“Cyberpunk 2077” Announces Expansion Pack “Phantom Liberty”, Keanu Reeves Confirmed to Return as Johnny Silverhand

Better late than never, Cyberpunk 2077 is getting its first major expansion, CD Projekt Red announced in a Twitch livestream today. It’s called Phantom Liberty, it’s out next year, and it will feature the return of Keanu Reeves’ Johnny Silverhand. It won’t, however, be available on PlayStation 4 or Xbox One.

That last snippet shouldn’t be too much of a shock, seeing as an intergenerational launch was perhaps most responsible for Cyberpunk 2077’s well-documented-woes. Following three delays, the open-world shooter finally hit PlayStation, Xbox, and PC in December 2020. On next-gen consoles and high-end PCs, it worked (mostly) as intended. But on last-gen consoles, it was a buggy, subpar disaster. CD Projekt Red spent much of the following year getting Cyberpunk 2077 into working shape, which pushed back the timeline for its post-release content, including planned expansions.

Phantom Liberty is currently targeting a broad 2023 release date. CD Projekt Red didn’t show off much of the expansion today, but a minute-long teaser feaured voiceovers from two key characters. V, the person you play as, recites a militaristic oath for the New United States of America. Keanu Reeves, back in full ham-it-up mode, swoops in to say doing so is a “bad idea.” That dialogue is set over a few scenes of V using futuristic tech for crunchy combat sections. The whole Phantom Liberty expansion will explore a new location of Night City, per a CDPR press release.

I’ve said it before (like, five or six times by now, at least), but oh no, I am absolutely getting sucked back into Cyberpunk 2077.

Beyond the Phantom Liberty expansion, Cyberpunk 2077 is getting a wave of quality-of-life updates with its final “major” patch for last-gen consoles. That patch will also introduce a smattering of new content. You’ll be able to equip gear—a jacket and a shotgun—inspired by Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, the Netflix anime set in the same world. (It’s due out on the streamer next week.) And there’s also an in-game arcade cabinet that’ll allow you to play a game called Roach Race. Hmm, I wonder what Ciri would think of that…