I played CP2077 through on release on my pc via gog galaxy (Glad i chose to go with a mouse rather than getting it for my then-ps4 pro!) and I loved the game. To me it felt like an open world Deus Ex title - I didn't engage much with the gunplay etc, mostly stealthed around being pacifist, but the game was great and I played just under 100 hours until I finished the main story.

I've come back now because of the expansion getting such good press, and because of all the fixes they've been making to the original game.

So, although I really enjoyed the OG title, I am just moved to say the game today is so much better.

It's little things. Adding an extra NPC in the opening scavhunt mission that forces you to use guns, and just making those guns so much more fun with headshot feedback etc completely convinced me to just let go and play the game as I wanted this time around. I'm still playing basically the same toon as my first playthough - most of my damage is done with quickhacks (though i've added in the exploding barrels for expediency) - but I don't have the same compunction about whipping out Yorinobu's pistol (at this early stage) and smashing heads - particuarly as they've now got V using Johnny's twirly reload technique on this gun, too.

They also seem to have tweaked a lot of the story scenes, etc, my mind could be playing tricks on me but some of the lines, or at least the delivery of those lines, seems to have been freshened up and given depth. Filling Dex's car near the start with outrageous cigar smoke was a great touch when RT was brought into it.

Vehicle movement has improved but in a pretty organic way, i don't really notice anything, but it feels better - still don't really love the way motobikes are controlled, and the camera is a bit sluggish on default speed, but what the hey.

The skills rebalance is great, adds great pacing and encourages you to branch out while you unlock higher teirs. I mean, shizz, it all just works better.

I love how clothing is now really just an aesthetic choice, in the past I ended up looking like an abdolute jackass just chasing those green up-arrows but now I can just go the whole game wearing V's chucks and black pants and it's great.

Finally a word on graphics, I'm playing on a high ray tracing setting (can't remember if it's the max or second-max, whatever) and it is fantastic, really brings the world to life. The accurate reflections are a game changer, literally. The graphics have their limitations - the zen garden/forest scenes just look pants compared to what you could have got in a game like Horizon FW, but it's all gravy.

If I could have one complaint it may be that they seem to have prevented us from climbing on some roofs, etc. I remember in the OG build I could climb to the top of apartment towers by hopping from balcony to balcony, but it seems like that's been slightly pulled back in this build. Could be wrong though maybe there was always those metal cappings on the side of some buildings... if they did try to reducee the parkour/exploration aspect that the probably-unfinished OG build provided I'd wanna know why, and would like it reversed.

I might also say that I wish they'd get a few more people to record the voice lines; maleV is a bit too weasle'y to me, I mean I like him but I'd like an alternative who was more gruff, or whatever.

I don't know if I'll complete the game again and go to the expansion during this window of time I have for gaming, but I do know that if I do keep playing towards 200 hours I'll constantly be pleasantly surprised and entertained.

CP2077 has been one of my favourite ever games even since it was a broken mess (then as a more sandbox expeirnece) and now it is quite simply the best open world game in even the remote vicinity of its genre. Horizon FW might be a more impressive narrative work, etc, but as a spiderweb of gameplay and features nothing touches CP2077. The City's even more lovable, now.

10.9/10

Picked up the game having never played it a couple of months ago and I've got to say that I was dissapointed by the customization options. The lack of voice variations means that male V only works with certains looks. I would guess this is also why so many of the Cyberpunk mods available cater to female V, a lot of players seem to have gone with a female character and have enjoyed customizing her more.

I play fem-V because I just like the voice better. It was the same with Mass Effect. I rolled a male toon and thought his voice was a little bland.

Fair, for me it was the overall look. Aside from that I've enjoyed pretty much everything else about the game similar to what OP wrote above. It's just a shame the finished product is still technically not what CDPR had in mind, I strongly believe this was on track to being a perfect game had it gotten the time it deserved.