I like the bittersweet nature of Temperance. Especially as chosen after the secret ending path, that way nobody else gets hurt, too. There is something poetic and beautiful to me of V and Johnny storming Arasaka Tower as a solitary duo, with Johnny cheering on, as contrasted to the very first scene he appears in in the opening. And I don’t know, V learns to stop fighting and accept mortality, Johnny gets a second chance… I just like it.

I get the appeal of the Star ending. I do. Especially if you romance Judy (Judy romance plus Sun ending is extra miserable, though). But I guess Star is a little too close to “happily ever after” for my preference in this setting. It’s a nice riding into the sunset, leaving Night City literally and metaphorically for V and the player, but such a happy ending (especially with the throwing the player a bone bit about a potential cure with some technomancer) feels oddly almost inappropriately happy for the setting. Actually I think in some ways the Devil ending might be the most appropriate, especially for some Vs. I mean I hate it and it’s terrible, but it’s also awesome and so, so cyberpunk. And it hits some nice notes with the themes, the misery, the desperation for life, the true nature of SoulKiller, destroying the Johnny engram only to become an engram yourself, the corps always win…

But maybe I’m just a sucker for depression.