One of the best things about Cyberpunk 2077 is its RPG elements. You don’t just play as V, you choose their fate.
In the Phantom Liberty DLC, one particular choice is a hot topic of conversation online. It’s a part of the Talent Academy side job, a relatively simple assignment that comes with a surprisingly difficult decision.
This article will walk you through which choice you should make.
The Talent Academy gig
The job in question is all about infiltrating a world-renowned sports academy in Dogtown that the owner, Fiona, is apparently using to avoid taxes. The player infiltrates the academy in disguise as a scout for a team called the San Diego Shredders.
You go in and pull data from every scout that’s signed contracts. Johnny Silverhand brings up an ethical question—perhaps the kids are too young for the sort of cyberware implants they’re being fitted with to optimize them as athletes? This further escalates when you meet and get the chance to bond with Tommie, one of the rising young athletes, who seems somewhat shy and scared to be there.
You can complete this gig through either stealth or power, sneaking through the Talent Academy to get to the computers or blasting everyone who comes in your path. No matter how you play it, when you get to the end, the final boss will be Fiona, and she’s there to make you an offer.
She takes you into your her office, which is full of trophies, and explains the success of previous athletes in the program. She says that often her academy is the only way for street kids to have a better life and that taking her data will result in the Academy closing and tons of kids losing this opportunity, including Tommie. At this point, Fiona makers her offer.
Fiona’s Offer in Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty
Fiona offers to do a controlled leak with you, giving you the info of some of her secondary clients, while some of the others stay in tact. She stresses that this will make everyone happy—Mr. Hands just wants info and a list of names. Johnny Silverhand, however, brings up the fact that kids that don’t take to cyberware often end up on the street anyway.
Though this might seem like a tough moral quandary, it ultimately doesn’t have any effect on the outcome of the mission. If you opt for a controlled leak, Mr. Hands never finds out about it and you can let the operation—as sketchy as it may be—continue, unethically chipping kids but granting them opportunities.
If you decline the controlled leak, you’ll shut down the shoddy operation, but send the kids out onto the street. You’ll then find Tommie on the street working for the scavs.
Published: Oct 8, 2023 03:00 am