
I’m mostly an FPS player (think Apex, Doom, CS), but I’ve been meaning to get into Cyberpunk for years. Been going through overdue games and finally loading it up on PS5 and hoping to get the most out of it without getting overwhelmed.
Any tips for a first time V? Builds to avoid? Early choices that matter? Not trying to min/max, just want a great first experience.

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You CANNOT upgrade all your skills, a major mistake I made on my first play though
get ready for the emotional roller coaster. figure out your skill tree. don’t rush the story like i did and have fun
You can’t do everything. You also can’t respect your attributes, only your skills. Best idea is to decide on a build/play style you enjoy, and focus on that.
Don’t rush to the end, enjoy all of Night City.
It’s overwhelming at first. Just hang in there. The game does a really good job of teaching you everything you need to know. It is also designed for multiple playthroughs, so you don’t necessarily have to do every single side mission. Also, I didn’t really know exactly what a character build was the first time I played, but you need to be very intentional with your skills. Do you want a walking tank? A stealth master? Someone who can hack anything including other people? You can wait a little bit while you learn the game, and learn about the world (like what a netrunner is, for example) but sooner or later you’ll want to decide what build you’re going for.
If you like it buy the expansion, Phantom Liberty. Incredibly well done and worth every penny
Depends on how interested you are in the RP aspect of the game. If yes, play it blind. Don’t look up any story things, or consequences for choices. Just play it as your V making the choices they’d make.
It’s the kind of game where multiple play throughs are as fun as the first, but my first play through holds a special place in my heart, because of HOW I played it.
Also! The city is huge! There’s a lot to see! Where possible, walk, drive, or take transit. Really take in the city!
Take your time to really take it in. Same thing I tell people about RDR2
I only played it a couple months ago too. It was a completely different game than the one I saw clips of right after release, in a good way of course. Didn’t have many bugs, and most that I did encounter were nothing game breaking. Legitimately a great game, enjoy.
Have fun. Take yourself to the beach. Have moments to Slow cruise in your car when golden hour hits. Keep it fun. Even when frustration comes. Bask in the rain.
get off reddit play the game
What others said, just wanted to add. The first act felt like it’s only dialogue, but the game starts after, give it time to grown. In the total beginning there were 2-3 times I even almost thought of quitting.
All the menus are reachable from any menu, no need to learn all the shortcuts. I also stopped worrying about whether to keep this gun, upgrade it, do this, craft that, it’ll come with time. Trying to do all at once felt overwhelming.
Also, take it slow, do side quests, don’t rush the main story. Preferably, don’t look up anything. If you must, maybe the oil fields dialogue.
Don’t look up anything and DON’T go to meet Hanako at Embers
SEND HIM HOME
At some point, you’re going to be asked if you want to send something **extremely** important to its rightful home.
**DO IT!**
And do as many side quests and the DLC as possible before the final mission.
And, of course, acquire drip.
**Also, DON’T LET THE GAME GET SPOILED FOR YOU.**
If you see enemy, load bullet into weapon and shoot for maximum results
Alternatively there’s the classic ratio + overclock + blood daemon + short circuit + short circuit + short circuit + synapse burnout
But yeah everyone else’s advice here is solid too, play the game as blunt as you can
Get the double jump or charge jump leg implants as soon as possible
If you loved Doom and want gameplay that feels similar, invest in Body and Reflexes. Body will get you shotgun perks (there’s one literally called Rip and Tear, which is very strong), and Reflex will give you crazy mobility with dodge perks so you can air dash around at near-vehicle speeds. Tech will get you healing items and/or grenades. You can also replace your hacking abilities with a rage state (Berserk OS) or bullet time abilities (Sandevistan) to augment gunplay.
Also – with minimal spoilers – when you have a side mission that takes you to an oil field, look up a guide for that quest. There’s a single dialogue option that’s super important.
how’s doom eternal??
Don’t ignore gigs and side missions they worth your time
Do all the side quests
There are no happy endings in Night City.
Take every side quest!!! and modding is super fun but hard to control not going overboard. Do a vanilla playthrough first then mod it so you know what you’re doing.
Take your time. Soak it all in. Explore.
The game tried to give you a sense of urgency that makes you miss things. But then again, it helps with the replay factor too.
Enjoy this moment of gaming history for yourself.
The only way to have a great experience is to go at it alone. No guides or anything
Play through all the build you think you want to …all the paths ..all the endings
And when you can’t think of anything else then look things up and go at it again
This game pulled almost 750 hours out of me over the years.
Space out the main missions with side quests or the pacing feels weird.
Play it blind.
Don’t look up anything you only get one chance to respec so have fun early game and try things then respec when you find the play style you like
– You can’t get every single skill so plan for what weapons you’ll definitely always use or what skills you’ll 100% want.. you wanna be a hacker? A crazy sword guy? A cyber cowboy using revolvers, you want blunt weapons blade weapons? It’s very in depth.. you can obviously respec your points whenever you want and change out your cyber ware you equiped… I personally love a slow time build where I’m just leaving on all the enemies with my katana or headshots with my revolver.
– 100% get the I think it’s called the “cheeta?” It’s an off road nomad car with armored windows and a machine gun it’s one of the fastest cars and handles very good. 😊
Have a nice massacre throughout Night City, choom!:)
Take your time and enjoy it. Do all the side quests
Sandi build
just play the game, doesn’t really require tips
I built my V to move alot like the slayer in doom eternal. Double jump and and dash are both highly reccomended skills IMO
Explore. It is a living city. Yes the map will be a jackson pollock painting of stuff to do, but just walking a few blocks through back alleys will net you crazy adventures.
Drive your vehicle, don’t just jump from fast travel points.
Use consumables.
Sleep in your bed for an hour of bonus XP.
Get reflex up to 15 and get air dash. Makes getting around so much better
Take a little time to poke through the skill trees. The build crafting is pretty fun, and I think it makes the experience a little more exciting if you’re working towards so abilities
You can only respec your attributes once! Fuck around at first and don’t respec until you know for sure what you want!
Loot, loot, loot everything even if it’s a broken gun
They have a picture now, but Angel is the dude.
Do you have the expansion as well? It takes place in the middle of the main storyline. Cannot recommend it enough.
I played once at release. I’ve waited until now to play again with proper graphics, and I’m blown away. I’m 40 hours in and I’m still just gaining street cred really.
If you don’t have it, Phantom Liberty is totally worth the money.
Do side missions. Explore the city. Delay the main story a much as possible. You’ll get railroaded into a single ending if you rush the main story.
Try really, really hard not to spoil yourself!
Also, the first bit where they want you to assign points? You don’t have to do that. It’ll make the tutorial a bit harder, but you’ll have a better idea how you want to build if you wait. Plus you can at least read the descriptions if you wait.
Life path doesn’t make much difference other than a few lines & one very small quest for each one that doesn’t affect anything.
There’s a mod that let’s you save your character’s appearance if you’re the type to spend a lot of time making a character.
Double jump is one of the best leg specs to do early, opens up lots of stuff
Whatever you do, don’t send Jackie to Vik
Sure. Delete this thread and enjoy the amazing experience without any input or spoilers.
The best part of Cyberpunk is some of the side-quests. Don’t ignore them.
Don’t spare scavs, it’s on sight with them every day of the week.
Panam. Always Panam.