WEBVTT

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(dramatic music)

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- Howdy. It's Steve.

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- Hi, Chooms.

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It's Levi.

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- We finally have a trailer
for "Phantom Liberty",

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the upcoming $30 expansion

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for CD Projekt Red's "Cyberpunk 2077."

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- But one big change you won't see

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in the trailer is the game's approach

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to Cyberware and cyberpsychosis.

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- Quets director Pawel
Sasko said in an interview

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that Phantom Liberty
will overhaul Cyberware,

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giving you the ability
to amp up your chrome

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at the expense of your
health or other detriments.

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- It's a move that brings
the game a little bit closer

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to the original tabletop RPGs description

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of cyberpsychosis, which
is also how it was depicted

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in the "Edgerunners" Netflix show.

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If you've seen it, which
you should, it's dope.

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But "2077" changed how
cyberpsychosis works

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and it changed it for the better.

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- See, in the original
TTRRPG, cyberpsychosis was

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a balanced mechanic.

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Player characters had a humanity stat

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which was reduced with
each new body modification

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and if that score dropped too low,

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your character became a hostile NPC

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in the hands of the DM, a cyberpsycho.

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- As you might imagine, this is a dated

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and less-than-stellar
depiction of mobility aids,

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prosthetics and general body modification.

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So for "2077", CD Projekt Red changed

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how cyberpsychosis works.

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- If you follow Regina Jones'
"Psycho Killer Quest Line",

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you'll come face-to-face with a series

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of heavily augmented people who have

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in one way or another turned violent

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but you're encouraged to
take these people in alive.

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- If you read the shards
found throughout the gigs,

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you'll paint a new
picture of cyberpsychosis.

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Rather than a loss of
humanity due to body mods,

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it's actually not a
singular condition at all.

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- Cyberpsychosis in "2077" is
a red herring, a popular media

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term that hides all of
the actual ills faced

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by the cyberpsychos you're
hunting, things like PTSD,

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addiction and the general crushing weight

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of capitalist society.

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- [Levi] By applying the
label of cyberpsycho to these

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people, no one in Knight
City needs to address

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the underlying causes of
violence, the inherent inequity

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of their systems.

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- It's a fantastic update to
the cyberpsychosis mechanic.

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One that brings a dated way
to balance TTRRPG characters

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into perfect alignment
with the overarching themes

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of cyberpunk as a game and a genre.

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- [Levi] But "Edgerunners"
walked that back, making

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cyberpsychosis a genuine
medical condition once again,

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one that's affected by
trauma, sure, but one that's

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also presented as treatable

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with relatively normal medical
procedures and medication.

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- This shifts the view back and once again

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makes cyberpsychosis a commentary

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on body modification and prosthesis.

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Not a great look.

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- [Levi] Not a great look at all.

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- The world's fucked in the head.

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- Phantom liberties changes
don't quite bring the game in

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into full alignment with
"Edgerunners" and the TTRPG

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but it's a step closer and a step further

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from the social commentary it
had become within the game.

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- So no, your V probably
won't become a cyberpsycho

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in "Phantom Liberty", but
the open world RRPG'S view

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towards cyberpsychosis has changed.

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Will the game be worse off for it?

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- What's your take

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on the Cyberware changes
coming to Phantom Liberty?

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Let us know in the comments below.

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Video games forever.

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(both) Kotaku.com