It will be a continuation of V's story and it will take place in Chicago.
I hope they keep things with V mostly open ended but a mystery - at least never confirming they die or not. As my as I love my V and would play multiple games with them, I want a new character for the next game.
At this time, I think it'd be cool if they did it like the Dragon Age series. For every new game, a new main character.
At this time, I think it'd be cool if they did it like the Dragon Age series. For every new game, a new main character.
from my point of view is playing as already known character very limiting. It's better to play as a new chacacter and have all the advantages of new story same like in CP2077 with V. And then we can read or hear about V as about a legend of Afterlife. Thats enough for me.
It also giving the main sense to start as level 1 with new character than like a V. How you could start the new game as level 1 if you were elite killer and legend in previous game? And very different endings with one new ending directly from phantom liberty are the next problem. Actually only the new ending from phantom liberty could solve the level problem and start of the new story and whole new game with V....
It also giving the main sense to start as level 1 with new character than like a V. How you could start the new game as level 1 if you were elite killer and legend in previous game? And very different endings with one new ending directly from phantom liberty are the next problem. Actually only the new ending from phantom liberty could solve the level problem and start of the new story and whole new game with V....
The prologue could start where the player's chosen ending left off...V gets cured, but 'neutered' like in The Tower. Then a time skip, V gets a random call that claims to have a way to reverse the neutering...Act 1 begins.
I didn't vote in the poll because honestly, I don't know, this topic has come up before and I'm always a little conflicted.
If V's story is just Over, then they don't need to make a canon ending, V is just a legend, rumors are whispered and stories are told, but it gets to be vague so the player can still feel like choice mattered. Sure, some things might get a little weird world building wise, like if x person is still alive then Ending Y couldn't have happened.... but if they're clever they can mostly avoid that stuff.
If V is still the protagonist, then things get complicated. Is there a canon ending? that would be the easiest from CDPR's perspective, make on ending canon and that is the starting point of the game, but that feels a little crappy for fans who all have their favorite ending. Of course, they can leave that open ended but that can complicate the sequel, depending on your ending some characters die, Arasaka is weakened or thriving, and the world needs to account for that. So, if there is no canon ending what's the start point? is it left vague? Which brings us too...
Others have suggested that endings can replace life paths, so you pick which ending is "Your Ending" and that's the start point of this game.... but there are 5 endings not including Ones where V dies, or Johnny keeps the body.... So that's 5 possible start points they need to write, and depending on which one the story would need to change, some ways would be subtle others would be Huge. 6 start points if they get really crazy and let you do a Johnny in V's body run.
So back to why I can't really cast a vote... Part of me REALLY wants to see V's story continue I love the game, I think V is a great character and I like how their choices can affect the world for good, even if it's only a small scale I'd love to see some of that story carry over to orion, but that gets super complicated and part of me would rather a new protagonist with a very well written story and leaving V as just another NC legend. I'm also conflicted on if I actually want a canon ending or not in general, the part of me that likes player choice and letting people find their own meaning and answers in stories likes having any ending be canon if it's "YOUR ENDING", but the part of me that likes closure would really like an answer on what V's ultimate fate it. I'm probably leaning more towards a new protagonist, but it's like a 60/40 split so too close to call.
One thing I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT WANT, is a new protagonist, and V having a canon ending, that we don't get to see play out it's just something we hear about briefly, I also don't want V as an NPC, SWTOR did that with Revan, and while part of me really enjoyed the story they told, part of me understands why making a "Defined Revan" and a canon story, upset so many fans, it felt like "Their Revan" didn't count any more.
If V's story is just Over, then they don't need to make a canon ending, V is just a legend, rumors are whispered and stories are told, but it gets to be vague so the player can still feel like choice mattered. Sure, some things might get a little weird world building wise, like if x person is still alive then Ending Y couldn't have happened.... but if they're clever they can mostly avoid that stuff.
If V is still the protagonist, then things get complicated. Is there a canon ending? that would be the easiest from CDPR's perspective, make on ending canon and that is the starting point of the game, but that feels a little crappy for fans who all have their favorite ending. Of course, they can leave that open ended but that can complicate the sequel, depending on your ending some characters die, Arasaka is weakened or thriving, and the world needs to account for that. So, if there is no canon ending what's the start point? is it left vague? Which brings us too...
Others have suggested that endings can replace life paths, so you pick which ending is "Your Ending" and that's the start point of this game.... but there are 5 endings not including Ones where V dies, or Johnny keeps the body.... So that's 5 possible start points they need to write, and depending on which one the story would need to change, some ways would be subtle others would be Huge. 6 start points if they get really crazy and let you do a Johnny in V's body run.
So back to why I can't really cast a vote... Part of me REALLY wants to see V's story continue I love the game, I think V is a great character and I like how their choices can affect the world for good, even if it's only a small scale I'd love to see some of that story carry over to orion, but that gets super complicated and part of me would rather a new protagonist with a very well written story and leaving V as just another NC legend. I'm also conflicted on if I actually want a canon ending or not in general, the part of me that likes player choice and letting people find their own meaning and answers in stories likes having any ending be canon if it's "YOUR ENDING", but the part of me that likes closure would really like an answer on what V's ultimate fate it. I'm probably leaning more towards a new protagonist, but it's like a 60/40 split so too close to call.
One thing I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT WANT, is a new protagonist, and V having a canon ending, that we don't get to see play out it's just something we hear about briefly, I also don't want V as an NPC, SWTOR did that with Revan, and while part of me really enjoyed the story they told, part of me understands why making a "Defined Revan" and a canon story, upset so many fans, it felt like "Their Revan" didn't count any more.
Oh really? What do you know what everybody else don’t know? ^^
I definitely agree with you on most of your points. I loved playing as V and a part of me has always wanted their story to continue. However, the endings of Cyberpunk 2077 just make it so difficult for me to see V returning as the protagonist.
For example, I love the Star ending of the first game. V makes the decision to leave Night City for good and from a narrative perspective, it is the resolution of their arc in the game, as much of themes of the game revolve around how Night City is sort of like the true villain of the world. Because of their decision to leave, I do not want to see "Star" V show up back as a protagonist or as an in-game character if it is set in Night City because it would go against the impact of the "Star" ending.
My favorite ending is the Sun ending. In that ending, V is coming to terms with their mortality and I love the dialogue where V talks about finding purpose to all the events that occurred, which is what continually drives them to go after bigger and bigger jobs. I like that the ending leaves off with V about to start perhaps the biggest job ever and you're left wondering whether they'll pull it off, and more importantly, when they do die, will they feel like their life mattered. The emotional beats of finding purpose in their last moments hits my heart heavily, and having them find a cure and be OK in the sequel would probably ruin that ending for me.
An option I thought of is that Orion could feature a choice between two protagonists, either V or a new character, based off of which ending was chosen in the first game. Specifically, the only V that can be played in Orion would be the V that makes the most sense to still be alive in Night City and in my opinion, it would be a V that chose to be an engram and stored in Mikoshi (I guess the Phantom Liberty ending V is also alive, but it is stressed that they can no longer be a merc). The Devil V never became a legend to the public (so there's room for character development), and they could use this V playthrough as the world state for Arasaka still being in power. In contrast, a new protagonist would be used if you chose the Star, Sun, or Temperance endings, featuring a heavily diminished Arasaka in the world state.
I admit, even in the above scenarios I find it to be a stretch because I can't see why Hanako would earnestly find a body for V. Additionally, I imagine the Devil ending is probably the least favorite among players would want to continue as V. However, from a continuity perspective, this is the only ending that I personally see as having potential to return (because the first game stresses that V is dying if they choose to keep their body in the Star and Sun endings). Assuming that the V that chose to store themselves in Mikoshi loses their relationships and never gains reputation, it's also the V that can have a fresh start as a protagonist.
Lastly, the only V that I would be OK showing up as an NPC would be an evolved AI V from the Temperance ending. That ending makes it clear that if V chooses to join Alt, they will most likely change (it deals with the theme of choosing survival even if it means losing your original self). So if I play Orion and encounter this AI version of V, I personally wouldn't mind even if that V felt different.
All things considered, the choice I chose for the poll is a new character, with references to V depending on your choices in the first game. As much as I enjoyed playing as V, after playing Phantom Liberty, it just seems clear to me that CDPR is probably going to move on from V, and I've come to terms with it.
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I can see scenarios where V survives in All endings (Except for the ones where they clearly explicitly die).
The Sun Ending: Mr. Blue Eyes comes through with a cure for V, after a successful heist, as a side note, the heist being the opening mission of Orion and V dealing with the fall out could actually be fun... but the issue is where exactly does it go from there, is it the fallout from the heist(Again) or does the cure have a nasty side effect? or what.
The Star Eding: The Aldecaldos use their contacts in other corps to help reverse or at least stop the degradation of V's body this is somewhat hinted at as a bit of a long shot in that ending but could happen. But then the question is why does V return to NC? assuming the game takes place in NC which feels most likely.
The Devil Ending: Arasaka wakes V up and inserts them into a new host, This would actually make a bit of sense as to why you would be making a "New V" in the character creator, plus it would leave Arasaka as top dog in the corpo world, but if Arasaka is who saves V who is the antagonist? Arasaka is generally set up as the most powerful but also most "Evil" corp, so now we work for them? I'm assuming they would only bring V back for a reason. There is also the Variation of this ending where V goes back to earth, But I feel like that scenario has the lowest chance of survival of all endings and variations.
The Tower Ending: This one is obvious, V lives in that ending, just severely weakened by not being able to use most combat cyberware. Of course there are a bunch of theories this was purposeful because the NUSA sees V as a threat so they get to keep their word and remove a threat from the board. This also means theoretically V can get that power back, assuming the NUSA tampered with V on purpose, it can be undone for a sequel.
There are plenty of ways to make V's return make sense, the issue is where do we go from there and Is there a canon ending or not? They could always pull a Rise of Skywalker and just be like "Somehow V Returned" and ignore the previous games ending all together, but that would suck, and they can give the player the option to choose which ending they start from, TW3 did something similar with that one scene where you pick which choices your Geralt made in the last game, but how much will those choices effect the sequel, will certain content be locked ? does it have a large impact on the corpo power structure?
The issue for me is, I can see all of these things working in some ways, But I can also see the potential to mess it up or alienate a group of people by making only one ending canon. Thats why I'm torn on it, the safer choice is have a new protagonist, and have V just be a myth people talk about. Even that approach will probably need to tie up a few loose ends from CP2077, but it leaves things the most open. So, it's probably for the best.... But I'm not gonna lie if there is a new story with V at the center, I'm still gonna play it and I'd be very curious how it works out part of me even wants to see how their story really ends.
The Sun Ending: Mr. Blue Eyes comes through with a cure for V, after a successful heist, as a side note, the heist being the opening mission of Orion and V dealing with the fall out could actually be fun... but the issue is where exactly does it go from there, is it the fallout from the heist(Again) or does the cure have a nasty side effect? or what.
The Star Eding: The Aldecaldos use their contacts in other corps to help reverse or at least stop the degradation of V's body this is somewhat hinted at as a bit of a long shot in that ending but could happen. But then the question is why does V return to NC? assuming the game takes place in NC which feels most likely.
The Devil Ending: Arasaka wakes V up and inserts them into a new host, This would actually make a bit of sense as to why you would be making a "New V" in the character creator, plus it would leave Arasaka as top dog in the corpo world, but if Arasaka is who saves V who is the antagonist? Arasaka is generally set up as the most powerful but also most "Evil" corp, so now we work for them? I'm assuming they would only bring V back for a reason. There is also the Variation of this ending where V goes back to earth, But I feel like that scenario has the lowest chance of survival of all endings and variations.
The Tower Ending: This one is obvious, V lives in that ending, just severely weakened by not being able to use most combat cyberware. Of course there are a bunch of theories this was purposeful because the NUSA sees V as a threat so they get to keep their word and remove a threat from the board. This also means theoretically V can get that power back, assuming the NUSA tampered with V on purpose, it can be undone for a sequel.
There are plenty of ways to make V's return make sense, the issue is where do we go from there and Is there a canon ending or not? They could always pull a Rise of Skywalker and just be like "Somehow V Returned" and ignore the previous games ending all together, but that would suck, and they can give the player the option to choose which ending they start from, TW3 did something similar with that one scene where you pick which choices your Geralt made in the last game, but how much will those choices effect the sequel, will certain content be locked ? does it have a large impact on the corpo power structure?
The issue for me is, I can see all of these things working in some ways, But I can also see the potential to mess it up or alienate a group of people by making only one ending canon. Thats why I'm torn on it, the safer choice is have a new protagonist, and have V just be a myth people talk about. Even that approach will probably need to tie up a few loose ends from CP2077, but it leaves things the most open. So, it's probably for the best.... But I'm not gonna lie if there is a new story with V at the center, I'm still gonna play it and I'd be very curious how it works out part of me even wants to see how their story really ends.
A. Continue V story after The Tower ending ( "Don't throw away old shoes" )
After all, Rosalind Myers promised V a date while V promised to vote for her in the election... (Reed promised beer! ))
It's time to make good on your promises.
B. Continue V story as a "Bargest" officer ( "Don't you just love girls in uniform?!" )
Operation "The Last Ritual - Farewell to Voodoo." ( "The real men don't use stealth mode" )
Operation "Pacific Storm". ( An old rocket launcher and a railgun - what more does a man need to be happy? or what do we know about real fun in Night City ).
C. Continue V story as a wild AI ( "From now on, mankind is an endangered species!" )
a. Alt Cunningham version. ( "Kneel for the queen!" )
b. Songbird version. ( "This Everlasting Bittersweet Taste of Betrayal." )
Within the proposed choice - Arasaka ending, as I can mentally see V looking melancholically through a laser scope at the dozens of gullible "Afterlife" mercenaries flying towards the orbital casino, duped by Mr. Blue Eyes ))
After all, Rosalind Myers promised V a date while V promised to vote for her in the election... (Reed promised beer! ))
It's time to make good on your promises.
B. Continue V story as a "Bargest" officer ( "Don't you just love girls in uniform?!" )
Operation "The Last Ritual - Farewell to Voodoo." ( "The real men don't use stealth mode" )
Operation "Pacific Storm". ( An old rocket launcher and a railgun - what more does a man need to be happy? or what do we know about real fun in Night City ).
C. Continue V story as a wild AI ( "From now on, mankind is an endangered species!" )
a. Alt Cunningham version. ( "Kneel for the queen!" )
b. Songbird version. ( "This Everlasting Bittersweet Taste of Betrayal." )
Within the proposed choice - Arasaka ending, as I can mentally see V looking melancholically through a laser scope at the dozens of gullible "Afterlife" mercenaries flying towards the orbital casino, duped by Mr. Blue Eyes ))
New story, i liked how Edgerunners and Cyberpunk 2077 was about slices of lifes, we follow some people during their life and then they disapear, it brings something precious.
I voted for a completely new story, thinking about what makes sequels successful. There's an element of discovery, new characters/environments/abilities/etc that is needed to keep the experience feeling fresh and new. You see it in show series; when does the next new season of a running show start to lose your interest? It happens when that feeling of newness and discovery runs out.
I just realized that all of these ending could be written as Alt having manipulated events all along.
The Devil and Tower ending are the easiest to combine with V being back to level 1 at the start of the game. In the devil they get inserted into a new body and have to retrain all of their skills. In the Tower version it could turn out that V.s body has healed enough to have cyberware again, or some experimental surgery was used.
Both of them could have mercs hired by Alt via a shell company being the ones to get V back into the solo life.
In the case of the Sun and Star ending it could be that V dies again, only to once again be brought back to life several years later. Maybe Alt used the engram copy she already made to infuse your mind in a new body, with a new job to do for her.
That's doesn't matter, the level/skills of V are not part of the story, it's just for gameplay purposes. They can just let us get 4 or 5 perks, and some T1 cyberware during the character creation so V doesn't feel like a rookie.
No needs of Alt, we don't even know if V really dies:
- The Star: ok i think V dies after being happy a few month with Aldecados. that's how i see this ending.
- The Sun: we don't know what's the deal with MR Blue Eyes, but we know he already helped Songbird with a "similar" problem (if you helped Songbird ofc).
I was thinking more from a setting up the plot standpoint. Kind of like how all lifepaths start out heading in the same direction, the Heist.
Having it be the same entity being responsible for V getting back into the action no matter how you ended CP2077 simplifies things.
Alt fits the bill for such an entity since they are an outsider who is obviously working their own angle.
Technically you could have a Corp fill the same function, but as I said, Alt is an outsider and that would explain why they would want to work with a merc they know from before.
Once you have resolved how to get all the previous endings to work towards the same early game goal you can expand on that story wise.
Alt doesn't care about us, we are nothing for her, and she already tried to help us (or maybe she was just lying just to get access to mikoshi, like songbird did for the neural matrix).
I doubt they make all (or almost) endings canon if we play V again.
Sure, but Alt knows V and we know from Delamain that AI.s can have preferences regarding who they work with.
I honestly don't think they will make the game with V at all, this is just me spit balling ideas for making it work with all the different endings.
I would not be surprise that V survive with the deal of Mr Blue Eyes after the Crystal Palace heist, and Songbird replace johnny as a side character "hologram" like in the expansion (cause having Johnny with us, and reacting to the story/quests was really a nice idea, and this doesn't need an AI and let you play alone the way you want).
But really bad idea for those who don't like The Sun ending and Songbird lol.
I'd prefer it if they did not make any specific ending canon, although I could see them removing some possibilities (suicide and giving your body to Johnny).
Other than that, better to find a workaround that allows for all endings leading to the same starting point, would make for great story telling.
Why would you like all endings (or almost), to be cannon, when in game you decide to end the story ?
The Star: end of V's life as a merc in Night City.
The Devil: who really think Arasaka is going to help us ?
The Tower: you becomes Mr/Ms nobody, like Dex said.
The only ending that is really open for a sequel is The Sun IMO.