Balls to the Wall is the first Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty side job available after entering Dogtown and completing the first three main jobs. While relatively easy to tackle, the Phantom Liberty Balls to the Wall is a mission that involves a choice you’ll have to make.
Even though the choice won’t affect the story or the endings in Phantom Liberty DLC, if you play your cards right, you’ll be able to save Paco, an NPC working for BARGHEST. By picking the correct path, you can also avoid unnecessary confrontations and get your hand on Carmen, a Tier 5+ ICONIC Power Assault Rifle.
Balls to the Wall starts automatically after completing the first three main jobs while working on the fourth one named Lucretia My Reflection. Specifically, you’ll get access to this side job after opening the Capitan Caliente restaurant door. To start the side job, you’ll need to find Paco and Babs, located in a tent inside the BARGHEST camp northeast of Golden Pacific Fast Travel point you can see below.
Make your way to the BARGHEST and find Paco and Babs. When you approach them, they’ll invite you to drink some vodka inside the tent.
Sit on the couch behind Paco and ask him, “What’s the sitch?” This dialogue choice allows Paco to share his story with you in a friendly and more casual manner. When Paco asks you what you think about the no shit too deep saying, pick whatever you like.
How to Complete the Balls to the Wall
Now, allow Paco to start his story and pick “Drink | I’m all ears.”, and he’ll invite you to take a Deep Dive so you can actually “feel the story.” Since there is no other option to progress the side mission, accept and pick “Hit me – with stuff and story.”
Thanks to the Deep Dive, you’ll now play as Hansen or Paco’s superior in BARGHEST. Outside the bathroom, talk to Yuri about why Hansen was so upset. The first dialogue choice you have when playing as Hansen is not critical since you don’t know exactly what is happening. If in doubt, I recommend picking the following lines:
- Can you arrange a meeting with the Dogtown scavs?
- Deal with the commissioner – was also supposed to be rookie shit.
The two options above will allow you to discover that Yuri and Hansen are working on a deal with the scavs, and Paco is only a pawn in a larger scheme. So, head downstairs and ask Paco to hit you with his best shot.
Now, you’ll start a fistfight with Paco, and your objective is to defeat him. As you may remember from the main game, to inflict damage, you must time your blocks to stun your opponent. Press L2/LT before Paco lands his hit, then quickly press R2/RT to hit him. Keep hitting Paco until he falls to the ground, then congratulate him for passing the test. As a newcomer, Paco has no idea what is going on.
Now, you’ll return to the camp, and to continue the side job, tell Paco that you’re keeping up fine. He’ll tell you that his first mission was to protect Hansen’s convoy. Ask him about the convoy, and he’ll let you know that it was carrying generators. Agree to use another Deep Dive puff, and you’ll return to Paco’s story, but this time, you’ll be in a truck attacked by scavs.
The next objective is to eliminate them, so start picking your targets. Aim for the bike riders and car drivers.
After you deal with all the scavengers attacking the convoy, you’ll eventually stop, and the fight moves outside. Prioritize headshots and clear the area of all scavs. Next, look around for a wounded scav and get close to him. Tell Paco that he has a talent for killing scavs before returning to the camp again.
The next part of Paco’s story is the most important, and it will help you decide the path you should follow. Long story short, Yuri and Hansen stole the generators and framed the scavs. Paco, however, stole the generators from Yuri. Ask him what he did with the generators, and he’ll tell you that he sold them. Now Paco needs your help to escape Yuri, so tell him you “Got a couple ideas…”.
How To Save Paco
Since you know that Yuri was a scammer who got scammed, it’s easy to make the next choice; however, it is also worth knowing the consequences. When Paco asks to help him, you’ll have the following possible options:
- Gotta frame Yuri
- At this stage…run for the hills, guys
- See if I can’t call in some favors. Could work somethin’ out.
Before moving forward, it’s essential to know that whatever you choose, the mission will be marked as completed; however, should you decide to frame, Yuri Paco will die. If you want to finish the mission without confronting anyone, the best choice here is to help Paco exit Dogtown. So pick the second option: At this stage…run for the hills, guys.
Calling someone to help you is also viable, but it may not be available since it depends on your progression. So, if you want to save Paco, pick “run for the hills”. If you want him dead at the hands of Yuri, choose the first option.
Assuming you want to close the gig peacefully, the next step is to follow Paco to his car nearby and ask him to enter the trunk. Now, drive towards the drop point marked on your map, and don’t worry when going through the Dogtown gate because nobody will know you are carrying Paco inside the car. As you can see below, the drop point is in a parking lot near the Grand Imperial Mall.
After you drop Paco, you’ll need to wait two in-game days to finish the Balls to the Wall side job. Therefore, open the menu and skip the time for at least 48 hours. Or simply put, skip the time for 24 hours twice. Eventually, you’ll get a text from Paco, who wants to see you outside the Afterlife Club in Watson, Little China.
Agree to see him and head to the Afterlife Club. The friendly soldier will wait for you outside and tell you he joined the scavs. Make sure that after you talk to Paco, you pick up the Power Assault Rifle next to him, and don’t worry about Babs because she’ll be gone after you save Paco.
