Reddit and Steam forums initially flooded with praise:
The missing NG+ remains the single most requested feature. Despite Update 2.21, CDPR has officially abandoned New Game Plus, citing “fundamental quest flag conflicts” that would require rewriting the main script from scratch.
Published: January 23, 2025
In the sprawling, neon-drenched world of Cyberpunk 2077, stability has often been as elusive as a polite Corpo from Arasaka. However, CD Projekt Red has made good on its promise to support the game well into 2025. Today, January 23, 2025, marks a significant milestone for players still roaming the streets of Night City. The studio has rolled out not one, but two concurrent patches: Update 2.20 and Update 2.21.
While not the massive, overhaul-style update we saw with Phantom Liberty or 2.0, this twin-release focuses on hyper-specific bug fixing, vehicle handling overhauls, and surprisingly deep modding support. Here is everything you need to know about the updates hitting your console or PC today.
The headline feature of 2.20 is the sheer volume of quest fixes. Since the release of Update 2.1, many players reported issues with "automatic love" and "the beast in me" quests failing to trigger correctly. As of today, those specific trigger conditions have been re-baked.
We ran the updates through a gauntlet of hardware:
Cyberpunk 2077 Patch 2.21: The Full Breakdown of the January 23 Update
On January 23, 2025, CD Projekt Red released Patch 2.21 for Cyberpunk 2077, marking a significant technical milestone for the game nearly five years after its initial launch. While following the major Update 2.2 from December 2024, this newest iteration focuses heavily on cutting-edge PC performance and deep-rooted bug fixes. The PC Revolution: DLSS 4 and RTX 50 Series Support
A major highlight of Patch 2.21 is the introduction of DLSS 4 with Multi-Frame Generation, designed specifically to leverage the power of NVIDIA’s RTX 50 series GPUs for improved frame rates. Additionally, all RTX users can now select a new Transformer model for DLSS Ray Reconstruction, promising higher visual fidelity, alongside improved memory optimization for faster rendering. Enhancing Your Journey in Night City
Beyond performance, this update addresses several community-reported issues to improve overall gameplay. Key changes include: Cyberpunk 2077 PATCH 2.21 Review & Biggest Changes! Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.20 2.21 -23.01.2025-
On January 23, 2025, CD Projekt RED released Patch 2.21 for Cyberpunk 2077
. While Patch 2.20 focused on expanding customization, Patch 2.21 was primarily a stabilization and performance update designed to refine those new features and introduce cutting-edge support for high-end PC hardware. 1. Hardware & Visual Performance (PC Focus)
The standout feature of Patch 2.21 is the official implementation of NVIDIA DLSS 4 support.
Multi Frame Generation: Enabled for GeForce RTX 50 Series cards, this technology can boost FPS by up to 3x using AI.
DLSS Transformer Model: Users with any GeForce RTX card can now choose between the standard CNN model or a new Transformer model for Ray Reconstruction and Super Resolution, which offers improved lighting stability and sharper detail in motion.
Bug Fixes: Resolved "smudging" and artifacts on in-game screens when using Ray Reconstruction. 2. Photo Mode & Character Refinements
Patch 2.20 introduced "express yourself" features like spawning NPCs in Photo Mode, but 2.21 fixes many of the bugs that came with them.
Presets & Spawning: V's rotation, position, and spawned characters are now correctly saved in presets.
Adam Smasher Fixes: Fixed Smasher's facial expressions and missing glowing chest cyberware when spawned in Photo Mode.
Environmental Physics: Characters spawned in air or water no longer snap immediately to the ground. 3. Vehicles & Navigation Reddit and Steam forums initially flooded with praise:
CrystalCoat™: Fixed several texture and color inconsistencies for vehicles using this color-changing tech.
Johnny Silverhand: Fixed an issue where Johnny appeared duplicated in the passenger seat or failed to appear frequently enough during free-roam driving.
Quest Fixes: Resolved a bug in the "Run This Town" quest that prevented deactivating the Aguilar imprint after meeting Bennett. 4. Platform Specifics
Consoles (PS5/Xbox): Improved screenshot handling in the Xbox Gallery, specifically for HDR10 users, and fixed an issue where Xbox Series S could default to "Quality" mode instead of "Performance".
Download Sizes: PC users saw a roughly 4 GB update, while console players required a larger 22 GB download due to file restructuring. Patch 2.21 - Home of the Cyberpunk 2077 universe
Patch 2.21 for Cyberpunk 2077 was released on January 23, 2025
, for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. While the previous Update 2.2 was intended to be the final major addition, CD Projekt Red continued support through 2025 to refine technical features and improve stability. Key Technical Additions DLSS 4 Support
: Introduced the newest NVIDIA Multi Frame Generation technology for PC users, offering significantly increased frame rates for those with RTX 5000 series GPUs. Console Fixes : Addressed an issue with SmartFrames
specifically on Xbox and introduced miscellaneous stability fixes across all platforms. Photo Mode & Character Customization
A major focus of this update was resolving issues introduced in the 2.20 expansion of Photo Mode. Spawn Fixes The missing NG+ remains the single most requested feature
: Nibbles and Adam Smasher can now be spawned while V is in the air or water. Character Accuracy
: Fixed an issue where Johnny Silverhand would always appear in his "Alternate Appearance" even if the default was selected. V's Position : Improved the Up/Down slider
for V and ensured that position and rotation are properly saved in presets. UI Improvements
: Fixed various localization errors and missing sound effects in the SmartFrames and Gallery menus. Gameplay & Miscellaneous Fixes Johnny in Vehicles
: Fixed an issue where Johnny Silverhand did not appear as a passenger often enough. CrystalCoat™
: Resolved color inconsistencies and instances where vehicle customization was unavailable for compatible cars. Character Creation
: Preservation of randomizer settings when advancing to the attribute step and fixed missing piercing options. Crowd Interaction
: NPCs that turn invisible after disabling the "Surrounding NPCs" option no longer have collision. Future Outlook (2025 and Beyond)
Why is this date significant? January 23, 2025, marks the end of active "crisis" patching for Cyberpunk 2077. In a developer stream earlier this morning, Game Director Gabe Amatangelo confirmed that while the team will continue to monitor critical issues, 2.21 represents the final planned major gameplay update.
From this point forward, the Boston-based CDPR team (Project Orion) is now in full production. The small skeleton crew remaining on 2077 will only push updates for game-breaking store compatibility or severe security exploits.