Modding the game in 2024: tips, tricks & my favorites...

Cyberpunk 20277 is one heck of a game, definitely one of my favorites, but... also not perfect. For example: all the missions are fuly static, which may make a replay a little less appealing. Or what about having to spent all that time re-building your V? And are you getting bored with the long list of save games yet? Maybe modding can help us here... Let's find out!

Why modding? (intro)

Hi gang!

My mod overview, courtesy of 'Cyber Engine Tweaks'

Back in the days you'd get mods whenever you wanted to cheat in a game, but that time is long past us. These days many mod authors come up with ideas to make the game even better than it already is by implementing things which the original designers never thought of.

And sure, sometimes this can imply "cheatish behavior" but then again, it'll be up to you to decide if and how you're going to use all these new abilities.



But there's also plenty of "QOL". Take the screenshot above... As you probably know there are three main life paths in Cyberpunk: Corpo, Nomad and my favorite: Streetkid. But... there are also several different types of saving: manual and quick saves (obviously) as well as autosave. And this is where it can get tricky because depending on your current mission(s) there can be a lot of autosaves.

Good luck finding your (manual) Nomad save within the sea of (auto) saved Streetkid saves!

Which is why RMK came up with the 'filter saves mod' which can do just that: filter your save files based on lifepath and savetype. Notice the extra filtering options at the bottom?

Or what about clothing?



Surely we should be able to shop online, right? And if we are online, surely we should be able to grab some more "risque" outfits as well, no? I mean, the game already provides male/female underwear and also doesn't mind you getting naked, so why not add some lingerie as well?

Speaking of being naked... what about your customized character? The 'CP2k77' game provides a ton of customization options but as soon as you start a new game with a different lifepath you're going to have to apply your customizations all over again; assuming of course that you want the same look and that you prefer your own style.

And on that subject: what about making cool screenshots? I mean, you do know about CP2k77's photo mode, right? Well, unfortunately there are plenty of areas which are not directly accessible to us players. While you could teleport there to show off your cool custom character and their optional custom clothes you'd be all on your own. Wouldn't it be nice if we could just add some NPC's and/or props to build our own sceneries? Speaking of NPC's... why can't we have some buddies like we do in Skyrim?

As for being cool... I dunno about you but I spent a lot of in-game effort customizing my netrunning V. Taking the time to go to the right rippers to get specific cyber implants, going to the right dealers to get my quickhacks and of course spending time and effort to upgrade the whole lot as well (which is still kinda new to me).

So wouldn't it be cool if you could just re-insert your favorite build into other replays?

Well, guess what? With modding you can do all of the above, and a whole lot more!

Even with the updated game & Phantom Liberty DLC. Which is also one of the reasons why I didn't start playing right away when Phantom Liberty came out.

Editorial

When I started playing Cyberpunk for the first time the game immediately hit a soft spot with me as soon as the "Red engine credits" showed and that iconic music started playing. Good morning Night City indeed!

I had an amazing time as a streetkid playing and building up my character. For the record: I went in fully blind, just experiencing the game as-is. And it was awesome. When I hit the point of no return ("OP55N1") I started paying attention to "other things" which is when I finished all the NCPD requests for help, good times. But then I started realizing something.

After finishing the game I restarted as a Corpo and this is when it really hit me... those NCPD help requests weren't randomized but all fully static. Several requests pretty much played out in the exact same way.

Which is when I got kinda bored... did I really need to put in all that effort again just to rebuild my character so I could do the same stuff all over? I stopped playing for a while (always a good idea to take a break), then I wondered about modding.

And here we are!

At the time of writing I began playing Phantom Liberty and much to my excitement all the mods I came to love so much are fully working again, the updates to the game disrupted many of those back in the days.

Back then I had already planned on writing a guide but the disruption wasn't exactly a good motivator ;) But here we are: Phantom Liberty, fully "moddable" and I really feel like venting and sharing my experiences.

About this guide
The idea of this guide is to help you guys get started with setting up your own game for modding. In addition I'll also be sharing my favorite collection of mods (most of 'm anyway) and will explain why I enjoy those mods so much, maybe this can give you guys some ideas as well.

Here's hoping you guys enjoy and more so: that this guide can help you out with your own modding efforts!

Setting up your game for modding

If you want to mod a game (any game) then you're going to need a so called mod loader. See, most games don't support mods by default so you're going to need some tools to make all this work.

Don't worry: nothing drastic is going to happen in this chapter, your game won't get drastically changed, not just yet anyway ;)

Step 1: REDmod (official (!) DLC)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2060310/Cyberpunk_2077_REDmod/

Fortunately for us though Cyberpunk 2077 was designed from the getgo with modding in mind. And not just that: they also kept the possible backlash as a result from modding in mind as well. Meaning? If needed then all it takes is clicking one option to turn the whole thing off again. So if you're having issues this would be the first step to take (but more on that later).

For now: follow the link above to enable & download the DLC. And don't worry: this won't affect your game.

Step 2: the Vortex mod manager

A mod loader is one thing, but all it does is, well... load mods. I highly recommend to get a so called mod manager as well because while you could manually set up and install all your contents it's going to become a nightmare soon enough whenever you need to disable or remove a mod.

Playing with mods is an awesome experience, no question about it. But all those mods were still made by enthusiastic fans and with all due respect: often released without full testing. Don't pick up my comment in the wrong way please: this is nothing negative towards the modding community, just a plain out fact.

Not to mention that even with a full testing procedures problems can still slip through.

Point being? Sometimes you will run into issues after installing a certain mod, and then you'll want to try and disable it to make sure that the issues were really caused by that mod because it's also perfectly possible that another mod wasn't as compatible as its author claimed. See, manually installing a mod is often (not always!) just as easy as extracting an archive into a specific folder. Yah, but removing it implies that you're going to need and remove all its individual files.

Vortex
So a good solution for all this is the Vortex mod manager[www.nexusmods.com] which is also the offial way for using the Nexus mods website[www.nexusmods.com], which is where I get all my mods from.

Just follow the above link and install the program. I won't go into too much detail about the program itself because it's pretty much plug & play, but there are a few specific options which you may want to pay attention to:

The downloads & mods sections on the settings tab

See, here's how it works: when you want to download & install a mod from the Nexus website all you basically have to do is click the "mod manager download" option; this will instruct Vortex to download and set up the mod. Yah... but if you don't have much room on your C (or system) drive then you may want to change the default download location. See the 'downloads' tab for this.

Another thing: because Vortex manages mods they don't get dumped into your game folder "just like that". Instead Vortex uses a so called staging folder in which it will store the contents of the mod(s), after which it will refer back to that location within your game folder. So if you're short on diskspace you may want to customize this folder as well, but be sure to pay close attention to the defaults if you do, don't ignore the "{game}" shortcut and pay close attention to the example underneath the entry field!

Setting things up

Vortex games tab

After you installed (and optionally customized) Vortex head over to the games tab (shown above). Find Cyberpunk 2077 in the unmanaged section (or use the search option) and click the 'manage' option. Keep in mind that this is just a list of games which Vortex supports, so if it hasn't detected the game on its own you'll need to specify its game folder yourself.

Don't worry, we can use the Steam client to find it: just open your library, right click on the game and then pick the "Browse local files" option as shown here:



Once your file manager opens simply copy the path in the address field, and paste it into the open file dialog from Vortex to select your game folder.

Then just pick a profile name and optionally add a brief description, now you should be fully ready to go!

Before installing our first mods

If you followed the previous two steps then we're ready to install our first mods.

But before we get to the more exciting parts there are three important details which you should know about.

"Core mods": the dependencies

No one wants to re-invent the wheel, and the same applies to mod authors. Meaning? For example: why try to build a whole dialog system if another mod has already done that for you? Or as (briefly) mentioned previously: why build yourself a whole virtual in-game "Atelier store" when there's a mod which can already do the basics for you?

Mods will more than often depend on other mods. We actually already satisfied one dependency by installing the REDmod DLC but we're going to need more than that.

So how will we know about these dependencies? Well...

We check the 'Requirements' section of course!

Always check the so called 'Requirements' section of a mod to see what you're going to need. Now, Vortex is an intelligent manager and it will notice and warn you about missing dependencies. The problem though is that it's probably already too late at this point.

Not too late to fix things (don't worry), but definitely too late to simply expect that things will just fix themselves if you simply add the required mods later on. This more than often will not work, instead you will need to install the required mod(s), then reinstall the mod(s) you previously installed.

Rule #1 => Always make sure that you have met all requirements before installing a mod.

Not every mod meets "current standards"!

Don't worry if "CET" doesn't mean anything to you yet....

Not every mod author has the time or drive to rewrite (parts of) their mod whenever a game update happens. And that's even assuming that they're still active. I mean... I bought this game in '21 but hardly played it for most of last year. Why assume that it would be different for some mod authors? ;)

Which brings us to....

Rule #2 => Always read the mod description to be (somewhat) sure that it'll work.

Beware of game updates & Steam cloud! (rule #3)

Mods are made to support a specific game version, so if your game performs an update then there is a chance that this will render some mods unusable. Now, Steam is a platform which was build on the idea of providing us with the most recent game updates, but fortunately these don't have to happen in the background.

Go to your game properties, select the "Updates" tab and make sure that "Automatic Updates" is set to "Only update this game when I launch it. It'll still update, but at least you'll be fully aware that it happened. Not to mention that not every update will render your mods useless.



Also be sure to check the 'General' tab: if you don't plan on using this game on other (remote) computers then you may want to disable the Steam cloud save. Why risk having to wait for it to sync (and sometimes fail) when you don't need to?

When in doubt about whether or not you received an update just check the tab as shown above, this will also tell you the last time the game got a full update.

Summing up

• Rule #1 => Always make sure that you have met all requirements before installing a mod.
  
• Rule #2 => Always read the mod description to be (somewhat) sure that it'll work.
  
• .... and beware of game updates (rule #3).

Installing our first mod(s) ("the core")

Finally... let's mod our game! ;)

As mentioned in the previous chapter: always be weary of dependencies, sorry to go here again but this cannot be mentioned enough I think.

So we're going to start with what I'd like to refer to as the "core mods": mods which many others depend on.

Cyber Engine Tweaks ("CET")

If you check Nexus for the most popular Cyberpunk 2077 mods then this will probably pop up as number 1, and there's a good reason for that: many mods depend on this one.

As you might know there are many games which provide a "debug console", you often need to press a key ("~") after which a commandline pops into your screen where you can issue some commands for the game engine. Commands like "god", "godmode" or "deeznuts" :P

CP2k77 doesn't have such a console, but fortunately we got CET for that.

SO... hop on over to its mod page[www.nexusmods.com], then please try to start your routine of expanding the "Requirements" section, just to make sure things haven't changed in the mean time.

When done select the "Files" tab on that page, and download CET. When using Vortex all you have to do is click the "Mod manager download" button.

So now a few things will happen:

• Vortex will download the mod, you can check its progress using its download tab.
  
• When done it'll show you a notification telling you that it's ready to install the mod.
  
• Then, after installing, it will ask you if you want to enable (or "deploy") the mod.

You can configure Vortex so it won't be asking you all this but I wouldn't recommend doing that. Nothing necessarily wrong with it, but what if you only notice a missing dependency during a download?

Either way, after you passed all these steps the mod should be showing up on your mod overview as being enabled:

CET v1.32.1 (Patch 2.12a)

Congratulations! You just modded your game! Now that wasn't so hard, was it?

Now... keep in mind that if you install multiple mods then you will also introduce multiple things which could go wrong. So when in doubt (and we are at this point!) then keep it simple, 'stupid'. In other words: keep the "KISS principle" in mind.

So... before we continue let's fire up the game!

Don't forget to enable mods!

Whoah, a limited floppy edition?!

When you fire up the game you'll get to see the above splash screen. Click the cogwheel icon and make sure that mods are enabled.

This is also your first line of defense whenever things go wrong.

But for now... fire up the game, check for the notification which asks you to bind a keyboard shortcut and then... enjoy your empty mod menu ;) Well, empty for now but don't worry, we only just got started here!

Some core libraries which you'll want to install next...

As I mentioned above there are several "core" mods which are heavily relied on by others. You won't see anything different after you installed these, but you will experience problems if you don't install these before the mods mentioned in the next chapter.

I also suggest you follow the exact order in which I list these:

• RED4ext[www.nexusmods.com] => This is a so called script extender, and it will resolve possible issues between redscript and REDmod.
  
• Codeware[www.nexusmods.com] => More script extensions.
  
• redscript[www.nexusmods.com] => This is a script compiler, allowing people to mod the game using scripts. To solve a (known) compatibility issue with REDmod you'll want RED4ext (shown above).
  
• ArchiveXL[www.nexusmods.com] => Allows loading custom resources without needing to change official gamefiles.

And now for some fun...

Suggested mods (my favorites!)

Filter file saves

Once you apply modding you may easily get tempted in playing more lifepaths, especially because you could easily maintain 1 character and use it across all your games. We'll dive into this in a moment, but first: how about managing / filtering your saves?

For this you'll want to install Filter saves by lifepath[www.nexusmods.com] (and type!). Remember that screenshot I displayed in the first chapter of this guide? Yah, that was courtesy of this mod: an invaluable tool for playing multiple lifepaths but also for experimentation.

Say you have a mission (doesn't matter which) and you want to see the differences between using stealth or going in guns blazing? Or maybe you want to experience different ways in which you fight, maybe using guns, or relying on knives and katanas?

Appearance change unlocker

I dunno about you but I spent quite a bit of time customizing my V character. From her hair, the look of her implants, the eyes, nails... even her private parts. So when I was ready to start a new game and change from a streetkid into a nomad ... I wanted to keep my V's appearance.

Well... that's where Appearance change unlocker[www.nexusmods.com] can help you out. Don't worry: it doesn't merely add some in-game options, nah: it also allows you to maintain character presets which you pick while designing your character from scratch as well. So don't worry about having to run to a mirror ;)

And as you can see above... if you still think a (minor?) change is needed, then a mirror is all you need.

Immersive first person

Now that we have our saves and our looks... it's time to enjoy this to the max. I want a reliable ability to look around, even briefly look backwards. But I also want to see parts of my outfit whenever I look down at myself. It's not a big change, just.. well, quality of life?

For this we have Immersive first person[www.nexusmods.com], a mod which may not seem like much at first. But trust me when I say that you are going to notice its absence whenever you stop using it after having used it for quite a while.

Immersive rippers

Another small yet very nice mod is Immersive rippers[www.nexusmods.com]. As soon as you visit a ripper doc you basically talk to them after which you "just" customize your implants. But if you could do that just while standing around, then why do they all have chairs? ;)

This mod changes that behavior so that you need to get in the chair before you can customize your implants. In addition it also allows you to pay Fingers as a means of an apology if you ended up beating "the crap" out of him.

Note that Viktor is the main exception here, simply because he's too far away from the chair. But don't worry: that's where Immersive Vik[www.nexusmods.com] can help you out.

Kiroshi crowd scanner

The Kiroshi opticals given by Vik are pretty neat and more than often a must-have mechanic for getting through missions. They can help you scan (and mark) (potential) hostiles, machinery and also provide information about the things you're scanning.

Yet every time you check a random NPC it will just tell you that you're looking at a random NC citizen. That's kind of boring, no? Well, that's where Kiroshi opticals[www.nexusmods.com] (crowd scanner) can help out a bit. Every time you scan a random person this mod will generate a (random) backstory. Not perfect, sure, but it will still be a bit more immersive.

Missing persons (Fixer's hidden gems)

Cyberpunk 2077 isn't just a game anymore I think, it has also became an experience all on its own. For starters: what about the Edgerunners[en.wikipedia.org] anime series, as hosted by Netflix?

There is so much going on in Night City. So many "hidden gems[gameplay.tips]".

Well, this led up to the Missing persons[www.nexusmods.com] mod in which you'll receive text messages from different fixers who will ask you to go look for, well, some missing persons. You'll get an official marker on your map and if you finish the task you'll even earn some rewards. Note that you can customize the mods behavior.

What's that? Doesn't this mod work for you? Now what have I been saying for so many times now? ;)

Yah: this mod also requires the Native Settings UI[www.nexusmods.com] mod.

One final warning: always check the requirements of a mod!

In game navigation

Now, I think the mini-map is decent enough the way it is, but not so much when you're on foot. It can get quite tedious to find the right way to your objective(s) but trust me when I say that taking a walk around Night City can be a very rewarding experience on its own. And I'm not just talking about finding possibly hidden rewards, but also the whole experience itself. This game is huge.

Well, that's where In-world navigation[www.nexusmods.com] can come into play. It basically adds a line of arrows in the world which will point you to your destination on the map. Even better: it will also differentiate between marked locations (assuming that the game allows for this of course) which should make it a lot easier to find mission objectives (yellow), side gigs (cyan), stores (white) and instant-travel locations (blue).

You know what one of the most difficult issues in programming is? Having people agree on certain standards. Seriously... XKCD #927[xkcd.com] isn't just a fun webcomic, it's also plain out true.

Wondering where this all suddenly came from? ;)

Remember how I warned you about the Native Settings UI mod in the previous section? Well, this is really the final time I'll be handing out warnings... see: this mod requires the Mod settings mod[www.nexusmods.com]. It basically does the exact same thing as 'Native Settings', only different.

Trust me: multiple mods doing the same thing is hardly an exception.

Anyway, one could argue that we're now entering the realms of minor cheating, so lets step it up. Slowly, but steadily ;)

Respector

Remember me talking about different gameplays and such? So let's say you fully customized your V character in one of your games. I'm refering to the implants, clothing, extra items... as well as the perks you may have already set up.... note that I'm not necessarily talking about having "maxed out" your character, just having come up with a build you like.

Well, Respector[www.nexusmods.com] allows you to copy the state of that character from one game, and then 'paste' all those stats right into another!

This makes it an ideal mod for trying out different builds during different missions. Or for using the same character (including all their stats) but in 2 different games.

Especially in combination with the previously mentioned "saved games filter" mod.

Now, this mod can also be used to do a bit of cheating because it allows you to "re-spec" your character as well. How about adjusting attribute levels? Or resetting all your perk points? And of course you can also spawn items (weapons, clothing, consumables...), add vehicles, "just" equip stuff... basically you can fully "re-spec" aka customize your character.

However, my main use for this mod is to save & load the full state of my character(s).

There are better mods for cheating ;)

Suggested mods - Part 2 (Cheats!)

Warning! => This part covers several mods which can also be used for some heavier cheating. This isn't always their main intended use, but for others...

Just keep it in mind, ok?

Appearance menu mod

Wait... how did River end up in Judy's appartment?!!

And if that isn't enough...


Arasaka kidnapped Judy & Panam?!!!

This mod is a huge personal favorite of mine! And you can see above why that is so... if your imagination can come up with something fun to do in Night City, then this mod can likely make it happen.

But keep in mind that there is a bit of a learning curve involved....

Anyway: the Appearance menu mod[www.nexusmods.com] allows you to do pretty much anything you'd like.

How about spawning Judy in her underwear at her studio in Lizzie's bar?

Of course while making sure she looks a bit angry at you because you snuck up on her while she was getting a little more "motivated" by one of her projects ;)

Now, I'm not going to try to fully explain how this mod works because that probably requires a guide of its own. But a brief summary is obviously needed, also given that this is one of my all-time favorite mods.

As you can see it relies on the CET interface. Well, each tab has its specific use:

• The 'Scan' tab will show you several options which are applicable to the prop (or NPC) you're currently looking at. Think about (un)locking doors, changing the way a character looks, etc.
  
• Spawn tab => It does just what you think: it allows you to spawn different NPC's and further customize their look and behavior.
  
• Decor tab => This provides you with a massive list of decoration items which you can spawn in. From bathtubs to TV's and aquaria right to vehicles.
  
• Poses tab => If you spawned an NCP (or have one targetted) then this tab allows you to change the way they behave. In my previous example I just left Judy standing in her default appearance, but I could easily have made her "do" things, like for example pointing at me. Note that this part involves poses and animations.
  
• Tools tab => as the name implies... here's your toolset. Want to teleport to a specific area, no matter if it's locked down or not? Or maybe you want to change the current time? How about... making yourself invincible ("god mode")? Or in my example above: changing the position and customizing the overal appearance of an NPC.
  
• Director tab => This mod isn't just about spawning in characters and/or items: you can even set up scripts that make them "do" things. You can also set up triggers which in their turn can trigger those scripts.

It's a bit brief, I know, but... ever wanted to re-play the fight at Arasaka tower, but this time in a way you want? Or how about making some (hostile) Arasaka soldiers invade Lizzies bar? Maybe at the same time when the Tygers are making yet another move?

Or... my favorite: how about taking Judy with you as your buddy & NPC helper? She'll even draw out her gun during fights, no problem!

Of course the main intention of this mod isn't necessarily cheating, but more so to provide you with ways to set up awesome (screenshot) appearances. This is actually the main use for the 'godmode': making sure you can't "just" die while setting up a screenshot. This is also why this setting will reset as soon as you (re)load a game (which is customizable behavior).

Either way, I can highly recommend the next mod in combination with this one:

Photo mode unlocker 2.0 XL

The previous mod is awesome to set up fully customized sceneries. Another example: how about setting up a hidden Arasaka army at the drive-in theater?

However, as awesome as all of that is it still leaves you with one small problem: what about your own character? See, you can do quite a bit in photo mode, but at the same time also only so much. Well, that's where Photo mode unlocker[www.nexusmods.com] can come in handy.

It unlocks a ton of extra options (like being able to use "look at camera" no matter what), adds more poses which you can apply to V (male or female alike), it gives you more backgrounds to use, adds several poses that can be applied to Johnny and if you need more... just download more pose sets.

For the best custom(ized) screenshots... you'll want this mod too!

Virtual atelier

Now, both two previous mods provide us with yet another problem: what is your character going to wear? ;)

Bear in mind that Virtual Atelier[www.nexusmods.com] doesn't add any clothing of its own: this is a framework which other clothing mods can use; it allows you to purchase clothing online using your (or "a") computer.

And as you could expect: it's heavily used by other mods. Here are some of my personal favorites, but... reader discretion may be required in some cases!

• Alvarix custom store[www.nexusmods.com] => A nice collection of quite a few different clothing presets.
  
• Arasaka atelier[www.nexusmods.com] => An impressive collection of (traditional) Japanese clothing, including kimonos!
  
• Vesnace dream girl lingerie[www.nexusmods.com] => I think the mod name explains all you need ;)
  
• Se7en ripped tights[www.nexusmods.com] => Ripped clothes for your female V.

As always: keep optional extra requirements in mind!

The Edgerunner bazaar

And last but not least... a full cheat menu ;)

The Edgerunner bazaar[www.nexusmods.com] provides you with a useful menu to, well, just customize or give you anything you need or want. Need some extra eddies? NP! Or maybe you just want to up- or down-grade your gear? Also perfectly doable.

However, do keep in mind that this mod is a bit dated, but still works in the current v2 game.

Still, if you want something modern then maybe MenuMod[www.nexusmods.com] is more to your liking.

If you run into problems...

As I mentioned earlier in the game: these mods are impressive but there are obviously no guarantees, things can go wrong.

So... how to troubleshoot any possible issues you may have?

Well, that of course does depend a bit on the nature of your problem. I mean... a full crash of the game is obviously more severe than, say, something clipping or just annoying you. Either way, hopefully these steps can help out.

#1 => Turn off all mods

As I already showed you earlier the splashscreen allows you to turn mods on or off, this is a good way to start troubleshooting your issues. However... keep in mind that this isn't foolproof. For example: disabling mods here doesn't have much affect on the "Filter saves" mod for example.

#2 => Disable some (or all?) mods in Vortex

This is why it's such a better idea to use a mod manager such as Vortex instead of manually messing around in your games folder: because a mod manager can, well, manage your mods (duh)!

For example.... I actually ran into some weird glitches last week where some NPC's triggered glitches on my screen: as if something on or near them was "exploding" my graphics. A bit difficult to explain I guess: basically a lot of glitches happened around those NPC's.

Well... that got me thinking about possible issues with some of my clothing mods. So I started to disabling all those types of mods and then slowly enabling them, one (or two) at a time. This eventually led me to an already outdated mod, which didn't even properly work anymore yet that was something I managed to overlook.

One mod removal later and I was fully in the clear.

#2a => Consider using Vortex profiles!

If you're still experimenting with mods then it might be a good idea to set up so called profiles in Vortex. This makes it much easier (and safer!) to experiment with new mods while also making sure that the selection you currently have is always kept safe.

#3 => Make sure all your mods are up to date

I can't easily demonstrate this, but as soon as one (or more) of your mods are outdated then you will notice this in Vortex. Vortex also allows you to update said mods straight from within the manager itself, provided that they were downloaded from the Nexusmods website.

Worst case scenario: resetting your entire game

When all else fails and your game keeps crashing no matter what you do... then it may be a good idea to simply start all over: from scratch. Which is where Steam can come in quite handy, as you can see above.

Just open your game properties by right clicking on the game in your Steam library, then select the "Properties..." option at the bottom of the pop-up menu. Now open the 'Installed files' tab as shown above and you can click the highlighted option to verify all your game files.

Keep in mind that this can (and will!) take a while to complete.

Steam will check your game against the default installation, and then provide you with an option to re-download all the changed files so that your installaiton will fully match a freshly installed game.

Don't worry: this will have no consequences for any saved games (because those are stored somewhere else), but it will reset your entire game so that it no longer uses any mods. This should at the very least make the game playable again.

And once again this is also where using a mod manager such as Vortex can provide an ideal solution because now you can basically start all over again. Simply by re-enabling one mod at a time.

Summary ("In conclusion...")

I hope you enjoyed this guide of mine.

This section is to give you guys a brief recap of everything listed above, in specific providing you with a full overview of all the mods I mentioned throughout my guide.

Overview of mentioned mods

There are basically 3 types of mods... "core" mods which are basically libraries that many (or most) other mods rely on. This is a good way to start your modding experience. Then there are several quality of life ("qol") mods which don't really change the game or gameplay but simply enhance parts of it.

And finally... there are also mods which allow cheating in varies degrees. Sometimes as a side effect (like the photo mode enhancer) and in other times ... because it's an actual cheat mod ;)

Core mods

• Cyber Engine Tweaks ("CET")[www.nexusmods.com] => This is a good mod to start, it provides a GUI which is used by many others.
  
• RED4ext[www.nexusmods.com] => This is a so called script extender, and it will resolve possible issues between redscript and REDmod.
  
• Codeware[www.nexusmods.com] => More script extensions.
  
• redscript[www.nexusmods.com] => This is a script compiler, allowing people to mod the game using scripts. To solve a (known) compatibility issue with REDmod you'll want RED4ext (shown above).
  
• ArchiveXL[www.nexusmods.com] => Allows loading custom resources without needing to change official gamefiles.

Only the first mod will actually result in visible changes, the rest... not so much.

Once again: Always make sure to check for mod requirements. I listed several warnings and gave extra hints above, but this summary only includes the raw list(s).

QOL mods

• Filter saves by lifepath[www.nexusmods.com] (and type ;)).
  
• Appearance change unlocker[www.nexusmods.com] => Save (or load) custom character presets.
  
• Immersive first person[www.nexusmods.com] => Gives you a better first person gameplay experience.
  
• Immersive rippers[www.nexusmods.com] => Makes you sit in the chair before you get to change your implants. Also allows you to make up with Fingers.
  
• Immersive Vik[www.nexusmods.com] => This mod does the same for Viktor (which is not included in the previous mod).
  
• Kiroshi opticals[www.nexusmods.com] => When you scan NPC's this will give you a (randomized) backstory for the person you're looking at.
  
• Missing persons - Fixers hidden gems[www.nexusmods.com] => Gives you several new missions through text message where you need to go look for certain missing people. This will sent you towards several famous locations in the game.
  
• In-world navigation[www.nexusmods.com] => Provides easy markers for you to follow on foot that will lead you to your destination(s).
  
• Virtual Atelier[www.nexusmods.com] => A framework which allows other mods to provide you with clothing items which you can buy using the in-game computer(s).

"Cheaty" and/or plain out cheat mods

• Respector[www.nexusmods.com] => Allows you to copy your entire characters stats and paste them into another game. Also provides way to "re-spec" (aka change/customize) your character some more.
  
• Appearance menu mod[www.nexusmods.com] => Set up fully custom scenarios by spawning in NPC's and / or scenery prop items. Also allows you to teleport to hidden locations, change the time of day and can even give you one (or more) NPC companions to play with. Very useful for making dynamic screenshots.
  
• Photo mode unlocker 2.0 XL[www.nexusmods.com] => Removes nearly all restrictions within CP2k77's photo mode. Also allows you to use custom poses for either yourself or others.
  
• Edgerunner bazaar[www.nexusmods.com] => A plain out cheat mod, it allows you to customize your inventory. Up- or down-grade weapons, get extra cash, cars, materials... anything you'd like really.
  
• MenuMod[www.nexusmods.com] => A more modern cheat menu.

In conclusion (for real this time)....

And there you have it, how to mod your game of Cyberpunk 2077 together with a nice list of mods that can definitely help you to enhance your game.

Keep in mind that I highly recommend not using any mods during your first run of the game (not to mention not using any guides either); instead just go in and beat the vanilla game while you let the whole experience carry you.

The only reason I started to play with these mods is because I already beat the game 1.5 times, and only during my third("ish") play did I get kinda bored with having to do the exact same missions all over again that I finally decided to see if I could somehow maintain my original character. That eventually led up to this whole collection.

Of course.. in the end it's your game, and your rules ;)

Even so, I hope you enjoyed and this could be useful for some of you.

[MelsinAoW]

I love that a bunch of your qol mods are now base game.

[lowtechcaviar]

I honestly liked it more as it was when it was release, they changed a lot of things that didn't need to be changed and added things that where honestly not needed

[EDYZ0R]

COOL. I just drag and droped like 150 mods in the root files and called it a day.

[宫廷玉液酒]

Niiiice!!!

[Martinovitchskii]

Niiiice!!!

[Blur]

Nice guide overall, only can add one thing - you dont need RedMod, 99% of mods work without it.