Genre: RPG
Developer: CD Projekt Red
Publisher: CD Projekt

Cyberpunk 2077 has had a three-pronged redemption arc, starting with the visuals: utterly broken at launch, they have since been shored up to the point where the game, in its full path-traced mode on PC, is the best looking video game of all time. But that progress scales downwards as well: on the Switch 2, using less electricity than the average bedsheet static, the full experience is present, albeit with ray-tracing absent naturally. In fact, even the framerate is solid: on TV mode things are ever-so-slightly choppy; but in handheld mode, no doubt in part due to the display's VRR capabilities, things look almost as smooth as a polished chrome appendage.

Is it ok for this reviewer to have changed his mind? He implores his readers: the context is different in 2025 than it was in 2020, and after all critique is couched within the times in which it was written. Part two of this title's redemption arc: the world it presents has essentially come to pass with the advent of AI, the push towards transhumanism, the rise of trillion dollar market cap corporations, and growing societal degeneracy. The game's music, which this reviewer originally dismissed with a wave of the hand, has a main motif and thread which lends gravity to the world-- as do the game's unique sound effects, such as the one which emotes when the player is spotted.

As a sort of high-tech "Grand Theft Auto" married to RPG mechanics, Cyberpunk 2077's map is littered with icons, beckoning the player to take on seemingly endless side quests and missions. The repetitiveness which normally characterizes such concepts is absent here due to fun stealth gameplay, and the fact that each situation can be approached in so many different ways. The formula feels like a perfect fit for Nintendo's new platform; driving around, taking on missions, and leveling up one's character brings a lot of joy while laying in the comfort of bed.

And all of this culminates in part three of the redemption arc: the bar has lowered. Large-budget games are becoming increasingly derivative-- if such a thing could have been dreamt possible-- and aesthetically tasteless, not to mention jarringly broken from all technical vantage points, with poor performance even on thirty-plus teraflop PC video mega cards. Then comes along a designated and very well designed handheld version of CD Projekt Red's now-classic, and it feels like the chill of crisp fall air into the lungs again. This rendition even maintains the vestage staples of PC gaming, with sideways joy-con mouse support, loads of configuration options, and the ability to freely save anywhere.