- Joined
- Nov 15, 2013
- Messages
- 15,853
- Reaction score
- 4,964
- Gender
- Male
- Political Leaning
- Libertarian
Conservative thought may be prohibited on this board, but a video game review might be allowed.
When CyberPunk 2077 was released for the 2020 holiday season, it garnered many negative reviews due to poor performance on consoles. The PS 4 XBox One stuttered with bad frame rates and freezing issues.
Simply put, the game was not designed for consoles and consoles didn't have the power needed to run it. The PS 5 and XBox X can play the game, since they have basically PC architecture now. So the thing is, play this on PC.
Graphics and visuals on a PC equipped with a NVidia RTX level card are stunning. With both Ray Tracing and DLSS (deep learning super sampling) a hyper-realistic world emerges from Night City and even the sub-par acting of Keanu Reeves doesn't distract too much.
But beyond the stunning visuals, is the game any good?
Initially there is the shock of what the game is, and isn't. It is presented as a shooter, indeed the first couple of hours will have most convinced that this is an FPS. But it isn't - it is an adventure game with a complex leveling system. CD Project Red put a lot of Witcher 3 into the game. Decisions made have a strong impact on how the game plays out. This is well beyond a "good path bad path" system - decisions often have subtle impacts that show up hours after a decision is made. CP 2077 has the shooting mechanics that rival Modern Warfare - in adventure game. This is a very good mix.
V, the primary protagonist is a mercenary in a world where such people are encouraged, even necessary. This it the first point about CP 2077, the world itself is the star. This isn't unique, the same can be said with Elder Scrolls and Red Dead Redemption II. Night City is a living, breathing place. The NPC's have their own lives and carry on with or without the player. These are not cookie cutter blowup dolls like those in GTA 5, but convincing actors in a thriving city. Most react in a realistic way, though few will blink if you draw a gun. This may be by design, due to the nature of night city.
The main story is engaging, well written, well acted - and short. If you concentrate on just the main story, you'll complete the game in less than 20 hours. This is not Skyrim with 60 hours of main plot. But the short main quest is augmented by dozens of side quests. But the side quests are excellent - where I often play games like this with repetitive side quests that are little more than filler, the quests in CP 2077 are often thought provoking and deep - not to mention dark.
This is a mature game - extreme violence and adult subject matter. Night City is a brutal place run by the typical villain of corporations. The police are corrupt and the populace is well armed. The high end visuals mean that this often plays like a Quinten Tarantino movie, blood and guts.
Then there is the nudity. Yes, there is nudity. Not just boobs, but erect penises and vaginas. It's not a porno game - but it doesn't shy away from anything. Drug use is common, as is desperation from crushing poverty.
I strongly recommend this game for those with a powerful PC who enjoy violent adventure games and are not offended by nudity and gore. My ranking holds Red Dead Redemption 2 as the king of this sort of game, followed by Witcher 3, then Skyrim, then Cyberpunk 2077, then GTA 5.
When CyberPunk 2077 was released for the 2020 holiday season, it garnered many negative reviews due to poor performance on consoles. The PS 4 XBox One stuttered with bad frame rates and freezing issues.
Simply put, the game was not designed for consoles and consoles didn't have the power needed to run it. The PS 5 and XBox X can play the game, since they have basically PC architecture now. So the thing is, play this on PC.
Graphics and visuals on a PC equipped with a NVidia RTX level card are stunning. With both Ray Tracing and DLSS (deep learning super sampling) a hyper-realistic world emerges from Night City and even the sub-par acting of Keanu Reeves doesn't distract too much.
But beyond the stunning visuals, is the game any good?
Initially there is the shock of what the game is, and isn't. It is presented as a shooter, indeed the first couple of hours will have most convinced that this is an FPS. But it isn't - it is an adventure game with a complex leveling system. CD Project Red put a lot of Witcher 3 into the game. Decisions made have a strong impact on how the game plays out. This is well beyond a "good path bad path" system - decisions often have subtle impacts that show up hours after a decision is made. CP 2077 has the shooting mechanics that rival Modern Warfare - in adventure game. This is a very good mix.
V, the primary protagonist is a mercenary in a world where such people are encouraged, even necessary. This it the first point about CP 2077, the world itself is the star. This isn't unique, the same can be said with Elder Scrolls and Red Dead Redemption II. Night City is a living, breathing place. The NPC's have their own lives and carry on with or without the player. These are not cookie cutter blowup dolls like those in GTA 5, but convincing actors in a thriving city. Most react in a realistic way, though few will blink if you draw a gun. This may be by design, due to the nature of night city.
The main story is engaging, well written, well acted - and short. If you concentrate on just the main story, you'll complete the game in less than 20 hours. This is not Skyrim with 60 hours of main plot. But the short main quest is augmented by dozens of side quests. But the side quests are excellent - where I often play games like this with repetitive side quests that are little more than filler, the quests in CP 2077 are often thought provoking and deep - not to mention dark.
This is a mature game - extreme violence and adult subject matter. Night City is a brutal place run by the typical villain of corporations. The police are corrupt and the populace is well armed. The high end visuals mean that this often plays like a Quinten Tarantino movie, blood and guts.
Then there is the nudity. Yes, there is nudity. Not just boobs, but erect penises and vaginas. It's not a porno game - but it doesn't shy away from anything. Drug use is common, as is desperation from crushing poverty.
I strongly recommend this game for those with a powerful PC who enjoy violent adventure games and are not offended by nudity and gore. My ranking holds Red Dead Redemption 2 as the king of this sort of game, followed by Witcher 3, then Skyrim, then Cyberpunk 2077, then GTA 5.
