Cyberpunk 2077has a plethora of different quests for players to embark upon, from the short but sweet Gigs to the more story-heavy side and main quests. These help to flesh out V as a character and develop Night City itself, withevery Gig getting V closer to the various Fixers and their backstoriesand each side mission expanding upon the enormous cast of memorable characters. However, there is one mission type inCyberpunk 2077that is completely immersion-breaking, which is a shame, as they’re actually quite fun.
Of the manythings that don’t make sense inCyberpunk 2077, the NCPD Scanner Hustles are easily some of the worst. If players choose to engage with them, they ruin any sense that V is a dying merc without a moral compass who’s quickly running out of time. However, while they’re a strange inclusion in the base game, NCPD Scanner Hustles have a shot at redemption in the sequel.There are steps that CD Projekt Red should take to transform these missionsand make them a far more enjoyable and immersive experience.
Cyberpunk 2077’s NCPD Scanner Hustles Are Immersion-Breaking
There’s No Reason V Would Work With The Police
Cyberpunk 2077NCPD Scanner Hustles are essentially mini-quests, popping up occasionally across Night City as optional short missions. They are split into three types: Assault in Progress, which involves V needing to obtain some loot from a crime scene, Reported Crime, which sees V needing to take out a group of gang members and then find their loot, and Suspected Organized Crime Activity, which involves killing a group of enemies.There’s not a whole lot of substance to them apart from some conversations V can find,which give a little bit of backstory to the loot they’re locating.
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On a surface level, NCPD Scanner Hustles are a harmless way to waste time while exploring Night City or while waiting for a character to call V back. However,if players stop for even a moment to think about them, they make absolutely no senseand ruin the otherwisespectacular worldbuilding inCyberpunk 2077. NCPD Scanner Hustles require V to work alongside the NCPD, the people they’ve been telling everyone, from the former cop River to Panam, are a corrupt organization with no good people left working for them.
V inherently doesn’t trust cops, as evidenced in the mission “Sinnerman” and other occasions throughoutCyberpunk 2077, so it makes no sense that they’d do missions for them. Additionally,helping the police doesn’t help V get closer to getting rid of Johnny Silverhand- although one could argue the same is true of Gigs - so they make no sense from a narrative perspective either. Finally, if V commits even one crime inCyberpunk 2077, then the police, who almost immediately know V is responsible, would never trust them again and would probably better spend their time trying to arrest them.
On practically every level,NCPD Scanner Hustles make no sense inCyberpunk 2077, and that’s a great shame. The NCPD, unlikeCyberpunk 2077’s wasted Trauma Team faction, is genuinely interesting organization that deserves to be explored in more detail in side missions. However, perhaps more importantly, Scanner Hustles could make sense if they were just attributed to another faction other than the NCPD.
Cyberpunk 2077’s Sequel Should Transform NCPD Scanner Hustles
They Could Become Fixer Quests Or Gang Quests
Cyberpunk 2077’ssequel, codenamedOrion, has the potential to completely transform NCPD Scanner Hustles and make them both more immersive and more interesting. There are lots ofways thatCyberpunk 2077’ssequel can innovateon the original, and one of those should be by giving the Scanner Hustle-style missions to gangs. Rather than the NCPD calling up V and asking them to help deal with gang members,Scanner Hustles should involve gangs asking V to help them take down rival gangs.
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This would keep Scanner Hustles largely the same, as they already involve fighting against any ofNight City’s varied gangs.Rather than Assault in Progress, V could be tasked with Territory Takeovers, and instead of Suspected Organized Crime Activity, V could rescue a gang’s kidnapped member. These would only require a tiny bit of flavor text and use of the already existing in-game locations, so no tailored content would need to be created for them. However, unlike working for the NCPD, V, or whoeverCyberpunk 2077’ssequel’s protagonist is, would be working for the gangs they’ve already done biz with.
Alternatively, Scanner Hustles could be handed out byCyberpunk 2077’sinteresting Fixersas smaller, less important Gigs that they pawn off to V whenever they can’t find someone else. This, again, would make more sense than the NCPD giving V missions and could see them doing largely the same activities. Instead of Assault in Progress,a Fixer Scanner Hustle could see V tracking down a client’s targetor rescuing a kidnapped partner. There are so many routes that Scanner Hustles could go down in a sequel that are more interesting and immersive than the NCPD variants in the original game.
Mini-Quests Can Be Fun With The Right Context Behind Them
Cyberpunk 2077’sNCPD Scanner Hustles aren’t bad or boring. Much like the Gigs, they’re largely misunderstood and seen as worthless content when, in actuality, they help make Night City’s gangs a lot more interesting. However,Scanner Hustles are frustratingly implemented inCyberpunk 2077, largely thanks to the fact that they’re connected to practically the one faction V would never work for. In its original advertising,Cyberpunk 2077sold itself as cyberpunkGTA— a game in which players could live out their darkest fantasies, committing crimes, blasting heads off, and living the merc life.
The NCPD Scanner Hustles rob the game of that fantasywhile further convoluting the already lackluster police system by having V be able to commit crimes and then help the police who, moments ago, were chasing them. The only tweak they really need is to switch who they’re affiliated with, and then they’d be the perfect distraction from the main and side quests. Of course,Cyberpunk 2077’ssequel could do away with them entirely, but it would be a shame to see them not return in some capacity.
What new feature should Cyberpunk 2077’s sequel include?
CD Projekt Red North America is currently at work on a sequel toCyberpunk 2077, withPhanton Libertydirector Gabe Amatangelo leading the charge on the follow-up. Recent reports have indicated the team is looking to incorporate multiplayer in the sequel, an understandable decision given the popularity of similar open-world sandboxGrand Theft Auto V. Beyond this being a poor choice, as it takes away from the player-driven focus of the campaign, I’d like to see an improvement on the romantic storylines by offering more things to do with these characters than scripted cutscenes.
Cyberpunk 2077’ssequel may be a disasterat launch like its predecessor, but it also has such a solid foundation to build on thatit would only take some slight tweaking to make it feel truly next-gen. Hopefully,Project Orionlearns from the mistakes of what came before and, among many other things, hand over the Scanner Hustle side activities to the gangs and Fixers. If that happens,Cyberpunk 2077’ssequel will be on the path to becoming a far more immersive and interesting experience.
