14 votes

Cyberpunk 2077 breach protocol autosolver

8 comments

  1. [2]
    hungariantoast
    (edited )
    Link
    I recently started a new playthrough of Cyberpunk 2077. I completed one playthrough of the game when it first launched and, despite all the issues, actually really enjoyed the game. This time...

    I recently started a new playthrough of Cyberpunk 2077. I completed one playthrough of the game when it first launched and, despite all the issues, actually really enjoyed the game. This time around though, I've come to despise the "breach protocol" minigame you have to complete so often. I could mostly ignore these. The rewards they grant aren't that significant, however:

    1. There are several lore documents whose contents have to be decrypted before they can be read, and I'd rather not have to alt-tab out of the game, search the document name, and read their contents on the wiki each time I find them. It'd be much nicer if I could just stay in-game and autosolve the annoying puzzle to access the doc.

    2. I generally think minigames like this are bad game design. At some point a player with enough points in the relevant skills should just be able to autosolve the puzzle. Save the manual-solving for players who are lower level or otherwise just enjoy the mechanic.

    3. It's a singleplayer game. I'll cheat if I want to lmao


    I similarly detest the lockpicking and hacking minigames of Skyrim and Fallout. In each of these three games, these minigames are the worst quadrifecta of:

    1. Poorly abstracted design
    2. Tedious
    3. Common
    4. Mandatory

    I could tolerate these minigames if, once I put enough skill points into the relevant skill, (lockpicking, netrunning, etc.) I no longer had to actually play the minigame, and could just automatically access whatever is gated behind it. In Cyberpunk's case specifically, I would settle for an auto-solve option that only provided one of the three tiers of rewards, while manual-solving can otherwise unlock all three tiers.

    Thankfully, there are plenty of mods for Skyrim and any of the Fallout games to adjust the difficulty of, or outright remove, their various minigames. With Cyberpunk 2077 though, I had a much more difficult time finding a working autosolver that was truly automatic.

    And that's why I'm posting this, because I think it's a niche and hard-to-find tool that's very useful and fun for a certain kind of player.

    Also, it's just plain cool to watch it actually automatically solve the puzzles in-game.

    13 votes
    1. SloMoMonday
      Link Parent
      Will definitely use this in my next playthrough. The bigger issue is the lockpick minigame is something rarely praised in even the best of games but I don't want it gone altogether. I think it's...

      Will definitely use this in my next playthrough. The bigger issue is the lockpick minigame is something rarely praised in even the best of games but I don't want it gone altogether. I think it's because the task is so tactile and romanticized that a simple skill check would be a disservice to the fantasy.

      The most immediate solution would be to have more immersive sim design where options go beyond the standard binary choice between jusr finding the key or minigame and leverage other skills.

      But beyond that, I believe a more realistic approach could have some great gameplay opportunities. Subverting security is its own fun puzzles and could be pretty educational. (And if a player had nefarious intent, there are enough resources on the first Google search).
      Imagine the Skyrim lock-picking game but you actually need to collect the right tools and learn the techniques. Low level locks could be raked or bumped pretty quickly by almost anyone, single pin picking is difficult and time consuming, a picking machine could be fast without skill but attract attention and if all else fails you can break the door. Takes the mechanic from a single-option single-outcome to a range of possibilities.

      I also hate that Cyberpunk made tech a Wizard/Thief hybrid with so few RP options. Hacking isnt a monolythic discipline and there was so much potential in that world. Like even if you have no tech skills but the right connections, you can drop cash on auctions for user data or system exploits, but they are limited and have a shelf life. Maybe you go around the world spreading malware to grow a botnet to brute forcing codes or ddos systems. And if you're skilled enough to worm your way into super user access or a factions dev environment, it's a permanent advantage against those systems.

      I know all of this is wishful thinking and enough design bloat for an entire other game. But after the freedom of BG3, I've been lementing how so many major RPG have flattened gameplay options for the sake of fidelity. The idea that every player should experience every thing in a single playthrough. Fine for a linear story, but it's a problem when every Starfield player has the exact same experiences.

      2 votes
  2. Sodliddesu
    Link
    On one hand, I wish the minigame didn't pause time. It would add risk and stress and make it a more organic part of the experience. On the other hand, I like the minigame. The little mental break...

    On one hand, I wish the minigame didn't pause time. It would add risk and stress and make it a more organic part of the experience.

    On the other hand, I like the minigame. The little mental break to scour the puzzle to find the optimal route and get all the rewards. I did them every chance I got.

    On a third (cybernetic) hand, multiple playthroughs? Get that corn minigame out of my face! Sneaking around hacking terminals and getting access to another laptop that accesses the same cameras I already hacked? Thanks for wasting that twenty seconds. Think I'm infiltrating the system but I'm only hacking this hyperlocalized AC network that exists for some reason? Lame. I never even need the credit for anything more than buying all the cars.

    And I should note again, I actually enjoy the minigame.

    5 votes
  3. [2]
    DFGdanger
    Link
    I remember in Bioshock there was a Pipe Dream hacking minigame but you could eventually just skip it and instantly hack something with the press of a button. I wonder why this is didn't catch on?

    I remember in Bioshock there was a Pipe Dream hacking minigame but you could eventually just skip it and instantly hack something with the press of a button. I wonder why this is didn't catch on?

    3 votes
    1. Lapbunny
      Link Parent
      I think it did? You can hit Force Unlock in Fallout to do that for a certain percentage chance based on your skill. The auto-unlock in Bioshock was also an item.

      I think it did? You can hit Force Unlock in Fallout to do that for a certain percentage chance based on your skill. The auto-unlock in Bioshock was also an item.

      3 votes
  4. [3]
    geiko
    Link
    Just commenting to mention that I just completely stopped playing Kingdom Come due to the lockpick mechanic. I'm on console so even if there were a tool to automatically do it, I wouldn't be able...

    Just commenting to mention that I just completely stopped playing Kingdom Come due to the lockpick mechanic. I'm on console so even if there were a tool to automatically do it, I wouldn't be able to use it. I can only hope the sequel redesigns the whole thing to make it more console friendly.

    1. [2]
      CptBluebear
      Link Parent
      While KCD2 looks a lot better, it still looks incredibly jank due to the engine used. I wouldn't hold out hope. What carries that game isn't most of the gameplay if I'm being brutally honest.

      While KCD2 looks a lot better, it still looks incredibly jank due to the engine used. I wouldn't hold out hope. What carries that game isn't most of the gameplay if I'm being brutally honest.

      1. geiko
        Link Parent
        Honestly, I don't mind the jank outside of the lockpicking on consoles. This seems like one of the games made for PC first and console ports were created after. I can definitely see the lockpick...

        Honestly, I don't mind the jank outside of the lockpicking on consoles. This seems like one of the games made for PC first and console ports were created after. I can definitely see the lockpick improved for round two.