Summary
Last week, CD Projekt Red finally released the hotly anticipated 2.0 update forCyberpunk 2077,and it was definitely worth the wait. The update completely overhauled many of the game’s core systems including its perks, combat, and the city itself. Perhaps one of the most exciting changes came in the form of its brand-new police system. Now, the NCPD acts a lot more like police than they used to, which should lead to some classic open-world shenanigans. However, this specific overhaul comes at a very strange time forCyberpunk 2077.
While the new police system was great to see,Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Libertyalso just released, and it does not really benefit from those changes. The DLC whisks players away to the brand-new district of Dogtown which is walled off from the rest of Night City. Because of that, the NCPD does not really exist within the confines of the district. This means that players will not really be messing around with the new police system during their DLC adventures, which is a shame as it was a great addition.
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Phantom Liberty’s Dogtown Has No Police Force
The idea behindCyberpunk 2077’s Dogtownis that it is an independent part of Night City where a military tyrant calls the shots. During the Unification War, NUSA Colonel Kurt Hansen laid claim to that portion of Pacifica. After the war ended, he refused to leave and instead chose to carve out his own little civilization. The area was declared a combat zone, it was walled off from the rest of Night City and became ruled by Hansen and his Militia. All of this makes it a dangerous and terrifying place where only the strong can truly survive. Luckily, V seems to know how to handle themselves.
Since Dogtown is walled off from the rest of Night City, the NCPD does not really operate within it. They are not even really allowed within its walls as the locals do not like them. Instead, Hansen’s Barghest militia operates as the area’s form of law enforcement. However, they spend most of their time just enforcing their own wants and needs. This results in a war-torn area where players will see the militia fighting it out in the streets with other groups, pestering locales, and even threatening toshoot V while they traverse Dogtown’s destroyed buildings.
While the lack of NCPD makes Dogtown feelextremely unique from the rest of Night City, it also means that players will not be able to experience the new police system during their Phantom Liberty adventures. This new system completely overhauled the way the police work so that they operate a lot more like real police. They patrol the streets, pursue players whenever they commit a crime, and deploy all sorts of methods to catch the player; players can now listen in on their radio chatter, and they can also quickhack any NCPD officer. Just like withGrand Theft Auto 5, these additions can lead to some exciting scenarios that see players fight for their lives against whatever the city can throw at them.
Luckily, players are not locked to Dogtown when they start upthe Phantom Liberty storyline. They can head out into the greater Night City whenever they want to, so they can fight the NCPD whenever they choose. However, that does not make their absence in Dogtown any less glaring. While it may make sense from a story perspective, it does feel like a strange idea to overhaul the police a week before sending players to a district that has no police. It does not ruin the experience at all, nor does it make the police overhaul feel like a needless addition, but it does seem like funny timing on CD Projekt Red’s part.
Cyberpunk 2077:Phantom Libertyis available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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