After eight+ years in development, CD Projekt Red has finally released Cyberpunk 2077, and the game has since received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics. Given all the content that Cyberpunk 2077 has to offer, players may find themselves getting overwhelmed, especially at the beginning, where a crucial decision has to be made.
The first major decision that players have to make is choosing their character's lifepath. To the uninitiated, lif paths are the origin stories that offer unique ways to begin the game. In Cyberpunk 2077, players will have to choose between Nomad, Corpo, and Street Kid. Now, for players torn between Corpo and Street Kid, here are the major differences between the two lifepaths.
Cyberpunk 2077: Corpo Lifepath Explained
Players who will choose the Corpo lifepath will begin as a counter-intel agent of a huge corporation called Arasaka. In this origin story, it is implied that V has worked his way to the top, but this Cyberpunk 2077 lifepath begins after an incident that has everybody in the company on edge, where the player is responsible for cleaning up the mess. Given the ruthless nature of the corporate lifestyle, people that may appear trustworthy can quickly betray players at the drop of a hat, and do so in fact.
Unlike other lifepaths, players who choose Corpo should expect to extract information from whoever they want without using brute force. Additionally, dialogue options in the Corpo lifepath are pretty rare in comparison (thought plentiful enough to be impactful or earn the associated achievement), and the few that are available in this path doesn't really have a huge impact on quest outcomes. Still, they give color to V's personality and principles. Overall, the Corpo lifepath is grounded on the principle of doing whatever it takes to get results.
Cyberpunk 2077: Street Kid Lifepath Explained
On the other hand, the Street Kid is somewhat the opposite of Corpo, given that players in this lifepath have lived most of their lives in the streets of Night City. Additionally, players will be more acquainted with the city's numerous gangs and the "lower life" aspects of Night City. The Street Kid lifepath starts in the El Coyote Cojo Bar in Heywood, and players will take a job to help a friend out experiencing some money troubles.
Unlike the Corpo and Nomad lifepaths, the dialogue choices in the Street Kid lifepath are spread all over Night City, which means that important decisions have less focus compared to the other two. Although Street Kid V's upbringing has been rough, family and friends are important to him, motivating his drive to protect his loved ones at all costs.
Cyberpunk 2077: Corpo or Street Kid?
Overall, lifepaths in Cyberpunk 2077 take about 20 minutes of the game, so those who are worried about choosing which origin story to take should rest easy given that it doesn't take up a massive portion of the game. Eventually, each lifepath would lead to V meeting up with Jackie Welles, who will serve as the player's primary partner. However, certain dialogue options are unique to each lifepath, so players should also consider that.
For those interested in the Corpo lifestyle, players should expect missions that involve Night City's major corporations and the NCPD. As previously mentioned, players choosing the Corpo lifepath will be familiar with high-end cybernetic technology and the corporate world's cut-throat nature. On the other hand, the Street kid will be surrounded by gangs and the crime bosses of Night City. Ultimately, the lifepath the Cyberpunk 2077 player chooses will give them certain knowledge and skills in certain situations, but players should rest easy that all of them are worth looking into.
Cyberpunk 2077 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One, with PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions currently in development.