What I want, what I dream about, is ....
1. 3rd person perspective as default. By all means give us a first person perspective option, but the default should be 3rd person. When its done the other way around, like in the Fallout games, the character just looks goofy when they move, especially when they run or strafe. Plus, 3rd person allows me to see my awesome character.
2. Character Customization on par with Saints Row 2. (Gender, race, body type, face customization, tattoos, scars, layered clothing with many choices). Let me create my own character, a unique character, and do no limit my choices. The world of Cyberpunk is a melting pot of races and cultures. If you plan to include voices, limit it to two, one male, one female, speaking without discernable accent. If variety in voices is necessary, give us a tool to change the pitch of the voices.
3. Cybernetic options, several types of limbs, eyes, tech hair, glow tattoos, etc.... These should be cosmetic choices, and each one should give you at least the option of changing its colors. Any benefits cyber gives you, like being stronger, running faster, jumping higher, etc... should be a separate thing... and should work whether you have visible cyber or not.... because hey, just like the chick in the video, some of us real-skin our cyber sometimes. This way it won't eat up system limitations, and its an easy way to give us cake and let us eat it too.
4. It's a near future open world/sandbox game. There needs to be a decent assortment of vehicles, bikes, cars, trucks, boats, aircraft (especially Aerodynes), that we can drive, keep, and customize. This, like the character customization, is one of those things that will keep me playing a game long after I have completed every thing else. Getting the vehicles I want, looking just the way I want them. And one small request... please for the love of god, give us a tool to arrange the garage ourselves... just a simple "move up/down" command would be enough. Above all other vehicles, we need a bad ass recumbent bike, like the one from Akira, and we need a Mad Max type muscle car... for the nomads you see...
5. An explorable world at least the size of San Andreas or Fallout New Vegas, with a huge ass city, and outside the city diverse terrain like San Andreas or RDR. Night City is enormous, but I hate in games where the map is just an island that is all city... there needs to be some desert wasteland at least... Because Nomads need to be represented in the game. Some people claim a bigger map is boring, I do not understand those people and believe something is wrong with them. I don't ever want to get tired of this world. However the world does also need to be explorable, enterable buildings, rooftop access, secret hideouts, all that good stuff.
6. A variety of weapons would also be good, some people like semi auto handguns, others like revolvers. Some people like to go melee, others like to go full on Rambo. Some martial arts would also be cool... hopefully something like Sleeping Dogs.
7. One or more overarching stories as the main driving force of the game, the story should be something we can get emotionally invested in. Cyberpunk needs a story that goes beyond being an excuse for the next killing spree. But beyond that there need to be just a ton of smaller story quests. The game should never feel linear. It should never feel like you are on rail road tracks. The main story lines are always there, but there should be plenty more to keep you busy. And mission replay is a must.
8. Choices within the story... they don't have to necessarily mean anything mechanically, though its nice when they do... but give us a choice how things proceed. Maybe I want to kill the target, maybe I want to let him live. Either way, its my character, let me have some say in how it unravels. Heck maybe it influences the way people react to me, how much vendors charge and what not... System limitations will definitely factor in to how much of an overall difference my choices make, I understand that... including different dialog options based on choices for everything could be a major hassle... But you should be allowed to play out the character according to the personality you give want for him.
9. Online CO-OP play... 4 players would be perfect, but even with just two it would be fine. To be honest I do NOT want multi-player, it wastes game resources and just never really seems to add anything. There are a ton of Shooters people can multi-play, many even have cyberpunk themes. But not every game needs them. Getting rid of Multi-player altogether to focus on c-op was one of the very few things Saints Row 3 did that I agreed with.
1. 3rd person perspective as default. By all means give us a first person perspective option, but the default should be 3rd person. When its done the other way around, like in the Fallout games, the character just looks goofy when they move, especially when they run or strafe. Plus, 3rd person allows me to see my awesome character.
2. Character Customization on par with Saints Row 2. (Gender, race, body type, face customization, tattoos, scars, layered clothing with many choices). Let me create my own character, a unique character, and do no limit my choices. The world of Cyberpunk is a melting pot of races and cultures. If you plan to include voices, limit it to two, one male, one female, speaking without discernable accent. If variety in voices is necessary, give us a tool to change the pitch of the voices.
2b) Customization differences by zone. For instance, in most of the city you would have standard options. Normal and edge wear clothes, but in Nomad areas the clothing would be leathers and football pads, the mad max/Fallout look. In a Corporate Section the clothing stores would offer suits and high end fashion.
2c) In addition to character appearance, it would be necessary to give us options that reflect the Roles. Solo's, Nomads, Medtechs, Fixers, etc... Roles should merely provide bonuses to certain skills. Players should be able to choose a Primary Role, but should be able to assign points to all the others as they see fit, as well as to skills. In addition, the Primary Role chosen should have an effect on how the story unfolds. The missions of the game remain the same, only for people with different roles, the order in which they come, and the objectives of the mission itself changes. For instance, if you are playing a Netrunner, one mission might have you trying to infiltrate a drug deal, using your hacking skills to record the entire thing for black mail. But if you are playing a Cop, your objective is to arrest the main dealer. Or if you are playing a Solo, your job is to protect the dealer from the cops who bust in. Or if you are playing a Nomad, you are the getaway driver for the dealer. The missions are all the same, but why you are there and what you are doing would change depending on your role and choices within the game. That way, even though the missions are exactly the same in subsequent play-thrus, it will always feel unique. Imagine how interesting this could get in a co-op style game?
2d) I also kind of like the idea that the Primary Role you choose might determine where you start the game... say if you are a Solo, you first appear at the airport, coming back from a job. If you are a Cop, you appear at the precinct. If you are a Nomad, you first appear outside the city and have to drive in...
2e) An OPTIONAL lifepath would also be nice, a randomly generated history for your character that may influence the way some NPC's react with you, maybe have an enemy that keeps randomly spawning and coming after you in the game, creates an event or encounter in the game, or maybe opens up options to your early.
2f) how awesome it would be if at various stages of the game, you could save a "character sheet" to the hard drive (if playing on a console), then transfer it to your PC and print it off. Or even be able to do it in reverse, take your favorite character, and input his stats and skills and lifepath in the game... maybe as a bonus that unlocks after you have beaten the game. That way you could truly merge the video game and the Pen and Paper game. .
3. Cybernetic options, several types of limbs, eyes, tech hair, glow tattoos, etc.... These should be cosmetic choices, and each one should give you at least the option of changing its colors. Any benefits cyber gives you, like being stronger, running faster, jumping higher, etc... should be a separate thing... and should work whether you have visible cyber or not.... because hey, just like the chick in the video, some of us real-skin our cyber sometimes. This way it won't eat up system limitations, and its an easy way to give us cake and let us eat it too.
4. It's a near future open world/sandbox game. There needs to be a decent assortment of vehicles, bikes, cars, trucks, boats, aircraft (especially Aerodynes), that we can drive, keep, and customize. This, like the character customization, is one of those things that will keep me playing a game long after I have completed every thing else. Getting the vehicles I want, looking just the way I want them. And one small request... please for the love of god, give us a tool to arrange the garage ourselves... just a simple "move up/down" command would be enough. Above all other vehicles, we need a bad ass recumbent bike, like the one from Akira, and we need a Mad Max type muscle car... for the nomads you see...
4b) Again, customization differences by zone, but for vehicles. For instance, in most of the city you would have the standard vehicle customizations. Things like colors, adding spoilers or different body options,speed/handling upgrades, window tinting, underglow whatever... But in nomad areas you would have those options plus things like adding steel plates, brush bars, barb wire trim... a rusted or dirty paint job. In a corporate section you get armor plating that doesn't change the outward appearance of the vehicle, bulletproof glass, maybe some James Bond gadgets.
5. An explorable world at least the size of San Andreas or Fallout New Vegas, with a huge ass city, and outside the city diverse terrain like San Andreas or RDR. Night City is enormous, but I hate in games where the map is just an island that is all city... there needs to be some desert wasteland at least... Because Nomads need to be represented in the game. Some people claim a bigger map is boring, I do not understand those people and believe something is wrong with them. I don't ever want to get tired of this world. However the world does also need to be explorable, enterable buildings, rooftop access, secret hideouts, all that good stuff.
5b) A proper sandbox is a world you never want to leave, even after the story is done. It must be heavily populated, it must feel alive. It must be more than just an arena to shoot things. The population has to feel like they are more than just pixels on a screen... and make you feel like part of a bigger world.
6. A variety of weapons would also be good, some people like semi auto handguns, others like revolvers. Some people like to go melee, others like to go full on Rambo. Some martial arts would also be cool... hopefully something like Sleeping Dogs.
7. One or more overarching stories as the main driving force of the game, the story should be something we can get emotionally invested in. Cyberpunk needs a story that goes beyond being an excuse for the next killing spree. But beyond that there need to be just a ton of smaller story quests. The game should never feel linear. It should never feel like you are on rail road tracks. The main story lines are always there, but there should be plenty more to keep you busy. And mission replay is a must.
7b) What would really be nice, is if after you beat the game, you could play it again without losing all your stuff. Sure you may not have access to it until you again unlock your various properties, but its all there when you do.
7c) The truth is, there is no hard set in stone way to run Cyberpunk 2020. Some people want to keep it very Gibsonesque. Others want more of an Appleseed or Ghost In The Shell feeling. Some people want Robocop, others want Mad Max. Some people, myself included, want it all. The reality is, Cyberpunk is nothing more than a setting. It's near future, dystopic but not post post apocalyptic, at least not totally. Advanced tech, but with the same old problems we live with every day. It's a world that is wholly relatable if not necessarily believable, and yet somehow foreign and strange all at the same time. That's what you have to capture as far as atmosphere goes.
8. Choices within the story... they don't have to necessarily mean anything mechanically, though its nice when they do... but give us a choice how things proceed. Maybe I want to kill the target, maybe I want to let him live. Either way, its my character, let me have some say in how it unravels. Heck maybe it influences the way people react to me, how much vendors charge and what not... System limitations will definitely factor in to how much of an overall difference my choices make, I understand that... including different dialog options based on choices for everything could be a major hassle... But you should be allowed to play out the character according to the personality you give want for him.
8b)The story shouldn't be some huge save the world thing... it shouldn't even be save the city. It should be more personal, more gutter. Sure you might ascend to that lofty glass and steel tower apartment... but no matter how badass your character is, how wealthy, how much crap he acquires, or what direction you take him, he should still feel like a small but hungry fish in a big pond.
9. Online CO-OP play... 4 players would be perfect, but even with just two it would be fine. To be honest I do NOT want multi-player, it wastes game resources and just never really seems to add anything. There are a ton of Shooters people can multi-play, many even have cyberpunk themes. But not every game needs them. Getting rid of Multi-player altogether to focus on c-op was one of the very few things Saints Row 3 did that I agreed with.
