The Case for Cyberpunk 2077’s Sequel to Leave Night City Behind

Highlights

• Leaving Night City behind for the next Cyberpunk 2077 game could prevent reusing content and potentially souring the city’s legacy.
• A different city as the setting of the sequel would open more doors for unique gameplay and narrative opportunities.
• Exploring real-world locations in the Cyberpunk mythos, like Chicago or Hong Kong, could provide fresh, genre-appropriate versions of familiar places.

It’s unclear exactly what the future holds for the Cyberpunk 2077 franchise, but it’s certain that another game is on the way. Fans have a laundry list of requests and hopes for the game, ranging from sensible updates and expansions to sky-high dreams that rival the lofty expectations of Cyberpunk pre-release. However, one major, fundamental change could benefit the next Cyberpunk 2077: leaving Night City behind.

The game had no shortage of problems at launch, but few people argued that Cyberpunk 2077‘s Night City was one of them. The game’s setting is drenched in an atmosphere that is appropriately nihilistic, grotesque, and awe-inspiring, brimming with character and world-building. Everything in the city, from its satirical advertisements to its believably grimy slums, made it feel like a lived-in environment. Though Night City has every chance of being considered one of the greatest video game cities ever conceived, CD Projekt Red might want to consider letting it rest, at least for the next entry.

Cyberpunk 2077’s Sequel Should Let Night City Quit While It’s Ahead

Night City Should Be Remembered As It Is

As a fantastic in-game location that was only improved by the Phantom Liberty DLC, it can feel like Night City is the center of the Cyberpunk 2077 world. Post-launch content has expanded the city, added Easter eggs, and helped players better enjoy it thanks to various bug and performance fixes, and while it’s not perfect, it might be at its peak.

If a sequel to Cyberpunk 2077 were to take place in Night City, it would be nearly impossible to avoid reusing content and potentially souring the city’s legacy. Even if a new game leverages advancements in gaming tech to make Night City more interactive or detailed, CD Projekt Red still runs the risk of making the location too familiar and thus underwhelming.

The next Cyberpunk 2077 needs to be truly unique and can’t retread old ground. Taking place in a different city might not be a guaranteed way to prevent this potential issue, but it would open more doors in terms of both gameplay and narrative. Exploration could be entirely different, assuming this new city is structured differently than Night City, and a whole new cast of major characters could come into the mix. Cyberpunk 2077 has already introduced players to a number of key Cyberpunk concepts, characters, and locations, so a new city could also be a new start.

Where the Next Cyberpunk 2077 Can Go

It’s important to note that Cyberpunk 2077 and Night City’s gorgeous open-world design take place in an alternate version of the real world. Major cities like Chicago, Singapore, and Tokyo still exist, playing important roles in the game’s lore. Knowing this, it would be interesting to see the next game tackle one of these real-world locations, showing players fresh, genre-appropriate versions of locations they may already be familiar with.

Existing lore would allow for new narrative opportunities as well. For example, several real-world cities, like Chicago and Hong Kong, are ravaged by plague and corporate warfare in the Cyberpunk mythos, so a game set in these cities could follow these conflicts. Other real-world cities that the next Cyberpunk 2077 game could feature include:

• Seattle
• Los Angeles
• Osaka
• Washington DC
• Atlanta

With advancements in gaming technology and CD Projekt Red switching to Unreal Engine 5, the next Cyberpunk 2077 could be bigger, more detailed, and considerably more immersive. Pairing these technological and design leaps with an all-new location to explore could just be the icing on the cake.