What are the best Cyberpunk 2077 mods? CD Projekt Red released its own REDmod tools for free, allowing everyone to install Cyberpunk 2077 mods through a dedicated client they can download from Steam or GOG.
This release comes as we also see Cyberpunk 2077 mods that alter the range of facial features, change your looks in small ways after character creation, and even access stuff we were never meant to see. That last one’s important as it adds new functionality to the cyberpunk game. What starts with a shove one day could evolve into giving your character superpowers.
Best Cyberpunk 2077 mods
Here’s a list of the best Cyberpunk 2077 mods:
Revised Backpack
While Cyberpunk 2.0 brought about several important changes to the game, one of the areas that, we feel, could’ve used more attention was the management system. DJ_Kovrik’s Revised Backpack mod introduces the changes we wish were made in the overhaul, including a custom inventory items list, different sorting options, and much more. This is the type of mod you want to install on a fresh playthrough – once you use it, you won’t want to go without it.
Pre-2.0 Skill Checks
If you played Cyberpunk before the big 2.0 update that overhauled a number of important gameplay mechanics, you might remember a time when the game’s attribute check system was not determined by your level. With the Pre-2.0 Skill Checks mod by Asterra, you can revert this change to bring the game back to its original ruleset.
As the creator points out, it doesn’t make sense that a door that could be smashed down with a certain level of strength suddenly gets stronger the more you level up. This mod changes the skill checks to ignore your current level, putting more of an emphasis on your character’s build.
Night City Recolor
Add some life to Night City with the Night City Recolor mod by Misterchedda, changing the color of hundreds of neon signs each time you load up the game. This applies to both neon and holographic signs, so you never have to walk past a train station and see the same colored signage appear again.
Native Settings UI Add-On
Using the Native Settings UI Add-On mod by anygoodname, you can access a side menu inside the game that gives you instant access to your mods’ settings. When you consider the alternative option which is to edit an .ini file outside the game, this is a much easier way of adjusting individual parameters without needing to mess around on your desktop.
New Level Cap
Although the original level cap in Cyberpunk 2077 was raised with the introduction of Phantom Liberty, you still can’t level high enough to unlock everything. The New Level Cap mod changes that by raising the level cap to 80, meaning that you don’t have to choose which skills to add to your build, as you can (eventually) have them all.
DeLorean DMC-12
We can’t think of any games that wouldn’t benefit from having a highly detailed model of the DeLorean DMC-12, let alone one that you can drive on the streets of Night City. Sadly, this version of the DeLorean is incapable of flying, nor can it travel across time, but we’re sure there are plenty of alternative ways to make this car look stylish. Park this car on the roads of Night City and watch as the neon lights reflect off its shiny body, giving you the perfect opportunity to take a stylish photo. Check out the DeLorean DMC -12 mod by SDH0 on Nexus Mods.
Cyberpunk HD Reworked Project
This overhaul of the Cyberpunk 2077’s textures from Halk Hogan, who previously retextured The Witcher 3, takes everything from pavements, graffiti, vegetation, and even paper lanterns and spruces them up nicely. Multiple downloads of the Cyberpunk HD Reworked Project mod are available, depending on your gaming rig’s specs, with the ultra-quality version taking full advantage of 2K and 4K displays. In contrast, the balanced version is optimized for lower-end cards with less memory available. If you want the environments to look as crisp and complete as possible, this is the mod you need.
Xilamonstrr mods
Like the full texture mod above, XilaMonstrr’s mods aim to completely rework the Cyberpunk 2077 textures by putting them into Overdrive. While you only have the option to download individual packs, the 4K textures that XilaMonstrr has rendered here are impressive, intending to fully re-texture the entire game to run smoothly and at a decent resolution.
Cyberpunk Edgerunner Guns
For fans of Cyberpunk Edgerunner, you can now wield Lucy’s and Rebecca’s pistols with the help of two mods. These are simple gun model replacements, with Lucy’s pistol replacing the Unity .45 and Rebecca’s pistol replacing the Omaha. Both of these mods require the Material and Texture Override and TweakXL mods to function correctly.
Drone Companions
Sometimes, the best friends you can have are the ones you make. The Drone Companions mod by Scissors adds the TechDeck, a functionally similar operating system to the existing CyberDeck. Equipping this OS gives you access to various components to build multiple robot companions at once. Each of your drones has a rarity (rare, epic, and legendary) that indicates build quality, and you can find more recipes for better drones at Cyberpunk 2077 weapon vendors.
While you can limit yourself to building flying drones, you can also potentially construct human-like androids and giant mechs to help you in combat. You can even outfit them with upgrades like invisibility cloaks or laser beams. Since the Drone Companions mod introduces an entirely new mechanic, you can find a crafting guide from GZMods to help you get started.
The Matrix
Since Cyberpunk 2077 is an open-world game set in a dystopian ‘paradise’ and stars Keanu Reeves, it was almost inevitable that we’d see a Matrix mod. Sadly, by installing the catchily named Matrix Colour Grading Reshade mod, you’re not adding anything apart from a green tint to the game.
However, we’re seeing progress on other mods that add new skills to your arsenal; one of these is the wall hang mod (requires Cyber Engine Tweaks) from PerfNormBeast, which, as the name implies, gives you the ability to dangle or jump off vertical surfaces. It’s not precisely wall-running, but it’s better than nothing. At least, though, we’re not that far off from full-blown bullet time.
Time Dilation
The Time Dilation mod does a heck of a lot, overhauling the Sandevistan operating system and rebalancing perks for each of the seven manufacturers. It includes slowing down time (which Matrix fans will get a kick out of), deflecting bullets with a katana, teleportation skills, and even using time-dilation skills while in vehicles. However, as this is quite an extensive mod, we encourage you to take note of the requirements on the Nexusmod page before you download it. You need to install many other mods to make it work, but once you do, you’re in for a treat.
Flying Car
Even though Cyberpunk 2077 is set in the near future, it’s baffling that there aren’t any flying cars you can drive around in Night City. However, with the Flying Car mod, you can now soar above your enemies, all while beating the traffic to your next objective.
Breach Takedown
The Breach Takedown mod gives would-be hackers a third option when grappling with their targets. With the mod installed, in addition to knocking enemies out or killing them, you can select the Breach Network option to open up the breach protocol screen. Doing so will instantly upload all your hacks, so you won’t need to play the minigame. You can also perform breaches on unconscious bodies, allowing you to install your Cyberpunk 2077 hacking with relative safety, which is handy the next time you want to disable all the cameras and find yourself in a tricky spot.
Alternate Crowd Behavior
You can mod NPC behavior by installing the Alternate Crowd Behavior and Other Tweaks mod. Features include changing how fast an NPC will despawn, allowing for slightly more traffic on the roads, and tinkering with the AI to make enemies more intelligent.
Config Overhaul
Bafflingly, there’s a whole bunch of options that are completely hidden from the player, but the Config Overhaul for Cyberpunk 2077 mod gives you access to some of these hidden settings. If you want to get those extra precious frames, this mod will do just that.
Better Controls Menu
While you can rebind most controls in the base game, the Better Controls Menu mod allows you to change the ones that CD Projekt Red doesn’t want you to change. These include the following:
- Dodge – Disables double-tap dodge in favor of a dedicated button, defaults to G because it wasn’t being used for anything
- Slow Walk – Hold and use your normal movement keys to walk. Defaults to the “/” key
- Primary Action – Default F
- Secondary Action – Default R
- Some UI Navigation Buttons
This mod also enables you to assign button configurations to the arrow keys, so any infrequently used controls can be mapped here should you so wish.
Unlock Global Illumination settings
We’re keeping the name of this one to ‘Unlock Global Illumination settings’, but this mod does a lot more than that. Here you’ll also be able to adjust the FOV slider to higher values, toggle the resolution scaling, and set the mouse sensitivity and zoom sensitivity to larger numbers. It’s also compatible with the Better Controls Menu mod, allowing you to customize the game’s controls and settings in tandem.
Arasaka Appearance Updater
Speaking of how Cyberpunk 2077 looks, you aren’t able to change much about your character once they’ve been created. The Arasaka Appearance Updater mod enables you to make minor changes after creating your character.
Before using this mod, you may find some glaring differences between how they look in the character creation menu and how they end up looking when posing for a snapshot in the Cyberpunk 2077 photo mode. Thankfully this mod gives you an accurate preview image of what your character looks like before deploying the update to the save file.
Make sure that you look at the video above, as it provides a full tutorial for editing your character however you wish. It is limited to just a few facial features and hairstyles currently, so you can’t change your voice from a male-sounding one to a female-sounding one, but the Arasaka Appearance Updater is constantly being improved, so we’re excited to see how it develops.
Ciri 2077 Presets
Remember when everyone thought that Ciri was going to be in Cyberpunk 2077? Were you disappointed that this turned out to be completely false? Then these Ciri 2077 presets can finally make those lofty dreams a reality. It does this by tinkering with some files, with accompanying instructions to recreate Ciri’s character model within the Cyberpunk 2077 character creation menu. This mod also requires both The White Hair for V and Custom Eye Colors mod to help complete the look!
Simple Menu
For some people, the joy of Cyberpunk 2077 is roaming around the city burning up rubber on the roads, going into shops guns blazing, and being chased by the police. Of course, doing these things is a sure fire way to get yourself killed, but the Simple Menu mod by DankRafft provides players with the tools they need to go on a spree without worrying about running out of health or supplies.
Romanceable Judy for Male V
This mod requires the Cyber Engine Tweaks mod.
Well, this one got people talking. This mod allows you to romance Judy as Male V, revealing some previously undiscovered lines that were recorded in the game as part of the development.
It’s certainly not outside the realms of possibility that other lines were recorded for the other Cyberpunk 2077 romance options, though CD Projekt Red did confirm that Judy was always intended to be a partner to female V only. If you want to listen to the lines that you weren’t meant to hear, then this mod does just that.
Phil’s HDR Reshade
Phil’s HDR Reshade mod tweaks the colors to create an image with precise depth, color, and visual effects. The pictures speak for themselves, taking some red tints and giving the black hues a bit more emphasis. Please note that this has nothing to do with true HDR that requires a high-end monitor – this implementation attempts to mimic that effect without purchasing new hardware.
Doom ReShade
Of course, you can also give Cyberpunk 2077 a 90s feel by completely pixelating the living heck out of them! The Doom ReShade mod turns the screen into a chunky S-VGA-compatible CRT monitor, complete with scan lines. Those who bubble up with nostalgia at the mere mention of the 3dfx Voodoo 2 card (steady now!) will get a kick out of this.
We’re unsure if you’ll play with this mod for over five minutes. Just https://youtu.be/uScj2cK4qMElooking at those screenshots is burning our retinas, but at the very least, it makes for a great April Fool’s prank!
Breach Protocol Autohacker
The ultimate hacker move is to hack the hacking system, ensuring you win all the prizes every time. This Autohacker mod guarantees you end up with the best outcome, no matter how difficult the puzzle is.
Cyber Engine Tweaks and CP77Tools
You should be aware of an important distinction from the get-go. Some of these Cyberpunk 2077 mods require you to have another mod installed that acts as a base. We highlight which mods require either Cyber Engine Tweaks or the CP77Tools mod to be installed. There are other things the Cyber Engine Tweaks mod can tinker with, like turning off TAA, unlocking the debug menu, or skipping the start menu.
How to mod Cyberpunk 2077
You have two ways to mod Cyberpunk 2077. The first involves using Nexus Mod’s Vortex mod manage application to simplify the process, and the second involves installing mods manually.
Installing Cyberpunk 2077 mods via Vortex
- Download and install the Vortex mod manager here.
- Go to games > unmanaged games and select Cyberpunk 2077.
- Once set up, head to the Nexus Mods page for the desired mod and choose the ‘Vortex’ download option.
- With the mod now downloaded into Vortex, it will be enabled by default.
- Start your game from Vortex by clicking the launch button in the top left corner of the app.
Manually installing Cyberpunk 2077 mods
- Head to the Nexus Mods page for the desired mod and choose the ‘Manual’ download option.
- Extract the file(s) to the game’s root directory. You can download WinRAR here if you don’t already have it. For reference, the root directory of your game is in the following places:
- Epic:
C:\Program Files\Epic Games\Cyberpunk 2077 - GOG: C:\Program Files (x86)\GOG Galaxy\Games\Cyberpunk 2077
- Steam: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Cyberpunk 2077
- Epic:
- Move the file(s) into the appropriate sub-directory/directories based on the instructions given on the mod page. Some mods will end up in pre-existing folders, while others might require you to make a new one so pay close attention.
- With the mod installed, launch your game as normal.
Mods will typically have a set of required dependencies that you’ll need to download first to get it working. You can find these in the ‘requirements’ drop-down box in the ‘description’ tab for the mod.
Some modders also note these in the ‘files’ tab. We recommend using a mod manager like Vortex to keep tabs of what you’ve got installed, and easily disable any mods while you troubleshoot a potential clash. As a side note, if you use Epic Games, make sure you have mods enabled by clicking the settings cog next to the play button, and toggling on ‘enable mods.’
And those are our favorite Cyberpunk 2077 mods. Given how passionate the modding community already is about Cyberpunk 2077, we’re convinced that the best mods are still to come. Over time, hopefully, the mods for Cyberpunk 2077 will be the same quality as the best Witcher 3 mods and, perhaps, one day, even rival the gargantuan collection of the best Skyrim mods out there. Be sure to check out our Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty review to find out how what we thought of the expansion.
Original article by Dave Irwin.
