Cyberpunk 2077 can be summed up as the search for a cure for V. After inserting a shard and partially destroying it, our hero’s consciousness is inexorably replaced by that of Johnny Silverhand’s construct (or engram), an anarchist rocker who supposedly died in 2023 during the attack on Arasaka Tower by a nuclear explosion. One of CP 2077’s many endings gives V a chance to survive. In this ending, available exclusively in the Phantom Liberty expansion, V undergoes a surgical operation that, although successful, is not without consequences. Our mercenary is alive and well and, above all, free of Johnny Silverhand, played by Keanu Reeves, but… because there is always a but!
He wakes up in 2079 after being in a coma for two years. However, this risky procedure comes with costs. V can no longer use a cybernetic implant because his neural network has been damaged beyond repair. After turning down a job offered by Solomon Reed (played by Idris Elba) in Langley at the FIA headquarters (for the Federal Intelligence Agency), V returns to Night City and discovers that nothing is the same anymore. As an “anonymous in the crowd,” the former cyberpunk must relearn his life, even as he plans to become a “fixer.” V still remains a legend from the afterlife. A cocktail would even bear his name.
See DLC Phantom Liberty – Cyberpunk 2077 on GOG
2077 – 2079: significant events
In 2079, the geopolitical situation of the New United States of America and the world has changed, although the governing bodies have remained essentially the same. Rosalind Myers is still president of NUSA. Militech is still paid by the North American government. However, A series of events could well lead to a major upheaval at the international level. Here are the top stories from Max Jones, a freelance journalist for the NC Inquirer:
- Militech loses the personal data of all its customers after one of its satellites was hacked and its core stolen.
- An explosion devastates Siberia. According to the Russian government’s official statement, a meteorite was the cause of the disaster, but several sources claim the opposite and suggest a nuclear incident.
- Pirates storm a Petrotech company ship in the Atlantic.
- Biotechnica is developing a fungus that is supposed to destroy unauthorized crops. The food war is near.
- A pile of nuclear waste, the “floating island of death,” is approaching the coast of California and threatening the city of Night City.
Zetatech or the emergence of a company
Displace one company and three new ones will take its place in no time. This is the bitter observation V makes when he wakes up in the year 2079. Arasaka, who has completely disappeared from Night City, is nothing more than a distant memory. The death of Hanako Arasaka during Goro Takemura’s attack on the tower and the uprising orchestrated by his brother Yorinobu defeated the Japanese corporation, which withdrew from the North American continent. The Zetatech company logically used this to establish its presence in Night City and become an essential cog in the city founded by Richard Night alongside Militech.
Zetatech is originally a Californian company based in Cupertino in the heart of Silicon Valley that specializes in the development of computer software and hardware. After the partial destruction of Night City at the end of the Fourth Corps War Zetatech is expanding its influence in the city by taking advantage of lucrative government contracts. Since 2045, the company has diversified its activities and established itself in the booming personal implant and drone markets. Thirty-four years later, 83% of North American citizens have a cybernetic implant called “Zetactech.”
Night City, an unrecognizable city
A lot can happen in two years. Certain events have had a lasting impact on Night City, and you only need to look out the window of a Delamain taxi to quickly see this. V is greeted by Zetatech and Militech billboards and a new form of law enforcement. The election of Jefferson Peralez as mayor of Night City had unprecedented consequences for the city. After granting subsidies to veterans of NetWatch (the network police force in the Cyberpunk 2077 universe), the successor to Weldon Holt (who himself succeeded Lucius Rhyne after his mysterious death) grants grants to the armed troop corporations that protect the citizens of Night City. The police then lose their main reason for existence as mechas criss-cross a city “that behaves.”
A new corporate war
The world of Cyberpunk 2077 has been shaped (despite itself) by the various corporate wars that have gripped the North American continent in the 21st century It could well be that a fifth war is imminent. It would pit Orbital Air (warring party in the First Corpos War) against Night Corp, a foundation founded by Richard Night’s wife whose primary activity is to advocate for the “well-being” of Night City. Here is a reminder of the dates and opponents of the first corporate wars:
- 2004–2005: The first corporate war – Euro Business Machines (EBM) versus Orbital Air
- 2008–2010: The second corporate war – SovOil versus Petrochem
- 2016: The Third Corporate War
- 2021-2025: The Fourth Corporate War – CINO (ft. Arasaka) vs. OTEC (ft. Militech)
For journalist Max Jones, this standoff between Orbital Air and Night Corp is just a smokescreen that could actually be hiding another conflict. Losing ground with his historic electorate, The current president of the New United States of America (or NUSA) would be the first to benefit from a second war of unification. The outbreak of such a conflict would postpone the presidential election to a later date and ensure her power while also guaranteeing the support of the Federalists.
