While many fans of the wildly anticipated entry in CD Projekt Red's roster of games were disappointed due to its game-breaking bugs and visual stutters, many others are still enjoying the Cyberpunk 2077 story regardless. Touted as an intensive RPG with major story threads to follow at one's leisure, choice matters more than anything. Throughout the 25 to 50-hour campaign, players are met with several story-driven choices and complex relationships that will affect V and Johnny's adventure in Night City permanently.

Near the end of the campaign, players are met with several major choices, all of which change the ending. Those who have finished their first go at the campaign may have missed something. They may want the best for their version of V but made too many mistakes along the way. Thankfully, these players can always try again and fix their mistakes. Needless to say, there are spoilers ahead, so read at your own risk!

Updated May 6, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: Cyberpunk 2077 is one of the greatest video games ever made, although it took a while for people to appreciate its brilliance after a torrid launch almost destroyed the game and developer's credibility. Despite its initial problems, V's journey to try and save his body after a botched heist is one of the best video game narratives in quite some time. Players will ideally want to unlock the best endings in the game to ensure that they can enjoy Cyberpunk 2077's story in its entirety. However, they'll need to avoid some costly mistakes to ensure that they don't end up being shafted at the very end and unable to give V's journey the ending that it deserves.

17 Forgetting To Call Rogue

An Easy Mistake If Players Miss The Reminder

Rogue is one of the most captivating characters in Night City, and the history she shares with Johnny makes her one of the most interesting people in the game. However, there's one part of the game where some fans who miss a reminder may fail to further her questline until it's too late. This turns out to be irritating for obvious reasons.

Players have to call Rogue to further her questline and unlock one of the endings where Johnny can take over. This mission objective can be missed, leading to players reaching the final stages of the game without even realizing that one of their quests is on the sidelines and needs to be pursued.

16 Taking Adam Smasher Lightly

Update 2.0 Makes Him More Dangerous Than Ever

Adam Smasher was built up as a behemoth and one of Night City's strongest characters in the game. His presence in the Edgerunners anime adaptation made it seem like he took no prisoners, so some fans were quite disappointed to see how much of a pushover he was at the end of the game. The boss fight is nothing special, with V tearing through this beast in no time.

However, Update 2.0 changes the dynamic of this fight, making him more aggressive and ruthless than ever before. Players have to strategize and avoid that dreaded missile barrage when they push him against the ropes. Adam Smasher is a force to be reckoned with and one of the toughest bosses in the game after this update.

15 Assuming That Hanako Has V's Best Interests At Heart

The Arasaka Family Treats People Like Tools

It's easy to believe anyone when a person is desperate. This desperation is what leads to players helping out Hanako Arasaka in a bid to make her younger brother see reason. While V helps her from time to time, the final call always lies with him at the end of the game. If he forged some strong bonds with his actions, then V can call upon other allies to help him out.

However, some people may actually believe that Hanako wants to fix them at all costs, choosing to take her aid to overthrow Yorinobu and help V take control over his body once again. It's not until much later that V realizes she has abandoned him. Even all the medical help in the world can't do anything to prolong his life any longer than usual.

14 Accepting The Government's Offer To Remove V's Chip

The New Ending Added In Phantom Liberty Is Far From Ideal

Not only does Phantom Liberty offer a completely new story for fans to get lost in, but it also adds a new ending for players who take certain actions. If players decide to aid Solomon Reed in re-capturing Songbird, then the government will help V in an operation to remove Soulkiller from their body.

However, this operation is far from smooth, and players will wake up two years later in a disoriented state. Everyone around them has moved on, assuming that V was dead, leading to some heartbreaking and touching reunions that show just why the writing in Cyberpunk 2077 is off the charts.

13 Dying During The Secret Ending Mission

The Player Is Unceremoniously Thrown Into The End Credits

Most players are aware at this point that they can access a secret ending mission in the game if they play their cards right with Johnny Silverhald. V will be given the option of tackling Arasaka head-on in a high-stakes mission where the game's toughest enemies will try and stop them.

While this means that no one has to die in the battle against Adam Smasher, players should be wary that they don't bite the dust during this lengthy and action-packed mission. Unlike other deaths, players who lose their lives in this mission will be booted to the end credits screen without warning, forcing them to load an old save and attempt this mission all over again.

12 Letting Saul Die

The Aldecaldos Don't Help V Break Into Arasaka

The side missions featuring the Aldecaldos are pretty engaging and a great way for players to explore Nomad culture. It also lets them interact with Panam, a character who can potentially become V's love interest if the player wants.

However, there's one particular mission where players can mess up. If Riders on the Storm is triggered and players wait too long to complete it, then Saul will be killed in that time and Panam will never want to see V's face again, which makes it impossible to access what many people consider to be the game's best ending from V's perspective.

11 Giving Up Near The End

Makes For A Bleak, Heartbreaking Ending

Nocturne Op551 is a name that has haunted many Cyberpunk 2077 players for quite some time. This serves as the gateway into the final quests of the game where V strives to break into Arasaka Tower and try and secure his future. Most players will pretty much complete most of the side content in the game before progressing with this final mission, which is one of the biggest thrill rides in the entire game.

However, when players are tasked with deciding a particular course of action to be taken, there's a way for V to end the game there and then without sacrificing any lives. It's a pretty poignant ending that becomes even more heartbreaking when players get to see the messages that V's friends leave for him post his demise, but it's far from the "happiest" ending in the game. Suffice it to say, players shouldn't make this choice if they want a more satisfactory conclusion for their journey through Night City.

10 Making Poor Decisions In Critical Quests

Can Lock V Out From Certain Endings

Certain side quests involving the Aldecaldos and Johnny's past need to be completed if players want to get access to more branching paths for their ending. While this might seem pretty straightforward, there are certain direct and indirect actions that players can take that end up ruining their chances of securing a pathway to a better ending.

For starters, players can lock themselves out from Panam's questline if they don't support her throughout or refuse to help her out later on. A certain quest can even be locked out if players take too much time to reach a particular area! Similarly, Johnny's sidequests can be locked out in the same way if the player makes poor decisions that prevent these storylines from playing out as they should.

9 Skipping The Side Quests

Without Outside Help, V Will Be Forced To Take Arasaka's Help

Cyberpunk 2077 currently has four endings to pick from (as well as a secret ending) that completely change the story of V and Johnny. While there are plenty of endings to choose from, only one is available for those who avoided the side quests.

The anti-climactic Arasaka ending is considered the weakest. Many who thoroughly enjoyed the game spent the extra hours completing the side missions they felt would bring them the best conclusion. Specifically, Panam and the Rogue Endings.

8 Ignoring Johnny Silverhand

Prevents Players From Accessing The Secret Ending Path

It isn't easy to ignore a man with such distinctive anatomy and attitude. Especially if that man is Keanu Reeves. Still, in a world of robots, cyber-gangsters, and flying vehicles, it's easy to get overwhelmed. After the consciousness of Johnny Silverhand is installed in V's head, Silverhand becomes his partner in crime.

While V forms a bond with Johnny, Johnny's consciousness is slowly eating away at V's until he takes over. One of the several endings involves getting a large reputation percentage with Johnny to unlock the secret ending, which can branch off into two different conclusions for the pair.

7 Killing Everything

Can Cause Players To Miss Content Critical To Unlock Certain Ending Paths

While it may be fun to set Night City ablaze, sometimes the story calls for tact over bullets. After all, Cyberpunk 2077 is a story-rich RPG, and shooting through it may ruin the overall experience and cause players to miss something along the way.

Attention to detail goes a long way in this game filled to the brim with detail. This does not, however, mean players shouldn't fight at all. In situations with no obvious choice, it's sometimes better to let the shotgun do the talking.

6 Skipping Conversations

The Player Can Miss Critical Information

While players can still make choices without paying attention to the dialogue, the consequences become instantly more important considering the player has no idea what will happen next. Skipping conversations results in an undesirable ending for everyone.

Taking a slow approach in conversations often rewards the player with new information and a creative way of solving V's next problem. Even if the conversation is not integral to the story, it is almost always integral to that character. Skipping conversations can also result in the occasional wrong dialogue choice, which can cause V to lose favor with certain characters and change the outcome of the story.

5 Ignoring The Loot

Makes The Ending Mission And The Final Fight Easier

While the stories give the player everything they need to complete the game, it's easy to overlook. Field of View is limited on consoles, causing loot to go ignored. Taking the time to loot the corpses or the many boxes in Night City will often yield vast and plentiful rewards (some being super valuable)

Hidden Legendary items such as the Legendary Beast Mode Cyberware Mod can be found throughout Night City. Looting these items makes achieving V's endings significantly easier. Some of the tougher ones may be beyond players without the best gear, so it's always prudent to make sure that V is kitted out with the strongest items possible for players to ace the final portion of the game.

4 Giving Johnny Control

Arguably Leads To A Less Ideal Ending

Throughout the campaign, Johnny discovers he isn't truly alive. Instead, he is merely a complex code designed to act like Johnny. There are a few ways in which Johnny can take control. During the Nomad ending, V has the choice between giving Johnny control or retaining the body for himself. Retaining the body lets V run away with Panam after the Adam Smasher fight, but giving the body to Johnny results in a simple life where Johnny has another chance to live.

While that may sound heroic, Johnny has been dead for roughly 50 years. This can happen once more during the Rogue ending, where players take the role of Johnny and defeat Adam Smasher once again. Once completed, Johnny is left with a choice: give V's body back or keep it for himself. Keeping the body results in the same ending, but giving it back to V results in legendary status comparable to a certain Netwatch Netdriver MK.5 Cyberdeck across Night City.

3 Letting Arasaka Win

Leads To The Worst Ending In The Game

One of the most accessible endings (especially for those who didn't complete the side quests), is the Arasaka ending. This effectively gives Arasaka everything they want, making V's fight largely futile. Within this ending are two different conclusions.

The player has the choice to sign themselves over to Arasaka in exchange for their life, or decline and let themselves die back on earth. The reason this ending is distinctly unpopular is because of its lack of climax. Everything is over. V loses no matter what happens. Thankfully, this is but one ending in a handful.

2 No Preparation

V Will Die Over And Over Again

Cyberpunk 2077's secret ending is often considered the best, but also the most difficult to achieve. The reason this ranks so high among the endings is because of its radical upscaling of enemies inside Arasaka tower.

While there is generally no need to grind in Cyberpunk 2077, preparation is incredibly important. Unless gamers are playing on Easy Mode, the Arasaka guards will kill V and Johnny quickly, causing the player to revert to the moment before making the critical decision. Players will need to make sure they're packing the very best items and a selection of the game's best weapons before taking this route.

1 Not Romancing Panam Or Completing Her Quest

Blocks Off One Of The Best Ending Paths

It would be tough to argue that Panam isn't among the best romance decisions in Cyberpunk 2077. For the complete and ultimate "best ending," players will have to pursue the Nomad ending as well as a relationship with Panam. To complete the relationship requirements, players will also have to follow her entire questline while adhering to specific dialogue decisions.

It's a tough route to follow, but it's certainly a rewarding and interesting one. Sadly, though, it's easy to miss out on, especially if players mess up certain quests, say the wrong things, or wait too long to progress her questline.