Cyberpunk 2077 is the hottest ticket in games right now and CD Projekt RED knows it.

With the critical adulation for The Witcher 3 – creating what many people already consider the game of this generation – this is a team understandably brimming with confidence.

But while The Witcher 3 was phenomenal and took its respective franchise to new, unimaginable heights, Cyberpunk 2077 has already managed to go several steps beyond.

If the behind closed doors demonstrations, branded beer, and vibrant jackets hasn’t convinced you of that, then the remainder of Cyberpunk’s marketing campaign almost certainly will.

There’s an expectation attached to this game usually only reserved for a Grand Theft Auto or Red Dead Redemption. Every scrap or breadcrumb shared is devoured and consumed ravenously. It’s already cracked the mass market even though nobody outside of CDPR has played it yet.

Gameplay demonstrations are nothing new at trade shows. I actually had a few appointments this year where I was totally hands-off. But none of them were as thrilling, enjoyable, and unforgettable as Cyberpunk 2077. I had a knot in my stomach the entire time.

The good news is that this was completely worth sitting through, even though I was itching to get my hands on the pad. It gave me a great glimpse into RED and Pondsmith’s vision and has me yearning for even more.

Where to begin. You play as V, a character that can be defined through things like body intelligence, reflexes, technical know-how, and even a cool factor. The devs gave everyone a whistlestop tour of the customisation possibilities, showing off things like eyebrow placement, augments, scars, and eye colour, allowing you to customise V as you see fit.

There’s even an option to pick your background and how you grew up which will open up different dialogue tree options and conversation topics. You can put as much effort into your character as you like, but it’ll all be to hear Keanu Reeves tell you ‘nobody gives a rat’s dick what you look like’. Breathtaking, indeed.

And in our demo we soon learned that what Johnny Silverhand says, for the most part, goes. While I’m sure there’s much more to the plot than what we’re being shown, this very much seems to be his story as much as V’s. For those that don’t know, Silverhand is a virtual ghost-like hologram that’s been uploaded to V’s subconscious and is pivotal to Cyberpunk lore, appearing in the original Tabletop RPG.

The purpose of the demo was to see V travel through Night City to find Alt Cunningham, Silverhand’s girlfriend. The only person who seems to know where she might be is Bridgette, leader of the Voodoo Boys, a group you’ve reluctantly agreed to work with.

But while on the mission, V also decides to try and learn more about the chip that’s been implanted in their neck, how to harness control over it, and learn how it can influence abilities.

As the demo begins, you see the glorious Night City in it all its finer detail – from the architecture to the lighting – but also get a glimpse at the life dwelling within it. The Voodoo Boys, for instance, band together in a cult-like environment, worshipping a profit on stage, chanting and cheering.

As we sifted through the crowd, asking questions along the way, we finally heard about a man named Placide who could give us some of the answers we seek. A giant man with dreadlocks who can be found at the back of a butchers. Subtle.

This leads us onto some mercenary work that we need to do before Placide will talk and take us to Bridgette. Fortunately for us, this also gives us a good look at how the combat and world building in Cyberpunk really works.