Cyberpunk 2077: New features are great, but what to do if patch 2.1 crashes? A workaround and a let’s play!

The patch 2.1 for Cyberpunk 2077 brings a lot of new features, but unfortunately also some problems. And before I go into the new features, we also need to look at the hurdles that stand in the way of a new user experience. Since its release, Cyberpunk 2077 has emerged as a platform for demonstrating new graphics card technologies, particularly in collaboration with Nvidia. It was one of the first games to introduce temporal upscaling and DLSS 3.5 Ray Reconstruction. However, many changes also lead to uncertainties for the end user, especially after patches without a real initial installation. And that’s exactly where we start now.

Crash when starting / loading the game

I am writing here exclusively for the Steam version, as there are or were obviously also isolated problems with the loader in the GOG version. However, since most of the current workarounds for this are based on modified binaries from the depths of torrent piracy, I am deliberately omitting this at this point, as I generally do not support such things. I use three test systems and the Steam version is installed on all three systems, which I automatically updated from the beginning via patch 1.6 and 2.0 up to patch 2.1. All three installations could not be started at all after the patch. Cyberpunk 2077 was still visible in the Task Manager with a memory requirement of around 500 MB, but without any response or CPU load.

Various forums, right up to the Steam forum, are quite eagerly dealing with this problem, even if there were and are things to read that seem rather counterproductive. What definitely does NOT help is downgrading the NVIDIA drivers to a much older version, because it also crashed for me with Radeon graphics cards. The fact that you should deactivate any mods in order to test their compatibility bit by bit later is a very good recommendation in the event of instability, but unfortunately does not solve the core problem either. There was never a single modification installed on my three systems. And now?

Simply checking the installation files didn’t help either. Neither did simply uninstalling via Steam and then reinstalling. Removing the savegames didn’t help either. However, I noticed that Steam had not removed all the files when uninstalling and that there were still fragments in the game folder! It sounds pretty stupid, but should that really be the reason? As the owner of a very fast Internet connection, reinstalling is rather painless, but if you patch with VDSL and slower and then reinstall several times, you’ve pulled out the famous A-card.

Tested on all three systems, the following steps then led to success:

1. After the crash, simply restart the PC completely so that any binaries still running are no longer locked in the system
2. Completely uninstall the game in the Steam client without starting it. If you had set desktop links manually, remove them as well.
3. In the file manager, change to the installation directory of the entire game (usually under C:\Steam\steamapps\common) and delete the entire “Cyberpunk 2077” directory there.
4. Reinstall the game including the patch and create a new desktop link
5. The first restart should be done directly from team (“Play” button) so that the CDPR launcher is loaded completely and visibly at least once and start the game from there
6. If necessary, adjust the graphics settings again (in my case the DLSS settings were gone) and also note the new features
7. Play and be happy

What’s new? Graphically already a lot!

But there are not only these bugs at launch, but also lots of great new features. In addition to various bug fixes for ray tracing calculations, the game now supports HDR10 on Nvidia graphics cards and has made improvements to the ray tracing modes, including the “RT Overdrive” mode, which has come out of tech demo status and has been revised with the latest patch. This mode now offers better lighting due to less ghosting thanks to ReSTIR GI. DLSS 3.5 with Ray Reconstruction is now no longer limited to Pathtracing mode and is also available in other modes that use RT mirroring, but only for Nvidia cards RTX 2000 and above. This technology aims to improve image quality with AI-assisted denoising without compromising performance.

 

We take a ride on the subway…

At E3 2018, CD Projekt Red hinted that their dystopian sci-fi game “Cyberpunk 2077” could include a metro system. However, this function was not available until the release and beyond, only fast travel was possible. It was recently announced that no metro system would be added, but now the developer has kindly reversed this decision. The previously hinted at but unfinished metro system has finally been implemented, with players able to use five lines and 19 different stops (see image).

During the journey, players can view the passing cityscape through the windows, get off where they want and, of course, the fast travel option remains available if required. After all, many of the metro entrances were already available as fast travel points. And always pay attention to where the arrival and departure points are!

When the apartment becomes a by the hour hotel

For a more in-depth gaming experience with the few possible romances in Cyberpunk 2077, the developer has now made it possible for fixed relationship partners such as Judy, Panam, River and Kerry (depending on the gender of the character) to be invited to the player’s apartment to spend time together, but without expanding the scope of available relationship options, which is actually a shame and wastes potential. You can invite your partner to your apartment by phone, but the dialog options are rather limited and have unfortunately not been expanded. The second romance at the latest becomes somewhat pointless and seems completely worn out. Everything has already been said at least once. Too bad.

And what else?

In addition to the Metro update and to encourage players to leave the car behind, Update 2.1 adds new viewpoints where players can admire the city through binoculars. A new highway has also been completed, finally connecting Westbrook, Santo Domingo and Heywood. Players can now also take part in repeatable car races after completing the mission “The Beast in Me”. That’s pretty easy to do.

With the Radioport feature, you can now listen to the radio indefinitely (and with volume control!) while traveling on foot or using the NCART train. The radio port for pedestrians automatically switches to the car radio when you get on the train. However, there is always radio silence when the music of a quest is playing. V can now also be persistently pursued by gangs if you take a very aggressive approach to certain missions and main quests. You’ll have to wipe out all the enemies or take your legs in your hands. The cooldown on rooftops without a direct view from below still works, however, because the NPCs still don’t climb. Even missions where a vehicle has to be stolen and delivered could now lead to a longer chase with a fight, which also requires more stamina.

It is now finally possible to consciously interact with some conspicuous vendors that spawn in kiosks. Only snack stands are excluded from this. In addition to new vehicles, the weapon balancing, the balancing of cyberware (“chrome”) and the AI (NPCs) have also been improved. Much is now more balanced, but still not everything. But you can definitely notice the differences.

Conclusion and summary

In my case, the startup problems resolved in this workaround have a simple cause, but unfortunately also have a major effect. If you are affected by this, there is probably no way around a new installation. However, to ensure that this remains a one-off effort, you should really search for the software fragments and manually delete these possible remnants after restarting the system. The rest is in the text and brings a little more momentum into play. Visually and in terms of content. Unfortunately, there is far too much potential wasted in the romances, including the interactions with other protagonists.

And another little tip: While you can’t complete the main quest of the base game and can try out all possible endings without any problems, once you’ve finished the DLC it’s finally over, including the credits. Then the only thing that helps is to load an older savegame so that you can continue playing without being crippled and not die the hero’s death without weapons (spoiler).

And otherwise: sometimes you’ve got to spoil yourself. Cheats on and let’s cut right through the middle!