The Cyberpunk 2077 critics of Cassel had their hearts ripped out and are making sure that theirs are heard loudly in the public. The official Twitter of CD Projekt Red retweeted one astounding fan art by @aabyxs of the French netrunner character, and the replies—oh, the hell of unfiltered emotional might.
So, who is this Aurore Cassel, and how did players get so obsessed and devastated by her? For anyone who hasn’t actually played Phantom Liberty (spoilers, guys), this slick netrunner, in all her gray moral shades and a killer French accent, met an even more deadly fate. She was taken into a very high-stakes op only to have her end met with such brutal disrespect that gamers literally fell from their seats, shouting at their screens. And judging from that Twitter feed, it seems no one can really get on with life.
“Who at CDPR created this character and who decided to off her?” asked one player, echoing responses that ranged into the dozens. Another simply stated, “I will not forgive what happened to her,” and others were pleading for a way to save her through a future update. The anger is not so much about her dying—it’s about the wasted potential. “She was so bad why did she have to die,” said another player, in real summation of the collective grief.
And with art such as this shadowy portrait of Aurore awash in gold light, the flood of anger was only poured down upon her. Players crowded the replies clamoring for retribution—some jokingly requested a “blacklist” of the writer responsible, while others earnestly begged for the romance that never was. “We deserve a romance with her,” one player demanded. Another remarked, “Her not being a romance option is still Phantom Liberty’s greatest tragedy.”
Breaking down the language barrier in the most CP way possible, French players chimed in with “Elle est dans le dlc” (She’s in the DLC), while others butchered French pickup lines terribly: “Omlette du fromage??? Désolé, je m’appelle un grand baguette.” Classic.
The ultimate joke was some players hadn’t even met her. “Mince, j’ai fini le jeu et jamais rencontré ce personnage” (Darn, I finished the game and never met this character), said one baffled fan, showing just how layered Phantom Liberty is with all its branching.
So what do we do now? With rumors flying of another Cyberpunk 2077 update and more DLC, players are standing at the ready for an Aurore resurrection—or at least some closure. Until then, it’s art, it’s memery, and a whole bunch of emotional damage.
Never fade away, indeed. 🎶
