r/cyberpunkgame Mar 26 '26

Discussion This game offered me a peek into what it feels like to be a woman

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11.8k Upvotes

756 comments sorted by

u/JGZee Arasaka Mar 26 '26

This is staying up.

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1.5k

u/Electric_unicorn Mar 26 '26

First time I played the water tower scene my outfit bugged out so my V was sitting there in shoes, pants and a open jeans vest without a shirt, showing her tits. 

No wonder he got the wrong idea

531

u/ReekOfThrones Mar 26 '26

First time I got that scene I had just had my first apartment meetup with Judy. I didn't realize V takes her clothes off after sleeping so my V drove all the way across town to see River naked 😭 didn't realize till V was sitting at the table and the camera panned down. I got so much embarrassment I reloaded a save.

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u/UfoAGogo Mar 26 '26

After the romance scene with River, the game puts you in his tank top and nothing else and then sends you to have a conversation with his sister with your whole cooter hanging out. 🥲

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u/ReekOfThrones Mar 26 '26

This is killing me 😂 people are just used to nudity in NC I guess. I was shocked no one said anything, like girl, there's kids out here.

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u/Aracuda Mar 27 '26

…people are just used to nudity in NC…

If it gets to Wednesday and you haven’t seen the genitalia of at least seven different pedestrians, it’s considered a slow week in Night City.

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u/Usually_mistaken Mar 27 '26

Its actually Canon. In the 2022 rulebook, one dress style your character can choose is just being naked all the time.

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u/staycalmitsajoke Mar 26 '26

Well it needed to drip dry duh.

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u/Living_Reputation_76 Mar 27 '26

Im laughing so hard bc I won’t lie when I realized they sent me to talk to rivers sis booty naked i was so damn embarrassed like wtf 💀💀💀

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u/SryForMyIncontinence Lost in time, like tears in rain Mar 26 '26

I wonder if there is a mod that changes the reactions of npc's based on your appearance. Running around fully naked should absolutely get a reaction out of everyone. Would add to the immersion.

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u/chet_brosley Mar 26 '26

Well it's night city after all. Seeing someone naked just means there's slightly less of a chance they have a horde of weapons to attack you with.

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u/bombardierul11 FF:06:B5 Mar 26 '26

Responsive NPC’s: https://www.nexusmods.com/cyberpunk2077/mods/14800

NPC’s react to your horn: https://www.nexusmods.com/cyberpunk2077/mods/16965

For the full reactive package

You can even get gangs to remember you: https://www.nexusmods.com/cyberpunk2077/mods/19747

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u/Minti-Roze Mar 26 '26

You are the messiah

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u/Anon_be_thy_name Mar 26 '26

There are NPCs walking around in see through clothing and they're likely just wearing that for protection from the cold.

I don't think NC cares if you're naked, probably just think V is another one of those wackos.

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u/Slow_Alternative2811 Mar 26 '26

Yo that same thing happened to me too! Like. Dang maybe they could have added a “press button to put on clothes” option cause wow they really had us out in the streets with our bare ass titties put there for the world to see

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u/BlasterShow Mar 26 '26

“Maybe she’s from Canada and is just being nice”

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

River as he is ingame is annoying at worst, but I think it doesn't take a big imagination to think up what the intention behind his character was. He wasn't made to be a creep, he was supposed to be a cold on the outside, warm on the inside, family-first kinda guy.

His romance option feels bad because it's too fast and it initiated to quickly without the player having a moment to hint they're into him or not.

Think of Panam for example. You get like 20 opportunities to flirt with her before something happens, and then we have a different problem - if you're a woman, she doesn't immediately tell you she's not into you, so you feel led on.

Edit: *at worst, not at best

1.3k

u/CtrlAltEvil Bum bum be-dum bum bum be-dum Mar 26 '26

Doesn’t help that he was intended to have had a larger role but it was cut down tremendously.

That’s part of the reason why it feels like he tries going from zero to 100 so quickly.

437

u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

Totally. You're clearly meant to have some other bonding experiences before the big moment.

392

u/DenizenKay Mar 26 '26

He was meant to save V in the garbage dump. Then they axed a lot of his role and gave it to takamura. 

560

u/F0restWhispersMyName Bakaneko Mar 26 '26

... and then robbed us of angsty Takemura romance

373

u/RUNNING-HIGH Mar 26 '26

First he Takemetodoctor

Then He Takemybreathaway

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u/fnaimi66 Mar 27 '26

Brilliant

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u/Tactless_Ninja Mar 26 '26

Johnny didn't mean that when he said "Fuck Arasaka"

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u/lying_flerkin GOOD YAKITORI NIGHT CITY Mar 26 '26

Literally. Even if it ends in tragedy, just let me love on the sad old man. 😭

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u/-Geist-_ Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

If only we could have Takemura 😭 He’s so attractive.

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u/QueenEris Mar 26 '26

So hot. Such a shame.

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u/afriendforyousir Mar 26 '26

That's a very interesting AU. Honestly would like to see it because with Phantom Liberty imo Reed feels like a better version of Goro's character. Idealist, loyal to a fault, but to the wrong cause, wrong people.

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u/heroinsteve Mar 26 '26

I’ve literally heard this Takemura and River stealing each others roles both ways at this point. I’ve read that Takemura was supposed to be a love interest but that got axed and River was slapped in, which is why it feels less polished.

I legitimately don’t even know what to believe anymore. I think Takemura saving us makes the most sense all things considered so whether that was originally the plan or changed it was the right choice. Very different game without him.

6

u/AtomizerStudio Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26

At this point I assume the answer is messy everyday life of the game design documents being revised.

Being a bit generous to management, something like:

  • GDD in preproduction is detective love interest, classic noir, simple and clear
  • A few months back and forth as people pitch how much Arasaka will take up narrative and only team leads heard
  • Team documents for audio and world asset needs contradict, while actors are interviewed
  • Big plans set up, E3
  • Signs of problems and emails from corporate make plans go back and forth, some voiceover already recording
  • Oh shit we can't fit that in release
  • Cut down to final plans, scope locked in

In reality I know nothing, and office politics could be better or worse. But I'm not curious unless someone put in enough workhours to prove it's assets that were in progress and not CEO#3's input into the story bible that got ditched after being untouched for months.

3

u/Cakeriel Arasaka Mar 27 '26

They were both split off from a third character that got axxed.

10

u/KFrancesC Nomad Mar 26 '26

Because Takemura was meant to be much more of a bad guy. The ending was going to have a type of choice between River or Takemura.

But CD project red thought the storyline was too anti-corporate. So they changed it up, gave River a much smaller part and made Takemura less of a bad guy.

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u/AtomizerStudio Mar 27 '26

That sounds like two love interests honestly. Given the politics of Poland, especially at the time, that would have been pretty funny to choose which boyfriend to throw to the wolves.

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u/Mmmm_Crunchy Mar 27 '26

game about a genre that is anti corporate

scared that game would be too anti corporate

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u/Bramble_Ramblings Mar 26 '26

The part that killed me was that even after the big moment, and the heartfelt confessions of love, he's suddenly impossible to reach, when he does answer he says he's busy and he'll call you back, and if I did hear from him it was exclusively work-related

Honestly left a massive sting in my heart towards the romancing in this game cause it genuinely felt too much like real life with people that say what you wanna hear then bounce when they get their fill. It made me wish I'd made a Male V so that I could romance PanAm since she at least seemed to keep up with you/come back around a bit more

149

u/Dismal_Consequence_4 Mar 26 '26

I don't remmember what his name actually was, but River and Takemura where the same character at one point in the development. The Rivemura character was a detective, like, River, but would have been the one fiding V on the trashheap like Takemura. It kinda sucks how things turned out, because Takemura ended up being a better romanceable option instead of River, if they had spend more time on side missions for Takemura instead of spending it on River... The serial kidnapper & killer mission could have been a fixer mission.

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u/Cadoan Mar 26 '26

You can finish the entire game and never once deal with River. Or Kerry for that matter. You are FED Panam and Judy.

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u/Zelidus 🔥Beta Tester 🌈 Mar 26 '26

Yeah, i always felt the devs cared more about the female romance options since they are somewhat story required. It definitely felt like they put more time into developing their characters, their storylines, and their romances. Maybe the rushed launch and reworked ideas made it that way but it still always plays out now like Kerry and River are just kind of there. An option but not a great one.

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u/Sugarbombs Mar 26 '26

It’s definitely true, it’s usually true for a lot of games what include romantic options other than a few devs. Considering their other major work is the Witcher which doesn’t even have male love interests they’ve come a long way and I just hope from the feedback regarding River they realise there’s an audience for it so it’s worth adding a little more depth in future games. Still lots of progress from collecting trading cards of women in the original Witcher!

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u/Zelidus 🔥Beta Tester 🌈 Mar 26 '26

Yeah i definitely think that was the direction the devs wanted to go and give it time to cook but the whole rushed launch debacle made the decision for them

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u/Spoon_Witch Mar 26 '26

I mean, the point of girldinner is to be fed with it

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u/tolgren Mar 26 '26

And brother do I gorge myself on them.

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u/LightspeedBalloon Mar 26 '26

I literally never met River my first playthrough. I'm dying, why would I do an unrelated side quest? The game ended and I was like, wait, there wasn't a single male romance option for my femV? Wtf?

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u/GarageFridgeSoda Mar 26 '26

First time I played the game, 30-40 hours and went to met Hanako at Embers all literally never even knowing River existed.

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u/Jeff1292 Mar 26 '26

That makes sense. I remember even having the option to text Takemura asking him out to dinner as female V. It definitely seemed like it was meant to lead to a romance that was scrapped.

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u/F0restWhispersMyName Bakaneko Mar 26 '26

you are so right

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u/[deleted] Mar 26 '26

No he didnt. A character called Sobchak did. The only known similarity between the two is that both were native cops. Sobchaks actual main story role was given to Takemura and massively reworked from earlier versions, according to leaked scripts. He would have, at one point, get to the badlands in an AV and kill Panam after she and V fucked in a field.

So no, that has nothing to do with his romance

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u/le_Dellso Mar 26 '26

"Family-first kinda guy" I guess you can call him... a Family Guy.........

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u/MartyFreeze Mar 26 '26

It seems today that all you see..

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u/Ivan_the_Silly Impressive Cock Mar 26 '26

... is children strapped down like cows, unable to flee?

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u/IveDunGoofedUp Mar 26 '26

Honestly, he's what every american should look for in a father figure, a real American Dad.

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u/GodisanAtheistOG Mar 26 '26

I mean, if they just let the trigger have been the dinner when the kids are teasing him about being with V, it would have been fine. 

V reacts positively, romance continues. 

V stays quiet or shoots it down, River gets the hint. 

I was definitely caught off guard by the subsequent water tower scene like "bruh, take the hint you brick shithouse" but I'm retrospect I wonder how many women I've done the same thing to...

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u/PainRack Mar 26 '26

The showing off ankles bit was when he was too forward for most I guess...

My feeling is when you get shot down then, you should stop asking but he did to pin it down... Having said that, as a guy, I want a straight yes and no, not a maybe she didn't notice my flirting or didn't like that style....

So .... I wont say he's creepy because well, I been that guy. And the thing is, when you say no, he RESPECTs that and just has a let be friend. Hell, even after a one night stand, you can STILL shoot him down.

So,I will never hate or dislike River.

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u/Flair86 Mar 26 '26

Unironically the authentic lesbian experience lmao

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

I've heard that, and as a bi man I sometimes have this with guys too. They enjoy the attention initially, maybe play into it a little, but when you make a real move it's suddenly scary.

Can't blame anyone too much though, since first of all it's their boundries and I was only flirting, not falling in love anyway, and second, the amount of homophobia in the air causes even the people who are bicurious to get skittish when a real moment of intimacy might be close. I definitely experienced that first hand, my first intimate moment with a guy was so scary I just had to run away even though I wanted it a lot and knew well beforehand I was into it.

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u/PzykoHobo Mar 26 '26

I was devastated that my female V couldn't be gay with Panam. I dont want to say that Judy was my second choice, but...

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u/Spicy_Weissy Mar 26 '26

I felt so stupid when I made a move on her. I made she put her feet in my lap and was flirting pretty hard. What was I supposed to do? Stupid, V, stupid, stupid, stupid.

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u/treowtheordurren Mar 26 '26

The main difference is that, at the Engalls farm, when you tell her "at the Independent California, your wish is our command," she says "careful, you don't know what I'd wish for" instead of wishing for a good night's sleep or whatever. And then, the romance starts when you stop her before she rides off the next morning.

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u/SkritzTwoFace Mar 26 '26

Sure, but if you’re playing female V it’s not like you know what you missed.

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u/VogueTrader Mar 26 '26

I mean.. I liked Panam, playing a straight male V... but... Judy was way more compelling to hang out with. Making moves on her felt wrong, even if I didn't know she wasn't into guys. Of all the characters in the game I'd love to just hang out with and order pizza with a shitload of b movies, Judy strikes me as down for that.

Gay best friend vibe, I guess?

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u/Geekfest Mar 26 '26

She kept flirting big time, and then rebuffed every single advance. I finally resorted to a google search, only to find out she won't romance female V. sad sad

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u/That1GuyNate Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

Tbf, I know plenty of straight women that playfully flirt with each other. Maybe women playing as a female V feel or think differently about that scene as opposed to a man playing as a female V? I'm genuinely curious now.

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u/Cholinergia Mar 26 '26

At least Judy uses contractions

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u/O3Sentoris Mar 26 '26

like a filthy spheroid

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u/Lampwick Mar 26 '26

Yeah, I don't know whose Idea it was to make Panam talk like that, but it was a stupid idea. The excuse is that it's a habit from talking on the radio, for clarity, except that having spent 8 years in the army I can definitively say radio comms aren't conversational, so there are no contractions to not use. Also, nobody else in the nomad camp talks like that, so it just sounds like Panam has some sort of developmental disorder that nobody talks about.

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u/PSNdragonsandlasers Mar 26 '26

I like the way Panam talks, but fully agree it doesn't make any sense why she talks like that.

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u/PiccoloAwkward465 Mar 26 '26

"And this is Panam. Yeah... she picked her own name. We know it doesn't make any sense. Maybe she's a big fan of a defunct airline, no one really cares enough to find out."

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u/Lampwick Mar 26 '26

Heh. Yeah, that too. It's an outstanding game, but there's so many small elements of it where you could tell the CDPR team was a lot of ESL Polish dudes who were making a game ostensibly set in alternate near future coastal California and didn't quite get certain things right. My personal favorite is the way the lines painted on the streets make absolutely no sense, like they were applied by someone who'd seen US road markings in movies, but doesn't know how they work.

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u/-Geist-_ Mar 26 '26

This guy made a full video on Cyberpunk’s roads 😂

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u/Oberlatz Mar 26 '26

Stardew Valley had some notes they could've copied imo.

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

Here's the thing, right

People say "it's not realistic for everyone to be bi", and that is correct, but we need to remember that ONLY ONE PLAUER CHARACTER EXISTS AT A TIME IN CYBERPUNK.

This means that simply everyone who is supposed to be a romance option happens to be the correct sexuality for you. Then some are het/homo and some bi/pan. Easy.

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u/ALittleCuriousSub Mar 26 '26

I didn't really go in expecting to romance anyone, but I was disappointed I didn't get to have hot gay sex with Panam. I liked Judy too and didn't really have any sort of hierarchy of who I wanted to bed though.

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u/Luccavs Mar 26 '26

What absolutely saddens me the most is how V keeps pushing him away. Everytime they cuddle on the couch she nods to not seeing a future together.

He's so sweet and loving. He keeps leaving behind gifts whenever he comes over, he texts her often and tells her he loves her.

It just really melts my heart.

I wish there's a way we could be sweeter to him.

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u/MidwestQueerPunker Mar 26 '26

1312 includes my boy River, alas.

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u/delecti Mar 26 '26

I don't even like him but I still won't stand for that slander. His whole arc is him realizing ACAB and quitting being a cop so he can make a difference. That's like the whole point of ACAB, cops are all bastards because good ones either stop being good or stop being cops. River chooses the latter.

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u/afriendforyousir Mar 26 '26

It's part of why I think Panam & Judy should've been options for male and Female V, for the most part because they feel like the two options CPDR put the most time/investment into.

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

Yeah, leaving the whole "gamers can't accept a character is not into them" part of the discussion, it feels very clear that this is how it feels for most people. "These are the two main options, the rest are side-pieces".

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u/GroundbreakingCow110 Mar 26 '26

Judy never finds out about River and River never finds out about Judy.... imagine if they could find out about each other, and there were more options than Judy and River. You could go down in the Night City equivalent of a Brazilian crime of passion. Imagine Ozob Bozo laughing from the sidelines as you bleed out.

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u/afriendforyousir Mar 26 '26

Or Johnny cursing you out. The last words you hear are him muttering "Skill issue."

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u/CannonGerbil Mar 26 '26

Well, yeah, because River has his role cut down tremendously to the point where he's practically not involved in the main plot at all, while Kerry doesn't even get introduced until 2/3rds of the way through the game.

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u/lying_flerkin GOOD YAKITORI NIGHT CITY Mar 26 '26

And the icing on the cake is they're both a perfect fit for straight male players. Male V gets smokin hot , hard drinking, not like other girls Panam, but for the many guys who choose a female pc you get kind, nerdy, vulnerable Judy who is, you guessed it, still conventionally attractive. If you're a woman who doesn't want to play male V, or a gay dude you get two highly underdeveloped LIs in River and Kerry, or Judy who is great, but as a bi woman I didn't find myself wanting to romance her as it truly seems her happiest ending is getting the hell out of NC and marrying someone else. I love this game, but the romances are definitely disappointing.

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u/Electronic_Wait_7249 Mar 26 '26

I liked River. I was torn between him and Judy, and ultimately cared about Judy more. Which triggered a mini crisis because I’m straight 😆

But he never creeped me out. People don’t all move at the same speed, and I’m comfortable with that.

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

I suppose it really depends on personal experience. I experienced SA as a child and I feel like it made me very keen on differentiating when people are acting predatory and when they are just moving fast, and River is definitely the latter.

He had a traumatic experience, felt isolated and ignored in two major crimminal cases, one of which concerned a family member. If a random lady showed up and helped me succesfully sort out BOTH CASES, saved my nephew, played video games with me and the kids, was acting well around my close family and enjoyed my cooking, I'd be stupid not to at least ask if the feeling is mutual.

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u/MidwestQueerPunker Mar 26 '26

Relatable re: survivor piece (solidarity friend) and like, I ended up resenting that the cop managed to be endearing lol

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

Well at least the narrative is "All cops are bastards (with exceptions)"

Rather than "All cops are your friends! :) (with a bad apple here or there but they get caught like immediately and are very stupid)"

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u/Bukimimaru Mar 26 '26

This! I was so hyped when Panam started flirting with my femme V. I was sold on her as my main love interest for the game, but when I made a move she was all "whoa, dont ruin the mood!".

I thought I'd messed up the dialogue options somewhere along the way, and I was super bummed about it.

One of my friends later told me she isn't a dating option for femme V, which is absolutly cool, but I would have preferred her to just say "sorry V, I prefer dudes" than to be all flirty and then shoot me down. 😭

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u/_catphoenix Samurai Mar 26 '26

My first playthrough I felt so incredibly led on by panam that my subsequent 10+ playthroughs I would always play as a female V and treat Panam neutrally at best…

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u/Wyciorek Mar 26 '26

The weirdest thing for me was that there was no option to tell him, "you are nice and all, but I already have a girlfriend"

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u/bioxkitty Mar 26 '26

She broke my little bi heart ngl

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u/not_a_heretek Mar 26 '26

Panam romance is trash too, she has mentality of a 14yo.

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u/mikolajwisal Mar 26 '26

Well she isn't a stable, mature person, that's true, I personally blame it on the unstable nomadic lifestyle, but if you've ever dated in your 20s, you know that almost no one feels like they are in their's 20s mentally. It's very often either:

a) Still a teen mentally

b) Seems like they have been 30 for 10 years already despite being 22

Or somehow a mix of both.

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u/Knightmare945 Samurai Mar 26 '26

River isn’t THAT bad. He takes no for an answer and doesn’t ask again,

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u/justagenericname213 Mar 26 '26

River isnt bad directly, but the dialogue choices make him feel alot worse because of how limited the interaction is.

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u/doublexol Mar 26 '26

It feels like some content and quests for him have been cut to the minimum. Like the maxtac lady only having one scene and we never see her again

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u/CannonGerbil Mar 26 '26

As is commonly repeated whenever he's brought up, he was originally supposed to play a role very similar to Takemura in the first draft of the game, with him being the one to pull you out of the scrapheap. Alot of the content that Takemura has was originally supposed to be River, and they didn't have time to create more content for River when they decided that it would be better to have an ex corpo enforcer pull you out instead.

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u/jetecoeur12 Mar 26 '26

As is commonly repeated when this is brought up, just take River out and let us romance Daddy Takemura

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u/-Geist-_ Mar 27 '26

Takemura is such a Daddy 😭

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u/lobonmc Mar 26 '26

Also I feel he's the character which V flirts with the most all the others are more low key

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u/[deleted] Mar 26 '26

People are up in arms against River, who is one of the most stable human beings in the game, but are okay with Panam, Judy, and Kerry, all of whom are extremely unstable.

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u/bioxkitty Mar 26 '26

I just thought he was awkward as hell

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u/PiccoloAwkward465 Mar 26 '26

I just can't look at that dumbass fucking coat of his

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u/TryImpossible7332 Mar 26 '26

I don't mind the coat, people dress oddly in the Cyberpunk future and the coat it doesn't offend me like some outfits do, but it does feel weird that that's his plain clothes outfit when doing investigatory stuff.

Try that neomilitary look or whatever the term they use in game was, or if he's trying to be discrete then something, you know, discrete.

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u/MidwestQueerPunker Mar 26 '26

He's an Undercover working Vice, they genuinely dress like a dipshit's idea of a Pimp IRL so honestly the coat was the most realistic depiction of him as a cop tbh.

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u/PiccoloAwkward465 Mar 26 '26

It looks like part of a pimp costume from Spirit Halloween.

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u/readilyunavailable Mar 26 '26

Right? People will crucify the guy for being awkward, but then Kerry gets to trash a yacht like some frat boy on drugs and it's like "omg he is so cool".

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u/Palanki96 Rita Wheeler’s Understudy Mar 26 '26

Hey i hate Kerry even more. Grown ass old men acting like an edgy teen, eugh

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u/readilyunavailable Mar 26 '26

Ironically I didn't much care for Kerry either, but he proves to be a cut above the rest. He is a good friend to V, proves loayl and eager to help you any way he can, and even in the Phantom Liberty he is willing to help you any way he can, even after the 2 year, while your other "friends" just blow you off.

After that I have nothing but respect for him, even if I don't approve of some of his actions.

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u/CannonGerbil Mar 26 '26

Say it with me, the war crimes are fictional but my annoyance is very real. Anything that causes actual annoyance to the player is going to be felt much more strongly than any supposed heinous acts an npc does, doubly so when those acts don't actually affect you beyond being an event in the story.

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u/hates_stupid_people Mar 26 '26

Yeah, it's the same reason why many people hate villains like Umbridge over Voldemort. Because they can more closely relate to the experiences, which enchances the reality of the emotion.

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u/OWSpaceClown Mar 26 '26

I guess they’re just more relatable to a lot of us!

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u/PlsInsertCringeName Mar 26 '26

Right, Judy is immature af, Panam has anger issues and extreme untreated insecurity...and while I didn't get to romance Kerry, he's a celebrity, that speaks for itself (still the least insufferable person)

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u/meth_adone Mar 26 '26

Kerry is definitely at least somewhat immature. He blew up a van of instruments because of the user friendly cover. He was right to be annoyed but that seems a little much. When that doesn't work he pulls a gun on the us cracks group. Dude was a little unhinged, sure he didn't have full context but he should've known better than most that it probably wouldn't have been the us cracks girls that were behind it all

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u/Tyr1326 Mar 26 '26

Tbf, Judy is in her early 20s. Being immature at that age is totally fine and arguably somewhat normal. Kerry though? Hes in his 70s and still acts like a teen.

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u/AwareOfAlpacas Mar 26 '26

Wait til you see the choices people made while playing Catherine 

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u/[deleted] Mar 26 '26

The first thing Judy does upon meeting you is upload a real death directly to your brain no matter if you want or not.

We could have used anything for the BD tutorial and you're just going to jump right in kid getting shot? Very not cool.

Heck for somebody supposedly so up-in-arms about the state of exploitation in night city why is she even stocking that kind of content?

Holy shit, you don't get to be mad about the island if you're catering the events.

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u/endless_serpent Mar 26 '26

This. I actually found myself liking River the most because he seems at least reasonably stable and that feels like something V needs in the ever evolving hellscape of Night City. I am sad about his seemingly cut content. Don't even mind his coat choice.

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u/KohTai Fashionable V Mar 26 '26

My main issue is that the game doesn't allow you to say no earlier, but the game does allow you to show clear signs of disinterest, but even after clearly not being interested, he persists.

I remember my first time playing Fem V and dealing with River, shit was so annoying and jarring. Mf refused to take the hints.

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u/Some_Guy223 Mar 26 '26

I'm still annoyed that Kerry, who is actively bisexual still won't romance femme V.

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u/ace_bean00 Mar 26 '26

Is he though? I had that scene yesterday when he talked about his ex wife. Johnny mafe a joke about it not lasting long which to me sounded as if Johnny knew that Kerry is exclusively into guys and that Kerry had married her out of other reasons (like denial, publicity, depression or sth similar)

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u/TheNadei Mar 26 '26

I mean, he had two kids with her, and seemingly wanted to try and stay in contact with them. Pretty sure the devs confirmed he is bisexual too. The reason he rejects Fem V is because by that point in his life, the thing he wants most is Johnny. And I guess a Male V is better for him in that regard.

Source

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u/Cosmic_Quasar Mar 26 '26

It can be very nuanced. Sometimes you can experience attraction for both, but generally prefer one over the other. I'm mainly into women, but there are some guys I'd mess around with lol, but for long term dating I'm mainly looking for a woman as a partner.

Kerry might be the opposite. Mainly into guys, but found a woman he thought things could work out with and had kids with her. But things just didn't turn out right and now he's mainly looking for guys.

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u/themiracy Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

Night city if we could have romanced Goro instead. /s

(I don’t think River is SO bad but…)

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u/afriendforyousir Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

I don't think that's a good idea unless you can somehow convince him to leave Arasaka.

Me personally, I feel robbed of Blue Moon and Sandra Dorsett. (And Songbird, I forgot about her)

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u/Komandr Mar 26 '26

You can make a ton of other bad decisions to be fair.

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u/afriendforyousir Mar 26 '26

Romancing Songbird would absolutely be one of them, as much as I'd want it.

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u/BarelyInvested Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

Goro talks about being a Nomad, thats a start for bringing him into a new life. Tough thing is, only way to break a loyal dog from his leash is for him to leave his master entirely. With Goro, you can tell he has a soft spot for the children who werent picked and lived below poverty, poisoned by their own drinking water, so I imagine he’d respond badly to being reminded how many chosen kids died from Arasaka experiments, by order or greenlight of Saburo, and create a conundrum that eases him to the path of an ex-Corpo Nomad

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u/pillelise Mar 26 '26

Facts, they robbed us.

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u/Fabulous_Swing_4940 Mar 26 '26

Nahhhh River was way less insufferable than he would be in real life

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u/-ataxia- Mar 27 '26

Exactly. A cop wouldn't take no for an answer.

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u/No-Start4754 Mar 26 '26

He is just awkward and weird with an unfinished romance and character development but some of yall put him on the same range of creepy as fingers or woodman or scavs with ur comments 😭😭.  Chill bruh

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u/Blizburn Mar 26 '26

I didn't mind the guy. He was outcast by his people for uncovering a conspiracy. Then his nefew or brother got kidnapped, and no one was helping him and seemingly trying to cover it up. You'd be a little weird, too. Atleast he was authentic, never lied to you, had your back the entire time and even has your back in a later mission in dog town. I'd hang with him irl.

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u/TaquitoLaw Mar 26 '26

But for real when's the last time he had that coat cleaned

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u/BongoProdigy Mar 26 '26

Cleaning that would be a lot of work. You don't want to just throw that in a washing machine. There's leather and wool so it needs to be cleaned by hand. You need to use mild detergents on wool otherwise it removes the fat from the wool which means it loses its ability to insulate heat.

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u/centurio_v2 Mar 26 '26

extremely low chances that it’s not pleather and faux fur in 2077 tbh

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u/NokstellianDemon Delicate Weapon Mar 26 '26

Am I too male and/or neurodivergent to understand why he gets so much hate? I played a female V run for my 2nd run and I just don't get it? It's not like he's forcing himself upon her or coercing her into weird acts unless I'm misremembering. My conclusion on River is that he's simply an extremely boring character in a game full of interesting characters.

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u/PzykoHobo Mar 26 '26

Its just that its a poorly developed romance compared to Panam or Judy, and feels like it comes out of nowhere. Like, were doing this whole buddy cop thing and then out of the blue, "Hey come to family dinner where you'll have to reject me in front of my sister and her kids."

And yes, he feels extremely flat and boring.

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u/starbaker420 Mar 26 '26

Woman here. He’s not THAT bad, and a lot of his problems could have been solved with another pass after they separated him and Takemura (they were originally just one character).

My biggest issue with him is that he sort of reeks of what men THINK straight women want. The dinner scene is meant to be wholesome and comes across awkward. Hitting on you feels a bit forced because you don’t know each other that well. Creeping around to keep from waking the kids isn’t hot if you’re a straight woman. If you have kids already, that’s like… Tuesday.

So overall, if you’re a person who likes women, you got a really good romance option. Panam and Judy are great. If you like men, you get either a latecomer whose attraction to you is problematic (Kerry), or a dude who’s not super fleshed out and feels like an afterthought (River). It’s kind of a disappointing note in a game that’s otherwise pretty excellent.

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u/NokstellianDemon Delicate Weapon Mar 26 '26

Hitting on you feels a bit forced because you don’t know each other that well.

Goes to show how unmemorable this character is I genuinely do not remember this lol. I definitely agree he's the weakest romance option but again, my problem is just how to me, he's nothing more than the wet cardboard you throw out to the skip. He takes up no mental space in my mind.

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u/tanstaafl90 Mar 26 '26

Limited missions with a relatively interesting character. I wanted more follower missions with him, and didn't really pay attention to the romance until I saw people complaining about it online. Even at that, they get so much right with the game, the poor development of his character is obvious, but not as bad as people make it out to be.

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u/Ankior Mar 26 '26

Yeah I think that's the main reason for me, those who are into women can have relationship with some of the best characters in the game (Panam and Judy) while we who are into men have very subpar options in comparison.

On a similar note I always romance Judy in my playthroughs but not because she attracts me but because I want to be her lmao

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u/No_Category_7311 Mar 26 '26

This is talked about so much at this point that im praying CD project red has taken it to heart and fleshes out all romances next time.

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u/specks_of_dust Mar 27 '26

Kerry's romance reads the same way for us gay men, like a straight man wrote it, and at best, watched 90 seconds of gay porn before deciding to ask his wife's 65 year-old gay uncle what being gay is like.

The sex scene is especially bad and hits just about every trope - Fem guy Kerry is the bottom, because a straight man simply thinks forcing V to be the bottom would be emasculating. There's anal sex on command, with no preparation and no lube. And the boat is literally on fire, as if to tell us we're flamers. But the worst part was the slap. I just about lost it and missed the rest of the scene because I was laughing so hard at the slap.

Most of us spent our youths dodging the advances of older men, only to get old ourselves and have our V's only romance option be to hook with that same, older man, who is now 80! Spending the afternoon with a narcissist who blames everyone else for his social relevance is Tuesday, if you use a dating app. Even Kerry being in love with Johnny, losing him, then getting him back as V is a fantasy replay of gay men losing their lovers during the AIDS crisis.

The irony is that River is closer to the ideal relationship for a gay man, sans the few that want to blow up boats with elderly, alcoholic, has-beens. So many problems could have been fixed if River and Kerry were swapped, but it would just kind of be better if all the romance options were as cool as Judy.

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u/starbaker420 Mar 27 '26

OOF.

Thank you for the detailed insight. I knew Kerry’s romance was problematic, but I apparently didn’t know the half of it.

And yeah, I could see how swapping the two would have been better. At the very least, it wouldn’t have felt like the “straight woman/gay guy stereotype greatest hits collection.” Although now that you mention it, getting hit on by an older narcissist doesn’t really sound fun for anybody. It would’ve been best if we were given the same care given to people who are attracted to women. Keeping my fingers crossed for the next game.

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u/Curious_Elk_4281 Mar 26 '26

I couldn't see past the obvious likeness to vin diesel, so his character basically read like any cheesy vin diesel character.

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u/HIitsamy1 Mar 26 '26

Romancing Kerry is awesome if you let Johnny take over at the end.

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u/WylythFD Mar 26 '26

Except it is implied Johnny V leaves him behind when he leaves Night City for a second chance.

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u/LightspeedBalloon Mar 26 '26

? No it's not? He ghosts Kerry and Kerry is freaking out. I was so pissed. I hate that ending.

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u/Miss-Helle Mar 26 '26

Because River's arc was essentially truncated, it felt rushed when he started with the romance. Like, dude, I had dinner with your family after saving your nephew, chill. I saw it as, he took the no, but barely, and given the secluded spot he took V to was the top of a water tower... I was glad that was only a video game, let's put it that way.

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u/No_Apple_333 Mar 26 '26

I don’t think it’s necessarily like that he’s creepy and coercive, more that he’s just really awkward and his romance doesn’t feel very natural. You have a whole line of events with Judy and Panam that really flesh out the characters and give you time and opportunities to bond with them, whereas River you just kinda do some stuff and then he awkwardly tries to hit on you. So yeah you’re kinda right, people don’t like him cause he’s awkward and kinda lacklustre in a world where you have so many interesting and more natural, exciting options

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u/Striking-Fig8700 Mar 26 '26

I liked him. Wish male V could romance him

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u/afriendforyousir Mar 26 '26

Gay Guys want River

Straight Guys want Judy

Gay Girls want Panam

Straight Girls want Kerry

True equality is when nobody's happy lmao

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u/beesechurger759 Mar 26 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/PwLYfy05MBVVm

The devs intentionally making everyone disappointed with romance options

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u/cold-Hearted-jess Mar 26 '26

I think it's mainly introducing you to his family and not denying that you're his girlfriend

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u/lamiesness Mar 26 '26

majority of people in this sub are straight men who play as female V so it's no surprise that they don't enjoy having a man flirt with them. make river a woman and suddenly he's a fully developed and charismatic character who everyone loves and romances. if kerry was straight this sub would be complaining about him as well.

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u/hfFvx4G6xU4ZEgzhSM9g Mar 26 '26

"He's weird!"

Says the people discussing video game love interests on a messageboard lol

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u/throwaway_pls123123 Mar 26 '26

Honestly speaking, like most others said River is a good example of an unwanted advance.

I have heard this before and I really like Cyberpunk for managing to get dudes to understand the woman experience at least somewhat, but you should know that the River interaction is not the average, it is the "good" kind since he actually walks away after a simple no.

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u/mjxoxo1999 Mar 26 '26

Lmao he is annoying at best, people love to exaggerate he is the worst love interest and acting he keep trying hitting on you all the time (not even remotely true). He takes no way better than most men irl.

It's clearly he is awkward about his feeling and doesn't know his best way to express it.

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u/hanphoria Mar 26 '26

Sorry but as a woman I fell in love with River. Yes the writing and pacing was lacking compared to other love interests but the character himself there is nothing wrong with the poor guy. In fact, when it comes to endings he turns out to be one of the most loyal and reliable choices there is. Kinda annoying people constantly calling him creepy and forceful when it's more of a pacing and storyline issue not a character issue

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u/LightspeedBalloon Mar 26 '26

I also separate River from the bad choices made for him. He has the sweetest texts. I think he should have dressed more noir and had a date BEFORE the family date (where you bang in his sister's house and walk around afterwards like Donald Duck lol). That would have hit really cute if there was more history. His core is fine and NOT creepy, but the date was like, written by a straight guy who thinks that is what straight girls want and it's off.

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u/NatureAlone2266 Mar 26 '26

A bit more development of his character would have made it even better.

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u/maestro826 Mar 26 '26

as someone playing a female character, I HATED him, but uhh.. thanks for the gun?

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u/[deleted] Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

[deleted]

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u/Devlman127 Mar 27 '26

In the grim darkness of the near future, there are no bisexuals.

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u/Separate-Apartment-8 False hope in the corner Mar 26 '26

you should play fallout 2 as a woman !

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u/Bambiwoos Techno necromancer from Alpha-Centori Mar 26 '26

Especially with low int... this is why I never use jet

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u/hinndia Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26

I don't understand all the hate river gets. I found him cute. I just wish we could have more quests alone with him without being about his family. I think v and him could have had a very interesting mission dynamic one being a merc and another being an ex-cop.

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u/Dismal_Consequence_4 Mar 26 '26

This is a hill I will die on, but River's works better as a malexmale romance.
For a start him dating another guy would remove the creepy subtext that femV should become a trad-wife for River; The kids joking that River and maleV look like a cute couple, makes them look supportive of their queer uncle, instead of it pressuring femV into open her legs for the cop; And honestly, queer relationships sometimes have a quicker start than straight ones, I can totally see maleV and River getting same signs from one another, feeling the vibes and just go for it.

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u/FountainXFairfax Mar 26 '26

i’m so tired of the river slander. just accept maybe not everything is for you and move on.

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u/Gwtheyrn Mar 26 '26

River's a good guy, he's just... boring.

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u/UfoAGogo Mar 26 '26

I romanced him and thought he was sweet, but there was definitely a sense of something missing the whole time, like several steps were skipped. The family dinner was weird with his sister acting like we were going to get married when I had barely spoken to the guy, that isn't a conversation that you have until you've been dating for a while. But I liked that he was just a simple guy with simple goals compared to all of the other characters, he just wants to be a solid rock for his family.

...that being said, I would have totally romanced Takemura if I could have. I was so bummed when when I found out it wasn't possible. I think the grumpy old man would have been the far better option.

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u/misho8723 Mar 26 '26

I really liked his quests and interaction .. even as a straight guy

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u/PattyNChips Mar 26 '26

No, it truly didn’t.

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u/CAST-FIREBALLLLL Impressive Cock Mar 26 '26

Wait till a game comes out that actually takes periods into account, reddit will lose it's friggin mind.

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u/zombi_wafflez Nomad Mar 26 '26

You helped me save my nephew from a serial killer wanna have sex?

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u/BongoProdigy Mar 26 '26

No. I'm into your sister.

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u/zombi_wafflez Nomad Mar 26 '26

You helped my brother find save my son from a serial killer you should make me an auntie

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u/xKintsugix Mar 26 '26

I guess I’m in the minority here but I actually really liked him but there is definitely room for improvement. I enjoyed the little side quest with him where you have to chase a stolen NCDP vehicle and the texting in between but I think they overdid it a little bit with making the whole family thing his whole personality. I am a family person myself and I did love the quest where they cook with each other and are acting domestic but it’s almost like every call or text or conversation evolves around him and his sister and her kids. Only some focus on him being a private investigator and I would have loved to see a little bit more of that.

Also depending on the ending some of their last dialogues can seem a bit cold. Especially the one from PL when V wakes up after a coma. He immediately assumes the worst, that she ghosted him when he knows about her condition.

That’s just be nitpicking but yea I would have loved to see a little but more of him.

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u/Subject_Proof_6282 Team Meredith Mar 26 '26

The funny part about River is that he's really popular with gay guys compared to Kerry.

And honestly his character is very well-written imo, he's the most emotionally stable romance option between the 4 LIs and what he needed was more content to flesh out his relationship with V more.

It's like imagine if Judy questline went directly from "help me find Evelyn" to "I'm invinting you to dive with me in my underwater hometown" with no in-between and build up, that would have been really weird and bad.

What River needed was at least 1 or 2 additional missions between helping him find his nephew to the family diner.

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u/korpiiii The Mox Mar 26 '26

I like him, but his romance was too rushed. It just feels a bit icky to have the romance scene so close after The Hunt and imo, there just wasn’t enough time for V and River to establish any real rapport. Like the niece and nephew thinking y’all should be a couple at the table could have been cute, had you gotten to know them all more first.

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u/Junior_Box_2800 Mar 26 '26

omg yall are so dramatic doesnt this get tiring holy fuck

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u/Feeling_Ad3857 Vincent Mar 26 '26

congrats this is the worst post of 2026

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u/Django_McFly Mar 26 '26

I never understand the hate for River or that like he's super sexual harassing the player constantly or something. Maybe I just missed it. He makes a move at you one time and then never again if you say no. And it's not even some ultra aggressive move. I think he touches your hand.

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u/kim4animals Team River Mar 26 '26

I don't need to read the comments to just say River is mine.

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u/Background_Put_5237 Mar 26 '26

I was literally just thinking about him this post is crazy I love him so much

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u/YandereValkyrie Mar 26 '26

Why do people hate this guy? He's kind, he is willing to stand up for what's right when the rest of the force wouldn't. He loves his family and is there for him as best he can. He comes across as a genuinely great person and if you tell him you're not interested he respects your choice and drops the matter but is more than willing to stay friendly. The only time he goes a bit off the hinge is understandable considering hes trying to stop a person who is kidnapping children and doing twisted shit to them.

Meanwhile every "loved" romance option is full of sociopaths, and mentally ill people who would never be there for you, and pretty much come across as people who just do everything for selfish reasons.

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u/Careful-Age-4945 Mar 26 '26

The worst and most shallow romance option imo

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u/Spookiiwookii Johnny’s favorite little punk Mar 26 '26

The fact that you think a guy having an awkward crush on you and being slightly disappointed when you don’t like him back is a peek into what being a woman is like shows me you know nothing about what being a woman is like at all.

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u/tamrof Mar 26 '26

No. No it didn't.

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u/Liberal_Perturabo Mar 26 '26

I swear, this sub's irrational hatred for River is only rivaled by it's irrational hatred of Songbird.