Sci-fi RPG Cyberpunk 2077 is an ambitious game with history as up-and-down as its prickly protagonist's mood. The game deflated expectations almost immediately after launch in 2020, disappointing would-be fans with its glitches and fiddly combat. Putting a bow on its comeback arc, developer CD Projekt Red recently released its Phantom Liberty expansion and update 2.0. Now, the game feels deserving of its pre-launch hype, and its unexpected new patch 2.1 happily continues this trend.
Some of the most exciting parts of Patch 2.1 are its efforts to push immersion. There are still bug fixes as usual – most notably, one fixes a Phantom Liberty soft-lock where some Suspected Organized Crime Activities in Dogtown wouldn't spawn, and another tidies a Patch 2.02 fix that should have stopped the screen from going black after players call the nurse. There are also now five more bikes for purchase and one new car, the compact Porsche 911 Cabriolet.
But you can also now fast travel across 19 train stations, or choose to let V relax in the train car, staring out the window as Night City's glass buildings woosh by. Look even closer with sightseeing binoculars, which have been added to "various scenic spots," CDPR writes in its notes, to help you better "appreciate Night City's vistas." Soundtrack these movie moments on the train, or on your long walks, by using the new Radioport feature, which lets you access your car radio up until any quest-specific music blares.
Music can also help you set the mood for any of V's love interests, who you can now invite back to your apartment in a "repeatable, unlimited event," CDPR says, "that becomes available once the romance path with a given character has concluded." For a night cap, you can now sit at a bar and interact with the bartender, or use the decorative vendors that appear in some kiosks.
Less idyllic, but still quite immersive, is a change that makes gang members pursue you if V acts aggressively toward them during quests. Similarly, gigs in which you steal a car could trigger car chases or combat, reinforcing the consequences that CDPR talked up for Phantom Liberty's big patch.
As it sends off Cyberpunk 2077 and eyes The Witcher 4, CDPR wants its games to be "something that we've never made at this scale."
