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Through the many performance problems encountered at launch, Cyberpunk 2077 has many positive qualities, especially around its history. After V, players face the corruption and struggles of Night City as a mercenary, but when sloppy work permanently installs the terrorist Johnny Silverhand engram in their brains, they have little time to live. Meanwhile, V is exploring the possibility of parting ways with the late rockstar, coming into close contact with many new faces along the way.
These characters are undoubtedly what makes Cyberpunk 2077 shine, for those who are able to play the game, at least. Controversies aside, two characters in particular resonated with fans and were adored by most gamers: Panam Palmer and Judy Alvarez, two of the Cyberpunk 2077‘s four romances. There are two other caveats about the game’s romances – Meredith Stout and Snape – but the two men, River and Kerry, haven’t quite hit the same vein. In short, their stories weren’t as punchy or emotional, leaving most players to turn to Panam or Judy, depending on whether V is male or female, but more options should have been available, at least in one. to some extent.
Sexuality in Cyberpunk 2077
The method that Cyberpunk 2077 taken for his romances disappointed many fans. Essentially, there are two romance options, male and female, by gender assigned to V (there were supposed to be trans and non-binary options, but the game still declares their gender unfortunately by tone of voice and genitals. chosen during character customization). There is an ongoing debate as to whether the characters should be “player sexual,” meaning that they will be attracted to the player by default, or that they will have assigned sexuality as they do in the game. the Mass Effect trilogy, effectively locking their romances out of certain parts. It means fans must play Cyberpunk as a man to romance Panam and vice versa to romance Judy, which may prevent them from discovering some important aspects of the game. But while this is still the case in Mass Effect, at least space opera has a plethora of options available otherwise.
Whether or not Cyberpunk Should have allowed male versions of V to romance Judy is still up for debate in the gaming community. But it would have been great if there were at least a few characters swinging both (or all) of the ways. After all, bisexuality already sees a lot of erasure, and that doesn’t mean CD Projekt Red was rocking that implication in any way, but it’s sad that they don’t really exist in the world of. Cyberpunk 2077.
Again, Meredith Stout and Snape are exceptions here. Meredith’s story is actually quite intriguing, but it also ends quite abruptly. Her love scene takes place regardless of V’s gender and is an interesting window into her life. But unlike Panam and Judy, her story doesn’t extend any further than that and she just simply disappears. Even River and Kerry aren’t exactly part of Cyberpunk 2077The overall story of how the two women are, highlighting the unequal treatment they received in their writing.
The way Judy and Panam impact V’s story is actually magnificent, especially if players run with the late Nomad, which is widely regarded as the “best” ending. Cyberpunk 2077. But it’s also unfortunate that the experience is tailored based on V’s gender. Of course, PC gamers have access to mods, but console gamers aren’t in the same boat. Kerry’s case might be the worst, having the least amount of screen time out of the four and her sexuality has gone from bisexual in tabletop games to gay for Cyberpunk 2077.
Having at least a few other options could have helped Cyberpunk‘s immersion, and where it is now is not that realistic. With practically a bisexual option whose story is sadly short and boils down to a one-night stand, it probably doesn’t reflect what life would be like, if the goal of locking Panama and Judy’s romances behind sexually first and foremost is realism. There are plenty of other NPCs with excellent writing and stories like Misty, Claire, Takemura and Jackie that could have been perfect for bisexuality or gamer sexuality, but the fact that none of them could be romanticized left players begging for more.
Cyberpunk 2077 is out now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One with PS5 and Xbox Series X / S versions in development.
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