While Cyberpunk 2077’s setting of Night City is likely to offer players a great deal of freedom when it comes to their actions, some limitations have now been confirmed; while most NPCs will be decidedly mortal, some will be impossible for the player to kill. Certainly, this isn’t surprising. However, CD Projekt Red’s confirmation does give fans a clearer picture of what will and will not be possible to do in Night City.
Some Cyberpunk 2077 NPCs Will be Impossible to Kill
The confirmation was prompted by a question posed on Reddit by user masoncool4566. In response, a representative of CD Projekt Red clarified two categories of NPC who will be impossible to kill; “You won’t be able to attack children of NPCs connected with the plot, but other than that you can be aggressive towards most people you meet”. CD Projekt Red later confirmed this in an email to PCGamer.
Of course, the wisdom of such wanton violence may well be questionable, particularly in well-policed areas. What’s currently unknown is how many Cyberpunk 2077 NPCs are considered story-vital; i.e., does this category include only NPCs vital to the core plot, or will it extend to all characters who feature in all missions, whether they be story or side missions? In all likelihood, fans will have to learn the extent of this for themselves when the game releases next year.
Overall, CD Projekt Red’s decision is in line with the norms for single-player RPGs. Ever since the halcyon days of The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, where all NPCs were mortal but certain deaths would render the story impossible to complete, developers have wisely made certain characters invincible. Of course, most children are unlikely to be that vital to the plot of Cyberpunk 2077. In fact, there’s unlikely to be that many in the game at all. However, facilitating the in-game murder of children would certainly be in poor taste. (Not to mention risk giving the game a bad reputation in the media.) Clearly, other developers have thought the same thing in the past. Notably, Skyrim’s child NPCs are all impossible to kill.