How Street Cred Can Help Or Hurt You In Cyberpunk 2077

In Cyberpunk 2077, you’re working as a mercenary named V, taking on jobs to get by and brushing shoulders with unscrupulous personalities. It’s just another day on the job, but in the world of mercenary work, your reputation means everything. That’s where the “street cred” feature comes into play. This is how you improve your reputation, which in turn gets more people interested in your services.

“The more you work on the streets, the more assignments you do, the more contracts you complete, as a merc, you gain a bigger name for yourself,” explains lead quest designer Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz. “This works both for gangs and for the other potential employers that you might get.”

Here’s why it’s essential to getting the most out of your Cyberpunk 2077 experience: The more street cred you accumulate, the better contracts you gain access to. If you improve it enough, some factions might come directly to you with jobs, meaning you won’t have to seek out employment. While Tomaszkiewicz said they’re still working on the game so he can’t go into specifics, he did hint that the rewards can get pretty big. When I asked if this would unlock some of the best items and gear in the game, he responded with “probably.”

However, building up your street cred as a mercenary also has some drawbacks. Once your name gets out there more, there’s a danger in your reputation getting too big. “This can have a downside sometimes because the more recognizable you are, that actually might be a detriment in some missions. People will recognize you and that's not always a good thing if you want to stay incognito.” 

Street cred looks like it will be a balancing act and something where you need to think about the pros and cons for your strategy, especially if you’re doing a more stealthy playthrough. Nonetheless, we’re intrigued at what opportunities it will provide and how they will impact our mission – for better or worse.