Cyberpunk 2077 REVIEW - 6 Ups & 2 Downs

5. Combat: Multiple Approaches, Melee Depth & Weapon Feel

After this intro sequence, you're introduced to the core concepts of the game: Shooting, stealth, hand to hand, and hacking.

The way Cyberpunk handles each is impeccable, with a decent tutorial for each which lets you get to grips with everything. Shooting feels weighty, and by that, I mean that the guns have kickback that would rival a foul-tempered mule, and each slug or laser hits with such impact you can send enemies toppling over themselves.

It's not perfect, with some enemies that tank so much damage they soak up an entire clip of SMG fire to the chest, then smack you silly while you're reloading, but the devs provided a quick melee attack while wielding guns that can knock the balance back into your favor. As you get better guns with better control, you'll miss less and less shots as you progress, tightening everything up over time.

However, it might be you who's doing the rushing. There's a substantial focus on melee fighting in Cyberpunk, from full-on katanas to Bioshock-esque wrenches, meaning you can stab and bludgeon your foes to death before they've even unhooked their pistols. Things start off pretty basic with strong attacks and dodges, but you're quickly shown how to counter incoming attacks, which makes you feel like a martial arts master.

Unlocking further skills allow you to leap from the shadows or rooftops with insta-kills, skewering foes with extreme force as you land.

It can be hard to balance enemies that mostly rely on shooting in a stat-based RPG, but if you were to say, slap a load of points into the Body Skill tree, who knows what wrecking ball you might become.