Thanks to update 1.6 there is more to do for V in Night City. Vali has already played all(?) the new missions and gives you a conclusion.
I”m probably not the only one who has over 150 hours of gameplay on the clock for Cyberpunk 2077. Now CD Projekt Red has released Patch 1.6, the latest update for the role-playing game, which not only fixes problems, but also comes with fresh content. Besides new weapons and a transmog system, there are even new missions!
But do they justify a return to Night City? Or should long-established fans perhaps wait until Phantom Liberty, the first and only story DLC, arrives sometime in 2023? I”ll tell you what the new mercenary jobs have to offer and what exactly awaits you. But be warned of spoilers!
Table of Contents
What the new missions of Update 1.6 offer
How to start the missions: The new Fixer missions can be found in the open game world of Night City. You unlock them by completing enough Rogue, Regina and El Capitán jobs beforehand.
Once you are ready, you simply have to find the corresponding green symbols on the map, two of which can be found in Santo Domingo, Arroyo and one in Watson, Kabuki. As usual, the fixers will contact you by phone call and you can then immediately go into action.
Job 1: Concrete Cage
- Fixer: Regina
- Order type: SOS Mercenary wanted
- Location: Watson, Kabuki
What it”s about: One of Regina”s mercenaries has found himself in trouble. Due to a data theft, Tiny Mike has been trapped in a block of flats by Militech soldiers and is now waiting to be rescued – this is where V comes in. So I clear the way, locate Tiny Mike and escort him to an escape van – this kind of mission should look familiar to veterans of Cyberpunk 2077.
Is this mission fun? Concrete Cage is my favourite of the new missions from patch 1.6. Player-wise, I can do as I see fit as usual. That means I can shoot all the Militech mercenaries over the head, take them out stealthily or manoeuvre my way around them. For example, if I ask the residents for a secret entrance, which they will only tell me for free if I identify myself as a street kid, I can climb in over the roof and bypass my opponents completely.
In addition, there”s an interesting new character, Tiny Mike, who rewards me with a legendary weapon and fits perfectly into the criminal underworld of Night City. The mission is rounded off with a concluding dialogue and it remains exciting whether Tiny Mike might return at some point in the future. It would at least fit.
Job 2: Hangover
- Fixer: Rogue
- Type of order: Kleptomania
- Location: Santo Domingo, Arroyo
That”s what it”s all about: Karl Ginsky drank one night too many and made off with a priceless data shard from Kang Tao. He didn”t get far, though, because members of the 6th Street Gang pulled the shard out of his skull. Now Ginsky has to rely on V”s support, which means I have to retrieve the good piece from a 6th Street hideout and deliver it to Ginsky.
Is the mission fun? Gameplay-wise, Hangover turns out to be pretty unexciting. Theoretically, I can complete this fixer-upper gig without taking out a single enemy. Alternatively, of course, I can shoot down everything and everyone – including my client Karl Ginsky.
What I like most about Katerstimmung, however, is that the mission is not necessarily drawn in black and white and I get to decide what kind of ending it will have. After all, Ginsky himself is to blame for his predicament and theoretically I can leave him to the thugs of Kang Tao – you can perhaps imagine how Johnny feels about that.
These kinds of side missions have always been among my personal highlights in Cyberpunk 2077: Entertaining roadside missions that ended up making me wonder a tiny bit.
Job 3: Act of Desperation
- Fixer: El Capitán
- Type of order: Kleptomania
- Location: Santo Domingo, Arroyo
What it”s about: El Capitán is acting big-hearted and wants me to help out a netrunner. Pedro has health problems and wants to finance the necessary operations by robbing a tech truck belonging to his employer Zetatech.
Don”t expect too much from El Capitán”s cocky briefing or Pedro”s plan for the robbery. The robbery of the Zetatech truck is over sooner than you might think and not much is really asked of you. In the end, all you have to do is be at the right place at the right time, get rid of a few pursuers by force of arms and deliver the truck to a certain place. There”s not much more to say about this desperate act.
Is the mission fun? I have to admit that I like this mission the least of the three new ones. The plot remains pretty superficial, Pedro”s tale of woe doesn”t really touch me and gameplay-wise I”m hardly challenged. In the end, I don”t do much more than have a conversation, walk into a café and then shoot at pursuers from a passenger seat. “
Fairly, I have to say that I”ve never been a fan of railshooter passages in games – and Cyberpunk 2077 never really impressed me with this kind of scripted gunplay either. Having interesting dialogue or making decisions doesn”t let me despair either, so this fixer-upper gig is one I”ll soon barely remember.
Bonus job: The Netrunner job Over the Edge
- Location: Domingo, Arroyo
What it”s about: Last but not least, I want to tell you about the promo mission for the Netflix series Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. I seek out a yellow mission icon in Domingo, Arroyo where a Brain Dance is waiting for me. He plays me the opening scene of Edgerunners and confronts V at the end with an ominous warning: Is V making the same mistakes as David Martinez?
Thereupon I contact El Capitán, who is supposed to help me find out more about David. I don”t really want to spoil much more at this point, so as not to spoil the surprise for you. The bottom line is that this is a little crossover to the series Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, which launches on Netflix on 13 September 2022.
Is the mission fun? Over the Edge is a small but nice sidequest, thanks to which the universe of Cyberpunk 2077 feels a tiny bit more alive. There”s not much to do game-wise, but my curiosity about the soon-to-be-launched Netflix series is definitely piqued and I”m excited to see what”s in store for us on 13 September.
In addition, there is a nice reward waiting for you at the end of Over the Edge, which should please even players who have no interest in Edgerunners. By the way, I”m relatively sure that this is definitely not the only cross-reference to the Netflix series. I”ll definitely have to go looking again … By the way, you can also get a taste of Edgerunners with the latest trailer for the anime:
My conclusion about the new missions
Is this worth trying again? No. If you”ve already had your fill of Night City, you don”t need to return to Cyberpunk 2077 for the new missions. If I hadn”t specifically looked for and played the missions in the course of the 1.6 update, I wouldn”t have noticed that they were only added now – except for the Edgerunners job, of course.
However, this is not to say that the missions are bad or not fun! On the contrary, the new Rogue, El Capitaán and Regina jobs fit quite seamlessly into the overall concept and offer more of what cyberpunk veterans already know anyway: As V, you can pick up mercenary jobs off the side of the road and handle them in a way that suits your personal play style.
But you really don”t need to start a completely new game. For that, the missions are too compact and, in terms of gameplay and narrative, too entertaining and familiar. Even if you really take your time, you will be through with all the new missions in 60 minutes at the most. Nevertheless, the free missions are a nice bonus.
So it”s best to grab your veteran character, with whom you”ve already made Night City unsafe anyway, or just wait for the big story DLC, which is supposed to arrive sometime in 2023. I would only recommend a completely new attempt if you (like me) have been waiting impatiently for the Transmog system or have not yet visited Cyberpunk 2077 after the great patch 1.5.
Have you already tried the new missions of patch 1.6 for Cyberpunk 2077? What is your personal conclusion? What new features or secrets have you already discovered? Let us know in the comments
