I got the game soon after launch and started a sneaky hacker. Didn’t get very far before shelving the game until it was in a better place in terms of polish. Then I recently decided to give the game another chance and pick up where I left with the sneaky hacking. The character seems no longer viable now since my previous approach seems to be limited to however long it takes for the inevitable and unstoppable tracing to finish. Then the game gently pushes my nose into combat and rubs my face in the fact that I have not specced for that.
Is there any way left to level my sneaky hacker through sneaky hacking? Because I did like that playstyle and I don’t see myself leveling a fighter. If I wanted to play a shooter, I certainly wouldn’t do that in Cyberpunk 2077.
Im not sure how the game was with that kind of build at launch, but i did a similar build on my last play-through after the big Phantom Liberty update. It starts out a little rough, you do have to level up to get higher skills that either slow tracking, or completely negate in some ways- so yes, it is kind of a “slog through it”, but arent most RPG builds that way? You have to complete them for them to be really effective?
At any rate, i always finished my hack stacks with a memory wipe if i wasnt sure the stack would kill, ran a deck that made hacks spread repeatedly to nearby enemies, so they kinda kept AOEing each other to death while i watched from the corners. If i started getting traced, i’d either quickly try to figure out who and eliminate before i was caught (if i didnt start with any hackers in the first place- usually the hackers are obvious when you scan them). By late game i could just roll up on a building, scan, dump hacks, wait a few seconds, and walk in to a building full of bodies…pretty OP, lol.
Last resort was always running away- id always make sure i had a clean way out. If you get far enough away (it’s not really too far) the tracking will fail since you’re out of range.
That’s exactly the crux of the matter: I want a game where you grow more efficient. Start out doing the gameplay loop that I like, but badly, slowly and then get better at that gameplay loop.
This change made my favourite gameplay loop no longer viable at all at lower levels. You don’t start out a bad sneaker and then become a good sneaker, they completely removed the ability to effectively solve areas with sneaking altogether at the start.
I wanted to improve my viable but still flawed hacking skills, not play a different game altogether until stealth-hacking suddenly becomes available mid-game.
I’m doing stealth hacker right now, 5th playthrough.
I usually hack nearby objects rather than the people themselves. Other people have already noted bringing trace down with memory wipe or sonic shock, but I usually don’t hack the people at all. Catch is the approach I use needs throwing knives or a silenced pistol. Preferably knife, since it triggers detection a lot less. Distract with a CHOOH2 tank, then overload it when they have it right in front of their face. Distract from line of sight to sneak up on people and take them down. Lure them in front of traps like falling crates using Bait or nearby distractions like lights. When there’s no hack ables nearby or convenient, the knife comes into play.
Bottom line is directly hacking enemies is either a race against time with some tools to reset the race or an endgame strat. Other hacks and I think a perk or two provide ways to do reset trace, and AOE perks and hacks can make the trace progress moot if you kill everyone fast enough, but if you want to go slow and stealthy, you’ll need to be more crafty and indirect with your strats. Use mostly covert hacks as distractions, with some combat hacks in your pocket for if things go south.
Make sure you do a ton of side content like NCPD scanner jobs, gigs, psychos, etc. That will net you the eds and parts to keep your cyberdeck upgraded. You’ll be using ultimate quick hacks in no time.
Side note: the Araasaka deck slows trace progress. Good choice if you want to stay under the radar