River

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Is this really all we get with river ward when it comes to romance? Why is he so short in comparison to say, Judy who is all over V's adventure. :(
I couldn't agree more. I was also really disappointed that you do not get the choice to stay with River at the end either. It is like you end up in a long distance relationship even though you wanted to stay in Night City with him. The only ending that really seems to keep a permanent romance partner right through the ending is with Pan. Really if the endings are not going to include staying together with your chosen partner, why bother romancing at all.
 
I couldn't agree more. I was also really disappointed that you do not get the choice to stay with River at the end either. It is like you end up in a long distance relationship even though you wanted to stay in Night City with him. The only ending that really seems to keep a permanent romance partner right through the ending is with Pan. Really if the endings are not going to include staying together with your chosen partner, why bother romancing at all.

Honestly it feels like River romance was added the last minute. Devs woke up and realized that maybe some people will not want to romance Judy or Panam. So they slap together the shortest romance arc in the history of RPG. After all, they clearly cathered to male gamer population anyway.
 
I like the river date a lot but yeah... Now he's just sitting there lazily, watching his lawn while his sister floats through the air taking smoke breaks and her kids just stand silently in their room looking at the wall! I second the bromance idea tho! Let us invite people into bars to drink and hang out! I mean, once they added drinking/eating as things that not just happen in dialogues or the inventory anyways:D
So glad that's a thing for everyone. The kids creepily standing through the center of the beds, jambalaya spoons clipped to their hands just staring at a wall? So creepy! I thought his whole family was just glitched. Also, I haven't seen Joss at ALL since I left the morning after but she sure texts me a lot.
 
So glad that's a thing for everyone. The kids creepily standing through the center of the beds, jambalaya spoons clipped to their hands just staring at a wall? So creepy! I thought his whole family was just glitched. Also, I haven't seen Joss at ALL since I left the morning after but she sure texts me a lot.

Check... the trailer park surroundings! I've seen her float around a few times, taking smoke breaks. Really, a weird family!
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Honestly it feels like River romance was added the last minute. Devs woke up and realized that maybe some people will not want to romance Judy or Panam. So they slap together the shortest romance arc in the history of RPG. After all, they clearly cathered to male gamer population anyway.

Tbh, I didn't see the other ones yet but there was this one instance of the River romance being awesome - when you're supposed to get a boost from him to open the Water Tower gate, just hop over the fence if you have cyberlegs and hes actually GOING TO REACT TO IT! That was really awesome to me.
 
I've been calling River and going over to his place at least once a day just to see if anything changes, but apparently that's it. I got some texts from him talking about a "round two" but when I go over the only option to talk about is the worst gangs according to the NCPD (I've already exhausted all the other options).

It's such a shame that there's one intense night and then.....nothing. Honestly I'd have preferred if we weren't able to romance him at all rather than leaving us hanging like this.
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I like the river date a lot but yeah... Now he's just sitting there lazily, watching his lawn while his sister floats through the air taking smoke breaks and her kids just stand silently in their room looking at the wall! I second the bromance idea tho! Let us invite people into bars to drink and hang out! I mean, once they added drinking/eating as things that not just happen in dialogues or the inventory anyways:D
I checked their room the morning after just to see if I could chat with them at all, but what I got was something straight out of the Blair Witch Project.
 
All of these 'romancers' feel short.
Like right when I actually fell for Judy, the game just stopped, in the most disrespectful way possible, by telling me to 'come visit her' just to be in able to repeat the same three lines I had from the start of the game.

Undercooked CDPR, undercooked.a
 
It’s almost like it’s rubbing it in your face when you get the text that you can go stash things at his place.

Yeah, lemme drop off my gear, just gotta dodge around the River that’s melded to his porch steps and try to ignore the creepy room where the children are doing their unending shift of silent, unmoving wall staring.
 
All of these 'romancers' feel short.
Like right when I actually fell for Judy, the game just stopped, in the most disrespectful way possible, by telling me to 'come visit her' just to be in able to repeat the same three lines I had from the start of the game.

Undercooked CDPR, undercooked.a

I have discovered, through much extended play, that there is at least 1 change to her dialogue when you visit. She also texts you and eventually gifts you an iconic weapon if you let enough days pass.

But yes some more conversation trees for after you have romanced them would be great. Two options in particular I'd like to see; the booty call option (I'd be happy with a fade to black then resolve in the bed naked, don't need another whole sex scene animation), and a "I need hugs" option where you can just cuddle. V can have some pretty shitty days after all (the River quest line is an example).

I'd also like the option to decline other romances at appropriate points by saying "I'm in a relationship" to the new person, rather than the hard friend zoning you give them. (Friend zoned River last night.)
 
I felt there were missed opportunities for more quests within a lot of the stories too.

River's sister for instance. It was kinda cute when she asked if V was single, etc. They could have done something more with that, but it just suddenly stops. It feels like sometimes there was supposed to be more to the storylines, like they aren't fully fleshed out or were rushed.

I completely agree, there was something about meeting the sister, and the sister being kind of cute that made me think it was a possibility. It would have felt natural to have V (of either sex) sleep with her.

I actually tried a few times to see if there was additional content, but nope.
 
There is only one dialogue written for River (looks like it, I'm currently playing as fem V so we'll see) and I think that's a problem when it comes to romance. In my first playthrough I really liked River and his story/missions, but I was playing as male V and oh boy... the whole dialogue felt really like it was leading to a romance option, maybe mistakenly as I'm a gay guy myself, maybe going to the water tower at night to watch city lights, share drinks and give each other presents in this romantic atmosphere is something straight dudes actually do as friends (xD!) but when he rejected me I was really sad and litterally had to have a break till the next day to be ready to continue the story. Like, I don't really understand why he isn't an option for any V body type, it's just a game, not real life. And that was actually a good time to change the stereotype of a gay guy, which Kerry completely fills. That's hands down every single gay guy in any RPG, Dorian for example in DA:I - flamboyant, wearing avant garde clothes, witty dialogues, fancy facial hair, feminine at times - which is not true for gay guys in real life, they are different on the contrary what RPG games tend to present, every single time they put up a gay romance option.

So to sum up, yeah, an option would be cool. Making him more relevant story-wise also, as I feel that the game endings were designed around Panam, who is actually a great character too and no wonder everybody likes her. I just think that River (regardless whether straight or bi) and Kerry lack. Even Judy seems to have a nice ending, even if she can't assist in the final mission.
 
There is only one dialogue written for River (looks like it, I'm currently playing as fem V so we'll see) and I think that's a problem when it comes to romance. In my first playthrough I really liked River and his story/missions, but I was playing as male V and oh boy... the whole dialogue felt really like it was leading to a romance option, maybe mistakenly as I'm a gay guy myself, maybe going to the water tower at night to watch city lights, share drinks and give each other presents in this romantic atmosphere is something straight dudes actually do as friends (xD!) but when he rejected me I was really sad and litterally had to have a break till the next day to be ready to continue the story. Like, I don't really understand why he isn't an option for any V body type, it's just a game, not real life. And that was actually a good time to change the stereotype of a gay guy, which Kerry completely fills. That's hands down every single gay guy in any RPG, Dorian for example in DA:I - flamboyant, wearing avant garde clothes, witty dialogues, fancy facial hair, feminine at times - which is not true for gay guys in real life, they are different on the contrary what RPG games tend to present, every single time they put up a gay romance option.

So to sum up, yeah, an option would be cool. Making him more relevant story-wise also, as I feel that the game endings were designed around Panam, who is actually a great character too and no wonder everybody likes her. I just think that River (regardless whether straight or bi) and Kerry lack. Even Judy seems to have a nice ending, even if she can't assist in the final mission.
It shows their laziness. It's the same with Kerry. You get a chance to kiss Kerry during the balcony mission. I was playing Fem V. Ofcourse he says no. But the mission right after. Burning the yatch down. He STILL leans over for you to kiss him. They just have the audio line to say no again. Instead of removing the lean over completely. River's water tower moment should have been removed and changed around. So he can gift you the gun still. But at the dinner table. It's weird as hell. You can reject River like at 5 points on his advances. You can even PLAY with his emotions. By saying yes, than no. But they can't be bothered to have a different scene to cover up the Water tower?
 
Like, I don't really understand why he isn't an option for any V body type, it's just a game, not real life.

I thought about this a lot after first reading a comment like this, and I'm now firmly on the "they should have preferences" side of the argument. The NPCs should have a sexual preference - its part of what makes them a whole person and more believable. It becomes a problem when that isn't better structured into their dialogue choices.

I think the problem is one of resources. There are millions of lines of dialogue in the game, many with branching choices. The romanceable characters are all written as if the romance is the expected outcome, then options to opt out for the player or the NPC are included to set preferences for both the player and the NPC. For the minor romance options (ie characters introduced through side quests) it is not surprising that less time was dedicated to their conversations and how they work through the game.

In looking at the Panam relationship, having completed it as male and female V, there are significant differences in the options you are given at certain points in her conversations - especially noticeable when getting the train. When you go into the tower and have done all the mission tasks as female V you just leave the tower, but as male V there is a whole conversation you can have with her there. Similarly there are options just missing from the campfire scene for female V. This shows that they know what to do to reduce confusion, which implies they simply didn't have the resources to iron all this out for all the romanceable characters (or even to add more options).
 
I thought about this a lot after first reading a comment like this, and I'm now firmly on the "they should have preferences" side of the argument. The NPCs should have a sexual preference - its part of what makes them a whole person and more believable. It becomes a problem when that isn't better structured into their dialogue choices.

I think the problem is one of resources. There are millions of lines of dialogue in the game, many with branching choices. The romanceable characters are all written as if the romance is the expected outcome, then options to opt out for the player or the NPC are included to set preferences for both the player and the NPC. For the minor romance options (ie characters introduced through side quests) it is not surprising that less time was dedicated to their conversations and how they work through the game.

In looking at the Panam relationship, having completed it as male and female V, there are significant differences in the options you are given at certain points in her conversations - especially noticeable when getting the train. When you go into the tower and have done all the mission tasks as female V you just leave the tower, but as male V there is a whole conversation you can have with her there. Similarly there are options just missing from the campfire scene for female V. This shows that they know what to do to reduce confusion, which implies they simply didn't have the resources to iron all this out for all the romanceable characters (or even to add more options).

That was really interesting to learn about the relationship with Panam. I didn't know that. I wonder if they'd had more time, would they have added more to the other romance options. I like that they gave the characters preferences also. It was a bold move, but it made them less generic in their NPCness by not being player-sexual. It would be great if they could refine things further with some of these characters.
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I have discovered, through much extended play, that there is at least 1 change to her dialogue when you visit. She also texts you and eventually gifts you an iconic weapon if you let enough days pass.

But yes some more conversation trees for after you have romanced them would be great. Two options in particular I'd like to see; the booty call option (I'd be happy with a fade to black then resolve in the bed naked, don't need another whole sex scene animation), and a "I need hugs" option where you can just cuddle. V can have some pretty shitty days after all (the River quest line is an example).

I'd also like the option to decline other romances at appropriate points by saying "I'm in a relationship" to the new person, rather than the hard friend zoning you give them. (Friend zoned River last night.)

Those ideas would be great additions to the game. *sigh*
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I've been calling River and going over to his place at least once a day just to see if anything changes, but apparently that's it. I got some texts from him talking about a "round two" but when I go over the only option to talk about is the worst gangs according to the NCPD (I've already exhausted all the other options).

It's such a shame that there's one intense night and then.....nothing. Honestly I'd have preferred if we weren't able to romance him at all rather than leaving us hanging like this.
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I checked their room the morning after just to see if I could chat with them at all, but what I got was something straight out of the Blair Witch Project.

I really don't understand why they'd have him say generic stuff like that when you go back to talk to him. If he could have been given a few encouraging and romantic lines, it would have taken the sting out of him forever being confined to the porch. Even though the River romance was short, I like that it was there. I just found it to be really sweet moment in dark, gritty world V resides in. V's relationships/friendships are a welcome respite.
 
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So I don't hear from river after the sex scene and he just sits all moody in front of his house. Then I go back to the first message he sent after that night, and see he mentions having a drawer for me at his place "for something more comfortable or a box of grenades". I figure it's a long shot but I put a sexy bra, hot pants, tank top and a few grenades in the stash.

I'm barely out of the neighborhood and Joss calls to say she'd love to have me as part of the family. Few minutes later River texts, thanking me for coming over, how he misses me already and he's so happy these days having amazing V in his life. Says he has a few ideas for another romantic night, V'd be begging for more. I guess that's something.

But now I'm getting the silent treatment again. I don't think it's bugged, per se. I just think there are certain things V has to do to get a response from him? Maybe?
 
People who romanced River or Kerry were done dirty. Come on, games aren't just for guys, us women want cool romances for our characters too.
Really, are Bioware still the only ones who can write proper romance? ME:A had a lot of problems and the companions weren't that great cpmpared to their other games, but at least you could interact with them regularly and form a lasting relationship.
 
So I don't hear from river after the sex scene and he just sits all moody in front of his house. Then I go back to the first message he sent after that night, and see he mentions having a drawer for me at his place "for something more comfortable or a box of grenades". I figure it's a long shot but I put a sexy bra, hot pants, tank top and a few grenades in the stash.

I'm barely out of the neighborhood and Joss calls to say she'd love to have me as part of the family. Few minutes later River texts, thanking me for coming over, how he misses me already and he's so happy these days having amazing V in his life. Says he has a few ideas for another romantic night, V'd be begging for more. I guess that's something.

But now I'm getting the silent treatment again. I don't think it's bugged, per se. I just think there are certain things V has to do to get a response from him? Maybe?

Nope, that's the end of it as far as I've seen. Those texts about the "round 2" and the texts from Joss is the end of it. I didn't put anything in any drawers there so that's not it. I think it's just after a certain period that you receive those messages, though I received mine like 5+ in-game days later.
 
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