In a recent chat, the lead writer for Cyberpunk 2077, Tomasz Marchewka, shed light on an intriguing aspect of the game: the true antagonist isn’t just the villainous Adam Smasher or the notorious Arasaka Corporation—it’s Night City itself that holds that title. Can you believe it’s been five years since the game launched after all that hype? Sure, it had a pretty rocky start, with console versions being such a disaster that they got pulled from stores. But thanks to a series of updates, Cyberpunk 2077 has transformed into one of the standout RPGs of recent times. Still, the most captivating piece of the puzzle is undoubtedly Night City, and it seems that was by design.
“Quite quickly, during pre-production of Cyberpunk 2077, we realized that Night City is going to be our main antagonist,” Marchewka shared with GamesRadar+. “Some players caught it quite quickly.”
Sure, V encounters all sorts of factions and faces numerous adversaries throughout the game. But ultimately, Night City doesn’t choose sides and doesn’t show mercy. As Marchewka noted, “Of course, we’ve got Arasaka, we’ve got Adam Smasher and all the other guys, but actually it’s Night City versus everyone else, even the big guys.” He sees it as a cool twist to elevate the city itself as the primary foe.
While individuals navigating the game will definitely feel the brunt of Night City’s harshness more acutely than the corporations do, it’s a universal truth that escaping unscathed in such a brutal environment is nearly impossible. I think this is exactly what CD Projekt Red was aiming for. Just look back at the development of the extensive metro system in Cyberpunk 2077—it’s all part of that immersive world-building.