Despite a lengthy delay pushing the game back from its April release date to a much later September debut, Cyberpunk 2077 remains potentially the most highly-anticipated game of the entire year alongside The Last of Us 2. From the varied combat styles and insane amount of role-playing potential to the visually astounding open-world and deeply mature storyline, it's looking more and more likely that it'll be one for the history books when it drops this fall.
Luckily, it seems fans won't have to wait until then to know exactly what kind of content they're getting themselves into when picking up a copy of Cyberpunk 2077, with a recent ESRB rating beginning to shed some light on just how adult CD Projekt Red's newest creation is. Within the certification, it seems a number of different elements are picked up on as being definitely targeted towards older audiences, with the ESRB referencing strong violence and plenty of explicit sexual scenes.
Designating the title an unsurprising M rating, the reasoning behind the decision lists a number of mature elements featured in the game. According to the certification, players engage in numerous intense gun battles, while also getting access to melee weapons which they can use to "stab enemies and, in some cases, dismember them." It goes on to clarify that "combat is frenetic, with frequent gunfire, cries of pain, explosions, and blood-splatter effects. Some locations depict mutilated corpses with open chest cavities and/or exposed organs/entrails." Evidently, combat will feature intense violence, while the twisted underbelly of Night City will feature some disturbing content.
This is merely the beginning, however, as the rating moves on to discuss character creation. According to the ESRB, "customization can include depictions of breasts, buttocks, and genitalia, as well as various sizes and combinations of genitals." It then discusses the sexual content in the game, stating that Cyberpunk depicts "partially nude characters moaning suggestively while moving through various positions. Some scenes contain brief depictions of thrusting motions; other scenes depict a character's head moving towards a partner's crotch." Much like in The Witcher series, it seems sex will be a significant aspect in Cyberpunk 2077, allowing the player to hire prostitutes and form romantic connections with central story characters.
Alongside this, the rating highlights that a number of fictional and real drugs can be seen in the game, stating "characters taking puffs/hits from a state-altering inhaler/stimulant; an animated billboard ad depicts a man snorting speed." Apparently, players can also get severely drunk and can even drive cars while under the influence. Evidently, Cyberpunk is not backing down on the mature content, which, knowing CD Projekt Red's reputation, is far from a massive surprise.
Cyberpunk 2077 releases September 17, 2020 for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
Source: ESRB
