Summary
Cyberpunk 2077gives players a lot of freedom when it comes to how they allocate their time in the game. With a multitude of sidequests, gigs, and random interactions players can find, it’s relieving to know that people can put down the main story quests and venture off into the expansive and detailed world of Night City without much of a consequence. However, that all changes with one very central quest to theLiberty CityDLC expansion.
[Warning: This article contains light early-game spoilers for the Cyberpunk 2077 Liberty City DLC.]Although pseudo-time limits are something many gamers are used to at this point, certain titles likeDragons Dogma 2punish players for taking too long or being too indecisive. ThoughCyberpunk 2077is traditionally a game where the main mission quests can be put on the back burner for an indefinite amount of time, doing so inPhantom Libertycould result in an abrupt game-over.
Cyberpunk 2077 Review: RPG Augmentation
Developer CD Projekt Red has something fun in Cyberpunk 2077, which feels like a love letter to many of the qualities and innovations of last-gen.
President Myers Can Die If Players Take Too Long
This Is Not The Time For Procrastination
Though it normally wouldn’t be an issue for players who just picked up and are excited to playPhantom Liberty, it’s actually possible to fumble the entire DLC right at the start. As discovered by Reddit userCoffee-and-puts(among others before them), the unknowing player just gotPhantom Libertybutwaited too long to save President Myers, ultimately resulting in Myer’s deathand essentially a game over in terms of main-story DLC content.
This result occurs if V takes the quest from Songbird to start theLiberty CityDLC missions but fails to actually show up at the gates of Dogtown to start the quest. As a result,Myers will die shortly after the crash, and Songbird will hack into V’s head and shut him down completely. V will eventually wake up, and Johnny Silverhand will explain how they waited too long, and Myers is now dead. While it’sstill possible to complete side missions and gigs in Dogtown, the main quest line will be locked off, and players will have to restart the save if they want to meetReed and Songbird.
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The Phantom Liberty DLC for Cyberpunk 2077 introduces new endings, which you’re able to unlock by making every decision tied to characters seen in the story.
Time Actually Matters At Phantom Liberty’s Start
The Numbers On The Pause Screen Mean Nothing
Famously, inCyberpunk 2077, there are percentage counters at the top of the screen that represent mission progression:V’s relationship with Johnny Silverhand and the status of the Relic that’s slowly killing V. Sadly, theseCyberpunk 2077progression stats don’t mean anything, and the sense of urgency that’s built up to complete quests in some nebulous amount of time is one that players should not feel.
Though there are other quests throughout the campaign that can be failed once taken —Phantom Libertyfeels like a departure from how the base game handles certain things, and this time-sensitive task is one of them. Narratively, it would make sense as Militech troops would have likely overcome Myers, but from a gameplay perspective, it’s a bold move and a smart inclusion by the creators ofCyberpunk 2077.
