Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty Explained: Story, Characters and the Choice
The short version
Phantom Liberty is Cyberpunk 2077's only expansion, released September 26, 2023. It is a spy thriller set in Dogtown, where V has to rescue the President of the New United States and then decide what to do with the netrunner who brought V there. One path adds a new ending to the base game.
On this page
What it is#
Phantom Liberty is a paid expansion for Cyberpunk 2077, developed by CD PROJEKT RED and designed to be the game's only one. It adds Dogtown, a new district with its own quests, gigs and items, and a story with a spy-thriller tone.
It also adds a Relic skill tree with nine abilities, raises the level cap to 60, and brings vehicle combat, new quickhacks and new weapons. It came out days after Update 2.0, which reworked the base game's perk tree. The Ultimate Edition bundles it with the base game. See our Dogtown page for the district.
The cast#
Song So Mi, called Songbird (Minji Chang), is a netrunner working for the New United States of America government. Solomon Reed (Idris Elba) is an FIA operative who works for the NUSA as a sleeper agent. Rosalind Myers (Kay Bess) is the NUSA President. Alena "Alex" Xenakis (Yvonne Senat Jones) is Reed's former partner, now undercover as a bartender in Dogtown.
Kurt Hansen (Eliah Mountjoy) leads the Barghest militia that controls Dogtown. Dogtown is walled off from the rest of Night City, and the police and the corporations are denied entry. Think of it as the one place in town where the usual fixers have no pull.
Spoilers The story
Songbird contacts V after a trip into Pacifica. President Myers's plane has been hacked and is about to crash in Dogtown. Songbird asks V to rescue the President, in return for help against the Relic. V does, and escorts Myers to a safehouse, but contact with Songbird is lost.
V calls Reed, who extracts Myers and then sets a new task: find Songbird. Songbird is being held by Kurt Hansen. She has been probing the Blackwall on Myers's orders, which is illegal under international law. The entities beyond it are corrupting her mind. A device called the Neural Matrix, in Hansen's possession, can cure her and V.
V and Reed deduce that Songbird arranged the crash as part of a deal with Hansen. Reed gives V a device to knock her out. Songbird also asks V separately to help her flee both Hansen and the NUSA. Our read: every person in this plot is lying to V about something, and the fun is watching which lie you decide to forgive.
Spoilers The choice
In Firestarter, V has to either help Songbird escape or betray her so Reed can take her into custody. If V helps Songbird, Alex kills Hansen, V and Songbird flee as fugitives, and the NUSA attacks the spaceport at Myers's direction. If V betrays her, Songbird escapes with her Blackwall powers and falls into cyberpsychosis, Hansen kills Alex, and V kills Hansen.
There are four possible outcomes, each with its own achievement: King of Wands (Songbird to the stars, with Reed killed), King of Swords (Songbird handed to Reed after siding with her), King of Cups (fulfilling Songbird's final request) and King of Pentacles (refusing it).
Opinion: there is no clean pick here. Choose the person you can live with, not the outcome you want to see.
Spoilers How it changes the endings
Phantom Liberty adds a fifth ending to the base game, The Tower. It requires that Songbird ends up in Reed's custody, and that V accepts Reed's offer. NUSA surgeons remove the Relic, but the surgery erases Johnny's engram, puts V in a two-year coma, and damages V's brain so V cannot use combat implants.
If Songbird goes to the Moon, or V grants her request to end her life, V keeps searching for a cure and the base-game endings stay in play. Our endings page lists every requirement.
Fixer's notes#
Opinion: play it. It was critically acclaimed and sold over 10 million copies. It needs the base game, and it is only on PS5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2 and macOS. If you own the base game on PS4 or Xbox One, this is the moment to upgrade.
Save before Firestarter and you can see more than one path. The outcomes are on our endings page.
Watch#
Explore#
Questions people ask#
When did Phantom Liberty come out?
September 26, 2023, on PS5, Windows and Xbox Series X/S. Switch 2 followed on June 5, 2025 and macOS on July 17, 2025.
Is Phantom Liberty on PS4 or Xbox One?
No. It needs the base Cyberpunk 2077, and it is not available on PS4 or Xbox One.
Who is in the Phantom Liberty cast?
Idris Elba plays FIA operative Solomon Reed and Minji Chang plays the netrunner Songbird. Keanu Reeves returns as Johnny Silverhand.
Where does Phantom Liberty take place?
In Dogtown, a walled-off district of Pacifica run by the Barghest militia. It is the only expansion Cyberpunk 2077 gets.
Is Phantom Liberty worth it?
Opinion: yes. It was critically acclaimed and sold over 10 million copies as of May 2025, and it adds the Relic skill tree, a level cap of 60 and vehicle combat.
Does Phantom Liberty change the ending?
Spoiler: It adds a fifth ending, The Tower, which requires Songbird to end up in Reed's custody. If you go another way, the base-game endings stay in play.