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 has undergone major changes since it launched five years ago today (December 10). While plenty of updates have been transformative for the RPG, underneath the impressive overhauls and additions, the fundamental story and themes at the heart of V's journey have always remained the same.

Set within a neon-tinted city that's all too willing to drown you in its darkness if you let it, CD Projekt Red puts forward a tale of survival and perseverance that I find myself revisiting often. In the lead up to the five year milestone since release, I've been reflecting on what continues to draw me and so many others to the streets of Night City. With the chance to sit down with Cyberpunk 2077's lead writer, Tomasz Marchewka, I ask him: what is it about survival stories like V's that so many find appealing?

"It's not about the leather jackets and the guns, and cyber wear," says Marchewka. "It's always about the stuff that is relatable."

Never fade away

In spite of Cyberpunk 2077's dark futuristic setting – filled with corruption, corporations, and candy-colored advertisements promising a better you and a better tomorrow – V's fight to stay alive taps into something very human that we can all relate to. We may not know what it means to be a merc in a gang-filled world, or have the digital construct of a rockerboy taking over our head, but as Marchewka says, we all have our "own stuff that challenges us" and it's all too easy to connect with V's desire to retain their identity and sense of self.

"When you simplify it enough, it becomes a story about ourselves," Marchewka says. "Like all of the stories told by [CD Projekt] Red. They are stories about ourselves, about human beings being challenged in very difficult moments, and their humanity being challenged. But you need a glimmer of hope, and you need that hope to be visible somewhere there."

I've played Cyberpunk 2077 more times than I can count. The release of Phantom Liberty, along with many of the updates – which brought me the likes of romantic hangouts, the addition of SmartFrames, and Silverhand as a car companion – all had a part to play in bringing me back. But at root of it, I'm forever drawn to the flawed cast of characters that are trying to keep that "glimmer of hope" alive, even in the darkest corners of Night City.

One of the most flawed characters is undoubtedly Johnny Silverhand, who really grew on me over time. In some ways, he's a personification of Night City. Selfish, arrogant, and antagonistic at times, Johnny isn't always on your side, and he fights against you just as Night City seems to. But he's also processing that he's a construct that could very well override V's personality, and his faults and reactions are what make him such a human, relatable character.

The very fact that he's rough around the edges is what eventually made me warm to him, and after expressing as much to Marchewka, he agrees that it's those rough edges, together with his redeeming qualities, that make Silverhand so compelling.

"My favorite part to explore as a writer, whether it's writing for games or comic books or anything else, are the flaws of the character," Marchewka says. "I like to explore character flaws. I love inevitable mistakes, and I love seeing where it takes the character. As you can probably tell, my stories rarely have happy endings because of that. But I think exploring the darker side of human nature is exciting, because we can learn something about ourselves as well."

Neon lights and neon dreams

V's quest to survive is underpinned by other hopes we can all relate to: to be remembered for something; to live on our own terms; and stay true to ourselves. Identity is such an important part of V's story, but it's just as much about Silverhand and his own sense of self as it is about V.

The idea of being remembered or becoming a living legend in Night City is perhaps the biggest crux of both V and Silverhand's story, and I love the way the hope of accomplishing that propels me through the dangers of Night City time and again. One question I've thought about often is the one posed by fixer Dexter DeShawn, who famously touches on this idea by asking whether you'd prefer to live the quiet life of a nobody and die at a ripe old age, or go out in a blaze of glory. As it turns out, Marchewka wrote the dialog for that scene before the quest changed hands.

"I remember sitting at my desk and writing the dialog with Dex, and then it clicked, because we call it an Achilles' choice," Marchewka says. "Achilles was given the choice of whether he would like to die as a legend or live the life of the average man, without becoming a hero. And I thought, well, that's the great parable of what's going to happen in the game. For Johnny and for everyone."

It's certainly a fitting parable for Night City, aka "the city of dreams". The metropolis is full of promise and opportunity that mercs like V try to seize. But the mean, crime-filled streets are always out to get you, and if you're not careful, reality can quickly shatter those dreams: Night City is a place full of poverty, rival gangs, and corporate killings, too, after all.

If the best Cyberpunk 2077 gigs have taught me anything, it's that Night City can also be bleak. But there's undeniable appeal about the different hues of the cityscape – both literally and figuratively – and I find it strangely comforting to simply drive around, soaking in the sights and sounds. I know I'm far from alone in being drawn back into the setting time again, but as the people who played a part in bringing it to life, I asked both Marchweka and Igor Sarzynski – who was cinematic director on the base game and narrative director on Phantom Liberty – what it is they find so compelling about the world of Cyberpunk 2077.

"To me it was always about just the right balance between subtle, personal, human, and emotional elements – things that are fragile and touching and invite compassion – versus what you mention: the danger, the violence," Sarzynski says. "Everything that forces you to put on armor, literal or emotional, and protect yourself, fight for survival. Night City exists right on the edge of those realms, between beauty and bloodshed, and so you're never bored; you always think that maybe the next dream will come true."

"With me, it goes deeper, because cities as a kind of social tissue used to be, or maybe still are, kind of my creative obsession," Marchewka says. "I think that the cool stuff happens in the cities because they are so multi-layered socially. And it doesn't matter if we go into Cyberpunk specifically, or a contemporary story, or fantasy story. Every city is unique. They've got their own soul, they've got their own personality."

But it's also Night City's role in V's story that makes it such a fascinating setting.

"Quite quickly, during pre-production of Cyberpunk 2077, we realized that Night City is going to be our main antagonist," says Marchewka. "Some people [players] caught it quite quickly, and then asked us. 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. So yeah, that's a cool concept to make the city the main antagonist."

Wires and chains

We constantly have to battle against Night City as V, and I never felt more in danger than I did in the morally grey streets of Dogtown, the district introduced in Phantom Liberty. As Marchewka – who served as lead writer and associate story director on the expansion — explains, the idea behind Dogtown looked to explore a question he asked throughout the production of Cyberpunk 2077: "What happens to people who fail in Night City, or refuse to play the game that Night City deals you?".

"There were a lot of challenges: new IP, new player perspective, new gameplay, new narrative design, new tools and tech… So many things were a journey to the unknown, needing to be discovered," Sarzynski says of Cyberpunk 2077. "And I think you can tell that with Phantom Liberty it was a bit different – us using the knowledge we gained and really spreading our wings."

Five years down the line, Cyberpunk 2077 is a more polished and refined experience that's really come into its own since it first released back in 2020. And while there are likely a multitude of reasons why we continue to revisit the RPG, it's clear that the team at CD Projekt Red are grateful that we continue to do so.

"I always say that in current times, one of the most precious currencies is time. So I always really appreciate when someone spends time with something we're giving them, the video game, the comic book, or any other media," says Marchewka. "With video games, those are dozens of hours and hundreds of hours, and I really appreciate it. I feel really blessed that someone decided to spend time with that."

"Seems like only yesterday that we released it," adds Sarzynski. "I'm just so grateful for the players' enjoyment of the game. I never expected it'd grow so much, for so long. But as much as Cyberpunk 2077 will always be close to my heart – I can't wait for what's coming next."

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