I love Cyberpunk with every fiber of my being.

I played this game from Day 1, and my first play-through was nothing but a perfect experience. I never ran into a single bug (that was noticeable anyways), fell in love with all of the characters, and got lost in the world of Night City and the Badlands. I laughed, cried, stressed, and had an amazing time all around with every aspect of this game. The 2.0 and 2.1 updates made this game absolutely perfect in every way possible as well. It also helps that there is an amazingly made show in Cyberpunk: Edgerunners to compliment this game.

The story in this game is the closest thing to perfection that I *personally* have ever experienced. Sure, the beginning of the game can feel slow and sluggish on repeat play-throughs, but on that first initial one, it felt perfect. I hated Johnny in the beginning, but by the end of the game, he was a definite bro. Anyone familiar with the general Cyberpunk setting knows what they're getting into with this story. A cover of shiny, bright neon lights that is hiding a dark dystopian underbelly where most of the population suffers while the top 1% thrives on the top, not letting anyone rise up to their level without plenty of trouble. This is one of those stories, where I wish I could lose my memory of ever touching this game, and replay it all again for the first time. Especially with Phantom Liberty being out, and that having a fantastic story to go along with it.

That being said, there are obviously some side missions that feel like they could've been left out, or are just flat out boring. There are even a couple main missions that feel like obvious filler, but that's to be expected. I also wish the Life Path you can choose at the beginning of the game mattered more, however I'm not a writer or game dev, so I don't know how they would've been able to work that in, at least in a meaningful way.

It's a first person shooter. In all reality, that's what it boils down to. The gun-play feels great, with some of the bigger guns making them feel as powerful as they look. The Cyberware makes for great combat modifiers, especially if you have a Sandevistan, Mantis Blades, or the ever popular Monowire. However, with the 2.0 update, they overhauled how Cyberware works, with it acting as your armor rating now. They also made it so that V can go cyber-psycho, however obviously not to the extent that the citizens of Night City can as it's shown in plenty of encounters.

The driving feels great for what it is. My only gripe with it is the handling of motorcycles, however, I'm fully willing to admit I could just suck with those.

The world that Cyberpunk inhabits is absolutely stunning. Driving into Night City from the Badlands in the middle of the night, with "I Really Want to Stay at Your House" or "Night City" playing on Body Heat Radio is just an entirely different feeling. Driving through the neon filled streets of Night City while it's raining adds to the ambiance even more. Speaking of music...

The music that CDPR had crafted for this world couldn't be any better. Whether it's the many bangers on Body Heat Radio, any of the Samurai songs, or the myriad of original songs on any of the other stations, everything feels like it belongs. Major Crimes. I Really Want to Stay at Your House (for obvious reasons), Delicate Weapon (which they made an ENTIRE PERFORMANCE FOR in Phantom Liberty), and Never Fade Away are the absolute bangers. The song they made for the credit sequence for Phantom Liberty is also top tier, along with the version of Never Fade Away they use for the credit sequence for the main game. There's a song for everyone in this game, and who knows, you might end up discovering you like a different genre of music that you didn't expect.

If you haven't played this game yet, do yourself a favor and set time aside to just lose yourself in the world and it's story. No talking to friends on Discord, no listening to music or any kind of video on YouTube, nothing. Just immerse yourself and lose yourself in this masterpiece of a game. Don't listen to what people say about this game being awful, buggy or broken. They are stuck in the past of when this game first released, which yes, was in a very rough state for a lot of people. But now with the 2.0 and 2.1 updates out, and one more planned update, this is the absolute perfect time to get into this game. Don't worry about Male or Female V, don't worry about what life path you want, you do you.

Phantom Liberty isn't a giant requirement either, however, it is a fantastic story. Idris Elba and Minji Chang do a phenomenal job as Reed and Songbird respectively. Along with Keanu Reeves coming back to play Johnny Silverhand once again for the expansion, it really is just the complete package, and *in my opinion,* a must play for the game as a whole.

And once you finish the game, don't skip the credits. This goes for Phantom Liberty as well when that credit scene ends. No matter what endings you get (because there are multiple for both the base game and Phantom Liberty), the credits are amazing to just sit through and listen to and experience.

Give it a try, chooms. You won't regret it.