Comparing Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty’s Songbird to…

Summary

Songbird and Lucy, two characters from Cyberpunk 2077 and the Edgerunners series, share similarities in their professions as netrunners and their desire to escape their current situations.
However, their motivations and approaches to escape differ greatly. Songbird is portrayed as selfish and deceitful, while Lucy prioritizes her friends and helping others.
Despite the similarities, both characters are distinct and memorable in their own right, showcasing the potential for future games to create unique and memorable characters with familiar motivations.

Earlier this year, the first and only major expansion to Cyberpunk 2077, Phantom Liberty, was released. It was overall praised by critics and introduced players to brand-new characters, missions, and areas to explore. As it turned out, one of the main characters in the Cyberpunk 2077 DLC wasn't all that dissimilar from a character in the Edgerunners series.

One of the first characters players met in the DLC was a netrunner named Song So Mi or Songbird. While it was clear from an early stage that Songbird could not be trusted in Cyberpunk 2077 expansion, she forms a quick bond with V as they both share a similar condition. For some, the character may not have come off as fresh because she seemingly shared a lot of traits with Lucy from the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners series.

How Songbird and Lucy are Alike in Cyberpunk

In Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, Lucy is the deuteragonist and forms a relationship with the series' main character David Martinez, and the two become an item later in the show. In it, she is portrayed as a talented but somewhat introverted netrunner. As the show goes on, Lucy's past is gradually revealed, showing that she was originally a netunner for Arasaka before escaping and ending up in Night City.

In Phantom Liberty, Songbird is also a netrunner, a member of the FIA, and a close associate to NUSA president Rosalind Myers. V's, Solomon Reed's, and Myers' desire to help Songbird in some way, shape, or form, is what drives a good chunk of the expansion's narrative. When her true motives are eventually revealed, they are surprisingly similar to Lucy's.

Aside from their profession, the thing that both characters have most in common is their desire to escape. Songbird wants to get away from the FIA, Rosalind Myers, the NUSA, and all the hardships and heartache that come with it. Lucy, likewise, is a character who wants to get out of her present situation. While she and protagonist David Martinez build a successful life as mercenaries in Night City, it's clear she desires to get away from the environment and flee from all the horrors it has caused in her life. For both characters this escape quite literally has them fleeing to the Moon, albeit for completely different reasons.

How Songbird and Lucy are Different

The big difference between the two lies in their motivations and the ways they go about trying to accomplish their escape. Songbird is a character who can be described as a bit on the selfish and deceitful side. Throughout the expansion's story, she tells V half-truths and often outright lies to them. One of the expansion's biggest reveals is that the cure she promised V can only be used once, and has every intention of using it on herself. This eventually leads to one of the biggest decisions in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty and completely changes the way the rest of the story plays out.

Lucy, on the other hand, is someone who mostly sets aside her own goals for her friends and to help David. During the second half of the show, her desire to escape is put on hold as she tries to protect David from becoming a test subject for Arasaka's new exoskeleton program. This, in turn, causes the series' final act to kick in which, like the ending of Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, results in a rather sad conclusion for everyone involved.

Ultimately there are several similarities and differences between the two Cyberpunk characters. When it comes to any franchise certain tropes and motivations will inevitably be repeated. Despite this, both characters managed to be distinct and memorable in their own right and some have listed Songbird as Cyberpunk 2077' s best character. Hopefully, future games will manage to make equally memorable characters in the future even if they have familiar motivations to previous protagonists.