Playing Cyberpunk 2077 for the first time, some of us probably wanted a refund right away since it didn't feel like The Witcher 2077. In fact, it's actually closer to Grand Theft Auto than anything else in terms of gameplay. The whole game is just one sprawling cityscape and the story is more or less a rags-to-riches plot in cyberpunk veneer. Well, to be fair, that's to be expected since that's what was promised.

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Hence, treating the game as you would treat The Witcher 3 does not guarantee the best experience. But comparing the game against Grand Theft Auto 5 would be a more fitting contrast. It's an open-world game that's in the same vein as the GTA titles since the real star of the story is not the main character nor the villains but Night City itself, which is really just Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and San Francisco rolled into one and spliced with as much neon as possible. How does it stand up to Los Santos?

Updated August 28, 2023 By Ben Jessey: After a questionable launch, Cyberpunk 2077 has had multiple patches and is a lot more playable now. As a result, people are able to see that it's a brilliant open-world title. In fact, it's one of the best in the genre. This means it's comparable to Grand Theft Auto 5.

In this piece, we attempted to compare the two games. We've now looked back at the points we made in favor of both titles and added several more.

22 Cyberpunk 2077: Inclusion Of Dialogue Options

A corpo dialogue option with Takemura

Dialogue options allow you to have a closer connection to the character you're controlling since you're able to shape their personality. V, for instance, in Cyberpunk 2077 is pretty much a blank slate until you start choosing what they say. You can make them similar to yourself or someone completely different. The choice is up to you.

​​​​​​This same choice isn't afforded by GTA 5. Trevor, Michael, and Franklin all have defined personalities, and you have little control over who they are.

21 GTA 5: Humor

Grand Theft Auto 5 Screenshot Of Jimmy De Santa On Bed Playing Video Game

Neither of these open-world games is completely serious all of the time. Both titles can be wacky and comical. However, GTA 5 has to be considered the funnier of the two.

The game is, after all, very witty as it continually pokes fun at Los Angeles and contemporary society. There is also a fair amount of gross-out humor, typically provided by Trevor Phillips. So, the comedy is varied, and most of it lands. Cyberpunk 2077 can’t compete in the jokes department.

20 Cyberpunk 2077: Shooting Mechanics

Yinglong Cyberpunk 2077

If there is one area where you could argue that GTA 5 doesn’t quite deliver, it’s in the shooting mechanics. The third-person gunplay is hampered because it seems designed for auto-aim or at least partial auto-aim. Having someone target for you isn’t as fun. Yet, it may still be better than the game’s free aim option, as that feature isn’t exactly smooth.

Things are better in Cyberpunk 2077, where the general gunplay is fairly fluid. That is not to say it’s the most polished shooter ever made, but it’s more enjoyable than what GTA provides.

19 GTA 5: Heists

characters in a room in red suits talking in a GTA 5 prep heist

Cyberpunk 2077 has one heist in its story, and it's really fun. However, it still can't match up to the many great ones in Grand Theft Auto 5. Most of them are extremely well-designed and fun to play.

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Plus, you're heavily involved in the whole setup process. You get to select your method and crew while also acquiring the things you need to pull it off. This allows you to feel somewhat responsible for the success of the job. All these things together make some of the heists the most enjoyable missions in open-world game history.

18 Cyberpunk 2077: Weapons

Cyberpunk 2077 Skippy

Both games involve a lot of combat - albeit some of it is optional in Cyberpunk 2077. As such, each title gives you access to a bunch of different weapons to utilize. The arsenal in GTA 5 is pretty standard, as you can use different assault rifles, shotguns, snipers, and so on. There are a few unique items, but not many, especially in the single-player.

Cyberpunk, on the other hand, includes a bunch of crazy pieces of deadly equipment, from talking pistols to elemental guns. So, there is a lot more variety and creativity with the weapons in the CD Projekt game.

17 GTA 5: Side Missions

Grand Theft Auto 5 Screenshot Of Trevor, Nigel, and Mrs. Thornhill

The two games excel when it comes to their side missions. Cyberpunk, for instance, has several unique and captivating optional jobs for you to complete. And some of the companion-based ones impact the overall story.

However, they still can't compete with GTA's strangers and freaks missions. Almost all of these quests are incredibly entertaining as you meet a bunch of wacky characters and do some bizarre things. They are varied, too, as sometimes you're shooting imaginary aliens, while other times, you're jumping out of planes on ATVs.

16 Cyberpunk 2077: Inclusion Of Player Choice

Cyberpunk 2077 gamplay alterations include AI and NPC changes

Besides directly choosing the ending, you don't get much control over how the main narrative of GTA 5 plays out. Yes, you make decisions regarding heists, but that doesn't have a massive effect on the overall story.

In Cyberpunk, however, you must make a litany of important choices throughout the game. And those decisions heavily impact other characters, different factions, and Night City as a whole.

15 GTA 5: Characters

Grand Theft Auto 5 Screenshot Of Mary-Ann

The main characters in Cyberpunk are very compelling. Yet, many of the strangers you meet in Night City are not very memorable. They're fine and serve their purpose. Overall, though, they don't live long in the memory.

RELATED: Best Characters In Grand Theft Auto 5

By contrast, the likes of Mary-Ann, Cletus, Dom, and the rest of the bizarre people you meet during GTA 5 are delightful additions to the experience. In fact, in most games, they'd overshadow the main players. But GTA's featured characters are even more fascinating.

14 Cyberpunk: More Ways To Play The Game

Cyberpunk 2077 Screenshot Of V Holding Golden Baseball Bat

Cyberpunk 2077 is more than just an open-world game. It's also a fully-fledged RPG. Compared to GTA 5, the CD Projekt RED game offers players more paths and alternatives to the usual run-and-gun criminal life. GTA 5 notably lacks other ways to play the game other than being a gun-toting car stealer who does all kinds of crimes.

In Cyberpunk 2077, you're allowed to be a bookish hacker who can defeat people by the dozens simply by uploading viruses into their heads. If you want to have a conscience, you're also allowed to spare your enemies' lives. This is a rather refreshing breath of fresh air after committing too many counts of vehicular manslaughter in GTA 5.

13 GTA 5: Fewer Technical Issues

GTA Online Mimi Car Meet

Granted, GTA 5 has the advantage of being nearly an older game. That's why it's a lot more polished now compared to Cyberpunk 2077. Even so, GTA 5 in its initial release state is a lot more serviceable compared to the last-gen console blunder that is Cyberpunk 2077. This notably cut the game's playerbase by a significant amount.

There are arguments to be made there, such as GTA being a less technologically advanced title but its developers also took the time to polish a PC version, meaning they take care that their game is almost ideal for them before releasing it.

12 Cyberpunk: Stronger Focus On The Story

A screenshot showing Judy Alvarez in Cyberpunk 2077

As is tradition with most GTA games, it's mostly a parody of film tropes and tried-and-tested crime dramas. GTA 5 is no exception. It's a classic tale of betrayal, mentorship, and rise to power. At times, it even doesn't take itself seriously.

Cyberpunk 2077 by comparison, handles its story more carefully. It's an engaging cyber crime epic that involves multinational corporations and more introspective, intelligent, and self-aware characters. As such, it's easier to feel more invested in Cyberpunk's story compared to GTA 5's relatively banal offering and apathetic characters.

11 GTA 5: More Coherent City

GTA V Lester Assassination Enzo Bonelli mission end parachute

Where GTA 5 handles its elements considerably better than Cyberpunk 2077 is in its more livable city. Despite being an extreme parody of Los Angeles, Los Santos feels like a living, breathing, and organic city where the AI citizens function and behave more believably. Their AI paths are definitely handled more meticulously.

In Cyberpunk 2077, the disconnect is easily noticeable. In Night City, as soon as you become a wanted individual and cops spawn right next to you or near you. This has been fixed but that meant they initially didn't have a proper driving AI. It's also easy to spot vehicles colliding in Cyberpunk 2077 for no reason at all. That usually only happens in GTA 5 if you disrupt the order.

10 Cyberpunk 2077: RPG Elements

Cyberpunk 2077 Plan B In Equipment Menu
Cyberpunk 2077 Plan B In Equipment Menu

The GTA franchise might have popularized the concept of open-world gaming, but there's no doubt that open-world games are better suited for RPGs instead of just sandbox action. That has been the case with many new RPGs last decade.

Cyberpunk, with its more intimate character development mechanics that make it easier to personalize your guy or gal and turn them into a self-insert works better for immersion. Besides, unlocking new powers and not just fashion options or weapons is always a better feeling compared just getting rich and buying houses or cars.

9 GTA 5: Long History Of Successful Formulas

Franklin driving away from the cops in Grand Theft Auto V

Still, when it comes to open-world missions and gameplay, not many can match or surpass the GTA formula. Its movie-like progression of the narrative makes the players feel more invested in the character's drama and backstory.

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It might not allow for much RPG experimentation, but GTA makes up for it by making each and every mission more unique and wackier than the last. Plus, if players ever wanted more of it, then there are older games to look into whereas Cyberpunk 2077 players don't have much else to turn to once they're done with the rather brief RPG story.

8 Cyberpunk 2077: Cyberpunk Setting

cyberpunk 2077

Well, it's in the name, but Cyberpunk 2077's biggest strength lies in its setting of choice. It's a world fraught with corruption, apathy, violence, and overt sexuality that GTA's supposed haven of debauchery looks like a child's playground when placed side-by-side.

There's also the fact that not many games have been able to feature a fully-fledged and fully-open-world game with a cyberpunk setting on the same scale as Cyberpunk 2077. Meanwhile, GTA has been doing the same modern open-world for decades and might need to spice things up a bit.

7 GTA 5: More Activities

GTA V Lester Assassination Enzo Bonelli Franklin In Elevator

Now, Cyberpunk 2077 may or may not have been released undercooked but with the fiasco surrounding its release optimization and how bare it is right now gameplay-wise, it might improve in the future. As it is, there's more to do in the GTA games than in Cyberpunk 2077.

Sure, there might be side quests but some of the usual activities that give the city and locale more flavor and personality are absent. GTA 5 has those in spades from bounty hunting and movies to golf and stock trading. Then there are also the older GTA games that feature even more of those activities.

6 Cyberpunk 2077: Bigger Map Size

Cyberpunk 2077 Monk Zen Master

As expected, being a much newer game than GTA 5, Cyberpunk 2077 is significantly bigger. It has a wider playground for everyone since Night City and the surrounding area measures around 100+ square kilometers. GTA 5's Los Santos and the nearby wilderness is only about 75 square kilometers.

So, neither place can be considered small, but Night City is clearly the bigger sandbox. As a result, there are more places to explore and things to see. And it's a perfect environment to serve as the setting of several spin-offs.

5 GTA 5: Character Switching

gta-v-artwork

In 2077, you're stuck with one character. You can customize them, but they're still the same person. GTA 5 lets you be more flexible with your choices since you can switch out between three characters.

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Granted, they're all male and two of them are old criminals, but players still get to see the game from different perspectives. Differing playstyles also make more sense this way instead of just having one super everyman do all the expert hacking, driving, and shooting.

4 Cyberpunk 2077: Better Map Verticality

Cyberpunk 2077 perks and builds best

It's safe to say that Cyberpunk 2077 has taller buildings than GTA 5. The mega-corporations all too present in most cyberpunk settings love their Babel towers that scrape the doorways of heaven and players get to visit one of these, namely a 100-floor building.

Beyond that, the general verticality of the environment in Cyberpunk 2077 is just astounding from V's apartment complex to the snaking layers of maze-like highways and roads. Plenty of these places can also be visited, making Night City not just wider but also denser than Los Santos.

3 GTA 5: Deeper Rags-To-Riches Narrative

GTA V Sell Property

Sadly, the journey from zero to hero in Cyberpunk 2077 is not too elaborate or in-depth. Some players were even sad to find out that much of V's prologue was skipped and merely shown as an introductory cutscene so that part where players set themselves up to a stable foothold in Night City is nonexistent gameplay-wise.

GTA 5 is meatier in this regard especially when it came to Franklin's progression as a big player among two crime underworld veterans. Other GTA games also do this better than Cyberpunk 2077 did, making their protagonists more relatable or dearer.