Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.5 Adds Witcher Gear and a Halo 2 Photo Mode Pose

Small references reward close attention

Update 2.5 gives Cyberpunk 2077 a pair of cross-franchise nods: gear inspired by The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and a Photo Mode pose recalling Halo 2. Neither reference appears to carry the update on its own. Their appeal is more specific: they give observant players a reason to look beyond the headline additions and check how the patch has changed familiar spaces and tools.

That kind of detail has a different job from a new quest or feature. It rewards recognition, and it gives players something to share when they find it. This is more significant than it looks for a game with an established audience: small discoveries can make a return visit feel personal, even when the underlying content is brief. They also invite players to compare notes about where an item appears or what a pose recalls.

Witcher gear comes with two different routes

Two Bear School-inspired pieces, the Ursine Jacket and Pants, join the Sihil Sword and Boar Carver knife. Players can find them in V’s apartment after receiving Arianne’s text. That makes the apartment a useful place to check after the message arrives, rather than treating these items as ordinary equipment picked up during a fight or bought from a shop.

The Professor’s Spectacles from Hearts of Stone take a different route. They’re available for purchase during the “Open Sesame!” main quest while the auction is underway. The distinction matters for anyone collecting the references: the clothing and weapons are tied to a message and location, while the spectacles depend on being at a particular point in a quest. A player who moves through the story without checking the auction may miss the chance to buy them then.

These items draw on the visual and narrative history of The Witcher without requiring the update to turn into a crossover event. That restraint suits the material. A recognizable sword or set of clothing can carry the reference for fans, while remaining just another find for players who don’t recognize its origin.

A pose with a clear Halo connection

The Photo Mode pose, spotted by AndyArr26001354, shows a character holding weapons in both hands and recalls the Halo 2 cover, where Master Chief holds two SMGs. The connection has a gameplay echo, too: Halo 2 introduced dual wielding to its series, and Update 2.5 brings the feature to Cyberpunk 2077. The pose links the visual reference to a combat option rather than relying on appearance alone.

That’s a tidy bit of design shorthand. A still image can prompt recognition, while the matching ability gives the nod a practical counterpart in play. And yet, the reference works best as an extra detail; the patch’s value for players will depend on how the feature and the rest of the update feel in use, not on the resemblance by itself.

If you’re working through the update’s additions, Photo Mode is an easy place to spot changes that don’t announce themselves during the main story. New poses can extend the ways players document a character, and they make a feature that’s often treated as a separate tool part of the update’s discovery process. A small addition. A visible one.

The knife adds another Witcher detail

One player also highlighted the Boar Carver knife, comparing it to the blade Geralt uses to collect trophies in The Witcher 3. That comparison gives the knife a second layer of meaning for players familiar with the earlier game: its place in Cyberpunk 2077 can read as equipment, while its shape or role may remind fans of Geralt’s trophy collecting. The source describes the resemblance as a comparison, so it’s best understood as a player’s observation rather than a stated design explanation.

(And this is the part most people overlook.) An item doesn’t need a quest built around it to make a returning player pause. A familiar silhouette can be enough to trigger recognition, especially when it appears among several references to the same franchise. Taken together, the sword, clothing, spectacles and knife give players multiple chances to notice the connection at their own pace.

The patch’s wider additions set the context

The update also adds quests, including a prequel to Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 that rewards a gear set, plus a Night City tour voiced by Richard Knight. New outfits, arm cyberware customization, cross-platform mod support and a radio station round out the patch. These additions cover different ways of spending time in the game: following quests, seeing the city, changing a character’s appearance, using mods, or listening to new radio content.

The smaller references sit inside that broader package. They’re unlikely to matter equally to every player, and the source doesn’t establish how much new playtime any one addition provides. Their role is clearer as texture: extra reasons to inspect the update closely, alongside systems and activities that may appeal to a wider range of returning players.

The patch notes cover the new quests, tour, customization options, mod support and radio station. The patch notes are the place to check the full list, while the item locations and player posts offer clues for finding the smaller references.

Why the smaller details matter

Update 2.5’s cross-franchise nods show how a patch can add value through recognition as well as through larger features. They don’t replace quests, customization or other substantial additions. Instead, they give players familiar points of comparison and a reason to explore parts of the game they might otherwise pass over.

For returning players, that’s a modest but useful promise: there are details to discover, and not all of them are announced in the same way. The practical advice is simple. Check V’s apartment after Arianne’s text, pay attention to the auction during “Open Sesame!”, and try the new Photo Mode poses. The broader question is whether these additions make the game feel fresh in play. The references alone can’t answer that, but they do give curious players a few more things to look for.

Andy also noted new Photo Mode poses for dual-wielded pistols: