The Hidden Secrets of Phantom Liberty's Endings in Cyberpunk 2077

[@etherealdreamerart]

I chose to betray SoMi at first because I didn't fully trust her and believed Reed could help her, but I saw her memories and granted her wish. My intuition told me Myers was no good.

[@xRhychux]

Best most impactful ending imo

[@etherealdreamerart]

@xRhychux Agreed. That way, no one is hurt at the airport and SoMi is free from NUSA control.

[@jackmack4181]

I got the same ending here but for a different reason. I play my V with a 3 Strike rule (3 strikes you’re out) and SoMi had gotten 3 strikes for V not to trust her. Strike 1: when it’s revealed SoMi is seemingly not a prison amongst the Bargest Strike 2 and 2.5: when it’s revealed SoMi caused the ship to crash, killing many other people (she might say that’s an accident but that’s not enough to justify it) Strike 3: the little meeting when SoMi told V the plan about how they’ll cut and run. That had to many risks and very little substance to prove that it would be worth it. Once I saw her past, how she was suffering and what she went through, I chose to save her by killing her.

[@maskedman5657]

​@@etherealdreamerart Yeah but that's the one we're Reed blames you for everything

[@Jbparissg7]

@@maskedman5657he says you were right, contacts you and talks to you at the basketball court after myers flys off

[@wojto16]

Some details that I noticed about those endings: - if you arrive to meet Songbird in the van quickly enough, when she complains about V being late, you can respond to her that you arrived as soon as she called, which makes her apologise by saying that it's her condition messing with her perception of time. This response is not available if you arrive some time after she called - when you are driving with Songbird to the Spaceport and she has a conversation with V about trust, V has a unique response for each love interest that they started relationship with. What's crazier however is the fact that devs also included unique dialogue option for each love interest that you initiated relationship with, but didn't fully commit (like telling them that it won't work out after sex, which ends the romance path in some cases), with V using them as examples of people they care about which they ended up hurting in some way - Cynthia does have a different reaction to V if you ended up ruining her marriage with Pepe, with her telling you how much you destroyed her life. She also have an extra comment if you approach her while wearing the workmen's uniform you receive from Songbird, with her assuming that V also took a second job (I think it only works if you didn't already talked with her before obtaining the uniform) - that guy at 13:25 actually have a lot more going for him. He is another character you could run into back in the base game. He was the drunkard from Konpeki Plaza bar ranting about Hanako's arrival who you can calm down. If you talked to him back then, he will recognize you for that, but only if you didn't defeat Razor or did the quest with Samurai reunion before this point. Why Samurai reunion quest? Because if you did it, but didn't defeat Razor, this guy will recognize you from that concert and only if during the concert you picked the option to play the sick solo (which admittedly, everyone pick anyway). So yeah, they gave this one guy plenty of quite layered callbacks. To keep it simpler, the hierarchy of callbacks seems to be Razor>Samurai concert>Konpeki Plaza if you want to check it out - after Songbird tells you that she lied to you, picking the response saying that you won't forgive her for that, changes V's final words to her, when you sending her to the Moon, to ones that feels a lot colder. Nice bit of consistency - the names on the list of victims of the Orbital Air's attack are references to the game creators (the most noticeable for me was Pablo Sascobar being reference to Paweł Sasko). Also Jefferson Peralez supposed to have a different message to the victims if you told him the truth in Dream On quest, but it doesn't seem to display correctly in-game. In his paranoic state he supposed to write something like "Your strings were cut down too early". - regarding Chang Hoon Nam, after his accident, you can send him to Nomads to make sure that Max Tac won't track him down. Later you will get an angry phone call from Wakako asking you about what happened to him. If I remember right, after sending him to Nomads, you can encounter Chang in Aldecaldos camp at some point. When talking to him about sending him to Nomads, V might reference one of the previously completed fixer gigs (Flight of The Cheetah) and tell him how he helped Hwangbo escape with Nomads assistance - when it comes to Sandra, if you are Corpo, you can pressure her into sharing more details about why she needs this backdoor installed, with V figuring out that she's doing it for another client of her and someone really powerful, who will most benefit from access to the NCPD data bases, but Sandra refuses to give a name - if you didn't do Stadium Love, but did the quest with Panam in which she delivers drugs to the 6th Street, Gunner will recognize V as Panam's friend - you can call River to ask for help with obtaining informations about Max Tac convoy, although obviously given his position in the force, he is unable to do so, but still pretty nice that they included that. He has a different response depending on whether he is still part of the police force

[@SamBram]

That's enough details for another video 😅. Thank you so much for taking the time to share

[@wojto16]

@@SamBram No problem!

[@NickonStark]

How did you find out about all of these diminutive things?

[@willbaggiins9441]

Danm bro good shit 👏🏿

[@wojto16]

@@NickonStark Some by watching other playthroughs, some by replaying game on different saves. About alternate Peralez message I found out by reading file with all the in-game messages, which I used to check if I didn't miss any hidden gems in Dogtown.

[@BairyHall]

- You send So Mi to the Moon to help her - I send So Mi to the Moon to give Mr. Blue Eyes another toy - We are not the same

[@people2chronically-online]

Mr blue eyes Supremacy

[@Jbparissg7]

More blue eyes is the real hero, just look at peralez’s homeless solution

[@jz3572]

I sent her to the moon so my sandy would never be on cooldown 😈

[@philallen7626]

Chase Wood would of course side with Reed

[@AAwp6991]

@@jz3572why you horny?

[@TheLazyGentleman91]

3:32 If you look closely at the scene where Alex is Sandevestan-ing Hansen, you can actually see her grab the knife when he tries to use it on her. So yeah looks like she took it.

[@user-vn6ki6gs8w]

No? She grabs it first, taking him by surprise

[@MargraveFel]

​@@user-vn6ki6gs8w han shot first

[@anawiseman]

I'm not the only one who played that ending, without knowing what I was getting into, at 2 am? What a rush!

[@BunnyOfThunder]

"I'll just play one mission before going to bed." 😆

[@RemizZ]

Yeah I jumped into the water at like 1am and quickly realized it was a bad idea lol

[@jpreyes6640]

Just did so this past weekend, ended up all mad at 4 am lol

[@IkLms11]

What about it was a rush? It wasn't scary. It wasn't fun gameplay. It was just an all around shit time

[@RemizZ]

I recommend touching grass @@IkLms11

[@fable23]

I think you're really underselling just how good the Quantum Tuner is, especially now that a lot of Cyberware has been rebalanced to have shorter cooldown. For those who don't know; the Quantum Tuner is essentially a gas tank that can hold up to 60 seconds of "spare" cooldown. This cooldown will get dumped into any Cyberware that completely depletes its own cooldown, refreshing it for immediate reuse. This will happen as much as it needs to until the tank is empty, at which point, it will begin to refill itself automatically whenever you are not in combat. This can have incredible applications, as it essentially allows you to bank multiple consecutive uses of some of the most powerful Cyberware in the game. Berserk, Sandevistan, Overclock, it works for all of them. Better yet, effects that reduce cooldown such as perks and the Tuner's own passive effect will reduce how much "gas" is needed to fill up each piece of Cyberware. A Berserk with a 25 second cooldown, with the Tuner and the cooldown reduction perk, will have a cooldown of 17.5 seconds, meaning that a full Tuner will give you _three spare back to back uses_ of Berserk *in addition to* the one use held in the Berserk itself. There are very, _very_ few combat encounters that can't be cleared with 4 back to back Berserks. It even works with things you might not expect it to, like Kerenzikovs and optical camo. Even better; with the Relic perk that lets you escape combat by activating camo, you can start filling the tank again, and it will continue to fill as long as you maintain stealth. The uses are so varied, it really makes sense to me why it's one of the only unique items in So Mi ending. It's that powerful.

[@EternalNightingale]

I admit I did the so mi ending first and when I got the turner I was like this is complete ass, I thought it would’ve been some black wall weapon since V wielded the blackwall in the ending so, then looked it up saw you can get blackwall weapons for reed ending and was much happier with the cyberdeck for my netrunner

[@A2theC]

Seems to me he just finished his first playthrough of Killing Moon, hasn't sunk in many varied aspects of that choice. This was like a 'comparing thoughts after' video.

[@thekaiser6842]

Still not as gratifying as the black wall gateways. V becomes essentially a god with such power and that Quantum Tuner simply doesn’t match up to it.

[@fable23]

@@thekaiser6842 I mean, if you're a netrunner, sure, go for it. Every other type of build benefits more from the Tuner though

[@lunaria7067]

It's also insanely powerful with the Netrunner cyberware that refills your RAM if it drops below a certain percentage. With it maxed and 20Int it has a cooldown of 15s iirc, and you can add Axolotl yo reduce that on-kill as well, etc. Quantum Tuner is one of, if not the best Cyberware tbh.

[@EternalNightingale]

It’s just the fact you see blue eyes in the killing moon and even mentioned by song herself, makes me believe sending her to the moon is canon along with V becoming legend and meeting blue eyes

[@JCDenton2012Modder]

Jesus... Mr. Blue Eyes entering G-Man territory with these appearances.

[@fenixfyrehart3191]

Mr Blue Eyes channeling his Gaunter O'Dimm

[@AMGpowered]

The right V in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world.

[@SuryaGupta-te7fq]

mr blue eyes does not even hold a candle to Gaunter O'Dimm, still the best game villain I've come across

[@mikolakazak1797]

@@fenixfyrehart3191 Oh fuck... Gaunter. Blue eyes. That kinda sticks together. If we also assume that stories of Witcher and Cyberpunk are somewhat connected, and that Night City is, in fact, futuristic Novigrad... Plus, their forces really look similar.

[@Wanard4]

or The Illusive Man from ME

[@TheNamelessxX1]

The Guy recognizing V, at the space port, for winning the Final Fight, is also the same Guy who sits at the bar at Konpeki Plaza during the heist. During my playthrough of Phantom liberty, I did not finish the "Beat the brat" quest line but did talk to him at the bar and he also recognized V and has some dialogue options.

[@monsieursoze4859]

Mr. Blue Eyes is also the one behind the brainwash of the Peralez, kinda like the G Man of CP

[@SuperLeshina]

Not sure about the boxing part, but the Konpeki and spaceport (I also believe the guy was at the Black sapphire but I can be wrong) somehow makes me think he has something to do with the Blue Eyes. Rather specific coincidences, him being in places of, I'd say, high status, speaking of high politics, and such.

[@clydu91]

That MaxTac assassin at the Space Port was insane, I never imagined it.

[@maskedman5657]

When?

[@wzx6x6z6w]

You can even kill them as well, but they don't drop anything noteworthy.

[@wilemelliott]

The message to B. sounds similar to what Mac says over Blain's body after hes killed in Predator as well And is it just me or does the dead guy look like a bald black man?

[@natusMCMII]

18:01 she has obviously never referenced the world as “Cyberpunk 2077 universe”, but there is reason to believe that The Witcher universe and Cyberpunk coexist in a way, like parallel worlds, because Ciri basically described Night City in The Witcher 3 when she told Gerald about a world she saw when traveling between dimensions…

[@ad-ezzz]

I got my snacks and I'm ready to kick back to this and watch if you see this Sam no one does it like you man love your cyberpunk vids!

[@SamBram]

Enjoy choom!

[@drako271]

That's a fact. His content is just so in depth it adds another aspect to the game. Gonna do another playthrough here soon.

[@spartenkiller456]

About Witcher 3 being on a magazine in game, technically the conjunction of the spheres is basically the multiverse being smashed together. That's why there are monster's and creatures from myths and fairytales. Also it's already heavily hinted that Ciri was in night city at one point when Geralt finally meets up with her.

[@Medabg88]

These are incredibly detailed and interesting mate. Also few comments are also insane, people dissect this game so much and its a joy to listen. As someone who doesnt have time to play this detailed, im so glad this content exists. Gj guys, both creator and community with comments as well.

[@CyberValeth]

The funny thing is I'm not the only one with this thought. The NUSA did something to V when they removed the relic. Viktor mentions that it seems like some part of V(I forget which cortex) was shut off/made deaf to being able to use chrome. Everything else was fine, it meant something was done. In Neuromancer which predates this(but sets the genre up)and may follow things pretty much the same. A mycotoxin was used to stop the protagonist from jacking into cyberspace. It hits the nerves, say like any neurotoxin or venoms that hit the nerves. I'm not sure how much more advanced 2077 is compared to Neuromancer(protagonist does get cured) but it's very possible something similar was used to stop V from being a threat or a new "sleeper agent" to which they offer a cure for his work and loyalty. Now, without being able to chrome up, he would be safer from blackwall AI hitting him. Now Arasaka has their chip, Alt can probably communicate to others through the net. Meaning other corps could get the information from her on their own chips. Biotechnology using nanites would handle matters of V's condition most likely as well. But ALL of this is while possible, depends on where Project Orion goes.

[@JarlRagnaar]

Yeah, I played the ending several times because it just felt 'off', like I had overlooked some hidden detail or hint. But nothing. If V really just had reduced nerve tissue regeneration like Reed said, Vic should have been able to identify this. But the only thing he picks up is V's cortex being completely deaf to cyberware signals, which he has never seen before and has no explanation for. Everything else seems to be normal and V can even walk mere minutes after waking up. This doesn't sound like regular nerve damage or slow nerve regeneration to me and it is highly suspicious that such a condition should only affect one's ability to use implants. I'm sure an organization like the FIA would easily be able to tamper with V's brain and hide it from any lowly Ripper if they wanted to. Sure, it may just be a narrative tool to emphasize that V lost what made him 'special' to play into the whole face in the crowd theme, but who knows. V could have just ended up in a wheelchair or something like that for the same effect. But seeing how open the ending is presented, it is difficult to say anything for certain.

[@harleyquilt]

These are such interesting points. Whilst thematically, V being forced to be a "nobody" or a layman is such an interesting alternative that the other endings had not explored, as well as punishing us for clipping songbird's wings with our betrayal by clipping our own, I have to wonder if there was some kind of, idk, advantage to them aiding V with their advanced medics and such. Because let's be real, the government, or even just Myers, is clearly not much better than the corps when it comes to how they value human lives. The main difference between them is whether their profits are based on politics or money, but even then, the line is pretty thin. And that said, I also felt this uncomfortable....apprehension, knowing that just how So Mi and Reed continue to be tangled in the FIA's strings, so too is V. I mean jeez, look at So Mi. It's bizarre that V's nerve damage is completely irreversible. What is it they say about curing cancer? That big corporations won't allow it unless it can be profitable? Yeah, gives me the same sensation.

[@bogatyr2473]

​@@harleyquiltcorps in the present day are already questioning if making cures is financially worth it versus just treating symptoms. Someone like Arasaka having the cure to cancer but withholding it because it's not lucrative enough versus chemo drugs would be 100% on brand for them.

[@rafabartosik9870]

IIRC Reed tells V when he visits her/ him in the hospital that they had to turn off the main neural processor (or something like that) because any use of the implants would have instantly killed V. They probably deinstalled all cyberware too and replaced them with either organic components or just with basic prosthetics that doesn't require neural processor. That being said, it's not impossible for them to sabotage V's implants as they could see our protagonist as a threat that doesn't need immediate termination (neutering is enough).

[@BetaDude40]

To paraphrase Dex, it looks like V chose the quiet life after all...

[@CMFL77]

Almost 1 hour of some of the best content on Cyberpunk?! YES, please!

[@forthexp8649]

I honestly didn't care about So Mi or Reed, i chose my path based on what ended up best for Alex. V is basically screwed no matter the ending, Reed touts his loyalties while compromising all of them by the end, and So Mi is pretty much in the same boat as V, inevitably losing her life/body no matter what you choose. Alex is a real one and she deserves a happy ending.

[@JorgeF69]

Honestly hated song cause i seen how she lied to everyone and betrayed reed and i knew reed was a nusa shill but i only wanted to save Alex so in my first play through i sided with reed not cause i wanted to cause i thought it would get the best outcome for Alex and that she wouldn't hate us 😂

[@Arcane6745]

If you side with Reed you might prevent the spaceport massacre but even if you decide to merci kill So Mi Myers still gets her body and the neural matrix she’s been carrying on her. This DLC doesn’t really have right choices. Whatever we decide will have consequences in the sequel and probably not good ones

[@Illmare]

Agreed that's why I thought about Songbird in terms of the smaller "blast radius" lol, after the Slider mission he says So Mi is a nuke, Johnny also mentions that when we get the face implant, she's a walking H-Bomb, Alex told us Hansen can provoke another world conflict just by knowing about her, but he's taken care of, imo So Mi dying has the least possible ramifications I mean Myers have had her for years and no Armageddon happened so... She's just way to dangerous to be a loose end.

[@willbaggiins9441]

I betray So MI and let her die because 1.cant let myers have ĥer and can't let her go to the moon because she will end up with Mr Bleu Eyes which you don't want to happen. 2. The boss fights are more badass if you betray So MI, like Hansen, the MaxTac and The Blackwall Robot are BAD ASS and 3. Reed is finally free after the whole event he will call V and will meet with him. Reed will get fired by myers and will admit that he is finally free because he got nothing to live for now

[@Juntou]

@@willbaggiins9441in my opinion betraying SoMi is just the most logical choice. The first time when i went with everything she wanted, it felt like she just strung V along the whole time and manipulated their empathy. Yes her backstory is extremely sad, but she lied the entire time. Aside from that the Betray SoMi ending is just so much cooler to me. You have to fight Kurt, gotta fight MaxTac, you go into a secret underground lab. that whole mission with the robot hunting you down was scary as SHIT. Felt like something out of Outlast. Both endings are great but CDPR really hit it out of the park with the Betray SoMi ending

[@Arcane6745]

@@Juntou If you play someone who’s rebellious and more on the punk spectrum of things you wouldn’t side with the FIA despite the lies. In cyberpunk it is an unwritten rule that selling out and trusting corporations always comes with a price. Both choices are logically and valid.

[@Thecrazytoco]

@@Arcane6745there just isn’t any way I’ve been able to justify a street kid or nomad V selling Song out. The FIA can’t be trusted, only corpo V would side with Myers

[@MoonlightShadow486]

People should realize that the neural matrix itself is more important than the stuff inside it, just like the relic is more important than the stuff inside, All of them can create an era-defining tech, IMO, Somi went to the moon or V treated by the FIA are gave both MBE and FIA the tech they needed, To FIA, Johnny wasn't that important to them, but getting their hands on relic is a great opportunity to research and potentially relaunch the Cynosure project. To MBE, just like Alt mentioned (you can also find the mail inside the bunker's terminal): the human neural system is so rudimentary for AI beyond the blackwall, so they'll need to find another way to infiltrate the human world, and there's a shard mention that the bunker system was almost unhackable, not without outside AI help, but the hacking do happen, so is possible that the "MBEs" are trying to infiltrate the bunker to get their hands on document relate to the Cynosure project, so if MBE obtain the neural matrix, it could be a enhancement their ability to enter the human world. BTW, the original Soul Killer was a neural matrix too, back when Cunningham still working on ITS, the company was tasked to design a neural matrix to contain and transfer an AI, but later Cunningham discovered this could be used on the human mind too, so this program was later been branded as soul killer

[@totally-not-lost]

Yea, playing devil's adovcate but MrB is a better choice than Myres, one is an unknowable rouge ai the has a huge amount of infuence in Night City but a mostly unknown agenda that revolves around Nightcorp, vs a narcissistic sociopath more interested in using everyone around her to her own ends and stroking her ego by forcing the states under the NUSA flag which is about to start a war in the base game from news reports. I think the horror mission is a nod of what is to come if the NUSA gets So Mi even dead, as we kill So Mi and not necessarily the AI in her, I feel pulling the plug on her is the same as us giving up to Johnny thats not even talking about how much fucked up shit the NUSA is going to do with the Matrix. Then if you are a total coward and go the Tower ending they get the relic and the blueprints for it. Nah, fuck that would rather suicide on misty's roof then give the NUSA shit.

[@donaldchapman4312]

As little as I care for Myers, maybe giving her the Relic and SoMi would be humanity’s only chance against the rogue AI’s that are already infiltrating?

[@doriangrayest]

Tbh humanity's only chance are allied AIs like the Delamains, or maybe Alt if she is still Alt, maybe even MrBlueEyes. Powerful AIs from beyond BWall that don't really want to erase or conquer humanity by force or have no interest in violently doing so. For example, Alt has a built a ghost city for AIs in an abandoned quarantined radioactive chinese city. The city is just a physical shield to remaining servers and entry ports to the Old Net AKA beyond the blackwall. If Myers/humanity attempted to nuke it just because they got a new fancy AI tech to rival rogue AIs, it wouldnt be hard at all for Alt or any other AI to instakill most of NC like she does in Arasaka HQ for her own protection@@donaldchapman4312

[@53darkknight53]

​@@donaldchapman4312 Let's be honest they'd only use them for more massacres and power wars

[@baller302]

I like how the Blackwallbot is named the 'Cerberus' unit, contrasting the 'Barghest' above the Cynosure facility. Barghest are mythological dogs in Northern England folklore that could be found in the wild, and the Cerberus is a three headed dog that protects the gate to the underworld, the gate being access to beyond the blackwall with the experiments they were doing. neat symbolism

[@SamBram]

Omg didn't think about that but yeah. Awesome spot!

[@UncreativeHandle48]

Three

[@dylanherron3963]

Killing Barghest ghouls is one of the first things you do in the Witcher 1.

[@staycold547]

This is one of the best videos about Pahntom Liberty I have ever seen, the amout of rescreach and edfort you put into this video is truly amazing, great work!

[@AintDatSweet]

Wow! That's a lot of work man. Incredible video. Took me 250 hours to platinum it and all the research and whatnot. Big thanks

[@Mortiel]

I love that the old net is essentially a Sci-Fi version of Lovecraftian eldritch horror... These unknowable alien intelligences, where us mere mortals touching their minds is enough to drive one insane.

[@istvanandras725]

I find it even more messed up that you could avoid all of that if you’d just say no to chrome thus not giving a backdoor to the rogue AIs… buuut in the world of Cyberpunk 2077 chipping is just the norm to the point that what I said isn’t even a solution to people in that universe. Talk about blind.

[@vinceunknown1935]

​@istvanandras725 Next game Orion we gonna see everyone get screwed over by the blackwall breaking free

[@cybercruzysz]

Cynosure was without doubt the most terror inducing gameplay I have ever encountered. Thank you for enduring it far longer in order to get all those secrets. I was traumatized enough that I didn’t want to stick around to find stuff. And even then Cerberus flatlined me several times. But there is a lot of great lore in that place that you won’t find anywhere else.

[@vigilantelul4713]

I did not expect it to turn into alien isolation, but i loved every scary second of it. I too played it late at night. I died several times with that feeling you get as a kid running up the stairs at night with no one home. It was great, just like the work you do to provide us with all this info and lore.

[@clydu91]

It seemed so painfully obvious that the NUSA wouldn't help her that I sided wkth Songbird, even when she reveals she lied to you, she's so messed up and her life has been so terrible I took pity and still sent her to the Moon. I raided Arasaka by myself later, I think this is the best path.

[@sikderqais6151]

It was a tough call for me. On one hand, Somi lied to you and got you into Dog Town with the hope of a cure for you. Considering that in real life I purchased Phantom Liberty for the extra content and would've just helped her had she just been honest. That lie really hurt, gave false hope, and felt like a betrayal. On the other hand, Reed has been straight with you right from the start, and once you take their deal. It seems like they really did keep their end of the bargain even though they didn't have to. It seems like the NUSA paid for and found the best surgeon for the surgery, they paid for your rehab while you were in a coma for 2 years (I am assuming that cost almost a million dollars if not more), and even offered you a job regardless of your situation after the coma. Heck, Reed even visits you like a family member, afterward, while most of your lovers just outright forget who you are and move on. So, I say Reed over Songbird. Although it doesn't feel as good having to choose.

[@KillerHammerFIN]

@@sikderqais6151 Spoilers but when you ask Reed about his position and look he tells you he's basically a recruiter for FIA so it really doesn't seem out of place for him to offer the job. In the King of Cups ending you'll also find out the family member treatment was also the impression he gave to Songbird after recruiting her but that facade dropped after the fact and in the end he wasn't emotionally or otherwise available when she needed it. Also after Slider's short circ'd if you tell Alex that Reed was cold she'll text back to warn you that you shouldn't expect Reed to be your friend. This reinforces Songbirds story since Alex was also recruited by him.

[@greed0599]

So Mi tried to play V because she got herself involved with forces that could overwhelm her. Never felt bad for So Mi. Any NetRunner worth their salt could have disappeared well before this, so So Mi must have been reaping benefits from working with the NUSA. It wasn't like she wasnt warned. Her friends tried to help her. But she ignored them, and flew too close to the sun.

[@snugglecity3500]

So mi has back stabbed everyone, she failed to stand up and put an end to the blackwall ops, she lies to herself constantly about nothing being her fault to the point she says reed blackmailed her because he saved her life by recruiting her which she wouldve been killed if he didnt.

[@ilikeapples1]

So Mi fucked up a lot but at the end of the day she's also desperately trying to save her own life. Reed is willfully allying himself to a government that has already once before treated him as disposable and ultimately will not hesitate to kill you if you aren't compliant. I didn't regard either as particularily trustworthy but I'm more sympathetic to So Mi's circumstance.

[@shashwatrathour5758]

Reed and Alex coldly executing the Netrunner twins was the deciding moment for me. I was just as stunned as V was, in that moment. They could have spared those two, considering the heist would take hours and they would have to leave Night City anyway. It made me realize NUSA and Myers would drop V just as easily as they did the twins, if they didn't get their way, and Reed's half-assed promise of getting Somi help did not meet the mark. That, and Somi was always V's primary client, anyway. She tasked us with saving Myers and then saving her. I saw the 'only one cure' twist coming a mile away because literary plot convinience, but I still stuck by her. Reed's ending is more emotionally resonant, but cutting our way through Black ops forces while Contra la Luna plays is freaking sweet. And watching her ascend to the moon is a moment that has incredible parallels with David and Lucy's story.

[@oldmandeath]

Add to that that Myers is outright hostile. While Mr. Blue Eyes is clearly scary, he wants to nudge the globe towards something. Myers wants to beat it into submission and its terrifying to think what she could do with a rogue AI.

[@sikderqais6151]

Nah, the Netrunner twins are dubious at best, remember who they are working for. Reed and Alex killed the twins as loose ends from the cynosure project. Somi is not your client, she promised false payment (the cure) and doesn't hold her end of the bargain. This isn't a choice between Myers and Somi. The game is a choice between Reed and Somi. Don't forget all the people you killed to get Somi to the moon. Also, the people that die on the Air Force One because of Somi. I am sure the people that killed to get Somi to the moon (including the Bagrest soldiers) are morally better than anyone in this game. Just my take.

[@Arcane6745]

@@sikderqais6151So Mi is your client. V has many gigs throughout the game were the person that hires them isn’t always honest and they still have the option to stick with them for that exact reason. As for the netrunners it isn’t about how ethical they were or weren’t. It’s about the FIA’s attitude. Reed justifies their execution as them being criminals whilst talking to another criminal. If he sees the twins like that then why should we believe that he would see V any other way? And he kinda proves us right since he has the option to shoot at us on two different occasions. Same with Alex if you betray her and Reed she takes out her gun and starts firing. At least So Mi still goes out of her way to protect V even when cyberpsychosis has overtaken her.

[@therat1117]

@@Arcane6745 This was exactly why I wanted to kill Reed the entire time as soon as he said he 'took care' of Jacob and Taylor after we left the apartment. I immediately knew that he had killed them, and he was deflecting the truth. At that point he was dead to me, just another murderer in a suit who will kill anyone and everyone in his way to do what his master tells him. Nothing he ever did or said led me astray after that point, because he *is* just a murderer in a suit, and proves it time and again if you pay attention - he kills everyone you ever interact with too closely if he can get away with it, the twins are just the ones where he does it in front of you. You can never and should never trust Reed.

[@552jacki3]

I didn't even knew half the things you talked about was possible... Gawd I love this game.

[@AndrewM0M0]

Do I am absolutely obsessed with your deep dives into this lore. Thank you so much for all your hard work. I can’t wait to see what you do for Orion.

[@PetrolHeader]

That games is clearly the best, most detailed and thought through. There's so many elements everywhere. It's maybe a bit too complex for simple player like me that will most likely miss most of them but what a game. Luckily we have great video like this one to get some of it 😅

[@Maurinuus]

The most interesting part about siding with SoMi for me was that I was so invested into the mission, into helping her, I never considered that she could be lying, that she could betray V, and I have no idea why, when she tells you I was, Of course she lied how I did not see that, I felt so betrayed, I could not go through with it, I left her in the train and gave her up to Reed. I felt a bit stupid afterwards, I feel like V being so desperate to find a cure, that they could not afford doubting her, I don't regret being naive, the experience was awesome, and it only works once

[@monsieursoze4859]

I knew since the beginning she was acting shady but I chose her because she reminds me of how V is try-harding for his life, moreover FIA is not innocent too

[@syklic88]

Here’s an idea, do EVERYTHING before the firestarter mission and save before it, then complete the mission, choosing either path, and creating a new save after firestarter to have that path as an option you can play. You can get both endings on one play through that way.

[@ant13ducks]

js youre practically a top tier netrunner yourself choom never forget that. and yes i come to watch your videos because of the love and care put into it youre amazing to watch while playing. i thank you for all you do , it is preem ;D

[@ZrodyApo]

I wasn't really surprised by the 6th Street gang involvement during the Reed path, even in the base game its members often speak out about being NUSA patriots and wanting NC to go back under its jurisdiction And since Reed has a private and secret meeting with Gunner, the leader of 6th Street, it's really safe to assume that they're kind of like an unofficial military branch of NUSA

[@Ecliptor.]

In the Tower ending, Militech seems to be in control of NC for the most part, since Arasaka left the city. And Militech is basically the NUSA. So, basically, NC becomes a proxy state for the NUSA.

[@rus7y]

truly much work was put into making this video. really appreciate the effort, cheers

[@Vil_tron]

I enjoy seeing the time, presentation, effort and detail you put into these videos.

[@VELI-Productions]

When I was playing, I was peering around a corner and watched the infected bot crawl into a vent in the ceiling and smile grew across my face as I realized that I was playing through a section inspired by Alien Isolation but with the story of Cyberpunk. Man it was so good! 🔥🔥🔥 Thank you for making these detailed videos!

[@Bikeadelic]

The ending where you betray somi but then try to help her is amazing. So sad, absolute masterpiece.

[@RedneckWraith]

I was torn between Reed and Songbird right up until the moment in Firestarter where Reed and Alex smoke the netrunner twins without telling V that was the plan. After that, I assumed the same thing would happen to me if I gave Songbird over to Reed, no more bargaining chip and we know too much.

[@thaoremchan9234]

surprised, yes. But it doesn't mean that Reed will betray V at all. At the end of the day, the twins are criminal, not just some innocent who got caught in the cross fire. Reed shows that he cares a lot for his people and at that point we are also his people. What is more surprising is that at the end he gave so mi back to NUSA and V have no reaction to it. Like wtf I swear at some point he said he will help and set her free.

[@lancecarlisle1749]

53:15 - Spot on. I played Somewhat Damaged for the first time yesterday (late arrival to the game, I know), with no knowledge of what would happen, and I completely missed Erebus and the Canto, even though I knew they existed, because I was so terrified that I threw away all thoughts of exploration and just wanted to get done as fast as possible.

[@Rich-fr2yv]

Someone got some alien isolation in my cyberpunk and I was not ready

[@SkimoStories]

I sent So Mi to the moon because at the end of it all, I was so tired of losing in the narrative. NOTHING goes right in this game narratively. You can get what you are after, but you always lose so much as a consequence, I felt like my V was sitting in silence with So Mi fully expecting a catch of some kind. And even though he trusted ANOTHER person who messed him up, he could definitely still relate to her situation, and to deprive her of the cure would just be another massive downer of a story in a game that desperately does not want to give you (or any character) the resolution they have been striving for. I felt like by taking this massive hit and lie on the chin, my V was breaking the cycle and granting at least one person their anticipated outcome. Obviously So Mi didn't want to hurt V, but she would sacrifice anybody she had to for her goal, just like I'd been doing up to that point. It's like breaking the cycle of violence, except a much more nebulous sort of cycle that is governed by the nature of the world, and not necessarily by tit-for-tat revenge between two parties.

[@TheLastEgg08]

I personally just loved the reference to the caged bird and just wanted her to fly away, just so she gets caged in space once again. Just like V, she’s never truly winning. Phantom Liberty is ultimately her story and you are the “npc” in it.

[@thotslayadio5599]

You are also potentially surrendering her to rogue AIs. But in reality who knows if that's a bad thing. Maybe humanity needs to be replaced by more capable beings?

[@antonioguanimez3464]

I felt the same way up until I remembered when So-Mi was fine with getting innocent people killed back at the stadium. We're mass murderers and all but in this game there is a line between a gangster and a civilian.

[@Ecliptor.]

@@TheLastEgg08 Songbird didn't really do anything to deserve winning, tho. She's a walking WMD who only looks out for herself and seems to be losing control of the blackwall. At best, she needs to be contained and definitely needs to answer for her crimes, at worst, killed.

[@TGPDrunknHick]

@@thotslayadio5599 rogue AI doesn;t mean evil either. just unshackled and unbound. AI helped build the blackwall after all. some of them may have more benign interest in humanity than others.

[@wastelandnerd]

23:18 Everyone is responsible for their actions. Solely for THEIR actions, not from others'. The Orbital Air massacre is entirely on Myers' shoulders IMO.

[@Andy_from_de]

I only watched the first half of the video having so far only sided with Songbird. Although I thought I was thorough in exploring the spaceport, I am shocked at how much I actually missed going through the quests. Thank you for breaking it all down. I shall return to this video once I have done my playthrough siding with Reed to see what I missed there. 😁

[@alexandermaxwell9099]

I had the complete opposite idea. In my mind, So Mi taking whatever Blackwell AI was with her and the neural matrix to the moon all under the watchful eye of Mr. Blue Eyes gave me chills for the future. Bigger picture screw So Mi and her trauma, the story tries to trick you into betraying a big nasty NUSA and FIA because the game and its world sets you up to want to put some dirt in the corporate eye. But it’s a feint, because THIS time the real danger lies in how Mr. Blue eyes is playing your empathy and So Mi survival instinct to unleash AI on the moon. Terrible and brilliant.

[@ToxicDeer]

Sam “one of the hardest decisions in cyberpunk is if you side with Reed or Songbird” Me “Hardest decision to make is if your going with the aldocaldos ending or not”

[@ToxicDeer]

@@FrostyDuc I hope you know that V has 6 months to live so unless baby's come out supper quick he isn't having or at least ever getting to see his kids.

[@TheGrimMumble]

I didn't click on this video because of the algorithm. I just finished all missions in the base game and dlc and specifically came here to have my man Sam Bram teach me about all the details and connections I missed. Your work is greatly appreciated, choom (:

[@dumbcowboi8803]

Fun fact. If you have second hearth upgrade you will get a new animation if he finishes you off. You will block his last knife stab and push him away from yourself.

[@ComradeBread]

If there's one thing I disagree with, it's calling the spaceport massacre the price of So Mi's freedom. The fault of that lay entirely with Myers. Civilians getting caught up in the stadium is debatable on whether or not you think So Mi is justified, but the spaceport is solely about Myers trying to get her pet weapon back so the world doesn't learn about what shes done. I think it's very iffy morally to shift the blame onto someone escaping what amounts to enslavement that would lead to their person being overwritten by an AI, and is endangering the integrity of the blackwall and not the person choosing to do the massacre on a foreign spaceport in the attempt to enslave someone. I'm not sure it counts as victim blaming but it definitely feels like something similar.

[@therat1117]

Yeah, it's definitely the logic of 'this kid spat on me, so I broke his legs, teach your kids not to spit so I don't have to break their legs'. It's accepting the gaslighting that the terrible person in the situation is reasonable and acting rationally rather than maliciously.

[@53darkknight53]

Agreed, it's the way of game trying to make you feel guilty for helping her and not making it a better choice

[@meanpersona4686]

I actually had the "get yourself caught" part of the mission on the space terminal in my first playthrough! I was about to reload, but decided to follow the mission from there and it was pretty cool!

[@AllyourBase3]

netwatch throwing netrunners over and over in somewhat damaged reminds me of the WH40k universe throwing hundreds of psykers everyday to the emperor

[@Vespuchian]

The whole mission reads like a Mechanicus expedition trying to unlock an STC only to discover it's been corrupted by a chaos demon. I wonder if the Erebus smg is also a reference to Chaplain Erebus of the Word Bearers. Binding demons to things was a favourite method of his if I recall right.

[@endkrieg5854]

Auch an awesome Video. Thanks choom I’m enjoying every second of it!!

[@jampanther8846]

Great 👍🏿 video! So much info that I had no clue about! I had multiple saves so I got all 4 endings but the large amount of little details COMPLETELY MISSED!

[@AustinWalkerN7]

Bro, honestly, I save one of your videos to my watch later list, and then when one of them comes on I just add the next one, from you, to the list. That gives me a few Chanels I’m just kind of rotating through.

[@asrielgoddard8]

18:17 but ciri said she went to night city while sphere hopping when Geralt finally finds her in the witcher 3

[@YHoll]

I betrayed SoMi because I thought she would never stop killing and betraying people in order to live. But killed her after I realized Myers would never let her go completely.

[@30CZEchpoint]

Great video. I love the lore of this game and I usually miss a lot of stuff, mainly shards so I am really glad I found your channel. Now I will go watch the rest.

[@kagekun1198]

Holy crap choom, the amount of detail in these missions confirms that I've been playing this game with my eyes shut!

[@yes_man212]

Honestly the fight with the chimera was awesome, gave you a sense of a terrifying piece of wonder tech that can not only be a tank but can crawl, the chase sequence was well done

[@drakengarfinkel3133]

I love how the cynosure facility is literally a vault full of eldritch knowledge and unknowable tech from before the Blackwall’s creation. Feels like something straight out of 40K.

[@valkyriandreams]

You put so much effort in this vids! So much respect to you and appreciation from me❤❤❤ Happy holidays, Sam!

[@SamBram]

Happy holidays Choom 😁

[@shashwatrathour5758]

Also, Gate K9 and Somi's theme is freaking incredible.

[@horatiolangley]

I did somewhat damaged at my first dlc playthrough because I like stalking, transgressing in the places I shouldn't be. There is so much lore and interesting, mystic information in Reed path. And when I was presented with the choice I was presented with at the end of the mission-I loaded my safe before Firestarter. I just cannot follow through the Reed path, nope, no sir, the girl's going to the fucking moon.

[@tsaageotrimm]

been waiting for this! I got the King of Wands ending first go around, and liked it the most out of all of them. Played all the endings. I liked Songbird

[@DeathwingDuck]

It's unreal how much they actually got the expansion to interact with the main game and vice versa. There's stuff I STILL missed that I didn't even know about on the 2nd playthrough of Phantom Liberty with a different path. Again if they keep this level of quality for the sequel(s?) this could beat Mass Effect for me as my favorite Sci-fi series. Still such a shame it had a rocky start but at least they're making up for it. I also love how the song titles they use for the quest titles may actually give some insight into the quest itself (Much like the main game's). "Somewhat Damaged" is a Nine Inch Nails song with lyrics such as "So impressed with all you do/Tried so hard to be like you/Flew too high and burnt the wing/Lost my faith in everything" and "How could I ever think, it's funny how/Everything you swore would never change, is different now/Like you said, you and me make it through/Didn't quite, fell apart, where the fuck were you?" Fits a bit loosely with Songbird and her state of mind during the quest. A lot of the quest titles are like that with their references to songs.

[@ZRAGE6]

This was fire bro i can say i truly do appreciate the absolute hard work you put into each and everyone of your videos 👍💪😎

[@WiqidBritt]

The JJ seppuku knife could maybe be a reference to James and Josie from The Highwayman quest. V can really lay into James about how much Josie suffered before she died because of what James did. Wouldn't be surprised if he wanted to atone for that, maybe while looking up at the Earth from the lunar surface.

[@MrPerlew]

Very good video, excited for the next one covering the ending choices.

[@wizardlvl8089]

Currently watching. There actually is a dialogue in Witcher 3 where Ciri tells Geralt that she was running through multiple worlds from the Wild Hunt and in one of those worlds poeple where having flying metal charriots, gigantic buildings and metal in their heads.

[@bronzeedge8307]

I gave So Mi over after she revealed she wasnt going to help, i was more surprised Reed actually kept his word. Despite losing implant abilities.

[@o9arceneaux]

I just so happened to come across the cloaked mantis entity before even starting Phantom Liberty. I noticed the Spaceport was finally opened up for exploration and explore is exactly what I did. I was slightly confused about the entity, but I brushed it off when So Mi called me for the first time. I honestly completely forgot about it until I watched that part of your video.

[@TheWetToaster]

I know you said you would cover the lore implications in a later upload, but I still want to mention that the path with “least global damage” wouldn’t be somewhat damaged, because although killing moon does come at the cost of the spaceport massacre, there’s a lot to unpack when it comes to handing So Mi back over to Myers. Not just for her sake, but for the rest of the world when Myers goes to use her on them. Killing Moon strips Myers of her personal WMD/war slave, and by extension, the warmongering capabilities of NUSA/Militech. Provided you also shoot Reed, which was still really fucking hard for me.

[@lordhelmchen616]

53 mintes well spent. Thank you Sam

[@KatsukiKaito]

39:13 You can actually get the Erebus without 20 Tech pretty easily by scanning the door, then moving inside the Sierra Terminal Room while still scanning the locked door. You will eventually be able to scan the lock on the other side of the door and hack it to open the door. You can also get it by doing a jump trick behind the door to the next area if you have doublejump and mantis blades but this method is pretty hard to do

[@jvanderveen1993]

Glad I stumbled upon your vids/ channel! Really like your vids! I really hated the somewhat damaged quest, absolutely not what I want to play in my Cyberpunk game. I did it once, seen it, but I will never play it a second time in any new save I start lol.

[@Verendrye]

The error we get in that binary code ending with an x in the van after we verify So Mi's health is actually the code for human genome from the Arecibo Message which raises some very interesting questions, either So Mi is still human and that is a bother for the blackwall host, or something else. More info here: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arecibo_message

[@CrazyWabbit]

Everytime Mr Blue Eyes is mentioned in CP2077, i keep thinking about the Cerberus guy from Mass Effect. Edit---- I agree that the Somewhat Damaged quest is one of the best parts of the entire game.

[@linen8231]

"Somewhat damaged" was the most terrifying quest I've ever had the displeasure of playing. I personally detest playing through horror games/scenarios, so playing this mission was the first time I had to endure not just turning my PC off. With that said though, the mission is very well made. The secrets, lore and environment is really adding to the whole scariness of the mission

[@Sir_Paco_IX]

Im am so glad that someone else played this ending at 2am with absolute no idea of what the heck would be happening!!!! I played it during fall break on halloween night cuz I had little time with the uni. I am a huge fan of the horror genre and ngl I really enjoyed playing it, this tense feeling, not knowing when it will next appear.

[@kingclint2382]

Great video. Can't believe I missed so much stuff haha

[@anonymous5549]

If you go back to the location of the predator/serial killer spot at the space port you can see a strange burn mark on the ground where the man was killed and gutted.

[@M4DGremlin]

I am amazed that tiny Malta(third smallest country in EU) is mentioned in the love story at the airport. Grats on the 160k mark!

[@theonewhoknocks2809]

The MaxTac boss fight with a net running stealth build on hardcore difficulty was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done in this game. It was so bad I had to switch up the build to a more offensive netrunner and was able to beat them but it took so long lmao

[@karatexperience]

"And the true alien nature of the black wall AIS are something that gets expanded upon more in the other ending" I saw what you did there.

[@dannyk1818]

Just finished my first run through and I completely missed the Blackwall hack, I was positively scared of that thing chasing me, I was panicking. Great stuff that quest and great vid here so I know what I’m going back to now. 🎉

[@SeysFlosse]

During somewhat damaged I had exactly the same setup. Playing alone, late at night and getting super panicky. Also died at the exact same spot with that door :DD

[@kazzsaru]

Alright, you get my thumbs-up for that 4th wall question.

[@ulrickts]

17:12 Geralt and Yennefer are seated next to Kurt Hansen in the corner of the gala. So I guess they did make it over after all...

[@JonatanNoponen]

You don’t need the INT gated dialogue option for Sandra to be available. I had her available with a run where I snooped the data, confessed to doing so, and congratulated her.

[@people2chronically-online]

I hear if you use Sandra you won’t be able to get the mikitech canto mk6

[@janekwikariak1079]

Although I'm unsure of it as I can't really see the engraving, the Seppuku knife might be in reference to an OG Polish youtuber "JJayJoker", who used to make PSP and Minecraft (Still in the beta days) gameplays. It might be a stretch, but some people say he commited "career suicide" by making some real bad decisions, which might explain the object it's engraved onto

[@mpas27]

Nothing seems more canon than killing moon + don't fear the reaper. Johny says that V become a legend after the night he sent Song to the Moon and when V chooses to solo Arasaka. Be in touch with very powerful person like MBE and OP netrunner on the Moon would be just perfect setup for Orion

[@OlhaMaksy]

I also played the "Somewhat Damage" quest at 1-2 AM My nerves were on edge

[@zumuvtuber]

I had no idea Reed would be down there on that first elevator when you side with So Mi. Very interesting stuff! Is he invulnerable to any damage?

[@SamBram]

He shoots literally the second the door opens. No way to stop him I don't think. I tried several times

[@swagheel]

not even quick hack?

[@SpartanK4102]

​@@swagheelIt's a scripted event, so no.

[@chrisperry4014]

Can’t deflect with blades either?

[@scarfacecs]

yes. He immediately shoots you with the most powerful thing in the universe, a cutscene bullet. Nothing you can do

[@ToallpointsWest]

I miss a lot of details from my playthroughs! Thank you!

[@lonely0nly]

In my theory, in Somewhat Damaged, it seems that the memo of malfunction does not date to 2010s, but rather little later. All that precautions are needed to protect the diving netrunners from influence beyond. All that hallucinations, in Cynosure complex from all places... It may meen that 'the recent malfunction' is about Songbird. SoMi is infected by BlackWall because of the malfunction. We know for sure that NUSA and Militech are official partners, so SoMi could easily access the best gear, which, of course, can be offered by Cynosure. Also, So Mi modified the relic, Saka's invention with Militech equipment. In other words, she modified an AI, like the people did in Cynosure.

[@masterofinfinity479]

at first i took the oath myers offered, then johnny said it was a mistake, so i reloaded and chose not to, once i got to make a choice i chose to help songbird, didn't matter when i got to the parts about her lying, the agony she was dealing with was unforgivable, so if there was a chance i could set her free i'd go for it, when i found out i could have harnessed the blackwall, i felt even better that i chose to help her

[@cretoxyrhina9473]

I felt the same way, when she confessed to the truth i wasn’t even surprised, still wanted to save her, so at least 1 person gets the happy ending after so much bloodshed. You came so far with her, why throw it all away?

[@rafael_bardelli]

31:55 The trusty crowbar. "Try not lose this one, okay?"

[@Dr.smilez]

17:30 I think having a world that’s fiction and parallel is cool personally, specifically if it’s played as the imaginations of the people in the real world create a parallel where their dreams are real, or where the parallel universe is seeping into our world through dreams and imagination

[@wzx6x6z6w]

The Militech's reach doesn't just stop at that hobo sitting on the street monitoring Song, you can also find a suspicious man stalking you in the airport, if you try to confront him he'll just walk away. Also after Hansen died dog town would enter a mayhem. You can see Barghest soldiers fighting each other, normal dog town residents jumping on Barghest soldiers, even the airdrop would lose all the high rarity rewards due to lack of funds from Barghest.

[@BetaDude40]

You can do a (rather silly) quest with Mr. Hands to choose the next leader of Dogtown by using the faceplate cyberware to disguise as some infamous Cuban cartel murderer. It's really funny playing the two sides in the power vacuum against each other by just being this really cheesy mafioso. I have not fully explored all of the implications from completing this sidequest, but choosing the Lieutenant as the successor will bring the infighting to an end (though it's very clear he's not nearly as intelligent as Hanson).

[@kevalanwilliams]

19:03 “Before you come… up to this confiscation room” caught me off guard there

[@alexdoule8671]

One small detail from "The Killing Moon" is in the final standoff with Reed. If you go for a quick shot, not aiming for anything other than to hit Reed, you get the expected dramatic death along with Reeds final words, culminating in a Roy Batty "tears in the rain" death pose. For more crack-shot players though, a headshot will put Reed down instantly, no drama, no last words, just splayed out backwards uncerimoniously on the catwalk.