Edgerunners shows that One 2077 Cyberware must shine in Project Orion

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This article contains spoilers for
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
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Excitement is in the air too Cyberpunk 2077 the sequel Project Orion. That statement would have come as a surprise had it been delivered closer to the game's incredibly rough launch, but the franchise has made quite a comeback since then. This is due in part to Update 2.0's much-needed gameplay overhaul and the release of the critically acclaimed Phantom Liberty story DLC. But even before Update 2.0 and Phantom Liberty came out last year, Cyberpunk 2077 was able to regain a lot of goodwill thanks to Netflix Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime.


Created in collaboration between CD Projekt Red and Studio Trigger, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners follows young mercenary David Martinez as he navigates life Cyberpunk 2077s night city. Edgerunners fulfilled the promise of Cyberpunks approach better than the game did in many ways, with CD Projekt Red going back and using the anime as inspiration for several of the system changes in Update 2.0. With Project Orion still early in development, CD Projekt Red has the opportunity to incorporate fan-favorite aspects from Edgerunners at ground level instead of in a post-launch patch. One specific element that can add both bombastic gameplay and impactful player decision-making is the Sandevistan OS.


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Cyberpunk 2077: Project Orion Can't Walk Back One Phantom Liberty Addition

A mechanic added to Cyberpunk 2077's Phantom Liberty DLC absolutely needs to make its way into the next entry in the series.

The Significance of Sandevistan in the Cyberpunk Franchise

The sand device is a piece of military-grade cyberware that David finds and implants in his body at the beginning of the show. It heightens David's senses and improves his reaction time, allowing him to – from his perspective – slow down time. David uses this cyberware to outmaneuver his enemies and take them down before they can even process what is happening. The Sand Vista is an incredibly powerful piece of technology, but its use comes at a cost. Triggering Sandevistan's status effect takes a serious toll on the user's mind and body. Although David has a high tolerance for cyberware, his addiction to Sandevistan drives him closer and closer to developing cyberpsychosis with each use.


Sandevistan's appearance in Cyberpunk 2077

The Sand Vista is also present in the game and was the highlight of many builds after Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.0. Like David, players can choose to implant V with a version of the Sandevistan and gain the ability to slow time while driving or in battle. Although nice to use, Cyberpunk 2077s The sand scene still falls short of what was depicted in Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.

Taking the Sandevista to Project Orion

The Sand Vista should return in Project Orion, and if it does, it should work much closer to how it did in Edgerunners than it did in Cyberpunk 2077. If combined with the right perks and cyberware, Sandevistan users can enter 2077 can often be incredibly powerful in battle – but not as powerful as an optimized Cyberdeck OS build. That being said, Sandevistan doesn't always give players the true power fantasy that they might expect after watching Edgerunners. Cyberware's short timer and slow loading speed are noticeable, especially early in the game. While this is done to balance out the useful time dilation effect, CD Projekt Red can remove these guardrails and make the next game much more interesting.


CD Projekt Red should add more depth to all of their cyberware, but Sandevistan is the biggest contender for improvement. Especially after the success of Edgerunnersmany players would love to see the Sand Vista expanded. There are many ways to make it feel as powerful as it looks in the anime. The developers might even go so far as to completely remove the time limit and reload speed, as they already have the perfect way to balance Sandevistan's use in the game's story: cyberpsychosis.

Balancing an upgraded Sandevistan in Project Orion

Cyberpsychosis was added Cyberpunk 2077 in update 2.0, but all it does is implement a cyberware limit and impose debuffs if players exceed it. If Project Orion brings back the cyberpsycho system for the Sandevistan and makes it work closer to how it does in Edgerunners — adding effects like bleeding at first and some kind of insanity if players push themselves too much — that would be a much more interesting way to balance the Sand Vista than a simple countdown. Players could then experience the true David Martinez experience: mad power with the risk of true madness.


Sandevistan Variants in Project Orion

Another way that Project Orion can expand on Sandevistan is with variants. Edgerunners featured two different versions of the Sandevistan: David's and the one that belonged to Adam Smasher. Both have different functions and power caps. Although there are a variety of Sandevistans to choose from Cyberpunk 2077the differences they offer often come in the form of incremental stat boosts. Taking Sandevistan variations to the next level in Project Orion offers a way to differentiate playthroughs – especially with how many people are currently playing Sandevistan builds – and further delve into the lore behind the companies that create each one.

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