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Post by farferello on Jan 8, 2022 17:25:26 GMT
Yeah, I have read that the Devil ending is slightly better if Takemura is alive so you get him instead of Hellman. As for whether a Relic version of a person is real or not - I mean, the other endings Alt Soulkills your ass and sticks an Engram version of you back in your body (and this part here is what I use to head canon V surviving) so the Engram version of you probably isn't all that different to Relic version of you. Only thing with Relic!You is that you'd require a new body to 'overwrite' unless you can kickstart that Relic takeover in your own body (which I head canon happens because of plot.) Saburo existing is bad for sure but I guess it depends on what kind of character you play. For the majority of my V's that's a bad thing. For my next V who is gonna be a Corpo, pro Arasaka, wants nothing but to get back in their good graces - that's not a bad thing, though because the Relic ending is open ended you could easily head canon that Hanako and Co keep their word and V gets brought back. If they don't plan to do dlc/a second game that extends on it, you can imagine whatever you want. The romances are definitely a bit cliche and just a little off, and still annoying only the girls get to see V in a vulnerable moment. Outside of Vik/Misty, Takemura is the one that ends up knowing the most about what you're going through, it's so odd. And whilst originally he was only there to bring you back to Arasaka, Takemura does save your ass when shit goes South. So much about his character screams 'wasted romance potential' especially compared to the major lack of bonding the male romance choices actually get. But yeah, you're right about Kerry. V impacts the other three romance options life in some way by helping them out. You only meet Kerry because of Johnny, I couldn't imagine a scenario where V meets Kerry for any reason outside of what happens with Johnny, unless idk, he gets desperate and you get some sort of Gig from him. It's more clear at the end of the Sun ending at least when he wakes up at your side in the Mansion, that he's with you for you, and is worried about you, but idk how I feel about Johnny giving him that little push originally. True. Into Act 2 there's definitely a lot of moments where V is sidelined for Johnny and it becomes less about them and what they're going through and it sucks. There's also just way too many times we play as Johnny and I don't really enjoy it and wish it could be over, or at least wish I could skip through the cutscenes. The game has way too many times where we can't skip through loooong dialogue. I really wish he had just stayed as some npc/relic holo whatever that we see for a bit but isn't so involved in the story like originally intended. Edit: I did the Kerry questline up to the Us Cracks concert bit and the Kerry balcony scene. I didn't take the Kiss option and I actually felt kinda guilty. Out of all the romances it feels like we impact his life the most by romancing him. Judy, River, Panam, they all do just fine if you don't romance them, hell, even if you don't do their 'lock in' quest part it feels like they'd be just fine, but with Kerry... it feels like giving him that love and support would change things for him the most considering his past of always feeling second best (and very likely pining for Johnny, watching him with Alt, or Rogue) and helping him in his quest line, especially if you get him and Us Cracks to work together feels like it has more of an impact. When he gives you his gun at the coffee place I noticed more obviously this time the dialogue he says and it's very clear that the suicide attempt was either real, or a cry for help, despite him saying it was just for PR, but now you've given him all this stuff and more of a sense of purpose he no longer feels like killing himself, and whilst the concert stuff and the bit before that is Johnny, giving Kerry more of a reason to live again is all down to V helping him. Ow my heart.  |
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Post by mediocreogre on Jan 8, 2022 23:13:01 GMT
Yeah all the implications of soul killing (either for the relic or what Alt does) is where the game is interesting and its truly bizarre they jumped past it at the end for the immune system gobbledegook. I don’t get it other than drama or perhaps continuity for different world states in a sequel or dlc. Which makes me nervous. Yeah I definitely like Kerry’s character and he’s sort of another candidate for “this is a character I care about and makes me invested in this hot mess of a game” but the weirdness of making him pine after Johnny bothers me. Same with Rogue. I kinda laughed When Rogue reveals she has a son. Not cause it’s funny but it’s just so awful to make her life rise and set with a d bag like Johnny when she’s done so much with her life. |
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Post by farferello on Jan 9, 2022 1:31:00 GMT
It's weird they skip past it and no one really mentions it. Maybe it was another plot thread just buried by the story re-write. I'd be surprised if any dlc had anything to do with the end of the game and honestly I doubt I'd be interested in it if it didn't change the ending or V's fate some way, unless it idk added more romance content.
Yea, I really like him and there's a lot there to unpack with him and I just have to head canon V surviving because it's cruel to give Kerry this relationship with someone who cares about him and treats him well and then it gets snatched away in six months. The Johnny thing is def weird, he makes it clear he had no interest in Kerry that way but Kerry has clear hang ups over him, even if he does seem to move past it eventually.
Wait, she what? When does that get revealed? I don't think I remember hearing/seeing that. lol.
I had hoped to get my Nomad run finished tonight but I've spent two hours trying to fix a game breaking bug with it, and now it's almost 2am so I will have to try again in the morning. Along with the bug, I have a weirdness of my UI completely changing colour for some reason. Soon as I showed up at the Nomad area it suddenly changed to a blue/yellow colour scheme, and reloading to an earlier save before doesn't change it so... idk. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I may try reloading back further in the morning to see if I can fix my Panam bug that's breaking the quest.
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Post by mediocreogre on Jan 9, 2022 2:05:50 GMT
Wait, she what? When does that get revealed? I don't think I remember hearing/seeing that. lol. in the Sun ending, after you netrun, When you return to the bar she’s on the phone. If you ask her who that was (she says “I love you”) she brushes Johnny off and then says “that was my son”. Also she gives an age, he’s like either 18 or in his twenties so too young to have been Johnny’s kid in the 2020s. I have had more bugs lately too. Crashes. I had a weird one where the longer I played all the NPCs started looking identical. I couldn’t fix it. I noticed certain filler NPCs scripted to have convos were missing (why do I see no god damn lemons, no god damn limes? Guy in the street kid intro for example). So I restarted until they showed up, and thus far my NPCs are diverse again lol good luck with your UI issues |
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Post by Lee on Jan 9, 2022 3:21:57 GMT
Yeah, you only find out about Rogue's son in her ending specifically-not the secret ending. I like that ending better than SE-not just cause it's easier, but because it feels more like a proper finale. SE just feels like a combat fest-with an ending tacked on. -shrug-
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Post by farferello on Jan 9, 2022 11:46:47 GMT
Oooh I see. I may do the Rogue Sun ending over the Secret ending some time to see it. Though at the same time I would then feel even more guilty about getting her killed in it if she has a son. I finally finished my Nomad run after a lot of bugs, glitches, crashes and restarts. Ooof. I had to really dick around with the story and how I approached npcs to stop Panam from bugging out at the Nomad camp during 'we've got to live together' so I could actually proceed with the story. But the ending with the kinda happy uplifting music was nice and it was hopeful, I can see why people enjoy it so much. However, far too many people died for me to want to pick it again. I felt really bad about it and hate that it was just thrown in because they needed it to be harder hitting. However, that 3rd person cutscene at the end was really nice. (And on the other side of it, far, far too cosy of a cutscene for someone who didn't romance Panam.) It was however much better than the dumb 'ooh look space' 3rd person cutscene of the Secret/Sun ending. But thank fuck for AMM and character swapping however.  |
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Post by mediocreogre on Jan 9, 2022 14:13:30 GMT
Saul, Mitch, Takemura, Yorinobu, Regina, Wakako, basically the entire Voodoo Boys, Misty, Victor Vektor, Padre, the Dolls at Clouds… so many cool half baked characters I wanna know more about, but instead Panam, the most boring character in the game (not to fault her VA, it’s the writing) has so, so, so much content. And the lady who texts you about Panam like you’re dating. Also that Panama’s Tarot card is the Star (the fuck she is!), she’s kinda like this games PeeBee, some developers special mind flower. But also like some of their use of the Tarot in general feel very basic. I thought it was going to be some cool revelation but then I was like… oh they are taking this stuff literally. and seriously thank AMM! great way to end a true Nomad run  |
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Post by farferello on Jan 9, 2022 16:40:48 GMT
Yup pretty much. There were so many characters I wanted more interactions with or would have killed for a romance option. Instead it's just... Panam. Having now done the Nomad ending, Panam is clearly the winner in romance (with Judy a runner up if you go Nomad because she at least makes an appearance.) With Panam she comes out on top every time no matter the cost or how she fucks up, and you get so much extra content with her during the Nomad ending because she's the only romance who will join you during the assault on Arasaka. Her card is the Star? Really? Ugh, never noticed before, but of course. Clearly the writers pet. It's a shame, I think I'd be less annoyed by her had the other romances had similar content or she'd at least been bisexual. But no, straight dudes win yet again with the clear favourite option. AMM is truly the best. If I can't get the romance I want in game I will make it happen one way or another. Saul, Bobby, and Teddy deserved better. :/ Them killing off Saul in a cutscene that you can't do anything about just so Panam comes out on top yet again and becomes solo leader of the Clan just rubs me the wrong way. Luckily for me in this V's canon, Panam heroically sacrificed herself so my V and his boyfriend could survive.  I did learn however that I apparently missed out on some mushy/romantic texts from Kerry on my first playthrough because I did his romance and then immediately finished the game as I had no content left to do at the time. When I eventually get back to my Kerry-mancer I'll have to make sure that I do stuff after the romance lock in so I don't miss anything. I just kinda wish that they had a bit more dialogue after you romance them when you go back to their home as there's only a few repeatable options. I also wish there was a way to properly exit a conversation without being rude by backing away from them. Kerry sounds so annoyed every time I left a conversation with him because I had no choice but to just back away and he'd just mutter about how he'd continue to talk to himself.  Game just needs a proper 'exit conversation' option for moments like that. |
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Post by mediocreogre on Jan 10, 2022 15:48:46 GMT
I noticed the rude V just abruptly ends all convos by default. Same with looting. They put so much loot where important dialogue is so I wait for the dialogue to end (cause hitting a dialogue option is the same as loot, and skip is crouch -.- (I play with a controller)). But then they basically insult you or tell you to leave or whatever while you are looting. They needed a “goodbye” option also to end that. I just wanna loot in peace.
I haven’t really progressed. My rich doctor brother is living with me for an indefinite period of time (rent is high… but I manage on a much lower income) and his girlfriend decided to visit, which basically meant them turning my house into a hotel and raiding my food, making messes, and being obnoxious. Now I am excited to go to work to get away lol
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Post by farferello on Jan 10, 2022 17:05:31 GMT
Yeah there really needs to be a way to end a conversation that isn't you running from an npc. On my Nomad I got stuck in the Church with Placide when I finished the VB questline because every time I approached the door it brought Placide's dialogue back up so I couldn't actually interact with the door and running away from him didn't fix it. I had to creep up from a wide angle and jump around until I finally got the door exit prompt than his dialogue prompt pop up. A proper 'goodbye' would fix that and how rude V comes off. Also needs a way to decline phone calls in general but especially when you're in dialogue with someone. I had a conversation with Johnny and got a phonecall I couldn't stop and just missed several quick time convo's with him because it blocks out dialogue and by the end of the call he was just all 'okay be an asshole do whatever the fuck you want' because I couldn't actually say anything to him during his convo.  Unrelated note, I started my new Corpo and noticed something during the life path and time skip. Corpo is the only one who knows Jackie, and has known him for quite some time it seems - but in the time skip you meet his mom, Vik, and Misty for the first time. Surely if you've known him this long you should have met them by now. (I know it's just CDPR being lazy and not altering the time skip to make sense) but it comes off as Jackie and Corpo V not being the friends the game pretends you are. Also at the end where V is a breath away from dying, Vik acts like such a cold asshole towards you. I know it's probably because he's scared and feels helpless that he can do nothing to save V, but it just comes off as cruel. Add in how Misty bitches at you when you go the Devil ending route, I can say for sure that deciding to go with Arasaka as an Engram will be a pretty easy decision to make. I mean his choices are - A: go back to Earth where the last conversation you had with the people closest to you makes you feel like they hate your guts or B: The man who has been at your side and seen you go through so much and has been through so much character development with you, is all but begging you to pick the Engram choice because he feels it will save you. Like... that's not a hard choice. (Especially for this V who won't really be close to Panam, or River, and won't have met Kerry) and getting back to Arasaka is all he ever wanted. Especially with it being so open ended that you can easily head canon that Hanako does keep her word and you're eventually brought back and you get to live out your brand new life at Takemura's side. I was worried I'd find this ending super upsetting but I'm oddly excited for it and the head canon that follows it at this point. (That's what you get for giving me shit open endings CDPR, I'll turn the depressing 'bad' ending into something positive for my V.) Oooof that sucks, if he's rich he should be able to afford his own food and clean up after his own messes. Ugh. I hope you manage to get some peace and quiet soon. |
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Post by Lee on Jan 11, 2022 1:51:24 GMT
Looting the bodies during the tank mission is so hard to pull off!
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Post by mediocreogre on Jan 11, 2022 14:12:54 GMT
It’s amazing games still don’t have a loot mode, where out of combat you can press a key, enter loot mode, and no plot will advance, bo dialogue will trigger, and when you’re done you just end loot mode.
But at least this game does not have much of the “you just finished an epic fight with enemies that should have higher quality loot than anything you have seen before, but it’s literally impossible to loot them! We show you the loot sparkles but then move you out of the area as soon as you’re done killing, mwahaha!”
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Post by farferello on Jan 11, 2022 18:53:43 GMT
True but saying that, there have been many times where I've been playing the game and seen a shiny bit of loot and it won't let me loot it. There's a pack of cards in V's apartment that I've never been able to pick up because the game's collision box for loot, and your ability to loot it is usually halfway through the ground so you can't grab it. That said, clothing is generally trashed for components when I loot it, as I like to play dress up from the start. I mod my clothes in (usually because it's mod stuff) and then over time I use another mod to upgrade it's rarity so I can put mods in it. (Once Legendary gear starts showing in shops/loot then I max it out.) If the game had a glamour system I wouldn't bother, but it doesn't, and I have an appearance in mind for my characters and 'Bobo the Clown' is not one of them.
I do however still get salty over outfits npcs have in game that I can't get. Like some Valentino's have a black vest to go with their fancy shirts, but a plain black version does not exist for V (and most shirts that come with a vest on them are bleh colour wise also.) I've had to grab a whole number of new mods for my new Corpo V because he wouldn't be seen dead in anything but a suit, or a fancy piece of armour.
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Post by Lee on Jan 12, 2022 0:03:03 GMT
My biggest complaint about the clothing options is the fact that the game frequently tries to shove my fem-bodied male V into high heels-yes I know men can wear them too-but I still hate it.  I can't even change out of them during the heist cause the outfit is locked. |
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Post by farferello on Jan 12, 2022 13:35:10 GMT
I'm starting to realize my Corpo V and Jackie really wouldn't be very good friends with how much shit Jackie talks about Arasaka during that opening segment. Arasaka is this V's life and something he's wanted to climb the Corpo ladder of ever since he was younger (Corpo parents will do that to you) and I'm kinda sad that you don't really get the option during that opening scene to be more upset at Jackie or at what you just lost because Jenkins decided to all but blackmail your ass. (And then Jackie hanging Mexico over V's head... nice bit of blackmail opportunity there. Maybe that's why V never met Misty, or Vik, or Jackie's mom before this because they were just business partners based on blackmail and not friends.) I think this V would be seriously traumatized by the 'life of crime' and ending up poor in a slum after everything he worked so hard to achieve, it's definitely his driving goal to get back to Arasaka. There's no good way to explain why he would willingly go along with the Heist because the sheer idea of stealing from Arasaka, especially Yorinobu would be horrifying to him... but well, gotta if you wanna play the game lol. It's also one of those things where V's personality being the same through all the life paths kinda sucks, especially with the voiced dialogue. Constantly swearing and use of slang just feels so out of character for him, I wish we had more control over dialogue options. Cursing and street slang makes sense for a Street Kid, and even a Nomad to some degree, but for my Corpo V it just comes off as slightly awkward. I'm also using a new mod on him and now a lot of npcs have lots of messed up lines on their faces because of the cyberware complexion mod I'm using gets used on npcs but if they don't have the same complexion (1) it shows the indents of where the cyberware would be, but not the metal parts. So now some of the dudes now have fucked up looking face scars.  But I'll put up with the weirdness because the complexion is too sexy not to. I also have my thumb in too many pies for this V. He's a Netrunner at heart but I also want him capable of using a Sniper Rifle and Mantis Blades (for those oh shit moments) Tech for Crafting, and Cool because he needs all the Stealth and Cool Blood perks. |
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Post by Lee on Jan 12, 2022 14:23:07 GMT
For whatever reason, I can't make myself do anything besides a character with 18 tech and cool, and 20 intelligence. I usually put the leftover points into strength for extra health (plus you need that one extra at some point early if you want to do the vending machine questline-which honestly I'm starting to think is not worth it). My very first v however did have reflexes maxed and he used pistols but...here's the thing it didn't make a damn bit of difference damage-wise. I can get the same results with my other characters with default reflex as I could with that character. I don't think the perk stats work right for pistols.  At the very least it doesn't matter enough to waste precious skill points for in my book. I do think I'd enjoy a high-strength run on paper, but I think I'd feel suboptimal in at least one of the areas I have come to be codependent on at this point. |
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Post by farferello on Jan 12, 2022 15:08:31 GMT
...Vending machine questline? I have no idea what that is lol. Seems I missed a quest on my 100% run, does it not have a quest marker? I know I cleared the map. My first character was max Int, Cool, and Tech. I never really used guns until the final mission so I faffed and put points into Body and Reflexes. My Nomad was max Body, Cool, and Tech. My Corpo is gonna be all over the place. Focused on Int but I want decent perks for if he has to use a Sniper Rifle, or go Mantis Blades. But the fact I'm not putting any points into Body will make him a bit of a glass cannon when he uses Mantis Blades. (Which... works honestly. I go with the idea that Mantis Blades is a last resort 'cover is blown, time to stab shit' response so he kinda goes rabid during it. XD) I have lovingly nicknamed him as Takemura's attack dog after all. My Nomad only went max Body first because he was Shotguns+Punching so he kinda needed it. Once that was high enough I put more into Cool for the Cold Blood perks and then I did his Tech more slowly as it wasn't quite as important. He was a fricking tank though with his high HP and high Armour. I also enjoyed the speed buffs he got, it was so fun. Corpo is going to be high Int first, Cool, and then I'll have to choose between Tech/Reflexes as I level, might go Reflexes to begin with, but I'm hoping to focus him on stealth/hacking/sniping from a distance first. I don't think I could ever do a build without Cool/Tech at this point, I like to craft/upgrade too much. I didn't actually miss Int that much on my Nomad because I enjoyed shooting people in the face with a shotgun, and my high Body+Tech giving high health/armour meant I took waaaay less damage on him than on my Street Kid. Corpo will be similarly squishy like my Street Kid, though he'll have Mantis Blades to fall back on, unlike my Street Kid who only had shitty pistols. XD Edit: Question before I forget to ask again. Does Depth of Field actually work for anyone in photo mode? For me it doesn't, and idk if it just doesn't work or if I have a mod stopping it from working. No matter what settings I pick, the background doesn't actually get blurry or change in any way and it's driving me nuts. (I've had to resort to using something for my Reshade but it's so much more finicky to use.) |
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Post by Lee on Jan 13, 2022 0:06:39 GMT
...Vending machine questline? I have no idea what that is lol. Seems I missed a quest on my 100% run, does it not have a quest marker? I know I cleared the map. yeah. There's a vending machine named Bredan you get a quest marker for, but you have to keep going back to it sometimes even when there's not a marker to get all 3 quests. 1. you get asked to move a dumpster (you need 4 strength to do so) and the other 2 are well I won't spoil them if you haven't done them yet. they are cute the first time! |
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Post by farferello on Jan 13, 2022 11:47:54 GMT
yeah. There's a vending machine named Bredan you get a quest marker for, but you have to keep going back to it sometimes even when there's not a marker to get all 3 quests. 1. you get asked to move a dumpster (you need 4 strength to do so) and the other 2 are well I won't spoil them if you haven't done them yet. they are cute the first time! Where do you come across it? I've never seen a quest marker for any vending machine before. |
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Post by mediocreogre on Jan 13, 2022 14:27:44 GMT
yeah. There's a vending machine named Bredan you get a quest marker for, but you have to keep going back to it sometimes even when there's not a marker to get all 3 quests. 1. you get asked to move a dumpster (you need 4 strength to do so) and the other 2 are well I won't spoil them if you haven't done them yet. they are cute the first time! Where do you come across it? I've never seen a quest marker for any vending machine before.  When approaching the mega building that Clouds is in from the fast travel point, he’s tucked away to the right of the stairs. He looks like a cartoon boy square. its quest marker is kinda like the quest marker for the anti tech preacher outside Misty’s where the marker has to be triggered to appear. So you have to perceive the dialogue trigger. The anti tech preacher has something similar. But I believe his trigger might be choosing the correct dialogue? I never got his quests the first run but I did talk to him. This run I have gotten his quests. Could also be you have to wait until after the tourists take pictures with him? For both after you do the first quest though you get map updates when the next quest is ready. I’m not sure how many quests are like that in this game. The map seems full of every quest but certain things are not marked until you get in the area. The guy with the broken dick is pre marked, but the quest to warn the detective she’s being played by her co workers does not appear until you enter kabuki market. No question mark or anything. While I do know of a few that you have to see a specific bit of dialogue and be near the spot to get it to trigger. |
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Game just needs a proper 'exit conversation' option for moments like that.
I can't even change out of them during the heist cause the outfit is locked. 
At the very least it doesn't matter enough to waste precious skill points for in my book. 
