There is a simple version of this and a complete version, and both are below in that order.

Short answer

Do the simple thing first. It is correct more often than the complicated thing people recommend instead.

It is worth separating what the game does from what players have concluded it does. The mechanic behind it is simpler than the discussion around it suggests. A single check up front replaces a lot of guessing later.

Why it works this way

The accepted community answer is broadly right and wrong in a specific way that matters here. Testing this yourself takes a few minutes and settles it definitively. The developers have changed their mind about this at least once, which explains the older advice. Nothing here depends on a setting you are unlikely to have.

Edge cases are genuinely rare, which is why the simple answer is usually the correct one. There is no hidden trick here that the game is keeping from you. Most of the disagreement online comes from people describing different versions of Cyberpunk 2077.

Worth knowing alongside this

Everything below is framed around the current state of Cyberpunk 2077 rather than a launch-week impression. The community wisdom on this is roughly half right, and the half that is wrong costs the most time. If a step reads as obvious, do it anyway — the obvious ones are the ones people skip and then wonder about.

  • Note the exception cases — they are specific rather than vague.
  • Do not build a routine around an edge case.
  • Read the whole sequence once before doing the first step.
  • Revisit after a major patch if the behaviour changes.
  • Check which version any conflicting advice was written for.
  • Region and platform change more than people expect, so confirm both.

The practical answer

If your result differs from what is described here, note what is different first rather than starting over. Where something depends on your platform or region, that is called out rather than glossed over. Where two approaches both work, the one with fewer moving parts is the one to keep. There is usually a fast way and a reliable way, and it is worth knowing which one you are choosing.

What follows assumes you are on a current install and have not modified it. The short version is near the top on purpose; the reasoning is there if you want to know why. Half the pages on this topic were written for a build that no longer exists, which is why they stop matching what you see.

When the usual advice fails

If you are coming to this after a long break, the terminology has probably moved on. Most of the disagreement you will find online is two people describing different builds. None of this needs a paid tool, a third-party launcher or an account on a site you have never heard of.

Nothing here assumes a particular playstyle beyond wanting the thing to work. The awkward part is rarely the step itself, it is knowing which step comes first. Screenshots age faster than text, which is why this describes rather than shows.

What to do instead

Patch notes move numbers around constantly; the shape of the answer holds even when a specific value shifts. It helps to understand why a step exists, because then you can adapt it when your situation is slightly different. Anything that behaves differently on console than on PC is flagged where it matters.

Where people go wrong

  • Skipping the prerequisite because it looked optional in someone else's summary.
  • Changing five things at once and then not knowing which one helped.
  • Downloading a helper tool for something the game already does in its own menu.

Cyberpunk FAQ

What if none of this works for me?

Then something in your setup differs from the assumption — version, region or platform. Check those three before anything else.

How long does this take?

Minutes if it goes cleanly, an evening if you hit the edge case in the caveats list. Neither is unusual.

Does this change between platforms?

The behaviour does not. Where menu paths or prompts differ, that is noted above.

Does this work the same on console and PC?

The logic is identical. Menu paths and button prompts differ, and any real difference is flagged above.

That is the whole of it — if something here stops matching Cyberpunk 2077, the game changed, not the method.