Save the date: Night City Wire - Episode 5

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Good to hear the trailers were more about flash and pizaz. It seems there's plenty of stuff to counterbalance it.
 
We'll see come Dec 10.

Combat is a big part of many (most?) games, even RPGs. The question is: Is there enough non-combat content to justify the claim "RPG first, shooter second"? If half your playtime is combat then no, it's neither. The problem is CDPR wants CP2077 to appeal to both RPG and FPS fans, and unfortunately this is impossible because of diametrically opposed game mechanics, player vs character centric skills. So it's a matter of trying not to alienate one faction or the other, problem is it's VERY easy to unintentionally alienate both.
Obviously I don't know :)

But you can watch this, to me at least it sounds like you are not forced into combat constantly as in many other action games, but that it is more story driven and with focus on RPG, dialogs etc. if that is what you prefer:
 
To me it sounded like they were saying you have to go and look to pick a fight when traversing the city from point to point. As opposed to various other "RPGs" where there are random baddies all over the place in your path at every turn. I did not take it to mean there isn't a healthy dose of combat opportunities. They're just more focused in terms of location and circumstances.

From a realism perspective it makes sense. Even in a dystopian future people probably wouldn't be trying to assault, rob or kill other people in the middle of the street. Some might. Most people performing these actions would need to be provoked or would pick their spot to carry them out. Chances are the few blatantly performing these actions out in the open, in the proverbial jungle, would bite off more than they could chew eventually.

I could be wrong....
 
When all the character systems are more or less about combat, you can rest assured combat is the main dish of gameplay.
Alongside the narrative of course.
Watch the first Vid and they say they didn`t have combat unless they went looking for it
To me it sounded like they were saying you have to go and look to pick a fight when traversing the city from point to point. As opposed to various other "RPGs" where there are random baddies all over the place in your path at every turn.
While is does sound like much of the combat is optional (either you have to look for it or you can stealth to bypass it) @kofeiiniturpa 's point that all the skills in CO2077 are combat related (either weapon perks or crafting to make better weapons) is telling. Combat may be "optional" but it's the sole focus of the games skill system. While the lack of "random encounters" while travelling is a very good thing it still doesn't change that.
 
While is does sound like much of the combat is optional (either you have to look for it or you can stealth past it) @kofeiiniturpa 's point that all the skills in CO2077 are combat related (either weapon perks or crafting to make better weapons) is telling. Combat may be "optional" but it's the sole focus of the games skill system. While the lack of "random encounters" while travelling is a very good thing it still doesn't change that.
Seems like it, but dialog seem to be linked to your stats or at least some of them. So could be a pretty good way of doing it.
 
While is does sound like much of the combat is optional (either you have to look for it or you can stealth to bypass it) @kofeiiniturpa 's point that all the skills in CO2077 are combat related (either weapon perks or crafting to make better weapons) is telling. Combat may be "optional" but it's the sole focus of the games skill system. While the lack of "random encounters" while travelling is a very good thing it still doesn't change that.

Oh, the point is certainly valid from a logical perspective. I don't think it's safe to assume the progression system appearing highly combat centric means the game will feature an absurd amount of combat though. What makes sense and what happens aren't always one in the same :).

I'm not sure it's even safe to assume the progression system is combat centric either. Based on appearances it has looked this way. Yet, I can't shake the feeling they're making different elements in the progression system multifunctional like other recent games. In the sense a specific attribute might imply combat but cover unrelated tasks elsewhere.

It's also possible the non-combat oriented abilities have a much greater impact than anyone would expect. In a way where they don't dominate the progression in quantity but can greatly influence the gameplay.

Put differently, I think people are looking at the progression, and possibly other areas of the game, too rigidly. It's a binary perspective. X or Y, A or B. I get the feeling it's not going to play out this way. Instead it's going to be A, B, C and D. With a great deal of overlap not only for individual progression elements but among them. At least, I hope so.
 
While is does sound like much of the combat is optional (either you have to look for it or you can stealth to bypass it) @kofeiiniturpa 's point that all the skills in CO2077 are combat related (either weapon perks or crafting to make better weapons) is telling. Combat may be "optional" but it's the sole focus of the games skill system. While the lack of "random encounters" while travelling is a very good thing it still doesn't change that.
We got a snippet of Reflexes and Tech Abilities. Can you point me where they showed all the skills for Body, Intelligence, and Cool? I didn't find any mention of all skills being combat related anywhere.

Reflexes.jpg


techabilities.jpg
 
We got a snippet of Reflexes and Tech Abilities. Can you point me where they showed all the skills for Body, Intelligence, and Cool? I didn't find any mention of all skills being combat related anywhere.
Previous game demo footage.
 
Guess I'm just gonna have to take your word for it as I can't find any demo footage that shows all ingame skills.
 
It was a good final show before release. I like how the episode mentioned the music and how varied the score and soundtrack seems to be. The one radio DJ you heard talking seemed cool too. Reminiscent of Lazlow from the GTA series.
 
It’s explained here.
Hmm.. thanks. This disproves what @Suhiira claimed about all skills being combat related. For example, Intelligence appears to be focused on hacking only, and while I'm sure it will have its uses in combat, even in the video included there the author clearly states hacking is for non-combat builds specifically. So to make a claim that all skills are combat oriented, I think is misguided. He also mentioned 240 perks available in the game, without talking about them all. Are we also jumping to conclusion that all of (non Int perks anyway) them are combat perks?

I think I'd rather wait for the game, and discover it all on my own.
 
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Hmm.. thanks. This disproves what @Suhiira claimed about all skills being combat related.
Not at all.

While hacking does have applications with regard to B&E it's ALSO a form of attack. Take control of their cyberware and make them shoot themselfves go blind, etc.

OK, OK, not 100% of skills are directly combat related ... "merely" 90%+.
 
91,7%.
Nearing what I would consider the absolute maximum to-hit-chance for any character in a combat situation.
Once upon a time ...
While playing an RPG my character snuck up behind a guard and put a handgun in his face (literally, I had the muzzle on his nose) then pulled the trigger ... and ... "click" ... weapon malfunction ... one of my all-time "best" die rolls!
 
We'll see come Dec 10.

Combat is a big part of many (most?) games, even RPGs. The question is: Is there enough non-combat content to justify the claim "RPG first, shooter second"? If half your playtime is combat then no, it's neither. The problem is CDPR wants CP2077 to appeal to both RPG and FPS fans, and unfortunately this is impossible because of diametrically opposed game mechanics, player vs character centric skills. So it's a matter of trying not to alienate one faction or the other, problem is it's VERY easy to unintentionally alienate both.
One of the reviews talked about how you would go long periods without combat if you weren't actively seeking it out. They specifically talked about how since it's a city, there aren't random enemies waiting to attack you for no reason every 100 meters. Sounded refreshing.

EDIT: Here's the relevant quote from IGNs final preview Thursday.
If there’s perhaps one thing I want you to take away from this preview, it’s how different Cyberpunk 2077 feels to play than many of the games it can be compared to. This is, without a shadow of a doubt, an RPG – and despite the FPS combat full of fancy weapons, its pace is otherwise slow and deliberate. But even then, it’s not like other open world RPGs like Fallout 4 or The Witcher 3 thanks to one extremely important difference: combat is not an inherent part of travel. By that I mean getting from point A to point B in many open worlds is often full of enemies to fight on the way. Sure, you can stick to the roads or try to run right by them, but you still risk getting waylaid by bandits on the way to your real goal.

Cyberpunk 2077 takes place in a city. A violent, dystopian nightmare of a city, sure, but still a city, meaning travel itself feels closer to something like GTA despite the structure around it feeling more like Fallout. As a result, I could sometimes go hours at a time without ever drawing a weapon, completing missions just by having conversations and sneaking around a bit. Fights can be found around almost any corner, with bounties to collect or gangs to attack at the drop of a hat, but you sort of have to go looking for trouble between big quest encounters if you want it instead of it coming to you naturally. It’s a crucial difference in the feel of this world, and one that feeds into how much its focus is truly on both story and player choice.

And frankly, I didn’t mind those larger chunks of quiet. They were slower, but not at all in a way where it felt like things were dragging. Besides, combat itself is probably one of Cyberpunk 2077’s weaker points. It’s certainly not bad, but if you’re playing this like a straight FPS then you’ll probably be disappointed. The most jarring thing about it is that enemies have a surprising amount of health, often acting as bullet sponges that can take multiple point blank shots to the head before going down for good. This led me to prefer sneaky takedowns where I could manage them, but stealth on its own doesn’t have a ton of depth beyond finding the right moment to crouch walk up behind someone – though using Quickhacks to scout out enemies and set up those opportunities was a lot of fun.

Combat didn’t really start impressing me until midway through my second day, once I had unlocked a few more abilities and found a strategy I enjoyed. By the end of my playtime, I had a powerful rifle that could charge up shots and shoot through walls, as well as a legendary katana – I would sneak into a room, use a hack to reveal enemy positions, then get behind a wall and pick them off based on their hologram outlines alone, and if any ran at me I would swap to my sword and cut off their head. The spongy health bars were still there, but this strategy felt fantastic to me (and goodness gracious does the mid-fight music push the pace to even more exciting levels).

Therein lies the strength of Cyberpunk 2077’s combat, I think. It didn’t necessarily amaze me in the heat of any given fight, but the vibe, style, and sheer volume of choices available let me eventually find something that had me grinning ear to ear. Pistols vs rifles vs shotguns, melee vs ranged, stealth vs brute force: all of these decisions are personal, and there are a dozen systems to let you customize and support whichever tactic is most appealing to you – be that through stat-based improvements or cybernetic augmentations. At one point I cleared out an entire four-floor base without ever firing a shot, while other times my character’s high Body stat would let me rip open certain doors and rush in head first. And if you're more interested in roleplaying like this is the tabletop RPG it’s based off of, the roads are literally clear for you to lean into that path as well.
 
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Once upon a time ...
While playing an RPG my character snuck up behind a guard and put a handgun in his face (literally, I had the muzzle on his nose) then pulled the trigger ... and ... "click" ... weapon malfunction ... one of my all-time "best" die rolls!

That there is precisely why diceroll mechanics are fun.

The situations are ”alive” and your confidence over your build does not guarantee your success.

Imagine if, in the scene where you are able to off Royce with one shot, there was a chance of something like that happening, that instead of seeing his head split open, you hear that ”click” as your weapon malfunctions. And what’d happen next is anyones guess.
 
Guess I'm just gonna have to take your word for it as I can't find any demo footage that shows all ingame skills.
It's in the latest Night City Wire right before those screen grabs you posted.

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Clockwise from the top: Reflexes, Tech, Cool, Intelligence and Body.
 
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