So now that we have the full game with everything in it and some time has passed, what would you say is your favorite moment(s) in the game with each of these memorable characters? Either all of them or any in particular you’d like to focus on.
So now that we have the full game with everything in it and some time has passed, what would you say is your favorite moment(s) in the game with each of these memorable characters? Either all of them or any in particular you’d like to focus on.
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Right now, I’m just gonna put my favorite moments with Panam, Judy and Johnny, though I’ll probably eventually put my favorite moments for So Mi, Reed and Takemura later on.
For Panam, I have plenty of beloved moments with Panam, but the one that sticks out in my mind is at the very end when you initiate her ending (The Star). V sounds so broken up, so sad, so lost, and then he calls Panam, he relays to Panam how he feels and IMMEDIATELY Panam is like “let me stop you right fucking there”. She then drives her big ass truck right to Misty’s front doorstep, proceeds to all but kidnap you and lets you know she loves you, that you aren’t dying on her watch and that the two of you are about to rock Arasaka’s shit. Before this, Panam was lovable, an amazing, wonderful girlfriend, absolutely, but I firmly believe that this right here, is the moment where V thinks “Oh shit, I want to spend the rest of my life with her, however long it may last”.
For Judy, speaking from a male V’s perspective, my favorite moment with Judy is just after you’ve done her personal mission, after having spent the night in the cabin when you go to talk to her on the docks. She seems so sad, so resigned. In that moment, all my V wanted to do is gather her up in a big hug and comfort her as much as possible. I felt so sad that we weren’t able to fundamentally change Clouds (I still think that’s bullshit and we should have brought the Mox in on it). Hearing that she would be leaving was so bittersweet for me, on the one hand, I was so incredibly sad that she was leaving, on the other hand, I was hopeful that she might find some happiness outside of NC.
For Johnny, there are two moments where undoubtedly Johnny stands out for me. The first is when we “find” his body. In that moment, Johnny stopped feeling like someone who was just sharing a body with me, he became something like a brother and/or a best friend, the two of us are in this together and we’ve got each other’s back. The second moment is in Mikoshi. When you’re given the devastating news of the fact that you’re still dying, even if Johnny leaves, when you discuss who’s gonna take your body, Johnny doesn’t hesitate for one single second, he made you a promise, end of conversation, the body’s yours. And then his final words to you “Goodbye, V. And never stop fightin’.” ššš
It WAS the moments it looked like Judy and I were getting closer. I couldnāt wait for her phone calls. Then I found it the cutest character in all of cyberpunk the devs decided to makeā¦ā¦gay.
Panam – driving out of NC with her in the Basilisk during the Stars ending.
Judy – Pyramid Song. My favorite mission in the game actually.
Johnny – tied between the conversation at the oil field or at the hotel.
So Mi – the whole The Killing Moon mission. Particularly the car ride to NCX where you confort and take care of her. She also cheers you up at the end. Truly felt like a Ā«Ā weāre in this togetherĀ Ā» moment.
Reed – him talking about his last op in NC in the hideout.
Edit : forgot about Takemura lol. Favorite moment was the talk on the rooftop before breaking into the Arasaka warehouse.
Panam: The beginning of Star Ending when you call her( either as lover or the ending sequence )
Judy: pyramids Song
Johnny: a lot actually. So hard to chose. But I’d go with the secret ending dialog.
Goro: the recon mission
Song: the killing the moon before getting to NCX and chatting with her vision in that spot in Dogtown
Panam stealing the tank and using the tank for assault on saka judy everything cept shit that makes her sad jhonny moments when he gives me stuff and also anny John wick reference moments so gbird whole end mission I got her back reed the James Bond reference mission
” best pussy Iāve ever ate “
Johnnys secret ending. Dopest ending to a game I can remember.
The part where I’m so starstruck by the ghost that’s killing me that I spend a full 100 hours just trying to impress him, go on a suicide mission and end up giving him my body. Pretty sure the real Keanu could talk me into that as well though
Johnny was the interaction I liked most throughout the game, the way he changes, becoming less selfish, trying to deal better with his old ties, and I think he and V became very close and was probably the person who he opened up more and showed who he really was. It’s a shame that interactions with him are so limited, but they all carry enormous weight.
Panam – The Basilisk training if you’re romancing her, the idea is just ridiculous to me and I love it.
Judy – just Pyramid Song, it offers such a unique use of the underutilized swimming mechanics in the game and is interesting.
Johnny – The section in the Oil Fields during Chippin’ In, it shows you how his character changed throughout the game realizing his mistakes.
Songbird – Her ending if you side with her. Even though you only get to use the special abilities for a short time, it’s a badass section.
Reed – Infiltrating The Black Diamond. Although I do play a loud gun build, it gave me an opportunity to play stealthily when I normally don’t.
Takemura – When you first meet him, the car chase is fun because it just suddenly drops you in the middle of the action immediately after coming back from the dead.
And although you never mentioned them
Kerry – Helping him team up with Us Cracks
Alex – that dancing section at The Moth
Panam – When we shot up some Raffens. Best bonding activity between friends ever. Best girl, best romance.
Judy – When we stormed that Tyger Claw Bossā pad and slaughtered everyone.
Johnny Silverhand – The secret ending with him. Thereās no more Punk ending than that.
Song So Mi – The Mission where we meet up with her in that small alcove and talk about her past. It really feel like I was talking to a friend.
But the most memorable moment I had was when she revealed she lied to me. No moment in any game have I felt such uncontrollable spite, but yet I found myself still caring about her more above all, hence why I sent her to the moon.
Reed – When we were sharing a beer and talking about his missions, manās a veteran and hearing him recount them all is awesome.
Takemura – That conversation at the rooftop about our respective pasts. What couldāve been if he has changed his mind on things and left Night City with V and the Aldecaldos.
Sexy time
Panam : the very end of The Star. Even though I think it would’ve made more sense if Judy also sat beside my V, it was still a beautiful moment and one that really made me appreciate Panam’s friendship.
Judy : there are a lot of cool moments with Judy, but as someone who romances her Pyramid Song obviously takes the cake. My favorite non-combat quest by far.
Johnny : also pretty hard. I think I would’ve picked his first anti-corpo speech if it didn’t have that stupid “I didn’t declare war because capitalism’s a thorn in my side” line (I honestly think that was a coward move from the writers), but failing that the final moments before V returns to their body are really good too. “Goodbye V, and never stop fightin'” might be my favorite quote in the whole game.
Songbird : harnessing the power of the rogue AIs from beyond the Blackwall to utterly destroy Myers’ goons. Two broken people standing up against the overwhelming forces that govern the world and pulling through against all odds. Beautiful.
Reed : this is gonna sound bad but uh, shooting him lol. I view Reed as a tragic character who could be a decent guy if he lived a normal life, but whom I can’t ever really like due to his loyalty to Myers. Therefore I found narrative satisfaction in the final showdown, where he’s still stuck following orders and has to be put down, for Songbird’s sake and his own.
Takemura : he’s in a very similar situation as Reed, but he never directly opposes V and his final message is more sad and pathetic than anything else. As such, my favorite moment would be during the recon mission when you observe the cat with him. It’s one of the few moments where he opens up, and you can see a much more agreeable version of him buried under the corpo crap.
āJohnny, what would you do if you were in my shoes?ā
āI am in your shoes dumbassā
I did the suicide ending once out of curiosity, and Johnny and V’s interactions during it are phenomenal. Low-key, I think it’s the 2nd best ending. Maybe the best ending.
Every single second, choom
Panama – Sex
Judy – Sex
Johnny – when he bangs alt
Song bird – fancy party
Reed – shooting him
Takemura – not saving him
Panam – Her throwing a fit when you tell Saul about her stupid plans. Go throw another fit child. I’m getting another fun ride.
Judy – Murdering the Tyger Claw’s boss and murdering Maiko
Johnny – None in all honesty. I really don’t like Silverhand. Could have gone a whole playthrough without hearing him again.
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So Mi – I haven’t gotten around to completing Phantom Liberty
Reed – I haven’t gotten around to completing Phantom Liberty
Takemura – Having him wait in Tom’s diner while I enjoy all of the side quests/gigs.
First two was definitely when you fucked them
My favorite part with Takemura is when V asks him out to dinner via text and gets left on delivered
One of my favorite Johnny moments is the Raymond Chandler/noir detective narration he gives in that mission.
Panam – leaving NC in the Basilisk
Judy – Pyramid Song
Johnny – conversation at the oil field
So Mi – when she shows her the āplace that reminds her of homeā in DT / escaping the stadium
Reed – escaping the VDB hideout
Takemura – bakeneko conversation
1. The basilisk ride
2. The scuba dive
3. Saving the NUSA prisident mission, specefically the scene when V takes the oath
4. Idk, the horror section counts ?
5. After So Mi gets taken away be the medical ppl of NUSA
6. He’s photo shots shenanigan
Panam: the campfire before the mission to nick the Basilisk. The lame joke, the way she toasts Jackie if you told her about him, itās perfect and peaceful and I love it every time.
Judy: itās either abuela Alvarez (that whole interaction including Judyās messages before and after) or itās Pyramid Song. Itās an absolutely perfect cyberpunk story. Judyās poor but happy upbringing in small town America just callously destroyed by a corp and a ravenous city, that led to years of misery and failed attempts to improve her lot, is poignant and meaningful. The fact that itās also the turning point, either leaving the city that took so much from her or finding love with V is just the cherry on the top.
Johnny: the PL ending, the moment where he says goodbye, calling V by their real name. Such a swansong moment.
So Mi: meeting her in āreal lifeā for the first time, when she seems nervous that V will judge her appearance is adorable.
Reed: the fact that he insisted on being there when V awoke was pretty damn good. That alone gave insight into his character.
Tekemura: accidental selfies. Nuff said.
Watching Johnny grow that impressive personality
Panam – The scene in which she gives you her silenced sniper. Iām being serious. As a stealth player, the sheer euphoria I felt at that moment was greater than any weird awkward tank sex.
Judy – The entirety of pyramid song. Really unique mission, I honestly wish they did more like it.
Johnny – āMinus the charisma. And impressive cock.ā
Songbird – The scene that plays out near the end of the āside with reedā ending at cynosure in which she begs you to kill her. Hardest choice Iāve ever had to make in any game, ever.
Reed – Pretty much the entirety of you know my name. Might be my favourite mission in the game.
Takemura – Literally every scene featuring Takemura.
Context playing as Female V with Nomad life path, my entire playtrough V has one deep desire is to build a family/community inspite of her lofty ambitions to be a legendary merc in NC
Panam: First meeting her and finding solidarity as solo nomads, getting back at Nash and all related missions, getting to know her and meeting the adelcadoes, having everyone reassuring that you can depend on them for anything. Being welcomed by them, felt seen as dependable and kind. The true nomad values that V missed out om after leaving the bakkers clan.
Judy: the automatic love missons and there on to find Evelyn, pyrimad song missions (romantic amd cute as hell) the dialouges between them and how Judy had similiar ambitions as V but has left beytayed by NC and its b.s.
Judy is like a mirror for V’s future; you can come to NC with firey passion to make a name for yourself but eventually that firey passion will be smothered by the wickedbess of NC.
Hearing that she wants to leave NC gives V a realization that maybe that isnt a bad idea after all…
Those moments of being vurneable together but yet finding love in a hopeless place can reignite a new ambition outside of the ficklness of NC’s empty promises.
So Mi and Reed: haven’t got there yet but I will kill Reed and save So Mi (I read the spoilers to determine my endings)
Johnny:
When finding his body and giving him a second chance after reprimanding him for his manipulations, doing his personal missions to give him a chance to reticfy his wrongs. The banters between side jobs and gigs as your commerdery builds up over time is one of the best. Debating or chrippin each other off in those moments.
Like the mission sweet dreams him calling you a fool or after PL prologue not accepting the oath he acknowledes your wisdom.
The monk malestorm mission where you both say F you to each other is hilarious.
Or the pepe side job with his narration annoying V as she’s trying to doing something serious.
Takemura: The rooftop convo before breaking into arasaka’s warehouse.
Seeing that he’s just a product of his enviroment, he is self aware that he was lucky in being chosen by the ceo and that wasnt without the efforts of his merit either but unable to see that there more to life outside the corpo world is pitiful yet disheartening. He yearns for something similair to nomad V but in different outcomes. He’s afarid of the unknown whereas V has been trough and is going trough many unknowns.
The moments you can chrip him for being aggroant as a former corpo bodyguard and that he’s just wanted nobody in NC now. The sarcasm to his squareness of a personality and obession with speaking in parables.
Or when he had to be tactful in japantown outside of Wakako’s office (the yes I’m a former comedian star part was painful but hiliarous to watch)
Or any of their lines during missions when youre doing something stupid or just not benefical to the objective. Had to reload many quicksaves cause of my own morbid curiosity, like throwing gernades during stealth missions or parkouring to my death when theres a set of stairs to walk up š¤£
Panam – when she pulls you in for a kiss before returning to camp with Saul.
Panam – The part when you call her at the rooftop and doesn’t back down at the idea you tell her
Judy – defo Pyramid Song! And the texts after! God I love that vulnerable little lelou bean
Johnny – A Like Supreme, riding the rollercoaster with him, the talk at the oilfields. “G’night Valerie. Today was a good day.” (man this made me fucking cry)
So Mi – The Killing Moon and the Cynosure mission, really shows you that Blackwall ain’t something you mess around with lightly
Reed – The attack on a MaxTac envoy, the confrontation at the shuttle.
Goro – The arasaka park infiltration, talking about cat.
BETTER BUCKLE UP! š
Panam : preparing the EMP and the campfire scene before getting the Basilisk
Judy : memory diving
Johnny : the spying mission for Pepe and the rollercoaster (would mention his grave but i think two things is more than enough)
No idea who that is + reed, never played PL
Takemura : tied between Hideshi Hino and the rooftop convo