER HAS SPOKEN. Go update the wiki."

You heard it here, folks, loud and clear. As of now, the Cyberpunk Wiki hasn't been updated to reflect the new age Mills has provided. It still reads that V is just 23 years old (as per what the game itself has stated thus far). I do wonder if things will be swapped about once again to match the loremaster's most recent declaration regarding the protagonist's age – but only time will tell, I suppose. Thankfully, it doesn't make too much of a difference.

After all, V is still V, whether 23 or 27. It's not as significant a jump as, let's say, a teen year would be to an adult year – but it's still core to the game's canon in the end, and Mills' lore.

Looking for something else to play next? Browse through our roundup of the upcoming CD Projekt Red games, or check out a few of the most hotly anticipated new games coming this year and beyond.

After five years and a feel-good comeback, CD Projekt Red is still improving its already-improved Cyberpunk 2077 with a new patch that adds a much-requested toggle alongside some other nice fixes.

Vignette has always been a controversial effect in Cyberpunk 2077. You probably recognize it as the darkened tint that stains the sides of the screen and becomes more prominent when crouched.

But despite being used to make UI more visible, a chonky number of online posts over the years have complained about the feature being distracting, ugly, or just plain annoying. Complaints about vignette actually became so prominent over time, modders eventually had to tackle the issue themselves.

Cyberpunkers can rejoice, then, for the recent 2.31 cyberpatch has "added a toggle to disable vignette" in the settings. And rejoice they are. "Holy s**t. My dream has come true," one fan wrote on the game's subreddit. "The vignette made me queasy after playing for about 30min, so I only played in short spurts."

Elsewhere in the 2.31 patch notes, CDPR updated the new auto-driving feature so your vehicle can travel a little smoother by itself, overtake blocking vehicles, and bypass traffic lights (which shouldn't be a problem because driving laws are beneath Night City's police force, who only go ballistic when you slightly graze their cars.) "Free Roam mode has also been upgraded to follow traffic rules and navigate the city more reliably."

The rest of the patch fixes bugs and other common issues, improves photo mode, and adds "various stability and performance optimizations."

No one knows how Cyberpunk 2 is going to go after Cyberpunk 2077's ending, but Keanu Reeves wants to be part of it: "I'd love to play Johnny Silverhand again"

Noted Cyberpunk 2077 actor Keanu Reeves, also known as John Wick in Fortnite, wants to return for the sequel, Cyberpunk 2. The question is: should he?

IGN recently asked Reeves if he'd be interested in appearing in Cyberpunk 2, and he replied: "Absolutely. I'd love to play Johnny Silverhand again."

Without spoiling anything, Keanu Reeves' character in Cyberpunk 2077, Johnny Silverhand, could be incredibly tricky to bring back in a way that makes canonical sense, although his existence as an engram that can be uploaded to different bodies might help ease that narrative dissonance somewhat.

Still, depending on the ending you got, it's theoretically possible, especially if CDPR decides on one canonical ending to carry forth in Cyberpunk 2077, or, less likely, goes with a Mass Effect-style save importing system.

The bigger question is whether Johnny Silverhand has any business in Cyberpunk 2 at all. Don't get me wrong, he's a great character, and Reeves' portrayal is of course breathtaking, but his story feels so decisively over that it'd take some serious narrative finessing to bring him back in a way that feels justified and respectful to the story instead of like, 'Hey, more Keanu!'

CDPR has stayed tight-lipped about Cyberpunk 2, probably because it's still in pre-production, so there's really no telling where the story will pick up from 2077's open-ended conclusion. I wouldn't be surprised to see a cameo via flashback or dream sequence featuring Keanu as Johnny Silverhand, but for my money his time as one of the main characters is done.

Here are all of the upcoming CDPR games that may or may not be breathtaking.

CD Projekt Red, legendary developer of The Witcher 3, is teasing something that's coming September 4, and all we know is it has something to do with Cyberpunk 2077.

The Cyberpunk 2077 account posts a message from NUSA President Rosalind Myers to its social media platforms. "Our great nation is once again facing a cybersecurity threat – from those who hide in the shadows, too cowardly to proclaim their beliefs, who are viciously determined to tear down our flag and the values it upholds. I will not accept this, and I know you won't either."

Myers is a character in the Phantom Liberty DLC that added the phenomenal Idris Elba and Minji Chang as Solomon Reed and Song So Mi, also known as Songbird – agents caught in a web of conspiracy and political intrigue. So, most people are theorizing there's going to be some sort of update to the expansion.

"The N.U.S.A. is seeking brave netrunners to join our efforts and overcome this grave threat," the post continues. "Our brave agents work tirelessly to keep our country secure, maintain its dominance, and defend it from those so eager to undermine it. Now you can join us in our fight for freedom. I personally welcome all who believe they have what it takes. Take our recruitment test. Prove yourself. Serve the N.U.S.A."

Songbird is a talented netrunner who can breach the Blackwall, a firewall that partitions off the old internet from the new, keeping rogue AIs and other nefarious programs at bay. She quickly became a fan-favorite character, so could we be getting more missions with her or some additional backstory?

One theory is that there will be a Cyberpunk 2077 mobile game all about netrunning. There was a Witcher mobile game, Monster Slayer, so this isn't outside the realm of possibility.

Another is that a new game plus will finally be added. "Asking for more recruits and needing brave netrunners meaning they have experience," interprets one Twitter user. "Saying there's 'mounting security threat' that also 'hide in the shadow' could be that stronger enemies who are deadlier."

I've even seen a suggestion that this will be an actual job posting for cybersecurity specialists at CD Projekt Red. Hacks can interrupt development, so it makes sense the company would want people employed to protect the employees and games from digital attacks.

The one I believe to be the most unlikely theory is that this is something to do with the next Cyberpunk game. The message was reposted by Cyberpunk 2's senior quest designer Robert Brooks, and while I do think it would be cool to get a game all about netrunners, we know most of CD Projekt Red is working on The Witcher 4 currently, so I wouldn't expect Cyberpunk 2 news any time soon.

Whatever it is, we'll know more September 4, also the day Hollow Knight: Silksong is coming out.

In the meantime, check out the best sci-fi games you can play while you wait.

Cyberpunk 2077 is one of the vanishingly few third-party Switch 2 titles to have a proper physical cartridge rather than a game-key card, and it seems that decision is paying off for developer CD Projekt Red. The company says that over 75% of Switch 2 copies of Cyberpunk 2077 sold were physical.

That's according to CD Projekt Red's latest financial report (via VGC). A slide in that presentation notes that physical copies make up 75.4% of Cyberpunk 2077's Switch 2 sales for the month of June, leaving digital with a 24.6% share. It's worth noting that the physical number is for "sell in" copies, which includes those still sitting on store shelves and retail warehouses that haven't yet been purchased by consumers.

Still, those numbers are significant. A report from GamesIndustry.biz in 2024 suggested that, in Europe, just 25% of new games were sold physically that year. However, 65% of third-party games sold for the original Switch in that stretch were physical. That leaves us with two lessons: Nintendo fans still love physical games, and Cyberpunk 2077's Switch 2 port has a substantially bigger physical split than most titles.

CD Projekt previously called having a physical cartridge rather than a game-key card "the right thing to do," and that sentiment resonated with the vocal group of physical game collectors who had been decrying the push to game-key cards all along. Industry analysts suggest that game-key cards aren't really a major issue for most players, though. While Cyberpunk 2077 was the best-selling third-party Switch 2 game at launch, it wasn't that far ahead of Street Fighter 6, which was sold on a game-key card.

Still, the numbers reported by CD Projekt Red today suggest that early adopters of Cyberpunk 2077 in Switch 2 are hungrier for true physical games than most. The dust still hasn't settled on the game-key card controversy, but it seems the gamble on real cartridges is paying off for now.

Physical, digital, or otherwise, Cyberpunk 2077 is one of the best Switch 2 games so far.

While massive AAA games like GTA 6 and The Witcher 4 are always going to draw in a lot of fans, one former Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 writer suggests that indie games encourage "originality" because of the "constraints" their devs are working with.

Jakub Szamałek served as a writer on The Witcher 3, as well as lead writer on Cyberpunk 2077, Rebel Wolves' upcoming vampire action RPG The Blood of Dawnwalker, and also Rockbeasts – an upcoming narrative-driven indie that sees you step into the shoes of a rock and roll band manager in a world of anthropomorphic animals.

In an interview with GamesRadar+, I'm curious if Szamałek approaches stories any differently when it comes to working on a big AAA title or an indie game. He acknowledges that "video game writers need to be aware of what is feasible and what isn't, and adjust the story they're telling to the specifics of the title they're working on," but "I don't think of this as necessarily limiting."

He explains: "Of course, in a AAA game, I'd have other mechanics and tools at my disposal, but indie games allow you to… like, you don't have to be as explicit in what you're trying to show and present.

"Like, there's more space for theater. I feel like AAA games are like blockbuster movies, and everything needs to be presented in crisp detail, whereas indie games are more like a theater where there's some level of understanding between the player and the audience that, you know, there's a prop, and it's something to get your imagination going, and it's perfectly enough for the story to resonate with.

"So even if you know the visual language is a little bit different, the story can hit just as hard."

Given that he's worked in both spaces, I'm interested to get Szamałek's perspective on whether he believes indie games allow developers to explore narratives that they might not be able to in a AAA release.

"Indie games indeed are a space that encourages originality," he agrees. "Because indie games can't really compete with AAA games in terms of their budgets, or expertly crafted interlocking gameplay mechanisms. Because to do that, you need huge budgets and huge, huge teams.

"So in order to stand out, in order to present something unique, I think indie game developers are encouraged, are tempted, to be original, to be creative with what they have. And I think constraints do frustrate game developers or any artists, but working with constraints often results in something original and unique."

As far as Szamałek is concerned, "I dip my toes in both pools, so to say so, like I worked on Rockbeasts, an indie title, and I absolutely loved my time working on it, and I'm super happy with the results. But at the same time I'm working for and with Rebel Wolves on a AAA title, which is a great experience too. It's just different.

"I think each type of game comes with its own challenges and I think some creatives might be drawn to one or the other, but I'm very happy existing or working in both," he concludes.

While The Blood of Dawnwalker isn't set to release until sometime in 2026, Rockbeasts, which is being developed by indie studio Lichthund, should be upon us at some point this year.

Former Witcher 3 lead's Blood of Dawnwalker sounds like the true vampire RPG I've always wanted, featuring "Blood Hunger" that makes the protagonist "lose control over his body and attack NPCs."

A CD Projekt Red tech lead has delved into the design challenges of jumping between the likes of Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3, and one amusing highlight is the difference in approach when it comes to protagonists.

Speaking to All Out Gaming (below), CD Project Red senior VP of technology Charles Tremblay is asked about how working on the likes of The Witcher and Cyberpunk contrasts and compares.

A lot of it is what you might imagine. Stuff like the verticality of Night City's towering buildings being something to adapt to when you're used to the medieval styling of The Witcher's European setting – coincidentally, that's not too dissimilar to a story about Assassin's Creed Odyssey we wrote about lately.

Another thing CDPR had to account for, though, was the main character. Cyberpunk 2077 features a protagonist called V that's essentially of your own making regarding backstory and appearance, which lets you forge a headcanon that'll dictate how you play the RPG. While you can make story-altering choices for Geralt and Ciri in The Witcher 3 and 4, though, it's not quite the same level of control as their character and backstory is set.

"The agenda is quite different that we have on Cyberpunk," Tremblay reflects. "Ciri or Geralt, they are fully fledged characters. They have their own personality, there are things that they will not do. While when you go to Cyberpunk, V is a more mercenary.

"She has more freedom about how she wants to tackle the world, in an evil or good way, while it's very difficult to see Geralt starting to go GTA style. Very, very difficult to see."

The greater sense of creative control on offer in Cyberpunk 2077 is grand, though I imagine the design work behind it must have been a pain to get around when putting the game together. It's something that plenty of CDPR devs pulled off in the end, though I don't imagine we'll be getting GTA Ciri when The Witcher 4 comes out.

“Do not f****ing do that”: Deus Ex actor reacts to Cyberpunk 2077 mod using AI to add Adam Jensen's voice, and it isn't pretty.

In the time since Deus Ex was put out to pasture by Square Enix following the release of Mankind Divided, things haven't gotten much more hopeful. The IP – along with developer Eidos Montreal – was sold to Embracer Group, which was then followed by rumours of a new entry being developed. Then, a bit later, we got confirmation that it was real, unfortunately paired with the news that the game had been cancelled.

Cyberpunk 2077 did show up in the meantime, and has lessened the blow of Deus Ex being gone for good for some people, but for others it's not enough, and they're taking to other means. However, in response to someone suggesting to play Cyberpunk 2077 with an AI-generated Adam Jensen voice instead of V's original voice actor, Gavin Drea, Adam Jensen's voice actor Elias Toufexis (who was most recently in Starfield and set to appear in the now-cancelled Perfect Dark reboot) gave a succinct response: "No. Do not fucking do that."

Of course, the GenAI mod is built from Toufexis' performance as Jensen, with the actor having called this type of thing "theft" in the past. But even when you ignore the ramifications of taking an actor's performance and using it for this, it's just pretty lame, isn't it?

It's one thing to have some bad-sounding Peter Griffin voice model talk about some historical event for a dumb TikTok, or getting Plankton from SpongeBob to sing Chappell Roan (with both sucking, too), but playing an entire game with an AI voice model replacing the original actor's own lines is another. V, as a character, is also nothing like Adam Jensen – his voice hardly fits the character.

Deus Ex Adam Jensen actor responds to potential story plans for the cyberpunk RPG's canceled sequel: "Hey this would have been fun huh?"

CD Projekt Red is confident Cyberpunk 2077 will "pass the test of time," and a large part of that is because things went so horribly wrong with the dystopian RPG's launch.

Speaking to The Mirror, CD Project Red's senior VP of technology Charles Tremblay takes an optimistic view of Cyberpunk 2077's journey to where we're at today – would things have eventually worked out the way they did if the team wasn't so motivated to turn a bad situation good?

"At the end side, if you think about it, if the success of the game would have been what we originally expected, would it be the same game that we're playing today? I don't think so," Tremblay says. "Which is weird when you think about it because of all the problems that we had, but then basically we ended up pushing so much energy in this game and I think now it's a much, much better game that it would not have probably been otherwise, so I'm pretty happy about the result. I think this game will pass the test of time."

The story of Cyberpunk 2077's launch is likely one you've heard many times before, though the gist is of a buggy mess that launched long before it was ready, leading to an unprecedented decision by Sony to yank it from the PlayStation store, and so much more. After a round of apologies, CDPR set about fixing the game and overhauling its systems while throwing in the odd new thing for good measure.

Cyberpunk 2077 slowly came to resemble what was promised over time, though what really took things to another level was the popular Edgerunners anime, and its themed in-game update. Not only did that put new players in the mood to check it out, but others who played it before also came back to see how things improved – and, thankfully, both sets of fans came away equally glowing with praise.

All of that already lifted the mood around Cyberpunk 2077, though the Phantom Liberty DLC sticking the landing certainly brought things to a nice end – read our Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty review for more on that. Onwards to Cyberpunk 2, then, and hopefully a happier launch.

Cyberpunk 2077 fans took CDPR's 'pay attention Reddit' diss seriously, immediately coming up with a theory that patch 2.3 is hiding a clue for yet another final update in plain sight.

The Cyberpunk 2077 update 2.3 has landed, and as grateful as I am to CD Projekt Red and Virtuos for these offerings, I had my heart set on something a little different. I admit that I'm no car enthusiast, even in Night City. I'd rather zip past traffic on Jackie's bike than wait at a red light in Corpo Plaza any day, so the promise of new vehicles doesn't immediately grab me.

That said, this new content wishlist isn't based on that bias as much as how I don't think vehicles are what's missing from the RPG in 2025. There are some things the Cyberpunk community has been clamoring for that I wholeheartedly agree would make excellent additions to the overall experience. I also have a few realistic ideas of my own – no, not a brand new DLC, but immersive tweaks that match the size and scope of the most recent updates we've seen from Virtuos Studios. So, if we're lucky enough to see an update 2.4, here are five things I'd love to see in Cyberpunk someday (in no particular order).

1. New Game +

Ah yes, that old chestnut. NG+ is perhaps one of the most requested Cyberpunk 2077 additions ever, and I've not seen a single CDPR livestream without it being mentioned every few seconds in the viewer chatbox. In all honesty, I'm not sure how it hasn't happened yet. You already get something close to NG+ after completing one of the many Cyberpunk 2077 endings and get teleported back to the moment before you entered Embers to meet with Hanako, only now, V has access to new weapons and other items unlocked through the ending you just completed.

I get how it might make little sense to let players have access to their full whack of suped-up cyberware in a proper NG+ – introductory side jobs and The Heist would be a real snooze if you're that overpowered – but I can see some sort of partial New Game + functionality where you start the game after Jackie's death, once the rest of the map opens up to you.

2. Expanded date nights

Much as I love inviting my Cyberpunk 2077 romances over for a dance party for two, how awesome would it be if V got a little more adventurous? I see expanded Cyberpunk dates working similarly to the current ones added in update 2.1, zoned encounters in specific areas, with a few things to do to spend time with one another.

It would add so much texture to the immersive sim aspects of the game, not to mention the roleplaying ones as V cherishes their last few weeks. Imagine getting a text from Panam asking to hang out and being able to treat her to a fancy dinner instead of a lukewarm shower, or going on a drive with Kerry to some far-flung corner of the map to jam together beneath the stars? No, not like that. Unless…

3. Full-body cosmetic cyberware

Update 2.2 brought us loads more facial cyberware cosmetics, but what about the rest of V's chromed-up bod? By the time most of us reach the mid to late game missions, V is shaping up to be more machine than man, and I, for one, would love to look the part.

This is another wishlist item that the Cyberpunk community has been openly pleading for since... well, ever. I had hopes that update 2.3 might make this wish come true, since it goes hand in hand with the previous patch, but it looks like I'll be hanging on a little longer before I can design a V that would make a scav's mouth water.

4. More real estate

Sure, V can buy up half of Night City and get themselves kitted out with a sweet apartment in key districts. But what if Cyberpunk 2077 saw real estate in a brand new light – specifically, the money-making kind? I can see V rocking a stable side hustle as a wannabe property tycoon, buying up businesses across town and earning a pretty penny out of rent and profit margins.

From scopdog stands to Dickie Twisters, it would be fun to see how far V could take their land baron dreams, and if businesses don't pay up… well, that's where being a merc would come in handy. This might be a bit of a bigger ask than others on this list, as far as how many related systems might need reworks to implement it, but there's no harm in speaking it into existence for now.

5. Mod support

If all else fails and my hopes and dreams are dashed, I hope CDPR at least gives Cyberpunk 2077 full mod support to compensate. It's a metaphorical passing of the baton, a show of trust between the developer and player base that has been overwhelmingly successful in other RPGs. Baldur's Gate 3 is a prime example of a case study, now that Larian's attention is being pulled elsewhere.

Cyberpunk 2077 is turning five this year, so I really wouldn't blame CDPR for leaving it alone completely to focus on the sequel (is it really called Cyberpunk 2?) and The Witcher 4. However, it would be a nice touch to wrap things up by officially supporting mods and facilitating player creativity, allowing us to tailor our game for years after CDPR moves on.

Looking for your next big sci-fi fix? Check out these games like Cyberpunk 2077 and broaden those horizons.

Cyberpunk 2077's patch 2.3 is supposedly the last update the game will get, but CD Projekt Red has been saying that for a few updates now. So, naturally, people have gotten to work sniffing out any clues as to what might be coming in the game's future, and some eagle-eyed fans on Reddit think they have the answer: a casino that was supposedly due to be in the game but was cut before launch.

New billboards added in patch 2.3 display advertisements for a casino, featuring images of cards and casino chips, along with the phrases "join the game" and "every Saturday big win." This has led people to believe that a casino will be coming to the game, possibly in the next patch or maybe even Cyberpunk 2.

The North Oak Casino & Country Club is located in the Westbrook district, and it was everyone's first guess. It's supposed to be accessible by AV, but since we don't have those in the game and the one tunnel that leads to it is closed, we can't get there. You can see it, but you can't get there and gamble.

Are these new with 2.3? from r/cyberpunkgame

It's looking like you still won't be able to get there, though, because the original poster tweets: "Someone on Reddit found the files! These are for the Pacifica Casino, not the Casino already in the game which is North Oak Casino & Country Club." Good job, Reddit, now maybe the devs won't be disappointed in you.

Since the Phantom Liberty DLC, Pacifica has been continually expanded, fleshing out the home of the Voodoo boys and making it a more interesting neighborhood to explore. A casino would certainly get me spending a lot more time there.

Night City is supposed to be a place where every vice and impulse can be indulged, so adding a casino makes a lot of sense lore-wise. I'm pretty good at poker, so I wouldn't mind trying to get my V onto the high-rollers table.

Until then, though, you can still enjoy all that patch 2.3 has to offer, such as new cars, an automatic driving mode inspired by chill YouTube videos, and improved frame rates on the PS5 Pro.

One you've had your fill of Night City, check out all the other best RPGs you can play.

Cyberpunk 2077 quest design director Paweł Sasko admits that "we are sometimes slower [than] you would like" as the delayed Patch 2.3 finally goes live.

The new update for Cyberpunk, which adds new vehicles, gameplay options, bug fixes and quality of life improvements, was originally planned for release on June 26, 2025, but wound up being pushed back to July 17 when developer CD Projekt Red announced on social media that "we'll need some more time to make sure we're happy with it".

With Patch 2.3 now finally going live, Sasko, who's also associate game director on the upcoming Cyberpunk 2077 sequel, tells fans to "enjoy" the update as he says: "Everything we do, is for you. We are sometimes slower [than] you would like to [sic], but we always have the best of our community and our game in heart."

Despite the apologetic tone, it seems as though the community has been perfectly happy to wait for the end result. Early initial reactions to Patch 2.3 seem positive, and even the original announcement that it was being rescheduled back in June was largely met with understanding and patience by the fanbase.

That might be due to the fact that it's generally understood that game development is taking longer and longer with every passing year, an issue that's by no means exclusive to CDPR. As graphics and technology get more complicated and the scale of many projects increases, the time and resources needed to create these games is only getting greater, not helped by some studios jumping the gun and announcing projects way in advance of their actual release. To hammer that point home, The Elder Scrolls 6 was announced back in 2018, and there's no reason to think it'll be out any time soon.

But of course, that community patience could always be because CDPR specifically has learned its lesson about rushed development. Cyberpunk's launch in 2020 was notorious for its poor performance and missing features, particularly on consoles, as well as brutal levels of crunch being reported in the months leading up to the game's release date. Consequently, the fanbase seems happy for the company to pace itself and its workload, considering the ugly consequences of what happened when it didn't. I fully agree with them on that score.

Still, Sasko's comment is a reminder that good things come to those who wait, and a momentary glimpse into the priorities of a CD Projekt Red that appears to have learned its lesson. I guess with current industry trends and timescales in mind, I look forward to playing the Cyberpunk sequel sometime around the actual year 2077.

Despite a rough start, Cyberpunk 2077 would eventually make it up to our list of the best RPGs! Check out what else made the list – and what took the first place spot.

Cyberpunk 2077's next update, patch 2.3, is on the way tomorrow, but one dev at CD Projekt Red is rather disappointed that we all missed a hint that was dropped about one of its new vehicles.

In a new REDstream hosted today, we found out that patch 2.3 will add a new motorcycle as well as three new cars, one of which, lead designer at Virtuos Adrien Jouannet points out, will be familiar to fans of the Cyberpunk 2077: Kickdown comic book series. It's the Yaiba ARV-Q340 Semimaru, which the patch notes reveal can be unlocked as a "reward from a new side job," by completing both The Hunt and The Beast in Me."

Pretty cool, right? Well, Cyberpunk 2077 quest design director Paweł Sasko, who also serves as associate game director on the upcoming Cyberpunk sequel, thinks so too. He is, however, also telling fans to "pay more attention" after a teaser for the car went totally unnoticed.

"We actually included a little of a hint for you guys if you maybe paid attention," Sasko reveals. "So we go to the last page of that comic book, there is actually a Yaiba Semimaru picture that we included here already some time ago just to give you a little of a foreshadowing and see how much you're paying attention to what we are doing in various media.

"I know that some of you are, I didn't see this on Reddit though, so I'm a little disappointed I have to say, Reddit bunch," he continues. "Guys, you need to really pay more attention, because we're doing a lot of stuff that you are missing."

Oops. Sorry, Sasko. Now, I'm just wondering what else we've apparently missed – we'll have to stay vigilant going forward.

One more Cyberpunk 2077 delay for old times' sake: the Nintendo Switch 2 version of patch 2.3 has been pushed back, but seemingly not for long.

Cyberpunk 2077 patch 2.3 officially launches on July 17 across PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC, but there's one notable absence from that list in the form of Switch 2. Developer CD Projekt Red says the update will definitely come to Nintendo's new platform, but you're going to have to wait a little bit longer for that version.

"The Switch 2 will also join the family with the 2.3 update," senior community manager Amelia Korzycka says in the latest developer REDstream, "but we need a few more hours, a few more times, a few more days… we'll see. But it's coming, so stay tuned. On our social media, we will let you know what's happening."

That's a pretty vague delay, but it at least sounds like we won't have to wait too long for the Switch 2 version of the patch. But if you're a PS4 or Xbox One player you might want to stop holding your breath now. CD Projekt has already left the last-gen versions of Cyberpunk 2077 behind, and that's not likely to change with patch 2.3.

Cyberpunk 2077 hit Switch 2 on launch day, and a big new update like 2.3 – which notably adds a host of new vehicles and photo mode options – offers a pretty compelling reason to jump back in even if you've already played the RPG before. The ranks of the best Switch 2 games are rapidly expanding, but there's a reason Cyberpunk 2077 ranks so high in the console's early days.

Our list of the best RPGs out there is sure to need a shakeup with all the upcoming CD Projekt Red games on the horizon.

A cartoonish howl erupts overhead in Cyberpunk 2077 as I walk past an apartment block, but I barely glimpse a falling shadow before somebody gets splattered up my ankles. An NPC wearing nothing but pink hotpants strolls into oncoming traffic, and nobody bats a Kiroshi. Later, I pass a cloaked gentleman peeing into a trashcan under a bridge in Heywood. He looks up, acknowledges me, and slowly walks away – still peeing, still making eye contact .

The thing about Cyberpunk 2077's jankier past is that every so often, I have to ask myself a strange question: is that a bug, or is that a feature? The thought flashes through my mind a lot while exploring Night City, a dystopian metropolis of hyperbolic proportions, as I try to draw sense from senselessness. But whether it's River Ward being a terror behind the wheel or NPCs acting strangely, Cyberpunk's unapologetically dark, tongue-in-cheek sense of humor is a huge part of why I love it – accidental or otherwise. The rough charm and harsh realities of this cold, unflinching city offer a refreshing take on what an open world could and should offer: laughs aplenty, yes, but a message behind each one.

Night City: where bad taste tastes good

Cyberpunk 2077 was the first game that came to mind when I read about one developer's take on the power of slapstick jokes in the best open world games. I surprised myself with that, and not because I don't think the game is funny.

I have a soul; of course I have a chuckle when Johnny drops a scandalous comment or Flaming Crotch Guy calls me on the holo. I'm not trying to intellectualize dirty jokes here. But Cyberpunk is a different kind of funny because it frequently doesn't intend to be - at least, at face value. The number of instances where I've laughed at something awful (see the first paragraph for a reminder) are too great to count, and yet, the guilt I feel is minimal. What's up with that, and why do I love being such a bad person in this game?

Ubisoft's Alex Hutchinson hit the nail on the head in the above interview when he detailed one simple truth of an incredible open world: "You need to immerse players in a satirical world and let them stumble across bizarre situations and excessive consequences."

Choice and consequence are huge entities in Cyberpunk 2077, so it always feels exciting to run into something we have limited control over. Night City can feel like V's personal playground if you spend long enough getting to know it, yet CDPR still finds a way to surprise even the most harcore players (shout out to my colleague Heather, who's clocked in over 700 hours in Cyberpunk 2077 now) by reminding you that you can't save everyone in a game like this.

Most of these instances have pretty upsetting consequences, but the initial choices are plenty bizarre and amusing.

V can make friends with a vending machine, ponder its sentience, then have it all ripped away in an instant, for example – but not before they have some illuminating conversations you'll likely never forget. The game even rewards you for making unexpected choices in a given situation, as anyone who has, uh, wielded Meredith Stout's gift after completing her Venus in Furs side mission can attest to. No comment, Your Honor.

Laughing at a lewd weapon aside, it seems hard to take anything seriously in a place like Night City – including life itself. The shocked, reflexive giggle I let out when hearing a jumper leap to their death in a video game does come off as cruel on my part, but I think it's the intended reaction. CD Projekt Red reflects the emotional alienation of a typical Night Citizen back at the player and has you mimic it, presenting very real social taboos like suicide, homelessness, and the loneliness of metropolitan existence through a deliberately comical lens.

I know it's deliberate because Cyberpunk is a very emotional game at its core. It's just the world itself that's unable to take things seriously, and that extends to having compassion for your fellow man. That's why it's so easy to cry for Jackie Welles one moment and take out a whole warehouse of Tyger Claws the next. V's morality is flexible, and by extension, so is our own.

Cyberpunk 2077 feels like the definitive open world experience in that regard. It's ours to shape, yet has an unpredictable life of its own, and we can only control it so far. I've never seen such a beautifully chilling example of active metaphor in any other RPG, extremely self aware in the most purposely ignorant way possible.

I never realized that tone, dark humor, and intentionality were the key defining features that set Cyberpunk's world apart from equally reactive ones like that of Dragon's Dogma 2 (bar all the other, more obvious reasons), but now that my eyes have been opened, I won't be able to close them. The most realistic thing about Night City is that everyone is cold, uncaring, and detached. And you know what? I find that pretty refreshing.

Check out all the new games we're waiting for in 2025 while you wait for the next big Cyberpunk 2077 update

Cyberpunk 2077 patch 2.3 sees CD Projekt Red reaching near-Terraria levels of surprise support for its now-venerable RPG, but we've had to wait for it. After a nearly month-long delay, the update is scheduled to launch this week, and the devs are already teasing what we can expect from the patch.

Patch 2.3 will launch on July 17, alongside the release of Cyberpunk 2077's Mac port. In a press release for that Mac version, CDPR noted that patch 2.3 will introduce "new Photo Mode functionality, additional cars, and more."

We'll get a whole lot more info on what to expect from 2.3 as part of a REDstreams dev broadcast on July 16 at 8am PT / 11am ET / 4pm BST. The stream will feature Pawel Sasko, now associate game director on Cyberpunk 2, and Adrien Jouannet, lead designer at prolific support studio Virtuos. You can tune in on Twitch or YouTube, or just bookmark this page and check out the embedded stream below.

CDPR's social media posts on the stream are coyly using terms like "driving," "passengers," and "under the hood," so it's a safe bet the big focus for this update is going to be the vehicles. From this update to the Mac port and the recently announced Cyberpunk Edgerunners season 2, it's clear that CDPR's take on the franchise has a lot left to give. And that's not even counting Cyberpunk 2, chooms.

Here are all the upcoming CD Projekt Red games you need to know about.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is coming back for a second standalone season streaming on Netflix, with some of the show's original creative team returning.

The second season is another "standalone 10-episode story from the world of Cyberpunk 2077 - a raw chronicle of redemption and revenge." Game developer CD Projekt Red's announcement blog goes into more detail: "In a city that thrives in the spotlight of violence, one question remains: when the world is blinded by spectacle, what extremes do you have to go to make your story matter?"

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners director Kai Ikarashi and lead character designer Kanno Ichigo are both back for a second stab at Night City, too. "They're joined by returning collaborators Masahiko Otsuka (Gurren Lagann, Promare) and Hugo Award winner Bartosz Sztybor as Showrunner, Story Writer, and Producer."

CD Projekt Red is still heavily involved with the show, as is animator Studio Trigger. We don't know much about the season's progress aside from the fact that it's "now in production with a planned release on Netflix in the future."

For anyone wondering about whether David Martinez - the first season's tragic protagonist - will show up somehow, CDPR seems to confirm the answer's a big no. "David is dead. But Night City lives on." That doesn't necessarily rule out Lucy showing up, as characters from the game did in the first season, but we should all probably expect this to be truly standalone.

Alongside the announcement, CDPR also dropped the season's first gorgeous poster, showing what looks like the obscured faces and silhouettes of an entirely new ragtag crew, one of which seems to be a literal child, which isn't that out-of-pocket for Night City.

Cyberpunk 2077 update 2.3 delayed so CD Projekt can "make sure we're happy with it" as it aims for a similar patch to 2.2

Out of all of the Switch 2 launch games, CD Projekt Red's port of Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition is perhaps the most impressive feat on the platform. I started playing the game on PS5 Pro earlier this year, and continuing my playthrough on the Nintendo Switch 2 has really set in stone how much of an uncompromised version it is. CD Projekt Red has released a blog post, talking about how the studio made the Switch 2 version of Cyberpunk a reality.

One of the defining features of Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 is how it uses the console hardware to its advantage. You have access to the touch screen for menu navigation, gyro and mouse controls for more precise aiming, and full-blown motion controls; so you can pretend we lived in a universe where Cyberpunk came out for the Wii when you waggle to swing a melee weapon or bring a JoyCon up to your face to heal.

CD Projekt gameplay technical design expert Filip Downar said, "The philosophy was to do it but not force it." He adds, "We really wanted to add these features, but decided we would only do so if it was genuinely good, if it actually added to the experience. We didn’t want to include something as an afterthought."

However, when it came to the motion controls, Downar explained it was somewhat of a challenge, "We had to create patterns that matched players’ expectations — for a system that no one had used yet!" He added that making sure the motion inputs didn't get too overwhelming was a priority however, "we found that players get confused if there are too many… different players have unique interpretations of mechanics, and have different means of movement, are playing in different spaces, and so on, getting too granular isn’t effective."

And while I'm sure hearing "motion controls" conjures up the word "gimmick" in your mind, Downar was also unsure at first. "I was really, really reserved about the feature," he says, "I usually don’t love motion controls in games." However, after the game released, Downar now says it's his favourite new mechanic: "When actually playing, kind of by accident, I learned that I’m able to do things in Cyberpunk 2077 that are impossible to do without."

Cyberpunk 2077 update 2.3 delayed so CD Projekt can "make sure we're happy with it" as it aims for a similar patch to 2.2.

Cyberpunk 2077 update 2.3 has been delayed to buy developer CD Projekt Red "some more time to make sure we're happy with it."

In a tweet today, the studio said that while "we initially hoped to put Update 2.3 in your hands on June 26," it won't be hitting that date. It's taking "some more time" to hit quality goals, but unfortunately that adjustment doesn't come with a new date, so it's no longer clear when Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.3 will be available for players.

What we do have, however, is a better idea of the scale of the new patch. CDPR says it's "aiming for a scope similar to Update 2.2." That patch – which surprise-dropped around a year after the game-changing 2.1 update – was very substantial, especially for the point at which it released on Cyberpunk's timeline.

Offering more player customisation, custom car paint jobs, photo mode overhauls, and ride-alongs with Johnny Silverhand, all in addition to more traditional patch notes, update 2.2 was very large. That's before you consider that pretty much everyone had assumed CDPR was done with Cyberpunk 2077.

Done, however, CDPR was not, and 2.3 has followed 2.2. Announced earlier this month ahead of Cyberpunk 2077's journey to becoming one of the top-selling Switch 2 games, we still don't know exactly what we're getting out of (presumably) the game's final update. I say 'presumably,' because you'd assume that the team was now ready to move onto either the pre-production of the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel, or to the full production of The Witcher 4.

That said, the Switch 2 has clearly given the team an excuse to dive back into Night City once again, so who knows what the future holds.

Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 is not without its flaws, but this is the best portable trip to Night City so far.

Game-keys cards have been pretty controversial since the Nintendo Switch 2 dropped. They're regular-looking carts that you get when buying a physical copy, but they don't actually contain the full game data. It's essentially a glorified download code in a box. But one analyst reckons that Cyberpunk 2077 being the only major third-party game to launch in a real cartridge didn't help its sales that much.

In case you missed it, Cyberpunk 2077 was the best-selling third-party Switch 2 game in the US. It's also, maybe coincidentally, the only major non-Nintendo game to avoid going the game-key card route. The entire 64gb game is on the Switch 2 cartridge if you pick it up physically - a decision CD Projekt Red calls the "right thing to do."

Of course, physical collectors saw this as an encouraging sign: game-key cards aren't selling as well as the one normal, all-on-cart game. Although, in a recent social media post, Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad says that's "not the full story."

He goes on to explain that the Switch 2's launch mirrors the OG Switch in the sense that third-party games generally didn't sell that well unless they were a notable exclusive. Cyberpunk 2077's success isn't necessarily surprising, either, since it's the console's technical showcase and it's already more popular than the other third-party Switch 2 launch games (Street Fighter 6, Bravely Default) in terms of sales on other platforms.

"Mario Kart World (like with [The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild]) was the game to buy for Switch 2 with an ~80% attach rate," Ahmad continued. "Even with CP2077 being the best-selling third-party game, its attach rate and the individual attach rate of all third party games was less than 5%."

"In other words, Switch 2 buyers were satisfied with Mario Kart World and legacy Switch 1 titles at launch, and did not buy any of the other Switch 2 launch games in high numbers. Game Key Cards are maybe the 4th or 5th factor for why third party games didn't sell well... The reality is that key cards aren't a major issue in the grand scheme of things outside of enthusiast circles."

Baldur's Gate 3 publishing director Michael Douse also chimed in on the game-key card debate, writing that Cyberpunk 2077 sold well "because it's an incredible version and a debut for a system that launched with few third party games, and does the best yet to show what the Switch 2 is capable of for an audience who may not have hardware to play it on before then." Douse also said the cartridge only "nominally helped."

As a rabid physical game collector, I am happy to hear Ahmad predict more full physical Switch 2 releases in the future "once Nintendo ramps up manufacturing for cartridges and lowers royalty fees."

For now, keep an eye on these upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 games. Hopefully at least some of them will launch on the actual cart.

Cyberpunk 2077's romance system just a massive endorsement from none other than Obsidian mainstay Josh Sawyer, who designed beloved RPGs including Pillars of Eternity, Fallout: New Vegas, and Pentiment.

When I say "massive endorsement," I really just mean Sawyer told PC Gamer that he really enjoyed the way CD Projekt Red implemented romance into Cyberpunk 2077, specifically with regards to its pacing, which is something he really does not say about games very often.

As PC Gamer notes, Sawyer's nuanced thoughts on RPG romances publicly dates back to 2006, when he said on an Obsidian forum that he doesn't "hate love in game stories" but does hate "reducing love to shallow, masturbatory fantasy indulgence." He's also previously said he feels out of step with what people expect from romances in modern games.

Cyberpunk 2077, though, it got romancing right in Sawyer's view. That's because it paces its four available romance options out so that the respective love stories happen separately from each other and thus feel more natural and organic.

Sawyer said he finds the typical RPG romance structure of having everyone stand around in a camp together while the player character engages with them at will, kind of awkward. "There are six of us together, and we're engaging in these romantic talks right next to everyone, and it feels kind of odd."

What Sawyer likes about Cyberpunk's romance is that, in his words, "it's not in a party context." It also helps that its big budget cinematic and overall presentation are great for immersion, and Sawyer also prefers the first-person perspective that it offers instead of third-person, but the other Main Thing is Cyberpunk's pacing, which locks a lot of romance progression behind progress points in the critical path.

"You do something with Judy, let's say, and then, you wrap it up, you have a convo, and then she's like, 'I gotta go do some things, bye,'" said Sawyer. "She is gone and you're not going to hear from her until time has elapsed, and probably until you've progressed a critical path.

"There's a built-in pacing, so the development of the human component of that relationship is developed over content that is specifically made for the two of you, like it's content for you and Judy alone. River doesn't come into it at all."

So there you have it. Sawyer is no "romance-hating scrooge" as he was dubbed in 2006; he just likes his romance to be believable and organic, which apparently is a tricky enough feat to accomplish that even Baldur's Gate 3 fell short by Sawyer's standards.

Avowed isn't Pillars of Eternity 3, but if the third RPG ever happens director Josh Sawyer reckons it should move to a proper 3D environment "more like Baldur’s Gate 3"

Saying Cyberpunk 2077 is a fantastic game doesn't generate heated discussions online anymore. 2023's big Phantom Liberty expansion and the linked systemic rework turned things around. Moreover, that wasn't the end of the road for the game, which has gotten further enhancements since then. Even after the alleged end of support we're waiting for yet another chunky update. Now, the only mountain that's left to conquer is Nintendo's hardware. Does the Switch 2 port succeed or should you stick with the experience on a handheld PC?

As the proud owner of a Steam Deck, I had some doubts about the personal enjoyment I could get out of a Nintendo Switch 2 port, but at the same time, I was extremely curious about how well it could possibly run on what's ultimately a beefed-up tablet. If this was a serious effort to bring a cutting-edge AAA title to Nintendo's new hybrid console at launch, the rest of the generation could look very promising. Now, 10 hours into Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 – I've imported my main PC save – I can confidently say it's easily the best way to play it on the go.

As crisp-looking and smooth as Mario Kart World is, Cyberpunk 2077 is the ultimate way to push the Switch 2 to its limits right now. It's the one game that will make your jaw drop once or twice because it almost feels illegal to have something that looks this good running on 'puny' Nintendo hardware. It's not just an excellent rendition of the game as seen in all its glory on current-gen platforms and PC, but also a perfectly fine way to enjoy it for the first time... as long as you don't mind some rough edges.

Uncompromised vibes

Whereas the (admittedly impressive) Switch port of The Witcher 3 by Saber Interactive had to dial the visual presentation so much that it inevitably ended up looking different, like a PSP-era adaptation of a big PS3 release, CD Projekt Red's Switch 2 debut can be described as the developer coming out swinging.

We can thank the console's DLSS capabilities for that, but it's also clear the developer made a ton of platform-specific optimizations in order to ensure it's the real deal. Mind you, the game can chug in certain areas, including the infamous center of Dogtown and some of Night City's busier districts. Just walking or driving slowly around those parts will send the framerate below the 30 FPS cap (40 if you're on Performance mode). Try cruising fast through them and you might get proper hiccups and stutters; the RAM and CPU just can't keep up in such scenarios. Still, none of these slowdowns last too long, and it's safe to say Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 lands closer to the Xbox Series S and low-spec modern PC experience than PS4 & Xbox One's nightmarish versions. 1080p through DLSS gets the job done here thanks to the extra sharpening involved too.

Many gamers who don't care much about settings and whatnot might also be wondering which graphics mode is best. Short answer: There's no clear winner here. Long answer: Quality looks noticeably sharper, with image that resolves more convincingly when it comes to finer details, but the extra 10 FPS (rarely constant, I must say) that come with Performance can help a great deal with the overall fluidity, especially in heated action sequences.

I'm typically a staunch defender of going with more FPS 99% of the time, yet I found myself leaning towards Quality because Performance rarely hits 40 FPS for more than a few seconds, making the loss in visual fidelity harder to swallow. Playing a first-person game at 30 FPS (with drops below possible) might seem bad, but at the time of writing, it's the more consistent experience, especially on handheld mode (VRR isn't a thing when docked). As for load times, don't worry about them.

When it comes to presentation, the big win is that Cyberpunk 2077 looks very much like Cyberpunk 2077. Even when you take away the sweet sweet high framerate which you can get elsewhere and fancy ray tracing, what's left on Switch 2 looks convincing and retains every delicious bit of the stunning art direction, whether it's the streets at night, the sleek vehicles, or a crowded market under the rain. Neither duller nor barren, this is Night City as I've experienced it for tens of hours on PC and PS5 before.

On the portable PC handhelds, similar visuals and performance are achievable (and DLSS still gives Switch 2 the upper hand), but the big difference is that Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 runs and looks fine out of the box. You can even load up cross-saves in mere seconds. There are gameplay, sound, and accessibility options you can tinker with, but hitting the ground running feels great.

Nifty cyberware

On top of HDR support and spatial audio that wows even in portable mode, the Switch 2 version of Cyberpunk 2077 comes with all the bells and whistles that Nintendo spent some time marketing ahead of launch. Gyroscope enjoyers can get better precision with that aiming mode, and the console's mouse capabilities, while not ideal when playing at 30 or 40 FPS, are present too. While I'm not a fan of the latter in this game, it's a great showcase of what the console can do outside of shinier graphics and denser worlds, and made me very excited about the future of first-person and strategy games on Switch 2.

If you like tablets a bit too much, the touch screen works in menus and for actions like hacking so you can go all Tom Cruise in Minority Report instead of using the buttons like a normal gamer. In most cases, it's hard to imagine the average player messing with these options too much, but it's good to see CDPR going this deep and all-out with one of the console's launch titles. It sets a golden standard for big third-party ports moving forward, warts and all, and that's ultimately good for consumers.

Cyberpunk 2077 on the Nintendo Switch 2 could've been a curiosity, a fun experiment with somewhat middling results. Instead, it's a promise of greater things to come and a bar to match or clear going forward. With new updates and more polishing surely on the way, I find it hard to get too hung up on the rockier performance moments of a port that really feels like black magic.

If you can stomach some bumps in the road and deal with less snappy aim, there's no better option to take Night City everywhere you want. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to replay Phantom Liberty again to try and get the best ending this time around.

We've rated the best Switch 2 games you can play now (and yes, Cyberpunk 2077 made the cut)