When playing the vanilla vision of CDPR’s Cyberpunk 2077, its futuristic looking metropolis Night City bombards the player with suggestive and sexual imagery. Billboards and video adverts portray crude but socially accepted norms at every corner. That is part of what cyberpunk is all about, and is not unique to this game. You will find it explored in futuristic visions such as Blade Runner’s replicants or the three breasted sex-worker in the movie Total Recall. A liberal attitude towards sex and the human body is what makes cyberpunk what it is, and in some ways the game does reflect that. But for some, its abrasive design doesn’t go far enough, yet others find it over-the-top and unnecessary. For those looking beneath the overt exterior will find hints of a more sinister, erotic vision of Night City that is underplayed by what looks like conflicted or malformed design choices.
In a game based around modification of the human form (exploring transhumanism or otherwise), it comes as a surprise then that nudity and sex isn’t expanded upon. We can understand why though in terms of keeping the game rated below adult ratings. Such a rating might have been detrimental to the game’s marketing due to an unwarranted stigma, especially in western markets. The game is rated ESRB Mature (17+) or PEGI18. In-game, players select the reproductive organs of their male or female version of lead character V in customization during the game’s start, but outside of menus, don’t get to see their choices. They also don’t have any meaningful impact when playing. The game does offer male and female differences, but these don’t relate to their physical form and is simply the same story from a different perspective.
Players should be reprimanded if they choose to run around in the nude, because that would be silly. Wearing clothing or seeing NPCs with clothing revealing more of the human body wouldn’t be out-of-the-ordinary. What is perhaps sad is what little nudity does feature in the game, male characters are covered in boxer shorts to hide genitalia and females not. Any adult scenes are noncommittal, where older games like Mass Effect showcase more meaningful sexual activity between characters. Although, that is a debate for another time.
The inclusion of reproductive organs then as a player choice, feels almost like an addition which leans towards immature jokes rather than anything of merit. A shame, because Night City feels a lot more “cyberpunk”, when players can explore the human form more readily. Early previews of the game showcased female V with a nude NPC in her apartment for some company (the final game allows a feline friend instead). It would have been great to form longer lasting sexual relationships with secondary characters or gain some sort of boon from having sex in those friendships. Or like the gameplay reveal suggested, have them appear in your apartment. The final-cut makes light of any sexual conduct where it’s not a focus and more a novelty which is a shame given the subject matter.
Either way, CDPR created a game that is not as deep as something like the evolving Grand Theft Auto series where players partake in numerous activities outside of the story (especially in GTA V, a game that’s 9 years old now). In those games, the character lives in the open-world Rockstar Games created, including having sex. In fact, Cyberpunk 2077 seems quite lacking when compared to other open-world games which sit comfortably inside the 17+ ratings. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla for example allows players to form sexual relationships with other characters even. We think if a game is rated mature or 18+, and offers players choices, then those who want to indulge in sexual themed braindances (as the game suggests) should be able to explore that in keeping with the lore. Unfortunately, those rating such experiences such as the ESRB are quite happy with plentiful depictions of blood and gore, but somehow draw-the-line when sexual themes become more of a focus.
With all that said, take a look at our video which explores some of the Cyberpunk 2077 nude and body mods from the community. The “girls gone wild” mod showcases more revealing outfits for the NPCs you see around Night City. It also makes the game’s sex workers appear more realistic. Fully clothed pole dancers…really CDPR? There are also mods which allow for male nudity for those who want that. In our opinion, it seems there might have been potential design choice conflicts at CDPR during development, where they couldn’t go as far as they possibly liked for the reasons mentioned earlier. Cyberpunk 2077, isn’t “that” type of game then all-things-considered. Once again, thanks to the PC modding community for making Night City feel more…cyberpunk.
