So it turns out not reading pre-release material to go in blind has resulted in my experience being less than fulfilling. I really don't like it when Open-World RPGs/Games force an ending on you where you either return to the Main Menu or reload to a 'Point of No Return' save.

Without going into spoilers the Main Questline of the game makes it difficult to get into side content and really spend time exploring, especially with certain invasive 'elements' tied to said Main Quest. I also did two endings, and watched the others, and honestly I don't like a single one of them. I went in hoping and fully expecting to be able to explore, do sidequests, buy cars and cyberware, after having resolved the outstanding issue of the main storyline.

It's honestly turned an 8/10 game to a 6/10 for me. I really enjoyed my time with the game up until the final stretch, but the realisation that I can't just go off and roleplay in the City without having said elements always butting in (and knowing that I dislike all the endings) just leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

I would very much like a Broken Steel style DLC here which adds in an ending option which would fit with and include free-play post-story. Or even just an alternative game-mode with no main questline at all, or a diverging one early on, with the invasive elements cut out (not too challenging for the most part, given one of them is usually only there for quips and felt like it was purposefully designed to be snipped out post-story; turns out I was wrong).

Is anyone else generally dissatisfied with how it all turns out and would like free-play?

I did a few side quests, but I also figured I would go back and do them once I dealt with the... urgent issue... but turns out I might as well have just done everything in one run. When my motivation comes back I'll likely do another completion run. But for now my motivation is totally gone.

I'm honestly really sad about the lack of a post-ending. I was hoping for a chill experience after all the excitement was done, just living life as a merc in Night City. But it's not just that, and I can't really go into it without spoilers, which wouldn't be right given how newly released the game is.

side missions affect your endings! pretty much the only thing that affects them.
you might want to reconsider what you´re doing, maybe it´s the reason you got an ending that wasn´t so great.

Oh for sure, I actually just watched the ""best"" ending on Youtube. You'll understand more what I'm talking about after your first run; I strongly advise you to evacuate thread though lol. Someone will inevitably drop spoilers, if by accident.

To be fair to TC this is one of those game narratives where the main quest is presented as urgent when in reality it's not and you are actually better off ignoring the false urgency.

Really not a fan of this type of game writing. For some reason developers seem to think it's good, because it keeps appearing everywhere. Baldur's Gate 3 has exactly the same problem, but is even worse about it, to the point that you are afraid to sleep with your character. Yet you need to sleep to move some story elements forward and recover abilities. It's ridiculous.

Nicely summed up ToreriJuri. I'm also not a fan of another certain trope that is rapidly becoming overused in recent years and has no place in a game where the initial expectation is a sense of freedom and continuity. They better suit something like Call or Duty or perhaps even Far Cry, but they really have dampened my enjoyment with Cyberpunk.