You know, it’s really ironic how alone we can feel these days, even though we’re more connected than ever. I mean, we’re constantly on our phones, scrolling through social media, sending DMs back and forth. But true, real human connection? That’s starting to feel harder and harder to come by.
A while back, I wrote an article in which I talked about how Cyberpunk Edgrerunners protagonist, David, wasn’t as inherently special as people make him out to be. His resilience against the effects of cyberpsychosis actually stemmed more from his ability to build genuine bonds with other people. This made him appear to be special only because Night City is a place that has been stripped of those kinds of human connections. The fact is, Night City is a bleak, lonely place.
It’s a strange kind of loneliness that’s hard to explain – especially when, on the surface, everything seems so connected. It’s a feeling that’s easy to dismiss, but it’s something many of us experience more often than we care to admit.
As I played through Cyberpunk 2077 and its expansion Phantom Liberty#ad yet again, I couldn’t help but notice how Night City’s hyper-connected world actually breeds loneliness. And the character of Songbird really seems to mirror the real-world struggles that so many of us face with that feeling. That’s what I want to dive into here – how connection doesn’t always mean understanding and that, sometimes, the more connected we are, the lonelier we feel.
Night City: A Hyper-Connected Yet Lonely Place
Let’s take a moment to step into the vibrant chaos that is Night City, shall we? Picture it in your mind (or just look at the images above and below) – the bustling streets lit by neon lights, the air humming with the energy of thousands of lives intersecting.
You’ve got night markets bursting with vendors, towering holograms advertising the latest cybernetic enhancements, and the distant sounds of music and laughter mixing with the constant buzz of technology. It’s alive in a way that pulls you in, almost making you feel part of something bigger. There’s a reason why we all become so immersed in that city.
But despite all that energy and movement, there’s an overwhelming sense of isolation that blankets the city. The sheer vibrancy of it all actually creates a false sense of connection. People walk past each other, plugged into their devices, sending messages, and scrolling through feeds. It’s like everyone is in their own little bubble, surrounded by others yet utterly disconnected.
Sound familiar?
In Night City, everyone is hyper-connected through the digital landscape. You can talk to anyone at any moment, access information instantly, and share little snippets of your life online. But this extreme connectivity often leads to superficial relationships, where the depth of genuine human connection just gets lost. It’s really reminiscent of our own experiences with social media, isn’t it? We might have hundreds of “friends” online, but still feel profoundly lonely. We’re constantly bombarded with these carefully curated images of other people’s lives, but those highlights don’t reveal the reality behind them. It’s just the good stuff, leaving us to compare our own messy, unfiltered lives to those perfect moments that others choose to share.
I think we’ve all been there – crowded places where everyone seems to be having a good time, and yet you can’t shake the feeling that you’re on the outside looking in. You scroll through your social media feed, and instead of feeling connected, you end up feeling more isolated. That’s the kind of loneliness that permeates Night City, even as its inhabitants navigate a world designed to keep them constantly plugged in.
Songbird: The Loneliest Character in Night City
So, let’s talk about Songbird. If you’ve played Cyberpunk 2077’s Phantom Liberty expansion, you know she’s right in the middle of everyone’s crazy plans and agendas. But it’s not just her situation that really stands out to me – it’s her whole story that really digs deep into this theme of loneliness, even in a world that’s supposed to be so connected.
First off, Songbird isn’t just any character – she’s a netrunner, the kind of person who’s fully immersed in the digital landscape of Night City. In theory, she should be the most “plugged-in” person in the whole game, with access to an endless stream of information. You’d think that being so connected would mean she has everything she needs, right? Nah, she’s actually one of the loneliest characters you encounter.
What makes her story so sad is how little control she has over her own life. From the start, it’s clear that Songbird has been shaped and manipulated by powerful forces – the NUSA government and Reed #ad. She’s basically a product of a system that sees her as a tool instead of a person. Her identity is practically erased, and instead of being valued for who she is, she’s just reduced to what she can do. That’s why I’ve never turned her over to the NUSA. No person deserves a life like that. Can you imagine living in a world that only cares about your skills and abilities, and not about who you are as a person?
Oh wait …
You see, we live in a society (I know, it sounds like something the Joker would say) that tends to put productivity and achievements above actual human connection. It’s so easy to get caught up in all the things we can do, instead of focusing on who we really are as people. And just like Songbird, we can end up feeling completely invisible, even when we’re surrounded by others dealing with the same expectations and pressures.
On top of that, Songbird’s story is also marked by this profound sense of psychological isolation. She knows she’s being used by those in power, and that knowledge just makes her loneliness even worse. It’s like knowing everyone only sees you as a means to an end, not as an actual person.
Even her connection with V is complicated and relies more on the players’ attitudes towards her. She convinces V to help her, saying the neural matrix they’re after could help cure both their conditions. But Songbird lies to V from the start – she only cares about getting that matrix for herself, knowing it’ll only work for one of them. Their bond is built more on manipulation and Songbird’s desperation to save herself, not on any real friendship or understanding. It’s hard for anyone to find true emotional fulfillment when the only relationships you have are all transactional.
Parallels With Our Lives
It’s impossible not to see how Songbird’s struggles are a lot like the battles we all have with figuring out our identity in a world that cares more about how things look on the outside than what we’re really like on the inside. Songbird is dealing with this deep identity crisis because her whole life has been shaped and controlled by the messed up systems around her. She’s stuck in this constant tension between what she was meant to be and who she might have been if she’d ever had the chance to really figure out who she is for herself.
And this hits so close to home for a lot of us, especially in this digital age we live in now. Think about it – we’re all always curating these perfect online versions of ourselves, showing off this polished image that’s often miles away from who we really are deep down. It’s so easy to get caught up in worrying about how many likes or comments we get, and letting that determine how we feel about ourselves. All this pressure to present this idealized life can really start to blur the lines of our true selves, leaving us feeling disconnected from who we really are, just like Songbird.
And then there’s that nagging feeling of being all alone, even when you’re surrounded by people – that’s something both Songbird and a lot of us end up dealing with. Songbird is painfully aware that her whole purpose is just being used by others, and that sense of having no freedom or individuality is what makes her feel so lonely. And for many of us, our self-worth gets so tied to things like our jobs, our social media status, or how others see our achievements. It’s a tough spot to be in, where you’re always worried about what other people think of you, and that just leads to feeling inadequate and isolated.
Final Thoughts
When you look at it, Night City isn’t just the backdrop for Songbird’s story – it actually becomes a metaphor for the loneliness that can come from living in a world that’s hyper-connected. Think about it – that place is constantly buzzing with information and technology and digital interactions, but underneath it all, people are still feeling isolated and alone. And that’s exactly where Songbird’s loneliness takes root – she’s trapped in this world of artificial connections, cut off from anything real or meaningful.
Just like her, so many of us find ourselves navigating this world where we’re surrounded by people but still feel like something’s missing. We’re constantly plugged into this network of digital interactions, but those interactions can actually end up making us feel lonelier than before. And maybe that’s why Songbird’s story resonates with us so much – because in a lot of ways, we’re not all that different from her.
We might not live in Night City, but sometimes, it sure does feel like we do.
So let this be a call to action – take a moment to really reflect on your own relationships, both online and off. Are they actually fulfilling you, or are they just this digital mirage of connection? Let’s challenge ourselves to embrace more authenticity, to show the messy, imperfect parts of ourselves instead of just curating that polished persona. Because those real, honest connections are the ones that have the power to really break through the isolation we all feel, whether we’re in the neon-lit streets of Night City or scrolling through our feeds in the real world.
Images courtesy of CD Projekt Red
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