If you’ve not had the chance to roam Night City, Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition could be the best way to experience the dystopian metropolis for the first time.
The new game bundles together the original Cyberpunk 2077 with its vaunted expansion Phantom Liberty.
Together, they chart the exploits of a mercenary named V who tangles with crazed cyborgs, warring gangs, and sinister spies in an existential fight for survival. The backdrop to this futuristic saga is the neon-drenched Night City, where players can visit backstreet quacks to get their bodies fused with ability-enhancing tech.
Releasing on December 5, Cyberpunk: Ultimate Edition will mark the first time the game will be available physically on current-gen consoles. Of course, players will also be able to grab a digital version, including for PC.
The new edition is a victory lap of sorts for the game’s developer, CD Projekt Red (CDPR) after a botched launch.
Upon its release in 2020, many expected Cyberpunk to be a resounding success. It looked like GTA in the future, was made by the developer of the beloved Witcher games, and arrived during lockdown when people were gaming more than ever.
But in a surprising turn of events, Cyberpunk was initially branded as one of the biggest disasters in the history of video games. The game arrived with numerous bugs, prompting Sony to pull the game from its store and offer refunds to peeved customers.
CDPR then set about improving the game through numerous post-release patches and updates. By September 2022, players were returning to Cyberpunk in their droves, partly due to the release of an animated spinoff on Netflix.
Along the way, CDPR abandoned a highly-anticipated multiplayer mode to focus on the main game. Then, in September, it released a game-changing update followed by the Phantom Liberty expansion.
The fact that Cyberpunk is up for four gongs at The Game Awards, almost three years after its initial release, is a testament to CDPR’s achievement.
