Y'know what's something cool that I just thought about with Cyberpunk 2077? I appreciate that V's status as the main character doesn't overstep the agency of other characters they meet in the story.
I feel like since video games by design are supposed to give the player a heaping dose of Main Character Syndrome, it would've been very easy (especially for a self-labeled RPG) to have V as the player get final say in a lot of companion quests to determine their outcome. But instead, CDPR let the characters in these stories actually BE the main players in their own narratives, and V serves more as a side character in them. Some examples:
V could've jumped in during With a Little Help from my Friends and told Saul that he was being completely unreasonable about their theft of the Basilisk, shutting the conversation down. Instead, Panam finally gets a chance to stick up for herself and vocally tells him off.
V's suggestions to River on how to handle the corruption case in the NCPD could've been an easy static choice that determined whether or not he stayed a cop. However, River will pursue the case regardless of V's input and will explicitly go against them if they advise him to drop it wholesale.
Kerry comes to the conclusion that Kovachek and the label were screwing both him and Us Cracks behind their backs without V's convincing (V merely comments on it, to which Kerry will concur), and decides to buddy up with the girls even if V continues to antagonize them, because he got to know them and wanted to partner up with them independently.
Judy will always leave Night City unless she's romanced. V can't convince her otherwise, and the game doesn't even offer you a genuine chance to try.
Any disagreements of the corpo lifestyle V remarks on will never convince Takemura to leave it behind. He will readjust his feelings towards the Arasakas, but he can never be convinced to leave the fold completely.
V pointing out to Alt that her death technically wasn't Johnny's fault and constantly defending him will not slowly soften Alt's views towards him, nor give them any chance of reconnecting. In fact, the only way you can possibly get a sign that Alt softens towards him can only come from actions that JOHNNY takes-- being less callous and violent towards Alt in Never Fade Away will give the-player-as-Johnny the chance to apologize to her during the Sun ending because Alt is actually willing to hear him out.
Idk maybe I'm seeing patterns that aren't there but I just think that it's neat that an RPG does side character narratives like this. Usually I feel like an RPG does it's best to make the player character be the end all be all of narrative development, but they held back a bit this time and let these side stories be driven by the characters at the center of it.
Yes, it makes the collective story feel a little more static because you as the player can't influence the outcomes, but I like that once V's part in these people's story is out of the way, they're more or less the ridealong for someone else's narrative and aren't allowed to drive it themselves. It makes V feel more like a real person with actual relationships, and not a white knight come to fix everyone's problems.
