Cyberpunk 2077: A Second Chance

October 1 2023

Flashback : December 2020. I've pre-ordered Cyberpunk 2077 for my PS4, which I haven't played games on for a while. This game is going to change things. It's going to bring me back. It has already won so many awards! I haven't been this excited in a while.

The blu ray discs arrive, one for installing the game, the other for playing it. I let the first one do its thing, then put in the second. This is on the base PS4, a console that is more than 6 years old at that point. The game starts... and from there on, it's basically a shit show.

It did change things. It ended PS4 gaming for me, hah. That's what I get for pre-ordering games.

... Almost 3 years later ...

About a few weeks ago (early September 2023), I hear that there's an expansion coming out for the game near the end of the month. I am a bit curious, so I read about it. It's a paid expansion, but sometime before that, there's going to be a free '2.0' update. OK, I think. I've given up on this game a long time ago, but I remember something about a free PS5 version of the game if you got it for the PS4.

I learn that there are some conditions. You need the physical disc for the original game (PS4) to be in the new console (PS5). Luckily I got a disc version of the PS5 console late last year (2022). I'm not sure why, but it worked out for this. I take the blu rays out of their container after all those years, and let them do their thing once more. When the update comes out (September 21 2023), I wait for it to download, then start the game... again.

It works this time, and I start playing something that feels like a real game! It's not mind blowing or anything, but I thought this was dead, so I'm happy already. As of last night, I've put about 8 hours into it (which is a lot compared to many games I've bought till now), and I'm still enjoying it. I haven't purchased the paid expansion yet, I'm taking my time with the base game.

I have no idea how long I'll keep playing, but this was a unique experience in itself. I never thought I'd give a game a second chance after so long. It's more of a first chance though, I didn't really play it the first time. Maybe that's for the best.

Link to the Wikipedia entry for Cyberpunk 2077
For informational purposes only.