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Play Cyberpunk 2077 first, start Phantom Liberty when its Dogtown storyline unlocks, then return to the base game’s Point of No Return and choose a finale. You do not need to finish the original campaign before entering the expansion, but completing enough of the main cast’s storylines first gives Phantom Liberty’s political and personal stakes more context. Make a manual save before the base-game Point of No Return and before major expansion decisions, because the Tower/Things Done Changed epilogue is deliberately a final path that does not return you to that point.
The correct order in one sentence
The story order is:
- Begin the base game, Cyberpunk 2077, and establish V’s central relationships and major character arcs.
- Continue until Phantom Liberty’s invitation and Dogtown introduction become available.
- Play Phantom Liberty in Dogtown, mixing in ordinary Night City activities whenever you wish.
- Return to the base game’s Point of No Return and select a finale, keeping your manual saves so you can explore other paths.
Phantom Liberty is the story expansion attached to Cyberpunk 2077; there is no earlier Cyberpunk 2077 story expansion that must be completed first. The expansion is downloadable content rather than a separate game, and the base game is a requirement for a new player buying it on its own.
What you actually need before Phantom Liberty
Required: the base game
You need access to Cyberpunk 2077. Steam lists Phantom Liberty as downloadable content that requires the Cyberpunk 2077 base game. Buying the expansion alone does not give a new player the complete game needed to reach Dogtown.
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You do not have to complete Cyberpunk 2077’s final mission before starting Phantom Liberty. In fact, the practical sequence is to enter the expansion after it opens and before committing to the base game’s final mission. The base game’s normal ending flow can return you to a pre-finale state, so playing the expansion before the finale preserves the broadest first-playthrough route.
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- CREATE YOUR OWN CYBERPUNK: Become an urban outlaw equipped with cybernetic enhancements and build your legend on the streets of Night City. · EXPLORE THE CITY OF THE FUTURE: Night City is packed to the brim with things to do, places to see, and people to meet. And it’s up to you where to go, when to go, and how to get there.
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Recommended: enough companion and main-story context
The expansion can be started as soon as its invitation is available, but a little more base-game context improves the experience. Progress through enough of the main story and companion arcs that V’s relationships, obligations and position in Night City are familiar. This is a recommendation about narrative clarity, not a hidden prerequisite: the game does not require you to finish every side quest before Dogtown opens.
When should you start Phantom Liberty?
The earliest sensible point
Start when the game sends V the Phantom Liberty invitation and introduces Dogtown. That is the point at which the expansion’s route is intentionally integrated into the campaign. You can then move between Dogtown content and ordinary Night City side content rather than treating the expansion as a post-game chapter.
The best first-playthrough point
For most players, complete the opening portion of Cyberpunk 2077 and several major companion arcs before accepting the expansion’s central mission. This gives you the relationships and personal history that make later choices easier to understand without forcing you to clear every optional activity. Stop before the base game’s Point of No Return, create a manual save, and then enter or continue Phantom Liberty.
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- THE ULTIMATE CYBERPUNK 2077 EXPERIENCE - Includes the critically acclaimed spy thriller expansion Phantom Liberty
- CREATE YOUR OWN CYBERPUNK
- Explore the city of the future – you decide when you want to go where and how to get there
- Decide how the story ends – your choices in the main game as well as in the spy thriller adventure Phantom Liberty lead to a complex web of consequences
Why waiting until after the finale is usually inferior
Playing the expansion only after seeing a base-game ending is possible, but it changes the order in which the story presents V’s decisions and consequences. It also increases the chance that you will rely on an old checkpoint or have to replay a large section to restore the state you wanted. An ending-first run is mainly useful for completionists who deliberately want to compare the base-game finale with a later expansion outcome.
What Phantom Liberty adds to the story
CD PROJEKT RED describes Phantom Liberty as “a spy-thriller expansion for Cyberpunk 2077.” Its premise sends V to Dogtown on a high-stakes mission to save the NUSA President. The launch announcement identifies NUSA secret agent Solomon Reed and describes Dogtown as being ruled by arms dealer and warlord Kurt Hansen.
That setup explains why some base-game context helps: the expansion places V inside a political and personal crisis rather than presenting a detached side story. You do not need a completed save file or encyclopedic knowledge of every Night City faction, but understanding V’s established relationships makes the new loyalties and risks easier to read. Keep the introduction spoiler-light; the outcomes of Songbird and Reed’s branches, and the Tower ending, are better discovered in play.
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- A Nintendo Switch Online membership may be required for online play. Please check the game detail page on Nintendo.com for membership requirements.
- 2025 CD PROJEKT S.A. All rights reserved. CD PROJEKT, the CD PROJEKT logo, the REDengine logo, Cyberpunk, Cyberpunk 2077, the Cyberpunk 2077 logo, Johnny Silverhand, the SAMURAI logo, Phantom Liberty and the Phantom Liberty logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of CD PROJEKT S.A. in the US and/or other countries. All other copyrights and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
The expansion launched on September 26, 2023 for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC according to CD PROJEKT RED’s announcement. A Steam store listing may display September 25 because store release dates can reflect platform or regional timing; those labels do not describe two different expansions.
Save strategy: protect your choices before you enter Dogtown
1. Create a manual save before the Point of No Return
Do this before selecting the base game’s final-mission route. Name the save clearly, such as “Before Point of No Return,” and avoid overwriting it with quicksaves. It is your reliable return point for alternate finales and for trying Phantom Liberty before the ending.
2. Keep a second save before major Phantom Liberty branches
Phantom Liberty contains consequential branch decisions. Make another manual save immediately before a major choice or mission split. This lets you examine a different route without assuming that an autosave will preserve the earlier state you need.
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- CREATE YOUR OWN CYBERPUNK - Become an urban outlaw equipped with cybernetic enhancements and build your legend on the streets of Night City.
- EXPLORE THE CITY OF THE FUTURE - Night City is packed to the brim with things to do, places to see, and people to meet. And it’s up to you where to go, when to go, and how to get there.
- BUILD YOUR LEGEND - Go on daring adventures and build relationships with unforgettable characters whose fates are shaped by the choices you make.
- DECIDE HOW THE STORY ENDS - Your choices in the base game and the spy-thriller adventure Phantom Liberty create interweaving webs of consequences, ones that shape the fate of the characters around you — and your own.
- CLAIM EXCLUSIVE ITEMS - Claim in-game swag & digital goodies inspired by CD PROJEKT RED games as part of the My Rewards program.
3. Understand the Tower/Things Done Changed exception
CD PROJEKT RED Support states: “This is as designed. Players returning to the Point of No Return after The Tower ending would result in an uncanny narrative experience we wanted to avoid.” The developer therefore treats that epilogue as a final story path. V’s story ends there, and no rewards are granted during the epilogue. A player who reaches it should not expect the usual return to a pre-finale state.
4. Use the normal ending flow for experimentation
Other ending routes follow the game’s normal finale structure, which can return you to a state before the final commitment. That behavior is why a pre-finale manual save is so valuable. It is not a substitute for a save before a specific Phantom Liberty branch: keep both checkpoints if you want maximum flexibility.
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Three ways to approach the play order
| Approach | How it works | Advantages | Trade-offs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expansion as soon as it unlocks | Follow the invitation, enter Dogtown, and continue Phantom Liberty immediately. | Introduces the spy-thriller plot at its intended opening point and avoids seeing a base-game ending first. | Some companion and political context will be less developed, so certain stakes may land less strongly. |
| Context-first first playthrough | Complete several major companion arcs and ordinary side activities, then start Phantom Liberty before the Point of No Return. | Provides the clearest personal and narrative context while preserving the intended pre-finale order. | Requires you to decide when “enough” context is enough; clearing every side quest is unnecessary. |
| Ending-first replay | Finish a base-game finale, return through the normal post-ending flow when available, then play Phantom Liberty on that save or a replay. | Useful for completionists comparing outcomes or studying how the expansion changes a later run. | Breaks the cleanest first-playthrough sequence and does not change the Tower ending’s final-state behavior. |
A practical step-by-step route
- Install or own the base game. Confirm that Cyberpunk 2077 launches on your platform before purchasing Phantom Liberty separately.
- Play the opening and establish V’s story. Follow the main campaign until the game’s major relationships and situation are understandable.
- Develop selected companion arcs. Prioritize the characters whose missions you find compelling; there is no stated requirement to complete every optional quest.
- Watch for the Phantom Liberty invitation. The Dogtown introduction marks the expansion’s intended entry point.
- Save before committing to the base finale. Keep a manual Point-of-No-Return save even if Phantom Liberty is already active.
- Enter Dogtown and play the expansion. You may alternate between Dogtown missions and regular Night City content after the expansion opens.
- Save before major branch decisions. Use separate manual slots rather than replacing your only pre-branch save.
- Return to the base-game finale. After the expansion, continue to the Point of No Return and choose a base-game ending, remembering that The Tower/Things Done Changed is intentionally conclusive.
Does Phantom Liberty lock you out of the rest of Cyberpunk 2077?
Starting the expansion does not automatically force you to finish the base game immediately. Once Dogtown content is available, you can still pursue ordinary Night City activities. The important lockout is tied to particular finale decisions, not to merely accepting the expansion invitation.
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- CREATE YOUR OWN CYBERPUNK: Become an urban outlaw equipped with cybernetic enhancements and build your legend on the streets of Night City
- EXPLORE THE CITY: Night City is packed to the brim with things to do, places to see, and people to meet. And it’s up to you where to go, when to go, and how to get there
- BUILD YOUR LEGEND: Go on daring adventures and build relationships with unforgettable characters whose fates are shaped by the choices you make
The safe habit is to separate three moments: entering Dogtown, making a major expansion branch choice, and crossing the base-game Point of No Return. Keep a manual save for each. If you later reach The Tower/Things Done Changed, treat that run as complete rather than expecting to resume before the finale.
Do you need the Ultimate Edition?
No. The Ultimate Edition is a convenience bundle, not a story requirement. Steam describes it as containing both Cyberpunk 2077 and Phantom Liberty. A player who already owns the base game can add the expansion separately; a new player can buy a bundle or obtain the two products individually. The expansion by itself is insufficient for someone who does not own Cyberpunk 2077.
| Purchase route | What it provides | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Base game plus Phantom Liberty separately | Cyberpunk 2077 and its story expansion as separate purchases. | Existing owners of the base game or players who prefer modular purchases. |
| Cyberpunk 2077 Ultimate Edition | A bundle containing the base game and Phantom Liberty. | New players who want both pieces together. |
| Phantom Liberty alone | Downloadable content that requires the base game. | Only players who already own Cyberpunk 2077; it is not a complete starting package. |
Platforms and related products
CD PROJEKT RED’s launch notice listed PC availability through Steam, GOG, Epic Games Store and GeForce Now, alongside Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5. Treat GeForce Now as a cloud-gaming route rather than evidence that every store edition or save feature is identical across platforms. Check the storefront attached to your account for the edition you own.
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Common mistakes and how to avoid them
- Buying only the expansion: add the base game or choose a bundle that includes both.
- Assuming every side quest is mandatory: companion arcs are recommended for context, but the documented requirement is access to Cyberpunk 2077 and the expansion’s Dogtown unlock.
- Waiting until after an ending by default: start Phantom Liberty before the Point of No Return for the cleanest first-playthrough sequence.
- Trusting autosaves for branch experiments: create named manual saves before major decisions.
- Expecting The Tower to reload the finale: CD PROJEKT RED deliberately designed that epilogue to end V’s story without returning to the Point of No Return.
- Reading launch dates as a contradiction: the official announcement gives September 26, 2023, while a Steam listing may show September 25 because of platform or regional date handling.
How significant is Phantom Liberty?
The expansion is not a minor cosmetic add-on: CD PROJEKT S.A.’s 2024 report says it sold more than 5 million copies worldwide between its September 26, 2023 launch and the end of 2023. That sales figure does not change the required order, but it explains why the expansion is treated as a major part of the Cyberpunk 2077 experience rather than optional background material.
Final recommendation for a first run
Start Cyberpunk 2077, build enough familiarity with V’s main relationships to understand the stakes, and accept the Phantom Liberty invitation when Dogtown opens. Save before the Point of No Return and before major expansion branches. Play the expansion, then return to the base-game finale. If you choose The Tower/Things Done Changed, consider that playthrough complete; if you want to test other outcomes, use the manual save you made beforehand rather than expecting that epilogue to rewind the story.
Quick Recap
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