That Ending Tho--Part 2

This summer I finally decided it was time to invest in the "Phantom Liberty" DLC for CyberPunk 2077.  Yeah, I'm a bit late to the party, but I wanted to see how everything shook out before dropping an additional $29.99.  I did enjoy the DLC, but thanks to a recent conversation with a student about video games, I realized that I never wrote up a reflection on the "new" ending that's one of the added bonuses of purchasing the DLC. (Here's the link to my "Phantom Liberty" review--link) Spoiler warning:  This post will reference ALL endings to CyberPunk 2077.  Read on with caution!

Like any good RPG/CD Projekt Game, the end of "Phantom Liberty" forces V to make some heavy decisions about the key characters wrapped up in the events taking place in Dogtown.  There's Solomon Reed, the sleeper FIA agent whose loyalty to the NUSA seems unwavering (voiced and modeled after the excellent Idris Elba).  And, of course, there's So-Mi "Songbird," an enigmatic netrunner type whose motivations are hazy at best.  Your choices of endings comes down to decisions made during the last mission of the "Phantom Liberty" DLC--you can choose to help Songbird escape or to work with Solomon to capture Songbird.

I opted to help Songbird escape and if you're someone who enjoys intense combat, I would highly recommend choosing it as an option.  To help her escape, V must travel to the lunar launch port (a referenced, but inaccessible part of the base game) and infiltrate it so that Songbird can make it to a rocket that will help her escape to the moon.  The downside is that the FIA/NUSA is onto the plot and once V makes it to the port, it's crawling with goons--things fall apart quickly and escaping turns into a desperate sprint/battle through hordes of NUSA soldiers.  The entire thing culminates in one of the most intense combat sequences in the game--one last defensive stand against waves of soldiers trying to capture Songbird.  I've gotta admit, it's a rough battle (you probably want to holdout on starting "Phantom Liberty" until later in the game for the best combat abilities).  V, with Songbird's ability to utilize the dark magics of hacking the Blackwall, holds out long enough to escape...but Songbird is in rough shape and is barely hanging on.

Dogtown has its own vibe.

Once V and Songbird arrive at the shuttle, none other than Solomon Reed appears for one last plea--V must turn Songbird over to the NUSA.  He makes very few guarantees of her safety and dangles a big bonus to the deal--if V turns over Songbird, they can have access to the best doctors and scientists in the NUSA...specialists who could likely extract the Relic and save V's life.  Alternately, you can shoot Reed and put Songbird on the shuttle to the moon.  There's no deal, but Songbird lives.  Since I wanted to experience the "new" ending, I opted to turn Songbird over.

One of the most interesting aspects of opting for Reed's deal is that it seems like you don't even have to play through the rest of the game (if you choose to).  You can call him up at any time and the new ending will play out (that's the impression I got anyway).  I did choose to play through the rest of it and when you get to the point of making the "big" choice with Johnny you can opt to call Reed.  Reed shows up with a helicopter and a doctor who can assess V's condition.  There's an uncomfortable discussion that's basically Johnny's goodbye--V can apologize for the choice but Johnny's pretty salty about simply disappearing.  I don't love Johnny, but it feels bad to just cut him loose to save V's life.  V's condition declines and the doctor is forced to give them an anesthetic...everything cuts to black.

The next scene starts with V waking up in a hospital room.  A few seconds later, Solomon Reed appears and explains the situation to V--the surgery was a success, the Relic is gone (and Johnny with it).  The bad news...V has been in a coma for three years...plus, the Relic caused so much damage to V's nervous system that they will never be able to utilize any cyberware.  He then presents V with some options--they can choose to stay and take a desk job with the FIA or they can return to Night City.  Before the choice is made, a scene that is slightly similar to the Arasaka ending plays out.  V can call up some of their former pals from Night City.  The first call my V made was to her romantic partner, Judy.  Judy is shocked to hear from V, but the reality is that three years have gone by...life, and Judy, has moved on.  Judy is happily married and has left Night City.  It's a bit of a bummer, but V can still try to contact their other pals--calling Panam results in no answer (weird for someone who was best pals with V).  Viktor does answer and offers up his medical expertise to try to see if V can actually use cyberware.  Solomon then re-enters the room and you can make your final decision--stay or return to Night City.  I opted to have V return.

Upon returning to Night City, V is greeted with a city that has obviously been overtaken by Militech interests (there are some newsy type of references that imply that Arasaka withdrew from the NUSA thanks to internal family turmoil)--the streets are crawling with Militech soldiers and mechs.  V arrives at what used to be Misty's store to discover that it's gone--replaced with a Zetatech tech store.  It turns out that Viktor finally chose to sell out to the corporate interests and is now under their employ.  V manages to negotiate a quick visit with Viktor and heads down to his shop.  Viktor is pleased to see V and assesses her condition...unfortunately, Reed was correct, V's system is beyond repair and they can't equip any cyberware.  The whole situation ends awkwardly when a Zetatech client shows up and Viktor has to essentially push V out the door to handle them.

V is understandably shook and is trying to navigate the narrow alleys around the shop when they are confronted by two street thugs (a common occurrence in Night City).  V of the past wouldn't even blink at these two fools, but current V is cyberware-less and still recovering from a three year long coma.  V takes a beating, but luckily a bystander shows up...it's Misty, but a much different Misty--she's lost her punk aesthetic.  They're shocked to see each other and strike up a conversation--V asks about the store and Misty discusses Viktor's decision to sellout.  Of course Misty was adamantly opposed and it has strained her relationship with him.  In fact, Misty is there because she's saying goodbye--she's leaving Night City for good.  Misty's always good for a deep conversation and V reveals their inability to wield cyberware.  Misty implores V to accept things--yeah, V can't be the badass, edgerunner that they wanted to be, but they still have a life...even if it is bland, normal one.  Misty grabs a cab and departs...V blends into the crowd of nobody's walking the streets of Night City.

Like any good CD Projekt Red ending...it's a mixed bag.  This is the only ending where V gets to live (longer than a few months and as themselves--not Johnny's consciousness in V's body).  The obvious downside is that V's dreams of climbing the ladders of Night City success have been completely dashed.  I guess it does really come down to Dex's two choices--would you rather live fast and die young as a Night City legend or live a long, boring life?  V's faced with the long, boring life choice (but is that such a bad thing?  It definitely feels like it in this context).  I was vaguely excited for this ending because I had seem someone comment that they cried...I thought they meant that in a good way!  It turned out to be a bit of a bummer.

It's nice to have another ending after having played through ALL of the others (and honestly, none of them are "perfect").  I like to envision V as staying in Night City and becoming a top fixer.  At least that's semi-positive.