Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty feels more like a top-to-bottom overhaul of the original game than a standard expansion.
Phantom Liberty isn’t just a glorified update, though.
My session began in the seedy underbelly of Dogtown, a district nestled inside of Pacifica.
Garbage littered the neon-washed alleyways, and cybered-up riffraff ambled the sidewalks.
Sasko and Anetaky told us that Dogtown is very difficult to enter and exit without the right connections.
Of course, the star of the expansion is special agent Reed.
He’s a gruff and charismatic undercover operative that is poised to play a central role in Phantom Liberty.
Like Idris Elba himself, Reed has a commanding, larger-than-life presence to him.
He’s confident, calculated, and imposing.
It’s a great little introduction that fits nicely within the spy-thriller-inspired story.
For example, cybernetics received a complete overhaul.
Now, armor is tied to your cyberware rather than clothing.
This means you could wear whatever you want without worrying about your overall defense and combat effectiveness.
However, you could’t install a bunch of cyberware at once.
Phantom Liberty also brings with it the long-awaited revamped police and notoriety system.
At launch, Cyberpunk 2077 was derided for its simplistic and unfair notoriety system.
Police would spawn instantly and in random locations, even if there were no police nearby.
That is not the case in Phantom Liberty.
Now, similar to GTA V, if you commit a crime, the police will investigate.
If you’re nearby, they will engage; if not, they will search the area.
Sasko told us that bosses will spawn in the world if you get your notoriety high enough.
However, police aggression is also dependent on your location.
They’ll be much quicker to respond in wealthier, more populated areas like Corpo Plaza.
When you do piss off the NCDP, you’re no longer limited to on-foot combat.
Phantom Liberty introduces vehicular combat and weapon-mounted vehicles.
These features aren’t locked to the new area or DLC story.
The video game redemption arc has become all too common these days.
And, based on what I saw of Phantom Liberty, Cyberpunk 2077 could finally live up to it.
Got a news tip or want to contact us directly?
