Is a 70 minute story video a good idea by the metrics of TH-cam and it's algorithm? I have no idea! But thanks to my Patrons, I get to make the content I want to make, and still feel good about it, and I think that's cool as hell - www.patreon.com/ThaneBishop
You probably know this already, but the reason Hansen’s men ambushed you was probably because you took a right at the fork in the tunnels with Myers, got seen on camera, and then didn’t delete the footage, which leads them to you. If you don’t get seen or delete the footage, then they never attack you or Myers, and then the FIA “takes care” of Jacob and Taylor.
Mhm, you got it. That's part of what got cut, taking this from 95 minutes to 70 minutes. But also, I'm really impressed with the game on that front; I assumed the camera was just a thing, and when combat didn't happen immediately, that it didn't actually do anything. I might have missed a trigger because I originally went left path, and then took the other path from the end side to see what was there, and that's when the camera got me
Wait. Can you tell me where exactly it is in the video? Or if not in the video where I can get ambushed ? I don't think I got ambushed while going with Myers.
I just wanted to say I appreciate your transition from the person playing the game to the character within the game. From V's perspective, with the choices you made, just V justifying and explaining those choices. The moment to moment, first person stress and contemplations, the sickening and quickening, the wonder and horror, like someone wanting to fall back into a dream they recently woke from and then are lucidly experiencing. This was refreshing. Raw flow of thought and emotion.... True roleplay. I do appreciate it, sir. Thank you.
Just a mega minor correction, Reed was never in dogtown, he was in Night City proper working as a bouncer for DIno, if you go to DIno's place before PL you can see him.
You gushing about how much you love Cyberpunk and by extension Phantom Liberty has been some of my absolute favorite content recently. I was able to see the care and love in this game from the start, and to see it all receive the praise and recognition it deserves has been awesome.
I really appreciate that. It's taken some time to find my footing, but I really want this channel to be a place for me to celebrate the media and content that I love, and it makes me really happy to be able to share that with people, and know that people enjoy it in turn.
As someone who went the other way and betrayed Songbird....you made the right choice. The mercenary side of me won out in the moment and in the end you do get your prize but the cost it comes at is too great.
I'm not gonna lie with the Mr. Hands forced gigs thing, if you do gigs during the multiple times the game forces you to wait in-between main quests it goes over really well even for a big roleplayer like you and me! It's the one time in the entire game they actually make the gigs completable within the context of the main story lol
I must not have done enough; I had to cut it for time, but I did do the Paco quest while waiting for Reed to return. He called right after I finished that one to say he was back in town, though. I'll probably do a replay at some point, maybe see what happens if you do all the side-gigs before calling Hands
I really liked how you kept jumping back and forth between talking as you and talking as V. It gave V a lot of character and depth they otherwise wouldn't have, and it helped me feel like I was inside your head experiencing these things with you and V. Very unique video, I enjoyed it a lot.
Happy to hear it! I've used some first person narration in some videos in the past, but I really made the choice to lean in to it for this one, and it's cool to know that people like it
This was incredible. The first person writing felt very personal, and even though I knew the shape of the track --- I felt like I was going through it again. Just great stuff.
Thank you man, I really appreciate that. The strong use of 1st person felt like a bit of a wild card, and I'm really happy to hear that people enjoyed it
The one thing that separated my playthrough from yours, was a brief vision that I had in my conversation with songbird in her hideaway. Knowing we were basically the same person. I imagined my time as if the games main character was songbird. (I’ve done this with Jackie as well). In my mind, as the player. Looking at this random merc, who’s only here because I could reach them through the relic. Who’s thrown into my desperate plans for survival. When she said, “I’ll leave and call you when it’s ready” I imagined the prompt saying (lie to V) “I’ll call you when I’m ready” and I knew I’d lie in a second, i knew I’d have done that. At this point I pivoted to realizing I could either salvage a relationship with the entire government of the NUSA or become a rogue traitor with a WMD who (promised)to save me. The Jackie angle never occurred to me. So I’m pleased you opened my perspective. This game really is amazing
That moment where you have to make THAT choice, I took a LONG time thinking, looking at Songbird, recalling every word she said, and everything Reed said, and all the time between my previous play session and that moment that I had spent knowing this choice was gonna come, trying to figure out what I would choose and still coming up without an answer. And up until the last moment I still had no idea what I would do. In the end, I couldn't look at her in the eye and betray her. I love Reed as a character and that choice ended up getting him killed by my hand, but even with that last betrayal from her that honestly didn't surprised me at that point, I gave Songbird what we both fought so hard for, and I let her go. And every moment for the rest of the game, knowing she was up there gave me a bit of comfort that Reed was wrong at his last moment but he would've been proud if he knew that it was all worth it... for her. I eventually went to a previous save right before that choice and took a different path, and holy hell that was one hell of a ride, and discovering all I did about Songbird's past reassured me I had made the right choice the first time around, and that it would be a relief when I finish seeing that alternate playthrough to the end before going back to my real timeline, back to Johnny and our own problems, in a world where Song So Mi left her cage and got away from all the monsters that had kept her there. I've haven't felt this emotional about a fictional video game character since I led Joel to that operating room to save Ellie so many years ago, and didn't feel a damn thing about all the blood I left behind, because she was worth it. edit: typo
I dunno if you’ll see a comment on a sixth month old video, but I hope you do see this one. The way you go through telling this story was so intriguing and so well done. For context, I listened to this video awake at 1 in the morning originally planning to fall asleep to it, but instead getting invested in listening to you tell a story that I’d already experienced. But your reasoning for saving Songbird has made me do a bit of introspection in a way that certainly wasn’t expecting from a video about a cyberpunk dlc. As you talked about your experiences, your reasoning, your feeling, and your thoughts all about them, I thought back to how I felt going through Phantom Liberty. I realized I was only trying to save my own skin, sure I cared about those around me, I wanted everyone to get their happy ending, but in the end it was all about me, saving myself. Our choices were almost identical, up until you had the choice to betray songbird on the train. You didn’t. I did. I felt betrayed, I knew I should’ve seen it coming, I knew both sides had been feeding me half-truths and I knew it was all too good to be true. But she betrayed me, at least that’s how I saw it in the moment. You opened my eyes to the true scope of everything, in my selfishness I ignored the hell she had been through, and everything that put her in the situation she found herself in. I did that despite how similar her experiences were to my own experiences both in and out of the game. Truth be told I feel like I committed a grave injustice looking back, I did something horrible, I sent her back to a terrible life just because “How dare she lie to me?” when I know damn well in her shoes I probably would’ve done the same thing. Jackie saved me because he was a damn good man. I let Songbird suffer because I was selfish. I’d never thought of the story this way, and again, you opened my eyes to this. Pushed me to wanting to be something better through what at the time I probably saw as a choice to make in a game, without fully thinking about the overarching story. I want to improve myself, because while I don’t know if I would’ve done what I did in the real world, some part of me, somewhere, still let that happen in a world where things were different, but not different enough to ever justify that choice. I want to be better, and I don’t know if I’ve ever had a single TH-cam video do that for me. I hope you’re proud of the work you do, because you damn well should be.
59:26 One thing I noticed since Phantom Liberty coming out is that they changed the dialogue options here. It's now even more pointed, with the options being labelled as "Betray Reed" or "Betray Songbird"
It was an easy decision to go with So Mi -- birds of a feather, and all that. You forget about the fate of Jacob and Taylor just long enough for it to be slapped back into memory when they execute the twins. And not to say it wasn't an excellent plot hook, but you can see the twist from a mile off: It's you or Songbird for the cure. So after you slog your way through the airport, So Mi at least half a step from death's door and she reveals to you that she lied to V about the cure... I get it. I take off with Panam my beloved and the Nomads -- the gift of hindsight as a player and all that. But one's so spent after using the blackwall and boarding the maglev that one more death wouldn't make a difference. I'm in control of my fate -- I know how this ends for me. So why not at the end of all things, just help for the sake of helping -- she came to you, after all. Tried to reason with Reed; his friend is dying -- see sense. He had none of it. It's a very unceremonious headshot in the rain. I don't know how it ends for Songbird yet, but I'm sure she's doing alright. That aside though GOD what an excellent analysis of Phantom Liberty! The transitions between first and third person retelling are seamless, and your heart is in every inflection. Just as much with your first Cyberpunk video, this is on point and something I'll be coming back to in the future.
Holy shit, this video is good! Your thorough analysis of the story and the characters, coupled with the constant back and forth between reflecting on your thoughts and narrating V's perspective throughout the masterfully crafted story of Phantom Liberty is absolutely captivating. I like how you really embraced the roleplaying and you managed to eloquently give voice to pretty much every thought I, myself, have on this DLC and its characters. Additionally, our stories had quite a similar trajectory, with a former Corpo V seeing herself in So Mi and doing everything in her power to help and protect So Mi, to be a shelter from the storms for her. Because that's what friends do, it's what Jackie taught her and now she'll apply it to try and give at least one person a shot at a happy ending. "Songbird was out of options. I still have a few. And I'm happy to have given her this one." This quote and the Phantom Liberty credits theme made me cry so much. Profound and beautiful. Thanks for this video. I have been madly in love with Phantom Liberty ever since I played through it the first time and your essay has somehow managed to make me appreciate it even more than before.
Holy shit my guy thank you so much! This means so much to me! Absolutely thrilled to see how much this video meant to you; it was such a massive project, and still remains the 2nd largest video I've ever made. I put a lot into this video, and it feels incredible to see it pay off with how it resonates with other people
This video added a context to my playthrough of Cyberpunk that I think of a lot. You mentioning Jackie and the fact that he goes out of his way to help V in every possible playthrough because it is the right thing to do, shaped me helping Songbird in my latest playthrough. You gave Jackie helping V a level of context that may not have been intended but was really important to me.
“Songbird was out of options. I still have a few. And I’m happy to have given her this one.” Damn that hit hard, especially because I made the exact same decision but didn’t truly know why. I only knew in my heart of hearts that it was the right thing to do. Not because of min maxing or logic but because it was the kind thing to do.
This was such a fantastic video essay to listen to, I love the way the story of your V was interwoven into it all and how it really felt like it was V speaking to us at the same time as you. I also adore that you managed to sum up exactly the same feelings as what I had regarding Songbird and the end, plus it was fun to watch somebody come at the story from a different background and skill angle. My streetkid max strength/tech V despite going through the same story beats with no changes in missions still managed to really *feel* different to your corpo netrunner V, it's great. This game had such a beautiful resurgence and no matter what criticism people might have the story and characters are wonderfully done and draw me in so well
just wanna say I found your videos recently, and they're all really high quality. You deserve subs/viewers in equal part. Cheers mate, thank you for the good content. (I beat the game for the first time even though I played it on launch night, and I'm feeling a hell of a lot of void rn)
Your cyberpunk vids, thoughts and elocution are great, enough for me to subscribe and check out your other projects. Someone might have already mentioned this, I didn't see it but I wasn't obsessively checking either But Reed isn't living in Dogtown, he was on ice in NC proper, he actually works as a bouncer, at Dino's place the electric orgasm, I ran into him and he stuck in my memory enough to Screencap him because I never saw an npc who shows up as *classified* when I scan him. Hours later I start phantom liberty and that same bouncer introduces himself to me with iron at my favorite kidney. Gotta love night city. (and CDPR)
As someone who completed as many Dogtown gigs as I could before advancing the main PL story, I never knew you had to complete them mandatorily for Hands to move the story along. I understand it though - the devs wanted you to explore more of Dogtown and experience its stories. Not only that, but the new gigs had a lot of depth to them and were great standalone stories with many moral decisions.
There's something deeply fascinating about seeing into the mind if someone else's version of V My V is a roiling storm of rage and fear and guilt (not to mention a huge amount of combat stims and chrome). No time for doubt since getting flatlined. Every moment teetering at the edge of cyberpsychosis
i love your narration so much dude. this is the second video i’ve seen of yours and i’m in love with your storytelling and scriptwriting. i’ve played through this dlc once but idk there’s something about seeing and hearing someone fully immerse themselves in the world like i did and narrate it to me that’s just so comforting to me. this is the best rundown of PL i’ve seen, please continue to narrate and tell stories the way you do. it warmed me when you would put yourself in V’s shoes. felt like i was reading your V’s internal monologue or diary. idk what it is about it, but your delivery is also perfect. this is gonna be a repeat comfort watch for me i already know it 💓 thank you!!
I gotta say, after spending 7 hours going through Tim Rogers jaded, analytical, deconstruction of this game watching videos from someone who's this invested in the world is really refreshing. (No shade on either of you, it's just pleasant to see multiple perspectives.)
I love the storytelling in this video. I enjoyed cyberpunk alooot more than I thought I would as I heard a lot of trash talk about this game. Thanks for doing this banger justice, keep up the good work my man!
PL IS a great narrative. But man was my v Out after the black Saphire. I left with Reed, talked with him, got into my car, took two breaths and drove straight to embers, for the Meeting with the devil i know.
I just found your channel and binged a couple of your videos and I've fallen in love with your script and storytelling as well as your breakdowns. It's a soothing experience and I hope you do more videos like this one ❤
I know I'm late to the pointing things out party but my favorite part of exploring Dogtown was realizing the big circular building looks exactly like project Cynosure's logo!!!
I cannot put into words how much I love this video! But I wanna talk about something. I also chose this ending, but you see, I never stopped to think about it all that much, I was just along for the ride, kinda. So when Song told me she had betrayed me too... I was shocked BUT I was even more shocked when I realised, I wasn't mad, not one bit, and I didn't regret anything. I hadn't thought about it, as I said, but internally I had made the decision to help her a long time ago. And I wasn't doing it because of a possible cure, not even because it felt like the right thing. I saw a girl that needed help, and I helped her. As Zidane from Final Fantasy IX said: "You don't need a reason to help someone." And I have lived by those words ever since I played that game... Good luck So Mi, I hope you can find a happy ending. Thank you for reading.
@@DJveyron5 I also chose the same btw. I was a bit upset by the end, but something in the back of my head told me the line, "Wrong city, wrong people." I decided that at least someone should get their dream fulfilled by NC, even at the cost of me.
honestly I wouldn't mind a story play through of Cyberpunk 2077 from you. You make it enjoyable and could probably fill a year or two of uploads like that XD
Really great stuff here! The combo analysis/narrative playthrough type video really speaks to me. Reminds me a bit of Warlockracy's reviews, in a very good way.
The one thing you CAN trust about Reed is that he truly does just want to help. Its just. His help is whats good according to his ideas. Something something when all you've ever known is a hammer all the problems look like nails.
At the beginning of the video, I wasn't enjoying the first person narration, since it initially felt like a convoluted way to recount the story. However, as the video progressed, I really loved how you incorporated your own thoughts and feelings through this first person perspective when discussing specific themes and major decisions in the game. The first person perspective added this extra layer of emotion that really drew me into the story and your analysis. I didn't even realize how immersed in the video I was until the ending credits. Amazing work, man. I've never even played Cyberpunk, but this video, along with your other Cyberpunk videos, has made me really want to play it for myself
......you know this video is one of those forms of art about art (be cos cyberpunk in my opinion is absolutely an incredible form of art and beauty) that make you just sit in silence staring into nothing for an X amount of time I would love to write some counter analysis or complex breakdown, but this video doesn't need it you've done it better than most ppl ever could I don't know you and you don't know me but by the way you wish to present your self and your analysis and the conclusions and choices you've made I can assume you're a very conscientious self-aware and most importantly empathetic person .... I write this to say thank you, you've made me think and realize I'm not as smart as I think I am you made me consider some lines of thought I could have never see on my own and that's beautiful I cannot argue that as laws and morality are quite subjective but beauty, beauty is objective this why art was one of the earliest forms of expression I thank you once again.
When she told me that there was not a cure for me, I realized at that moment that I’ve always knew, in bits and pieces of memories yet to be amalgamated I knew that I was getting played. But also at that moment I realized that I was also someone who follows their ideals. I decided to set this birdy free, and take a fat dump on myer’s desk. After finishing phantom liberty recently. I realized the reason why cyberpunk sunk its claws in me so deep is that I am just like V. Reed. David. Rebecca. My dream has always been to make everyone else’s dreams come true
Fantastic video man!! I enjoyed it especially as someone who went the other way (betraying Songbird) and it was great to see in real time you coming to the decision you made. Would love to see you explore the other side of that decision and all the consequences and revelations that come with it.
Thank you so much! My thoughts in this video were very much framed by leaning really heavy into the identity of the Corpo lifepath, and seeing how closely it mirrored Songbird's story. I totally think there's a world where I just mentally invested in Streetkid, or Nomad, and had a totally different way of thinking throughout this story
@@ThaneBishop I wonder if Street Kid might be likely the one to betray Songbird. Yes, FIA zeroes people and but as Street Kid that's not the worst you have seen (or maybe even done... my Street Kid V did zero a few people for being in wrong place at wrong time, too) and however fucked up it migt be, it is still the personal, iron-in-hand kind of murder. And although Myers is an absolute scum, Songbird just casually goes on with dropping the whole stadium subnet (an act that would kill quite a lot bystanders too, people very much like the V from Heywood) and on top of that she slips the hint that her goal is saving just one life. And I get the impression that wouldn't be her first remote colateral-mass-murder considering how casual her tone is, and she is way too comfortable with that being the case. And then there is the whole Blackwall breech angle to consider and whether you are actually talking to Songbird at all... Nomad would probably be fifty-fifty... mine would probably side with Songbird but then give her to Reed after betrayal (or walk away and let Reed take her), but I can see it playing the other way around. However, I am under the impression that the Corpo V would be far more OK with Reed's playbook considering the work for 'Saka.
Great video, friend! You told the story of Phantom liberty from V's perspective and I assume this is how you felt abot it. And I largely felt the same way. I also sided with So Mi and I wasn't surprised when I learned that there isn't going to be a cure for V. I think I realised it when we met at the place that reminded her of home. It felt to me that she was all alone and begging a stanger (V) for help in a world where noone does anything for anyone from the goodness of they're heart.
Wow! . . . You really live this stuff! I tip my hat to you. Truly original presentation style; wonderfully engaging, deeply charming, as creative as the original and offering a whole new experience, like a companion piece. I KNOW there’s a bigger audience for this stuff than these viewing figures suggest. The algorithm is unjust. Is all your stuff like this? . . . Blew me away. Thanks.
Even before Phantom Liberty and The 2.0 update I was so drawn to Cyberpunk, Night City and V/Johnny connection tru the game and your videos represented a lot of my feeling towards this fucking buggy game I didn't know why I loved so much even tho made me so mad and sometimes gloomy when I played too much, so... thanks for your content!
You have to check out the new ending you can unlock by doing the other thing. It puts a lot of things into perspective, and it'll inform you on the original choice you've made.
an absolutely phenomenal video. hooked me from the very start. i'd put it on in the background as i worked, but soon had to close every other tab because the way you wrote this story made me feel so personally invested all over again. so, sorry for the essay, but this video moved me. i'd started to play through phantom liberty when it first came out. made a new save and everything. i'd gotten all the way up to that Choice. the choice that defined dogtown. between songbird and reed. i see myself in reed. mostly for reasons that were, in all likelihood, unintentional by the dev team, but it affected me anyway, so, here goes; reed-- and alex, kinda-- are two black people that have been so, irrevocably wronged by the system they pledge themselves to, and yet, still find a way to justify coming back to the NUSA. and i'm sure the devs didn't intend to make a commentary on race in their little cyberpunk dlc-- but as a black person who studying law, seeing reed doing *everything* he can to convince himself he's in the right-- it kinda broke me, you know? because I've done the same thing. seen injustices in the system we work in and purposefully blinding ourselves to it, for the sake of some system. and we know this system is fked. but it is a system, and humans are creatures of stability first. and-- i'll be honest, i never finished phantom liberty just because of that. i saved songbird, because it was the right thing to do on a moral level, but i couldn't kill reed. i just couldn't. it felt like an omen. and i know, I KNOW, it's a video game, it's not that deep, whatever-- but i really don't know how else to put it. i was killing the man i wanted to become. that save file hangs in stasis to this day. i've only lived the endings through other v's eyes-- and yours now, too! it's really bittersweet. not sure if its even a happy ending, anymore.
I really wondered if CDPR had it in them to tell an even more engaging story in Phantom Liberty as they did in the main game.....but boy did they deliver in a major way.
It is so neat seeing such a totally different experience to mine but with the same choice in the end. My V is a street kid and a walking disaster. She has no netrunning ability, a selection of nice handguns, and mild cyberpsychosis. She up to the point of the expansion, pushed away anyone she could have been close with repetitively. Her only friend is Johnny, which is a questionable choice to make. She's still deeply angry about Jackie's death, and what happened to her and takes it out on the world around her. Almost every point where your V didn't start a fire fight, assume mine did. There was no sneaking. There was just wholesale slaughter more or less. Songbird was the first new friend she made so, that was why she let her go. It was for me this moment of one deeply damaged person helping another deeply damaged person go free. Plus ya know, always good to engage in some revolution against the oppressive systems. My V's actual ending is the "secret one". Storming Arasaka with just Johnny. Which of the three conclusions to that choice happen from there is totally irrelevant to me. I've done all three multiple times now. If it was a movie I'd say it would have been best left open ended. V and Johnny walk in, open fire, the end. Now that I've done this it makes that ending even better. Anyway long ramble, it was neat to see a totally different view on the story. Thanks for sharing, I've been loving your videos and slowly plugging away at watching them.
(be aware spoil) Amazing storytelling thank you so much, really. I got the same ending on my playthrough of phantom liberty and i was kinda sad and not sure if it was the right one because we have to kill Reed. But with everything you said as V and as yourself and the fact that the execution of the twins shocked me so much, i'm now pretty happy with how it ended. I really felt a deep connection between my female V (nomad path who romanced judy ofc) and Songbird and also a deep link between myself and the character of So Mi. So no regrets at all and even if i surely will load an old save or restart another party to see by myself all the differents endings and even get the chance to experience the new ending for the game although i know that i will always prefer to stay with loved ones around me even if i only a few months to live (like in the nomad ending with panam and jude) rather than live longer and being left alone.
You finally put into words how I felt about my first playthrough of this DLC, juxtaposed against my second: I sided with Reed the entire way, but it felt... strange. Odd. Wrong. Going back and saving/helping Songbird, knowing full-well that someone is going to lose, and that a lot of people were going to die (no matter what I chose). It was far, far easier for me to morally justify. I don't really know what that says about me as a person, though. If I was given a trolley problem with both tracks full of people, it no longer becomes a game of simple arithmetic. I start playing with numbers of people that I can't quite fathom the deaths of. That said, the NUSA/FIA/Militech have been far more destructive institutions for the world of Cyberpunk when compared to Songbird. Songbird is one person, a single conduit for the Blackwall (and that's horrifically destructive, sure), but she's one person. And that's far easier to cure than those institutions will ever be. She was used as a tool, by a lot of terrible people (and some misguided people), and I can only hope she has a good life, free of the Blackwall. A life far, far away from the people that used her.
I do not like meyers. She puts up this ballsy soldier front, but she is an ambitious goal achieving machine that is willing to use anyone who even remotely trusts her to further their agenda. Only thing seperating her from any other suit is the title and by proxy under her leadership the NUSA is just another corp. Second. You missed a major theme of the DLC. Its in the name of "dogtown". Its to show that V has that dog in them.
Im glad you helpt her when i played it after buying the ps5 last december i already expectet the promise to be a red hering & there will be no cure for me but helpt anyway cuz there will be atleast something in for me & there is the posebility to help out some folks that have a need for a bit of help in that fucked up world & dogs eats dogs of a city
I played through PL twice just to see both options and the other ending is the lesser in my opinion. I like the additional time we get with songbird in her memories, but I'm not a fan that the game turns into Alien Isolation for a segment throwing off the pace of the gameplay. It's also full of half truths and betrayal and I can't shake the feeling that I'm now a sleeper agent. Reed at least is telling the truth about the NUSA being able to save my life, but my implants weren't removed, just deactivated by the NUSA surgeons. What's to stop them from dangling one more mission in front of me in exchange for getting that ability back. Songbird was our ultimate weapon and now she's gone, but we have V in her place.
I love being an arrogant chromed out corpo rat telling the voodoo boys outside slider's that i'll do to them what I did to Brigitte. I'm a bit more soft than my Arasaka days but I'm not afraid to show some strength.
This game touches us all in many different ways, even though the conclusions might converge eventually... I'm happy you took the time to write this experience down, and that I got to play the game through first, and that I could watch your video when I was ready (the algorithm forgot about it, but I eventually remembered). I mostly don't have an internal narrator in my head, and especially not whilst playing games, so allow me to say thanks, a whole lot. Thanks for putting words to so many of the feelings I have felt, but couldn't quite grasp in the moment. It helps a lot
It's an interesting video, though I think I liked your other Cyberpunk videos better because I'm used to the "format". It's a me thing but the roleplaying through the video essay feels a bit... weird? Though I respect your choice in presentation, it's not one that many other TH-camrs use. I really enjoyed PL but I wonder if I would've gotten a higher level of enjoyment if I had gone in blind; I had knowledge of the ending results and I wanted everyone to live, regardless of morals/contradictions (Reed, Songbird, Alex, and fem V) and I justified it as my Fem-V not tolerating another betrayal, anymore. When you mention how you "saved her life" I'm reminded of other players remarking on how Mr. Blue Eyes or some other malicious entity could end up using her just as bad as Myers did. Or maybe, finally, Songbird gets to live a new life by her choices? It's a gamble, for sure. For me, I headcanon'd that my Corpo Fem-V would go and take Reed's FIA job offer. She was booted from one "desk job" and found herself at another, in the end, but with new possibilities in her life. To me, it was like the ending of Casino, with Robert de Niro's character saying: "But in the end, I wound up right back where I started... And why mess up a good thing? And that's that." Songbird betrays V for a new life, and vice versa. For my next playthrough, I think I'll side with Songbird all the way through as Male V. I'm surprised you didn't make any comments about how attractive everyone is in this expansion: Reed, Songbird, Alex, the twins, Mr Hands, hell even Hansen's got brutish charm to him, haha. Hope you make videos on Dogtown's gigs/side missions in comparison to the base game's. They feel so much richer. Also, I found Johnny a lot more likeable in PL than the base game, even with the scene with him in the Oil Fields.
I love your story choom, if your not a writer then you should be. the way you describe things is amazing, I would buy your book if you had one, for now I will subscribe, like and check out your other videos. Keep up the good work!
Man nothing pissed me off in a game like them killing the twins. I liked them. Thats when I chose Songbird over Reed, I think. At a certain point you just gotta extend grace to the people who you like. Foolish, naive, romantic, sure. But fewer regrets.
Great perspective dive into PL. I would just love to add a layer on the side. Its kind of awsome how Song is a monster. Made in no small part by the world and Mayers admitedly, but a monster nevertheless. I feel for her, I absolutely do, she got the short end of a stick, along the way, but in Vs other fork in the road we can see her memories, even from before FIA. How what is said is just a bit scewed in her favour, by herself and Reeds love for blaming himself, to feel he's more in control then he really is. What we dont see, even with that added window into her life, is her doing a single trully nice and selfless thing for anyone else throught the whole DLC. Only a string of impressively reckles, selfish decisions where she always found someone else to blame, but herself, drilling deeper and deeper into shit, but alive on talent, skill and some luck. To the point I would be kind of suprised if she was not the one that came up and proposed messing with the Blackwall. It would be her brand of foolish genius really to plan and pull it off. She did love to mess with the net in risky ways and would not mind climbing the lader in FIA. You don't get as high as she was as a pawn pushed by others. This poor So Mi story is sold so well we can go with this sociopathic mostrosity of a person getting civilians die at the stadium en mass, destabilising world politics and risking world wide cybersecurity, manipulating and using V like a cheep puppet for no higher ideal then her own well being and still see just poor Songbird. Really awsome storytelling.
This is an old video so you will probably never see this message. The core conceit, how you framed this was finding what the game was trying to say. I love that you found it, and you said it out loud, but you didn't draw attention to it. Everyone in NC has had someone betray them, someone in Vs line of work gets used to it. But when the chips were down you made a choice, "I will be for her, what I wish someone would be for me." That line landed.
Wish you'd made the other choice. I'm sure you know, but it sends you down a nightmare rabbit hole full of ghosts of the past. And it lets you make a deal with those same demons after you conquer them. Getting yourself a very... special... cyberdeck.
Going to copy a comment I left on another video : I knew from the start especially when Reed connected the dots,but I truly could not stand him the FIA,the NUSA,or Myers from the get go,apart from having a Flag Pole shoved so far up his ass that he for a second couldn't imagine that she at least deserved a shot at true anatomy,and a potential cure for her disease everyone sans maybe Alex from indifference wanted power,and to control her.I felt like as she slowly opens up to you a bit,and ultimately when in her most vulnerable moment when she admits the full truth that if everyone's using her then I might as well give her that shot I wouldn't want to be alone plus especially if that was to potentially be her final moments I wasn't about to consign her to a life of torture,and being Myers Personal pet weapon until she eventually dies that truly felt horrifying. A lot of people choose to ignore that she's literally a mirror image of V at the start of the game,and it never ceases to amaze me at the comfort at which people feel giving her up to a fascist lap dog even if you have the chance to put her out of her misery it just feels wrong.
Is a 70 minute story video a good idea by the metrics of TH-cam and it's algorithm? I have no idea! But thanks to my Patrons, I get to make the content I want to make, and still feel good about it, and I think that's cool as hell - www.patreon.com/ThaneBishop
F*ck the metrics. That video was almost as good as the game itself.
Probably not but its what i like to see lol
You probably know this already, but the reason Hansen’s men ambushed you was probably because you took a right at the fork in the tunnels with Myers, got seen on camera, and then didn’t delete the footage, which leads them to you. If you don’t get seen or delete the footage, then they never attack you or Myers, and then the FIA “takes care” of Jacob and Taylor.
Mhm, you got it. That's part of what got cut, taking this from 95 minutes to 70 minutes. But also, I'm really impressed with the game on that front; I assumed the camera was just a thing, and when combat didn't happen immediately, that it didn't actually do anything. I might have missed a trigger because I originally went left path, and then took the other path from the end side to see what was there, and that's when the camera got me
Wow that’s amazing.. I was just gonna make a comment saying I played through PL twice and never got attacked like this .. great stuff
Having just finished my first run through Phantom Liberty it was fun seeing how different some of the scenes could go in this compared to mine
Wait. Can you tell me where exactly it is in the video? Or if not in the video where I can get ambushed ? I don't think I got ambushed while going with Myers.
@@MohitKumar-ve3je It’s right after the steam tunnel. As is the little room in which is the laptop to delete the video.
I just wanted to say I appreciate your transition from the person playing the game to the character within the game. From V's perspective, with the choices you made, just V justifying and explaining those choices. The moment to moment, first person stress and contemplations, the sickening and quickening, the wonder and horror, like someone wanting to fall back into a dream they recently woke from and then are lucidly experiencing. This was refreshing. Raw flow of thought and emotion.... True roleplay. I do appreciate it, sir. Thank you.
Just a mega minor correction, Reed was never in dogtown, he was in Night City proper working as a bouncer for DIno, if you go to DIno's place before PL you can see him.
That's awesome, I don't think I've ever seen anyone mention that
You gushing about how much you love Cyberpunk and by extension Phantom Liberty has been some of my absolute favorite content recently. I was able to see the care and love in this game from the start, and to see it all receive the praise and recognition it deserves has been awesome.
I really appreciate that. It's taken some time to find my footing, but I really want this channel to be a place for me to celebrate the media and content that I love, and it makes me really happy to be able to share that with people, and know that people enjoy it in turn.
As someone who went the other way and betrayed Songbird....you made the right choice. The mercenary side of me won out in the moment and in the end you do get your prize but the cost it comes at is too great.
I'm not gonna lie with the Mr. Hands forced gigs thing, if you do gigs during the multiple times the game forces you to wait in-between main quests it goes over really well even for a big roleplayer like you and me! It's the one time in the entire game they actually make the gigs completable within the context of the main story lol
I must not have done enough; I had to cut it for time, but I did do the Paco quest while waiting for Reed to return. He called right after I finished that one to say he was back in town, though. I'll probably do a replay at some point, maybe see what happens if you do all the side-gigs before calling Hands
@@ThaneBishop it's specifically gigs, Paco is a side mission and doesn't count towards the progress with Hands
I really liked how you kept jumping back and forth between talking as you and talking as V. It gave V a lot of character and depth they otherwise wouldn't have, and it helped me feel like I was inside your head experiencing these things with you and V. Very unique video, I enjoyed it a lot.
Happy to hear it! I've used some first person narration in some videos in the past, but I really made the choice to lean in to it for this one, and it's cool to know that people like it
I second this. That’s what makes this video special
@@ThaneBishop I couldn't agree more, it took me by surprise, but it was a very welcome one. Made me so much more invested in this video!
This was incredible. The first person writing felt very personal, and even though I knew the shape of the track --- I felt like I was going through it again. Just great stuff.
Thank you man, I really appreciate that. The strong use of 1st person felt like a bit of a wild card, and I'm really happy to hear that people enjoyed it
The one thing that separated my playthrough from yours,
was a brief vision that I had in my conversation with songbird in her hideaway.
Knowing we were basically the same person. I imagined my time as if the games main character was songbird. (I’ve done this with Jackie as well).
In my mind, as the player. Looking at this random merc, who’s only here because I could reach them through the relic. Who’s thrown into my desperate plans for survival.
When she said, “I’ll leave and call you when it’s ready” I imagined the prompt saying (lie to V) “I’ll call you when I’m ready” and I knew I’d lie in a second, i knew I’d have done that.
At this point I pivoted to realizing I could either salvage a relationship with the entire government of the NUSA or become a rogue traitor with a WMD who (promised)to save me.
The Jackie angle never occurred to me. So I’m pleased you opened my perspective. This game really is amazing
That moment where you have to make THAT choice, I took a LONG time thinking, looking at Songbird, recalling every word she said, and everything Reed said, and all the time between my previous play session and that moment that I had spent knowing this choice was gonna come, trying to figure out what I would choose and still coming up without an answer. And up until the last moment I still had no idea what I would do.
In the end, I couldn't look at her in the eye and betray her. I love Reed as a character and that choice ended up getting him killed by my hand, but even with that last betrayal from her that honestly didn't surprised me at that point, I gave Songbird what we both fought so hard for, and I let her go. And every moment for the rest of the game, knowing she was up there gave me a bit of comfort that Reed was wrong at his last moment but he would've been proud if he knew that it was all worth it... for her.
I eventually went to a previous save right before that choice and took a different path, and holy hell that was one hell of a ride, and discovering all I did about Songbird's past reassured me I had made the right choice the first time around, and that it would be a relief when I finish seeing that alternate playthrough to the end before going back to my real timeline, back to Johnny and our own problems, in a world where Song So Mi left her cage and got away from all the monsters that had kept her there.
I've haven't felt this emotional about a fictional video game character since I led Joel to that operating room to save Ellie so many years ago, and didn't feel a damn thing about all the blood I left behind, because she was worth it.
edit: typo
Absolutely love the style of the essay you went with - seamlessly switching to first-person V narration felt extremely natural
I dunno if you’ll see a comment on a sixth month old video, but I hope you do see this one.
The way you go through telling this story was so intriguing and so well done. For context, I listened to this video awake at 1 in the morning originally planning to fall asleep to it, but instead getting invested in listening to you tell a story that I’d already experienced. But your reasoning for saving Songbird has made me do a bit of introspection in a way that certainly wasn’t expecting from a video about a cyberpunk dlc.
As you talked about your experiences, your reasoning, your feeling, and your thoughts all about them, I thought back to how I felt going through Phantom Liberty. I realized I was only trying to save my own skin, sure I cared about those around me, I wanted everyone to get their happy ending, but in the end it was all about me, saving myself.
Our choices were almost identical, up until you had the choice to betray songbird on the train. You didn’t. I did. I felt betrayed, I knew I should’ve seen it coming, I knew both sides had been feeding me half-truths and I knew it was all too good to be true. But she betrayed me, at least that’s how I saw it in the moment. You opened my eyes to the true scope of everything, in my selfishness I ignored the hell she had been through, and everything that put her in the situation she found herself in. I did that despite how similar her experiences were to my own experiences both in and out of the game.
Truth be told I feel like I committed a grave injustice looking back, I did something horrible, I sent her back to a terrible life just because “How dare she lie to me?” when I know damn well in her shoes I probably would’ve done the same thing.
Jackie saved me because he was a damn good man.
I let Songbird suffer because I was selfish.
I’d never thought of the story this way, and again, you opened my eyes to this. Pushed me to wanting to be something better through what at the time I probably saw as a choice to make in a game, without fully thinking about the overarching story.
I want to improve myself, because while I don’t know if I would’ve done what I did in the real world, some part of me, somewhere, still let that happen in a world where things were different, but not different enough to ever justify that choice. I want to be better, and I don’t know if I’ve ever had a single TH-cam video do that for me.
I hope you’re proud of the work you do, because you damn well should be.
59:26 One thing I noticed since Phantom Liberty coming out is that they changed the dialogue options here. It's now even more pointed, with the options being labelled as "Betray Reed" or "Betray Songbird"
It was an easy decision to go with So Mi -- birds of a feather, and all that. You forget about the fate of Jacob and Taylor just long enough for it to be slapped back into memory when they execute the twins. And not to say it wasn't an excellent plot hook, but you can see the twist from a mile off: It's you or Songbird for the cure. So after you slog your way through the airport, So Mi at least half a step from death's door and she reveals to you that she lied to V about the cure... I get it. I take off with Panam my beloved and the Nomads -- the gift of hindsight as a player and all that. But one's so spent after using the blackwall and boarding the maglev that one more death wouldn't make a difference. I'm in control of my fate -- I know how this ends for me. So why not at the end of all things, just help for the sake of helping -- she came to you, after all. Tried to reason with Reed; his friend is dying -- see sense. He had none of it. It's a very unceremonious headshot in the rain. I don't know how it ends for Songbird yet, but I'm sure she's doing alright.
That aside though GOD what an excellent analysis of Phantom Liberty! The transitions between first and third person retelling are seamless, and your heart is in every inflection. Just as much with your first Cyberpunk video, this is on point and something I'll be coming back to in the future.
thats a really beautiful explanation of exactly what was going through my head when i decided to do everything in my power to save songbird
Holy shit, this video is good!
Your thorough analysis of the story and the characters, coupled with the constant back and forth between reflecting on your thoughts and narrating V's perspective throughout the masterfully crafted story of Phantom Liberty is absolutely captivating.
I like how you really embraced the roleplaying and you managed to eloquently give voice to pretty much every thought I, myself, have on this DLC and its characters.
Additionally, our stories had quite a similar trajectory, with a former Corpo V seeing herself in So Mi and doing everything in her power to help and protect So Mi, to be a shelter from the storms for her. Because that's what friends do, it's what Jackie taught her and now she'll apply it to try and give at least one person a shot at a happy ending.
"Songbird was out of options. I still have a few. And I'm happy to have given her this one." This quote and the Phantom Liberty credits theme made me cry so much. Profound and beautiful.
Thanks for this video. I have been madly in love with Phantom Liberty ever since I played through it the first time and your essay has somehow managed to make me appreciate it even more than before.
Holy shit my guy thank you so much! This means so much to me! Absolutely thrilled to see how much this video meant to you; it was such a massive project, and still remains the 2nd largest video I've ever made. I put a lot into this video, and it feels incredible to see it pay off with how it resonates with other people
@@ThaneBishop You're welcome, brother.
This video added a context to my playthrough of Cyberpunk that I think of a lot. You mentioning Jackie and the fact that he goes out of his way to help V in every possible playthrough because it is the right thing to do, shaped me helping Songbird in my latest playthrough. You gave Jackie helping V a level of context that may not have been intended but was really important to me.
“Songbird was out of options. I still have a few. And I’m happy to have given her this one.”
Damn that hit hard, especially because I made the exact same decision but didn’t truly know why. I only knew in my heart of hearts that it was the right thing to do. Not because of min maxing or logic but because it was the kind thing to do.
This was such a fantastic video essay to listen to, I love the way the story of your V was interwoven into it all and how it really felt like it was V speaking to us at the same time as you.
I also adore that you managed to sum up exactly the same feelings as what I had regarding Songbird and the end, plus it was fun to watch somebody come at the story from a different background and skill angle. My streetkid max strength/tech V despite going through the same story beats with no changes in missions still managed to really *feel* different to your corpo netrunner V, it's great.
This game had such a beautiful resurgence and no matter what criticism people might have the story and characters are wonderfully done and draw me in so well
loved the narration in this. its inspiring, and beautiful, thanks for making this one.
just wanna say I found your videos recently, and they're all really high quality. You deserve subs/viewers in equal part. Cheers mate, thank you for the good content.
(I beat the game for the first time even though I played it on launch night, and I'm feeling a hell of a lot of void rn)
Your cyberpunk vids, thoughts and elocution are great, enough for me to subscribe and check out your other projects.
Someone might have already mentioned this, I didn't see it but I wasn't obsessively checking either
But
Reed isn't living in Dogtown, he was on ice in NC proper, he actually works as a bouncer, at Dino's place the electric orgasm, I ran into him and he stuck in my memory enough to Screencap him because I never saw an npc who shows up as *classified* when I scan him.
Hours later I start phantom liberty and that same bouncer introduces himself to me with iron at my favorite kidney.
Gotta love night city. (and CDPR)
As someone who completed as many Dogtown gigs as I could before advancing the main PL story, I never knew you had to complete them mandatorily for Hands to move the story along. I understand it though - the devs wanted you to explore more of Dogtown and experience its stories. Not only that, but the new gigs had a lot of depth to them and were great standalone stories with many moral decisions.
There's something deeply fascinating about seeing into the mind if someone else's version of V
My V is a roiling storm of rage and fear and guilt (not to mention a huge amount of combat stims and chrome).
No time for doubt since getting flatlined.
Every moment teetering at the edge of cyberpsychosis
i love your narration so much dude. this is the second video i’ve seen of yours and i’m in love with your storytelling and scriptwriting. i’ve played through this dlc once but idk there’s something about seeing and hearing someone fully immerse themselves in the world like i did and narrate it to me that’s just so comforting to me. this is the best rundown of PL i’ve seen, please continue to narrate and tell stories the way you do. it warmed me when you would put yourself in V’s shoes. felt like i was reading your V’s internal monologue or diary. idk what it is about it, but your delivery is also perfect. this is gonna be a repeat comfort watch for me i already know it 💓 thank you!!
I gotta say, after spending 7 hours going through Tim Rogers jaded, analytical, deconstruction of this game watching videos from someone who's this invested in the world is really refreshing.
(No shade on either of you, it's just pleasant to see multiple perspectives.)
I love the storytelling in this video. I enjoyed cyberpunk alooot more than I thought I would as I heard a lot of trash talk about this game. Thanks for doing this banger justice, keep up the good work my man!
You are easily one of the most interesting TH-camrs to listen to. I love your videos! Hope to see more!
PL IS a great narrative. But man was my v Out after the black Saphire. I left with Reed, talked with him, got into my car, took two breaths and drove straight to embers, for the Meeting with the devil i know.
I just found your channel and binged a couple of your videos and I've fallen in love with your script and storytelling as well as your breakdowns. It's a soothing experience and I hope you do more videos like this one ❤
I know I'm late to the pointing things out party but my favorite part of exploring Dogtown was realizing the big circular building looks exactly like project Cynosure's logo!!!
It’s very reassuring to hear that someone else made the same decisions I did for the same reasons. Thanks.
I cannot put into words how much I love this video! But I wanna talk about something. I also chose this ending, but you see, I never stopped to think about it all that much, I was just along for the ride, kinda. So when Song told me she had betrayed me too... I was shocked BUT I was even more shocked when I realised, I wasn't mad, not one bit, and I didn't regret anything. I hadn't thought about it, as I said, but internally I had made the decision to help her a long time ago. And I wasn't doing it because of a possible cure, not even because it felt like the right thing. I saw a girl that needed help, and I helped her.
As Zidane from Final Fantasy IX said: "You don't need a reason to help someone." And I have lived by those words ever since I played that game... Good luck So Mi, I hope you can find a happy ending.
Thank you for reading.
FFIX MENTIONED RAAAAHHHHH
@@resorufin6164 Fellow based FFIX fan🤝
@@DJveyron5 I also chose the same btw. I was a bit upset by the end, but something in the back of my head told me the line, "Wrong city, wrong people." I decided that at least someone should get their dream fulfilled by NC, even at the cost of me.
@@resorufin6164 Well said, respect 👏🏼
I love this new take on essay / personal story . Keep it up !!
Finally a video about phantom liberty!!!
honestly I wouldn't mind a story play through of Cyberpunk 2077 from you. You make it enjoyable and could probably fill a year or two of uploads like that XD
Really great stuff here! The combo analysis/narrative playthrough type video really speaks to me. Reminds me a bit of Warlockracy's reviews, in a very good way.
The ego-boost from being compared to any creator with the 100K+ subcount cannot be overstated, thanks man!
This is beautifully done, definitely captured a lot of the emotion during my playthroughs if it
The one thing you CAN trust about Reed is that he truly does just want to help. Its just. His help is whats good according to his ideas. Something something when all you've ever known is a hammer all the problems look like nails.
Perfectly captured my thoughts at the end too.
I really love your Cyberpunk videos, you just know how to capture a feeling. Thanks for that.
At the beginning of the video, I wasn't enjoying the first person narration, since it initially felt like a convoluted way to recount the story. However, as the video progressed, I really loved how you incorporated your own thoughts and feelings through this first person perspective when discussing specific themes and major decisions in the game. The first person perspective added this extra layer of emotion that really drew me into the story and your analysis. I didn't even realize how immersed in the video I was until the ending credits. Amazing work, man.
I've never even played Cyberpunk, but this video, along with your other Cyberpunk videos, has made me really want to play it for myself
Hey I really like your videos and just wanted to say that you do really good job when it comes to your writing, I look forward to futere videos.
......you know this video is one of those forms of art about art (be cos cyberpunk in my opinion is absolutely an incredible form of art and beauty) that make you just sit in silence staring into nothing for an X amount of time I would love to write some counter analysis or complex breakdown, but this video doesn't need it you've done it better than most ppl ever could I don't know you and you don't know me but by the way you wish to present your self and your analysis and the conclusions and choices you've made I can assume you're a very conscientious self-aware and most importantly empathetic person .... I write this to say thank you, you've made me think and realize I'm not as smart as I think I am you made me consider some lines of thought I could have never see on my own and that's beautiful I cannot argue that as laws and morality are quite subjective but beauty, beauty is objective this why art was one of the earliest forms of expression I thank you once again.
When she told me that there was not a cure for me, I realized at that moment that I’ve always knew, in bits and pieces of memories yet to be amalgamated I knew that I was getting played. But also at that moment I realized that I was also someone who follows their ideals. I decided to set this birdy free, and take a fat dump on myer’s desk.
After finishing phantom liberty recently. I realized the reason why cyberpunk sunk its claws in me so deep is that I am just like V. Reed. David. Rebecca. My dream has always been to make everyone else’s dreams come true
Fantastic video man!! I enjoyed it especially as someone who went the other way (betraying Songbird) and it was great to see in real time you coming to the decision you made. Would love to see you explore the other side of that decision and all the consequences and revelations that come with it.
Thank you so much! My thoughts in this video were very much framed by leaning really heavy into the identity of the Corpo lifepath, and seeing how closely it mirrored Songbird's story.
I totally think there's a world where I just mentally invested in Streetkid, or Nomad, and had a totally different way of thinking throughout this story
@@ThaneBishop I wonder if Street Kid might be likely the one to betray Songbird. Yes, FIA zeroes people and but as Street Kid that's not the worst you have seen (or maybe even done... my Street Kid V did zero a few people for being in wrong place at wrong time, too) and however fucked up it migt be, it is still the personal, iron-in-hand kind of murder. And although Myers is an absolute scum, Songbird just casually goes on with dropping the whole stadium subnet (an act that would kill quite a lot bystanders too, people very much like the V from Heywood) and on top of that she slips the hint that her goal is saving just one life. And I get the impression that wouldn't be her first remote colateral-mass-murder considering how casual her tone is, and she is way too comfortable with that being the case. And then there is the whole Blackwall breech angle to consider and whether you are actually talking to Songbird at all...
Nomad would probably be fifty-fifty... mine would probably side with Songbird but then give her to Reed after betrayal (or walk away and let Reed take her), but I can see it playing the other way around.
However, I am under the impression that the Corpo V would be far more OK with Reed's playbook considering the work for 'Saka.
Great video, friend!
You told the story of Phantom liberty from V's perspective and I assume this is how you felt abot it. And I largely felt the same way. I also sided with So Mi and I wasn't surprised when I learned that there isn't going to be a cure for V. I think I realised it when we met at the place that reminded her of home. It felt to me that she was all alone and begging a stanger (V) for help in a world where noone does anything for anyone from the goodness of they're heart.
Wow! . . . You really live this stuff! I tip my hat to you. Truly original presentation style; wonderfully engaging, deeply charming, as creative as the original and offering a whole new experience, like a companion piece. I KNOW there’s a bigger audience for this stuff than these viewing figures suggest. The algorithm is unjust.
Is all your stuff like this? . . . Blew me away. Thanks.
Even before Phantom Liberty and The 2.0 update I was so drawn to Cyberpunk, Night City and V/Johnny connection tru the game and your videos represented a lot of my feeling towards this fucking buggy game I didn't know why I loved so much even tho made me so mad and sometimes gloomy when I played too much, so... thanks for your content!
I love to hear all that, thank you so much for the support!
great videos on the game my man! took the same choises as you! really enjoyed your videos
Algorithm pleasing comment
You have to check out the new ending you can unlock by doing the other thing. It puts a lot of things into perspective, and it'll inform you on the original choice you've made.
an absolutely phenomenal video. hooked me from the very start. i'd put it on in the background as i worked, but soon had to close every other tab because the way you wrote this story made me feel so personally invested all over again. so, sorry for the essay, but this video moved me.
i'd started to play through phantom liberty when it first came out. made a new save and everything. i'd gotten all the way up to that Choice. the choice that defined dogtown. between songbird and reed.
i see myself in reed. mostly for reasons that were, in all likelihood, unintentional by the dev team, but it affected me anyway, so, here goes;
reed-- and alex, kinda-- are two black people that have been so, irrevocably wronged by the system they pledge themselves to, and yet, still find a way to justify coming back to the NUSA. and i'm sure the devs didn't intend to make a commentary on race in their little cyberpunk dlc-- but as a black person who studying law, seeing reed doing *everything* he can to convince himself he's in the right-- it kinda broke me, you know? because I've done the same thing. seen injustices in the system we work in and purposefully blinding ourselves to it, for the sake of some system.
and we know this system is fked. but it is a system, and humans are creatures of stability first.
and-- i'll be honest, i never finished phantom liberty just because of that. i saved songbird, because it was the right thing to do on a moral level, but i couldn't kill reed. i just couldn't. it felt like an omen. and i know, I KNOW, it's a video game, it's not that deep, whatever-- but i really don't know how else to put it. i was killing the man i wanted to become.
that save file hangs in stasis to this day. i've only lived the endings through other v's eyes-- and yours now, too! it's really bittersweet.
not sure if its even a happy ending, anymore.
I really wondered if CDPR had it in them to tell an even more engaging story in Phantom Liberty as they did in the main game.....but boy did they deliver in a major way.
It is so neat seeing such a totally different experience to mine but with the same choice in the end.
My V is a street kid and a walking disaster. She has no netrunning ability, a selection of nice handguns, and mild cyberpsychosis. She up to the point of the expansion, pushed away anyone she could have been close with repetitively. Her only friend is Johnny, which is a questionable choice to make. She's still deeply angry about Jackie's death, and what happened to her and takes it out on the world around her.
Almost every point where your V didn't start a fire fight, assume mine did. There was no sneaking. There was just wholesale slaughter more or less.
Songbird was the first new friend she made so, that was why she let her go. It was for me this moment of one deeply damaged person helping another deeply damaged person go free. Plus ya know, always good to engage in some revolution against the oppressive systems.
My V's actual ending is the "secret one". Storming Arasaka with just Johnny. Which of the three conclusions to that choice happen from there is totally irrelevant to me. I've done all three multiple times now. If it was a movie I'd say it would have been best left open ended. V and Johnny walk in, open fire, the end.
Now that I've done this it makes that ending even better.
Anyway long ramble, it was neat to see a totally different view on the story. Thanks for sharing, I've been loving your videos and slowly plugging away at watching them.
i love the mantra of "DO NOT FUCK WITH THE BLACK WALL"
(be aware spoil) Amazing storytelling thank you so much, really. I got the same ending on my playthrough of phantom liberty and i was kinda sad and not sure if it was the right one because we have to kill Reed. But with everything you said as V and as yourself and the fact that the execution of the twins shocked me so much, i'm now pretty happy with how it ended. I really felt a deep connection between my female V (nomad path who romanced judy ofc) and Songbird and also a deep link between myself and the character of So Mi. So no regrets at all and even if i surely will load an old save or restart another party to see by myself all the differents endings and even get the chance to experience the new ending for the game although i know that i will always prefer to stay with loved ones around me even if i only a few months to live (like in the nomad ending with panam and jude) rather than live longer and being left alone.
You finally put into words how I felt about my first playthrough of this DLC, juxtaposed against my second: I sided with Reed the entire way, but it felt... strange. Odd. Wrong.
Going back and saving/helping Songbird, knowing full-well that someone is going to lose, and that a lot of people were going to die (no matter what I chose). It was far, far easier for me to morally justify. I don't really know what that says about me as a person, though.
If I was given a trolley problem with both tracks full of people, it no longer becomes a game of simple arithmetic. I start playing with numbers of people that I can't quite fathom the deaths of. That said, the NUSA/FIA/Militech have been far more destructive institutions for the world of Cyberpunk when compared to Songbird. Songbird is one person, a single conduit for the Blackwall (and that's horrifically destructive, sure), but she's one person. And that's far easier to cure than those institutions will ever be. She was used as a tool, by a lot of terrible people (and some misguided people), and I can only hope she has a good life, free of the Blackwall. A life far, far away from the people that used her.
I do not like meyers. She puts up this ballsy soldier front, but she is an ambitious goal achieving machine that is willing to use anyone who even remotely trusts her to further their agenda.
Only thing seperating her from any other suit is the title and by proxy under her leadership the NUSA is just another corp.
Second. You missed a major theme of the DLC. Its in the name of "dogtown". Its to show that V has that dog in them.
all of the gigs you do for Mr. Hands have story beats related to the main story of Phantom Liberty if you're looking for them
How do you have so few subscribers?? This was great. Underrated channel
Im glad you helpt her when i played it after buying the ps5 last december i already expectet the promise to be a red hering & there will be no cure for me but helpt anyway cuz there will be atleast something in for me & there is the posebility to help out some folks that have a need for a bit of help in that fucked up world & dogs eats dogs of a city
I played through PL twice just to see both options and the other ending is the lesser in my opinion. I like the additional time we get with songbird in her memories, but I'm not a fan that the game turns into Alien Isolation for a segment throwing off the pace of the gameplay. It's also full of half truths and betrayal and I can't shake the feeling that I'm now a sleeper agent. Reed at least is telling the truth about the NUSA being able to save my life, but my implants weren't removed, just deactivated by the NUSA surgeons. What's to stop them from dangling one more mission in front of me in exchange for getting that ability back. Songbird was our ultimate weapon and now she's gone, but we have V in her place.
I love being an arrogant chromed out corpo rat telling the voodoo boys outside slider's that i'll do to them what I did to Brigitte. I'm a bit more soft than my Arasaka days but I'm not afraid to show some strength.
That ending is the story of two cyberpsychos committing a terrorist act against a public spaceport.
It’s fun though
This game touches us all in many different ways, even though the conclusions might converge eventually... I'm happy you took the time to write this experience down, and that I got to play the game through first, and that I could watch your video when I was ready (the algorithm forgot about it, but I eventually remembered).
I mostly don't have an internal narrator in my head, and especially not whilst playing games, so allow me to say thanks, a whole lot. Thanks for putting words to so many of the feelings I have felt, but couldn't quite grasp in the moment. It helps a lot
dont mind me just here to feed the algo
You can befriend those goons who show up to your hideout?! I have done like 3 playthroughs of Phantom Liberty and only ever shot them...
I'll never say no to torching scavs.
It's an interesting video, though I think I liked your other Cyberpunk videos better because I'm used to the "format". It's a me thing but the roleplaying through the video essay feels a bit... weird? Though I respect your choice in presentation, it's not one that many other TH-camrs use. I really enjoyed PL but I wonder if I would've gotten a higher level of enjoyment if I had gone in blind; I had knowledge of the ending results and I wanted everyone to live, regardless of morals/contradictions (Reed, Songbird, Alex, and fem V) and I justified it as my Fem-V not tolerating another betrayal, anymore. When you mention how you "saved her life" I'm reminded of other players remarking on how Mr. Blue Eyes or some other malicious entity could end up using her just as bad as Myers did. Or maybe, finally, Songbird gets to live a new life by her choices? It's a gamble, for sure.
For me, I headcanon'd that my Corpo Fem-V would go and take Reed's FIA job offer. She was booted from one "desk job" and found herself at another, in the end, but with new possibilities in her life. To me, it was like the ending of Casino, with Robert de Niro's character saying: "But in the end, I wound up right back where I started... And why mess up a good thing? And that's that." Songbird betrays V for a new life, and vice versa.
For my next playthrough, I think I'll side with Songbird all the way through as Male V.
I'm surprised you didn't make any comments about how attractive everyone is in this expansion: Reed, Songbird, Alex, the twins, Mr Hands, hell even Hansen's got brutish charm to him, haha.
Hope you make videos on Dogtown's gigs/side missions in comparison to the base game's. They feel so much richer.
Also, I found Johnny a lot more likeable in PL than the base game, even with the scene with him in the Oil Fields.
I love your story choom, if your not a writer then you should be. the way you describe things is amazing, I would buy your book if you had one, for now I will subscribe, like and check out your other videos. Keep up the good work!
I appreciate that! I've been a hobbyist writer all my life, and this channel is a bit of an attempt to make it more of a professional thing.
Man nothing pissed me off in a game like them killing the twins. I liked them. Thats when I chose Songbird over Reed, I think. At a certain point you just gotta extend grace to the people who you like. Foolish, naive, romantic, sure. But fewer regrets.
Great perspective dive into PL. I would just love to add a layer on the side.
Its kind of awsome how Song is a monster. Made in no small part by the world and Mayers admitedly, but a monster nevertheless. I feel for her, I absolutely do, she got the short end of a stick, along the way, but in Vs other fork in the road we can see her memories, even from before FIA. How what is said is just a bit scewed in her favour, by herself and Reeds love for blaming himself, to feel he's more in control then he really is.
What we dont see, even with that added window into her life, is her doing a single trully nice and selfless thing for anyone else throught the whole DLC. Only a string of impressively reckles, selfish decisions where she always found someone else to blame, but herself, drilling deeper and deeper into shit, but alive on talent, skill and some luck.
To the point I would be kind of suprised if she was not the one that came up and proposed messing with the Blackwall. It would be her brand of foolish genius really to plan and pull it off. She did love to mess with the net in risky ways and would not mind climbing the lader in FIA. You don't get as high as she was as a pawn pushed by others.
This poor So Mi story is sold so well we can go with this sociopathic mostrosity of a person getting civilians die at the stadium en mass, destabilising world politics and risking world wide cybersecurity, manipulating and using V like a cheep puppet for no higher ideal then her own well being and still see just poor Songbird. Really awsome storytelling.
Where’s Mr.Hands horse?
This is an old video so you will probably never see this message.
The core conceit, how you framed this was finding what the game was trying to say. I love that you found it, and you said it out loud, but you didn't draw attention to it.
Everyone in NC has had someone betray them, someone in Vs line of work gets used to it. But when the chips were down you made a choice, "I will be for her, what I wish someone would be for me."
That line landed.
I pretty much read all my comments. Thanks for the support, it really means a lot to me
Wish you'd made the other choice. I'm sure you know, but it sends you down a nightmare rabbit hole full of ghosts of the past.
And it lets you make a deal with those same demons after you conquer them. Getting yourself a very... special... cyberdeck.
Jackie would of wanted us to help songbird.
10/10 vid made me depressed for about 12 minutes
i dont know if its just me but im getting some really weird cuts on the video like on 8:56
What kind of mic do you use? Love the video so far btw
Wow, just wow...
the best ending is ignoring the crash an just exploring dog town cause literally fuck every single pos character from the nusa
wow
And then you help Reed and get a OS with a rogue AI on it :D
Going to copy a comment I left on another video : I knew from the start especially when Reed connected the dots,but I truly could not stand him the FIA,the NUSA,or Myers from the get go,apart from having a Flag Pole shoved so far up his ass that he for a second couldn't imagine that she at least deserved a shot at true anatomy,and a potential cure for her disease everyone sans maybe Alex from indifference wanted power,and to control her.I felt like as she slowly opens up to you a bit,and ultimately when in her most vulnerable moment when she admits the full truth that if everyone's using her then I might as well give her that shot I wouldn't want to be alone plus especially if that was to potentially be her final moments I wasn't about to consign her to a life of torture,and being Myers Personal pet weapon until she eventually dies that truly felt horrifying. A lot of people choose to ignore that she's literally a mirror image of V at the start of the game,and it never ceases to amaze me at the comfort at which people feel giving her up to a fascist lap dog even if you have the chance to put her out of her misery it just feels wrong.
Jacob and Taylor are doomed in-game. Most players chose to off them right away. Good on you to get them to help you!
13:30 whoa what you can make friends with these guys?
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for the algo
Algo comment :)
algo comment best comment
I sided with Songbird because Reed killed my crush Aurore
bruv forgot the spoiler warnings rip me
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1:05:23
Are you the Hoe_Math guy? You sound just like him.
I'm confused by what this video was trying to be, but, thanks
A story of betrayal.
it's a shame you play on lowest settings