[Spoiler Alert] About the endings

[alittleLowkey]

But you also do this. Judy and V knew each other how long? A couple of weeks? Is two years really a short time to move on from someone you knew not that long?

They say at one point V has a couple of weeks, but in a text message Judy thank V for the great time these last couple of months. So how long is a bit of a toss-up, also considering everything they went trough together the exact amount of time matters less.

However, we are getting sidetracked. The discussion isn't wheter or not two years is a long time, it's wheter or not having all of V.s friends and loved ones turning their back on them (hyperbolic I know) was a good narrative choice?

 

[tavellone]

The problem is not whether people would move on (in the case of Judy) or be completely devastated and not want contact (In the case of Panam) after two years, because obviously these are reasonable responses, the problem is that the new ending forces V to be both socially inept to the highest degree and/or completely disinterested in telling their lover and best friends that they are going for experimental surgery to remove the thing that is very quickly killing them and they have no idea how long the recovery time is and the only rationale of this is that Solomon Reed told them to. This is highly flimsy writing unless you're roleplaying a sociopath or a bootlicker and considering V in the main game has a habit of blabbing their predicament to anyone who will listen it's a bit out of character even so, to say the least. CDPR wanted to keep the 'no good ending in Night City' shtick and I have no problem with this, but I do have a problem with handwaving very obvious problems with the writing just to shoehorn in this specific ending.

 

[LadyMiseryAli]

But you also do this. Judy and V knew each other how long? A couple of weeks? Is two years really a short time to move on from someone you knew not that long?

You can form a strong bond with someone in a couple of weeks. Hell, you can fall in love with someone within a few days. The passage of time is irrelevant.

 

[wright1978]

The problem is not whether people would move on (in the case of Judy) or be completely devastated and not want contact (In the case of Panam) after two years, because obviously these are reasonable responses, the problem is that the new ending forces V to be both socially inept to the highest degree and/or completely disinterested in telling their lover and best friends that they are going for experimental surgery to remove the thing that is very quickly killing them and they have no idea how long the recovery time is and the only rationale of this is that Solomon Reed told them to. This is highly flimsy writing unless you're roleplaying a sociopath or a bootlicker and considering V in the main game has a habit of blabbing their predicament to anyone who will listen it's a bit out of character even so, to say the least. CDPR wanted to keep the 'no good ending in Night City' shtick and I have no problem with this, but I do have a problem with handwaving very obvious problems with the writing just to shoehorn in this specific ending.

Yeah exactly this, 2 years without contact is grounds for moving on but it is hack writing of the highest order to railroad the story into a situation where they aren't allowed to be kept in the loop. Not that i'm surprised coming from the group who took a mission choice and decided to use it as a basis for a life/character choice.

 

[Rdx_v]

If this game taught me something is that Night City (and overall Cyberpunk world) always takes something away from you. Even though I respect this, I still wish there were better endings or that at least CP Orion will have some.

 

[CTPhipps]

They say at one point V has a couple of weeks, but in a text message Judy thank V for the great time these last couple of months. So how long is a bit of a toss-up, also considering everything they went trough together the exact amount of time matters less.

However, we are getting sidetracked. The discussion isn't wheter or not two years is a long time, it's wheter or not having all of V.s friends and loved ones turning their back on them (hyperbolic I know) was a good narrative choice?

Again, we find out who are true friends are in that ending: Misty and Vic.

I think part of the issue being that so many gamers, myself included, missed that apparently Vic and Misty were a lot more important than the game implied.

They're not V's friends, they're V's family.

 

[Guest 4412420]

I think part of the issue being that so many gamers, myself included, missed that apparently Vic and Misty were a lot more important than the game implied.

They're not V's friends, they're V's family.

Personally, I got that way before Phantom Liberty came out. V's NC friends are the reason why I wanted mine to stay in the city, because people like Misty and Vik made it worth the struggle. The problem is that the ending that let you stay in Night City (The Sun) railroaded V into acting like a prick and ghosting pretty much everyone in their life.

Whether they were too busy preparing for the heist that could save their life or only cared about being a legend is hard to say because it's not really explained and all we have are voicemail messages criticizing V for not staying in touch. CDPR pulling the "Misty and Vik were V's true friends all along" rings a bit hollow when I knew that already, but they initially failed to give me an ending where V doesn't take them for granted.

 

[Tonysharp420]

The endings are fine i just wish it wasn't so effing janky and the rewards just automatically went in the stash of every save file. Super annoying sometimes they just don't load.

 

[MartineDee]

After all, I might also be perma-siding with So Mi. It is aligned with sticking it out to the prez as the ultimate bully in the game.

More here.

Tho, my personal opinion is that So Mi is doomed to be unhappy.

I will sure miss making fun of the Cerberus maintenance unit, and ultimately finding a way to mod in its death by cannon fire. : ((((

No romances for me. I want to be the Smasher instead of Smasher. Smasher is dead, long live Smasher the 2nd! The fabric of nightmares for the rich and powerful this time.

 

[ChiliDragon]

Just gonna point out that all this time later, nearly 70% of Cyberpunk players said either that they want happy endings or at least the option of one for those who want it.

Only 13% ended up happy with the endings that Cyberpunk ended up offering.

Y'know. If CDPR is paying attention.

 

[Cali66]

Just gonna point out that all this time later, nearly 70% of Cyberpunk players said either that they want happy endings or at least the option of one for those who want it.

Only 13% ended up happy with the endings that Cyberpunk ended up offering.

Y'know. If CDPR is paying attention.

It doesn't have to be a "riding off into the sunset" happy ending. But at every turn in the game
the player is getting screwed over no matter what choices you make, they lead to pretty much the same conclusion.
Death by suicide or by relic, pick your choice. Even when you do get "cured" you lose everything including your relationship.

 

[ChiliDragon]

It doesn't have to be a "riding off into the sunset" happy ending. But at every turn in the game
the player is getting screwed over no matter what choices you make, they lead to pretty much the same conclusion.
Death by suicide or by relic, pick your choice. Even when you do get "cured" you lose everything including your relationship.

Yep. Amazes me that of all the things they fixed from the original post in this thread three years ago, they didn't take the feedback into account to give people who wanted one halfway decently good ending into account. Doesn't say much for player choice.

 

[northwold]

The desire for happy endings gave us Sam and Frodo being lifted off an erupting volcano by magical birds instead of what Tolkien should have done to be consistent with everything he had led readers through, namely sacrificing them. No thanks. Never betray your storytelling and the points you are trying to make for audience wish fulfilment. That is bad art and it cheapens everything that has come before.

 

[Cali66]

So here's a basic happy ending people could live with. V gets cured but looses all advanced
cyberware along with the relic. You have only basic implants and still have your relationship.
So now you're just another "face in the crowd" you and your boy/girlfriend then leave Night City and move to where ever.

 

[Netrunner2go]

70% of Cyberpunk players…

Where do you pull theses numbers from? o.o - 1k forum user out of millions copies sold is not really representative to make such an overall statement…

 

[BigWezz69]

The desire for happy endings gave us Sam and Frodo being lifted off an erupting volcano by magical birds instead of what Tolkien should have done to be consistent with everything he had led readers through, namely sacrificing them. No thanks. Never betray your storytelling and the points you are trying to make for audience wish fulfilment. That is bad art and it cheapens everything that has come before.

Perhaps CDPR should have not allowed V to be cured in PL since that is what people wanted, and then went on to write a ridiculous ending for that.

 

[alittleLowkey]

So here's a basic happy ending people could live with. V gets cured but looses all advanced
cyberware along with the relic. You have only basic implants and still have your relationship.
So now you're just another "face in the crowd" and both you and your boy/girlfriend leave Night City and move to where ever.

I'd like that, it would be the good kind of bittersweet.

Neuromancer spoiler
This reminds me of what happens in the end of Neuromancer, the protagonist "wins" and get money, a clean slate and his netrunning ability. But he has lost pretty much all of his friends and have to rebuild his life. So bittersweet but still hopeful.

 

[Cali66]

I'd like that, it would be the good kind of bittersweet.

Neuromancer spoiler
This reminds me of what happens in the end of Neuromancer, the protagonist "wins" and get money, a clean slate and his netrunning ability. But he has lost pretty much all of his friends and have to rebuild his life. So bittersweet but still hopeful.

I just don't like a no win at the end of a game, but a good ending doesn't need to be over the top.

 

[D35tro3R]

Your game is masterpiece.

I know that it sound stupid. But I'm begging you - please, let V be Happy with Panam. Let him stay alive with his Love. Don' t kill him like TechLand killed Kyle Krane or Bioware killed Revan. It' s hard to play this games again. It's even painful to remeber those stories. We can't play with this drama. It's unfair.

We Love V and Panam. They means a lot for us.Even if you don't want to make more games with V, please, keep him alive with his beautiful Panam. They deserve to keep their Love. Let us Remember them with Happy Ending. Let them be with each other for a long time. Make your game last forever like a truly masterpiece. Make us play it again and again.

Best regards,your Fan.

 

[Cali66]

I'd like that, it would be the good kind of bittersweet.

Neuromancer spoiler
This reminds me of what happens in the end of Neuromancer, the protagonist "wins" and get money, a clean slate and his netrunning ability. But he has lost pretty much all of his friends and have to rebuild his life. So bittersweet but still hopeful.

It just bothers me that polls of what people would like to see are ignored.
Now I'm kind of dreading what the next expansion will bring as far as endings
They really love to kick V while he/she is down.