V is effectively a planetary, near god level threat by the halfway mark and end of 2077, yet Night City has always made one thing clear.
No one is untouchable. Status, power, and reputation do not grant safety. They invite hunters.
The narrative promises a climb paid for in blood.
Making a name for yourself through scrapping and scrambling, losing love, losing time, watching your back every step of the way.
Night City does not reward ambition with peace.
It taxes it with everything you have.
That is why effortlessly dismantling Adam Smasher, the corporate immortal, fully chromed legend of Night City, feels hollow.
He is not just another enemy. He is a symbol of what the city turns people into when they sell themselves completely.
Reducing him to a tin can shattered by a random young merc patched together through low to above average ripperdocs undermines the dystopian promise.
Cyberpunk is not supposed to offer happy endings. It is meant to offer a brief, defiant burn into glory, just long enough that, if you were worth remembering, someone might name a drink after you once you’re dead.
I hope the sequel delivers punishing, choice choking boss threats.
Night City is the American nightmare we all fear. The gameplay and the story should not soften that truth. They should take it further.