Throughout V’s journey there are many human and corporate enemies — Arasaka, Adam Smasher and others — but the city itself is ambivalent and relentless. “It’s Night City versus everyone else,” Marchewka adds, and framing the metropolis as the central antagonist gives the story a sharper edge.
For ordinary residents the city’s harsh realities hit hardest, but the narrative suggests no one leaves unscathed. That universal struggle is a core part of what CD Projekt built into the world: an environment that shapes and punishes everyone who tries to survive in it.
Also worth reading: The Making of Cyberpunk 2077’s metro system.
