Cyberpunk 2077's sequel may have much more complex lifepaths, as devs want them to "matter more" during the story.
Cyberpunk 2077 starts out with you choosing a Lifepath, which is essentially one of three backstories you get to pick from that will radically alter the beginning of the game. Each Lifepath eventually leads to the same conclusion, allowing you to play through the same story no matter which Lifepath you chose, but it's possible that this might not be the same when it comes to the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel that's currently in development.
This is according to CD Projekt Red narrative director Philipp Weber, who said during the most recent episode of the AnsweRED Podcast (thanks IGN) that he'd like Lifepaths to "matter more" in the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel. Weber claims that Cyberpunk 2077 doesn't really deliver on the promise that you're playing different characters when you pick your Lifepath, and wants to improve on this aspect for future projects.
I do think that there are things with, for example, the Lifepaths, that kind of gives you a promise as being able to play more different kinds of characters. I think this is a thing where, in the future, that's, as an example, something we would like to improve.
Weber also expresses regret at how much the Lifepath aspect of the first Cyberpunk 2077 "goes away a little bit", and that he would make them a little bit more involved in the main story had he had a little more experience and time during development. He obviously now has that experience, so it'll be interesting to see how Lifepaths differ in the Cyberpunk 2077 sequel when it eventually does launch.
In fact, the sequel may look totally different to the first game, as CD Projekt Red was recently tossing up whether to stick with first-person, or make the series third-person, similar to The Witcher. With decisions such as the perspective of the entire game still to be pinned down, you get a good idea of just how far away Cyberpunk 2077's sequel actually is. How much Lifepaths are woven into the story is probably the least of CD Projekt Red's worries right now, though it's nice to know the devs are thinking about it.
CD Projekt Red is currently working on the next Witcher game, currently codenamed Project Polaris, but it was recently claimed that development on the sequel to Cyberpunk 2077 is scheduled to begin in 2024. We don't have release windows for these titles just yet, though you can imagine the studio will take its time with them to avoid another disaster. You'd hope so anyway.
More:
Cyberpunk 2077 Devs Want To Make Lifepaths "Matter More" In The Sequel - TheGamer