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The developer behind The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 is nothing if not ambitious. CD Projekt Red’s latest effort, the critically acclaimed Phantom Liberty DLC, overflows with detail, complexity, and depth. Judging by the CDPR’s successes, it’s hard to imagine how they could fail. Yet fail it did, at least when Cyberpunk launched. At the time of release, Cyberpunk was buggy and incomplete, and it remained that way for years. That’s changed with the release of the game’s massive 2.0 update and DLC. Cyberpunk is in incredible shape now, leaving CDPR free to shift its attention to the game’s sequel, codenamed Project Orion. Given recent events, fans have good reasons to feel optimistic about the franchise’s future.
Cyberpunk 2077’s Difficult Past
To understand why the future looks good for the Cyberpunk franchise, it’s essential to understand what made its past so bad. The pre-release hype for Cyberpunk 2077 could not have been more intense, which ultimately worked against the game. Expectations had built up so much that it would’ve taken a perfect game to fulfill them, and V’s story was far from perfect at the time of release. Glitches, stuttering, and crashes were the norm, not the exception. NPCs would float in the air, glitch through furniture, and do even stranger things. It wasn’t unheard of for an NPC to keep standing around as if nothing happened, even after losing their head and multiple limbs. The result was immersion-shattering and, at the time, made Project Orion seem like an impossible dream.
On older consoles, the situation was even worse. The game was unplayable for many, prompting swift refunds from agitated players. To say the situation was surprising and upsetting would be an understatement. CD Projekt Red was the developer behind The Witcher 3, arguably one of the best RPGs ever. The Witcher and Cyberpunk compared favorably in lore, characterization, and worldbuilding, but Cyberpunk fell apart in so many other areas. Its Perk system was lackluster, its combat was poorly balanced, and essential features such as vehicular combat didn’t exist. Fortunately for players, CDPR wasn’t happy about the situation either and made it its mission to make Cyberpunk the game it had promised.
Project Orion’s Promising Future
CDPR refused to let Cyberpunk remain broken and got to work fixing it. Numerous patches followed, each nudging the game closer to excellence. The developer’s work culminated with two releases: the 2.0 update that revamped and improved virtually every major system in the game and Phantom Liberty, a DLC that added a new district, story, and Perk tree. The result is a game staggering in its scope and complexity. Though there are still occasional bugs, overall the game now runs as beautifully as it looks. Without the distraction of glitches, players can finally focus on CDPR’s unforgettable storytelling. With the addition of Phantom Liberty, Cyberpunk is one of the best-written RPGs of all time, and players can now finally enjoy V’s story in all its glory.
Obviously, everyone would have preferred the game to meet expectations from day one. That said, Cyberpunk‘s troubled path to greatness may make Project Orion a better game than it otherwise would have been. Mistakes are often instructive: you learn a lot about how something works when you’re forced to fix it. CD Projekt Red probably understands its code and capabilities far better as a result of the many updates that Cyberpunk required. This isn’t purely hypothetical: Phantom Liberty itself is evidence. With the new 2.0 update and DLC, Night City is more fun and immersive than ever.
Phantom Liberty Is Great News For Project Orion
The improvements go beyond mere bug fixes. The reworked Perk system in particular points to a bright future for Orion. Before the rework, Perk trees were poorly organized and full of lackluster bonuses such as minor stat buffs. After the rework, Perk trees are orderly and deliver game-changing effects such as the ability to Air Dash, completely changing your approach to combat. CD Projekt Red has clearly learned something about what makes this kind of RPG fun, and it’s paying off. Players have good reasons to believe that whenever Project Orion releases it will be more polished and enjoyable than it would have been without Cyberpunk‘s growing pains.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty is available for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
