It’s probably safe to say that the majority of gamers are dying to get our hands on Cyberpunk 2077, CD Projekt Red’s epic open-world neon dystopian role-playing game follow-up to The Witcher 3, but we’ve got some time to kill until then, so how can we set the mood?
By Max Scoville
Well, Cyberpunk isn’t just one game, it’s a whole genre of fiction, spanning every medium, including the interactive ones. Here are seven cyberpunk games you can play while you’re waiting around for 2077.
Download Image
Deus Ex (ANY OF THEM, seriously, just pick one)
For a lot of gamers, Deus Ex is the definitive cyberpunk game series, offering a mix of first-person action and role-playing that undoubtedly influenced Cyberpunk 2077. Since the original Deus Ex debuted almost twenty years ago, it’s spawned five additional installments.
The first two are classic, but if you need something more contemporary, the 2011 prequel Human Revolution is excellent. And yes, it’s backwards compatible on Xbox One. Meanwhile, its 2016 sequel Mankind Divided is readily available for current gen consoles.
If you want something on the go, it’s even gotten mobile games in the form of Deus Ex: The Fall and Deus Ex Go.
Observer is a first-person psychological horror game that squarely establishes its cyberpunk setting by taking more than a few cues from Blade Runner; it’s set in a grimy claustrophobic used-future version of Poland, where a hard-boiled detective voiced by Roy Batty himself, Rutger Hauer, must solve a mystery by hacking into the brain augmentations of suspects.
Ruiner
If claustrophobic horror and mystery sounds too slow and scary, and you want some bloody, fast-paced action, look no further than Ruiner -- A story-driven top-down shooter set in a gorgeously realized cyberpunk metropolis that takes cues from Akira and Ghost in The Shell, with tough-as-balls combat that takes cues from Hotline Miami and [anything else?], and a pumping soundtrack to boot.
Jazzpunk
Most cyberpunk is dark, gritty, totally serious, and rooted in the 1980s; if instead you want something bright and colorful, goofy as all hell, and inspired by the 60s, check out Jazzpunk. It still tackles a surprising amount of cyberpunk themes. It's sort of like if Mad Magazine’s Spy Versus Spy did a spoof of Neuromancer, but as a first-person comedy adventure game.
VA11 HALL-A
The thing about cyberpunk dystopias is, realistically, they’re probably awful to live in… So why not get drunk? VA11 HALL-A is a bartending game slash visual novel where you affect the flow of the story by serving characters different concoctions to drown their sorrows, against a neon futuristic backdrop. With cyberpunk classics Blade Runner and Akira both having iconic bar scenes, it’s almost surprising this wasn’t made sooner.
Watch_Dogs 2
So maybe you want a little less cyber and a little more punk? Watch Dogs 2 is, of course, Ubisoft’s big colorful sandbox action game in which players help a scrappy group of hackers take down an oppressive Social Media surveillance state in the real-life cyberpunk dystopia of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Sure, it might be a mainstream AAA action game in a contemporary setting, but it's about group of high-tech lowlifes taking on a corrupt corporation. That's pretty textbook cyberpunk.
Cyberpunk 2020
Finally, if you’re really dying to get lost in the world of Cyberpunk 2077, why not play the game that started all… The pen and paper roleplaying game, Cyberpunk 2020? Get some friends together, roll some dice, and cause some trouble in Night City! Thanks to the hype surrounding Cyberpunk 2077, used copies of Mike Pondsmith’s core 2020 rulebook are at a premium on ebay, but worry not! Legit, legal reprints can be ordered directly from the R. Talsorian Games website!
..Or if that's too much trouble, here's a video of Cyberpunk creator Mike Pondsmith running a game with some of IGN's biggest tabletop nerds.
Max Scoville is a host and producer at IGN, you can find him on Twitter @MaxScoville or check out the vaguely cyberpunk diorama he's been building on his Instagram.
Cyberpunk 2077 was announced way back in 2012, and the past seven years of news paint CD Projekt's sci-fi RPG as a behemoth of a game, even bigger than The Witcher 3. CD Projekt RED promised that E3 2019 would will be the company's 'most important' E3 ever, which we can now agree is true as action star Keanu Reeves came out on stage to give the game's release date at the Microsoft press conference.
When is Cyberpunk 2077 coming out? What will its story be like? Will it really look that good? Here's everything we know about Cyberpunk 2077 so far.
Cyber-hands On
We got to play a new Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay demo at E3 this year, walking through everything on display, from character creation to boss fights.
When is Cyberpunk 2077's release date?
April 16, 2020 is the date delivered to us by Keanu Reeves in the flesh at E3 2019.
While our hopes for a 2019 release have been dashed, we now finally know we have less than a year to wait before playing CD Projekt RED's new game.
Preorders for Cyberpunk 2077 have already started. We've also got all the details on what's included in the Cyberpunk 2077 Collector's Edition.
What's the latest news on Cyberpunk 2077?
Watch Cyberpunk 2077's E3 2018 gameplay demo
Here's the only public look at Cyberpunk so far: 48 minutes of Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay, with some VO explaining what's going on. Further down in this article, you'll find greater detail on what we learned from watching Cyberpunk 2077 in action at both E3 2018 and E3 2019, along with more information from interviews with CD Projekt Red.
Is Cyberpunk 2077 an FPS?
Dare we say that Cyberpunk 2077 is a first-person shooter RPG? We dare. Though cutscenes and driving sometimes switch to third-person, Cyberpunk 2077 involves a lot of first-person shooting. With guns. Lots of guns. It's chaotic and fast-paced, but was less aggressive than, say, Doom. During a firefight in the opening moments of the demo, V, the main character, ducked and peeked around cover to spray a gang of organ scavengers with bullets from her automatic pistol. Like Destiny 2, numbers indicating damage dealt exploded with each landed shot—but enemies didn't feel like bullet sponges. We also love how agile V can be.
Party members
We know that you have at least one teammate: His name is Jackie and he's a real badass. During one boss fight, he picked up a car and used it as mobile cover. In another fight, he charged straight through a wall to tackle an especially tough enemy. He appears to be a main character.
Though there's quite a bit of variety in what abilities V has, in the 2018 demo she was an agile cyberninja. She could run and slide to cover and also trigger a slow motion bullet-time mode. She also had a quick dash that let her burst in a specific direction. When bullet-time and this dash were combined, she could quickly flank enemies and deliver fatal killshots.
We also saw a ton of cool weapons, and yes, there are weapons other than guns, though again, there are a lot of guns. A street-modified Tech Shotgun could penetrate cover and enemies, which was a deadly combo when paired with V's upgraded optic implant that could show her enemies through objects. A Smart Rifle takes all the skill out of shooting by firing bullets that track enemies. You merely aim in their general direction and it'll lock onto multiple targets and fire bullets that automatically track their intended targets.
So while of course this is still a CD Projekt open-world RPG, with all the expected trappings like exploration, dialogue, skills, and so on, it's also a shooter, in first person.
Cyberpunk 2077 character creation
During the 2018 demo we got a quick peak of the character creation screen, which starts with choosing your sex. From there, you can customize hair, tattoos, and clothing. It doesn't look like you can change your character's bone structure, though—no deep menu of facial feature sliders here.
At E3 2019, quest director Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz explained to Gamasutra that Cyberpunk's character creation won't be limited by gender. 'We have put a lot of thought into this. One of the things we want to do in the final game (which we couldn't show in the demo yet, because as you mentioned it's a work in progress) is to give the players as many options of customization in the beginning of the game as we can.'
CDPR is also working on customizable voices for V. Tomaszkiewicz did specificy that these are all things the team 'wants to do,' not already has done, so there's no surefire promises that this will carry into the final game.
You can also change your stats. There are basics like Strength and Intelligence, but also a 'Cool' stat that perhaps maps to charisma or one's ability to handle stress. The full list from what we saw in the demo: Strength, Constitution, Intelligence, Reflexes, Tech, Cool. Notably, there are some important stats from the tabletop Cyberpunk not represented here, like Empathy. More on why that's significant below.
We're sure Cool will have some other cute functions aside from charisma, as we speculate here. You can also change your backstory, referred to as a Lifepath, choosing from Nomad, Corpo or Street Kid, which each have their own origin story and starting location in the world. You know, the standard RPG stuff these days.
However you customize your character, you're still one specific person: V. Not 'Vee.' Just V. You're a mercenary, and that's most of what we know so far.
You can finish Cyberpunk 2077 without killing anyone
Cyberpunk 2077 will let you play the game without ever killing anyone, a great feature for folk who want to roleplay a less bloodthirsty V. But the game wasn't always planned this way. After feedback from E3 2018, CDPR took time to add non-lethal options to almost all of its weapons and cyberware upgrades.
We say 'almost,' because there are some reasonable exceptions. There's no non-lethal setting for the bazooka, for example. 'Pretty much every gun, pretty much every cyberware, you're able to use in a nonlethal way. You're able to knock them down, choke them, make them sleep and so on. There are ways not to kill them and spare them, like the way you could do with Sasquatch, the boss,' lead quest designer Paweł Sasko told PC Gamer.
Who is Keanu Reeve's Cyberpunk 2077 character, Johnny Silverhand?Johnny Silverhand
The world basically exploded in excitement when Keanu Reeves showed up in the Cyberpunk 2077 E3 2019 trailer. It's cool enough that he's making an appearance, but it's even cooler that he's playing Johnny Silverhand, a well-known character from the original 1988 Cyberpunk tabletop game.
Though, CDPR's interpretation of Silverhand takes the character in an interesting direction: Silverhand is already dead, and lives in V's head as a 'digital ghost.' We were half-expecting a Hollywood celebrity role to be a small side character, but Keanu's Silverhand appears to be a main character in Cyberpunk's story.
In the tabletop game, Silverhand is a Rockerboy, a subclass in the lore that basically acts like a traditional Dungeons & Dragons bard. His original design is much more rooted in the tabletop game's '80s-inspired Cyberpunk aesthetic. 2077's Silverhand is has a rougher John Wick-like vibe, but still sports his iconic cybernetic arm all the same.
Will there be romance?
As much 'romance' as you can find in a cyberpunk future, yes. Like in The Witcher 3, you'll be able to pursue romance as V. Because Cyberpunk includes character creation, these romance options will be more diverse than they were in The Witcher series.
'There are a lot more options. You know, you're defining your own character here, which means defining their sexuality any way you want,' quest designer Patrick Mills said in an interview with Game Informer. 'With Geralt, you had a character whose sexuality was very well defined by the novels and the short stories and the previous games. But in this one, it's up to you to decide. We've got NPCs that are gay, we've got NPCs that are bi, we've got NPCs that are straight, because we want them to feel real and that they have preferences as well.'
In June, CDPR said that romantic plot lines will be 'similar' in scope and detail to Geralt's relationships, despite there being more of them. CD Projekt Red clarified to us further: 'Romancing is something heavily present in Cyberpunk, and players will be able to form meaningful connections with other characters as well as go for one night stands.'
That's all fine and good, but after E3 2019, we have a new pressing question: Can. You. Smooch. Keanu. Considering he's a digital ghost, prospects aren't great, but we're holding out hope.
Is Cyberpunk 2077 mature-rated like The Witcher 3?
Yeah. Cyberpunk 2077 isn't for kids, and definitely seems to be leaning into its inevitable mature rating. In the first few minutes of the demo, V rescued a woman kidnapped by organ scavengers. She was found naked in a bathtub, and the game didn't flinch away from full nudity. There was also a ton of swearing, as expected, but also what sounded like masturbation jokes. Cyberpunk 2077 looks keen to capitalize on the style of many premium cable shows—lots of swearing and nudity, that is.
How does dialogue work?
In a lot of RPGs, dialogue sections basically put the game on pause while two characters talk stiffly back and forth. It's not the best way to deliver the story, and thankfully Cyberpunk 2077 has massive improvements in this area. While we're not 100 percent certain, all dialogue appears to happen in real-time. You can continue moving and looking around, but when you focus the camera back on the character you're speaking to, dialogue options appear on screen. There were usually three or four options at any time, which does suggest this system won't be as robust as in some other RPGs.
We're OK with that, though, because this new system and the first-person perspective make for some incredibly tense exchanges. When V and her sidekick Jackie arrived at a Maelstrom gang hideout with the intention of buying a powerful piece of gear, the deal almost went sour. In the middle of the dialogue sequence, characters including V started drawing weapons and pointing them at one another. Meanwhile, dialogue prompts kept appearing that let you try to steer the situation: Do you try to keep calm or open fire? In this situation, we finally managed to deescalate by showing the thugs that we had the money and weren't looking to screw them over.
In an earlier scene, V was apprehended by a group of corporate agents. These extremely deadly characters were looking for information, and mistook V as someone they were looking for. While they pinned her to the ground, they jacked into her cyberware and installed a lie detector app and began an interrogation. If we lied, they would know it immediately and there would be consequences because of that. This new system feels fluid and natural. There's no longer the clear distinction of entering and exiting a conversation with someone. Everything flows together.
What kind of abilities can you unlock?
Cyberware refers to augments that have all sorts of uses. During the demo, we visited a Ripperdoc who could upgrade and replace our cyberware. We opted for a Kiroshi Optical Implant that let us zoom in on objects and also analyze the environment, seeing enemy levels and getting detailed information about them. We also picked up a Subdermal Grip for our gun hand, which increases the damage we do when firing guns.
The implants are wildly cool, but it’s strange that they don’t seem to have downsides in a game world which—at least in its tabletop incarnation—stressed the dangerous sides of cyberware with mental illnesses like cyberpsychosis. It’s a facet of the universe that we know the developers are aware of—the 2013 reveal trailer featured a woman getting arrested by C-SWAT for going off the deep end. On the tabletop, a character’s Empathy and Humanity stats dictated how much cyberware it was safe for them to use, but Empathy seems absent from Cyberpunk 2077.
Later on we got access to some wild toys. One piece of cyberware let V ricochet bullets around corners to kill enemies behind cover. This was accompanied by a UI element that showed you the intended path of the bullet, so you could line up shots perfectly. We also got to see V's mantis-like sword arms, which she could use to eviscerate enemies. Other upgrades let V wallrun, use bullet time, double jump, and dash forward in short bursts. There's even robots you can control remotely, like a spiderbot that can climb walls and ceilings. We didn't get to see it in action, but once we acquired the thing it followed us through levels automatically defending itself during combat.
At one point, V snuck up on an enemy and put them in a chokehold. From there, she could hack into that person's cyberware and access data about that person, some of which is just for lore. If enemies are connected together by a network, though, a bunch of new options open up. In this instance, V hacked one enemy's gun to make it stop working without him realizing. She killed the person she had put in a chokehold and then attacked the two remaining bad guys. As she finished off one, the other tried shooting only to realize his gun was jammed. His confusion created an opening for V to get in close and finish him off.
We were told that some Ripperdocs will also let us suit up with illegal military-grade tech. We can only imagine how cool that stuff will be.
What does Night City look and feel like, and how do you get around?
Cyberpunk 2077 takes place in the year 2077—which you probably didn’t need us to tell you—and as mentioned it's set within Night City, a fictional city between San Francisco and LA (as described here, although if it's really in Del Coronado Bay it would be well south of LA) that already exists in the Cyberpunk pen and paper RPG created by Mike Pondsmith. Punks and corporate stooges of all varieties wander these foggy, once Mob-ruled streets, and by 2023, corporations are openly warring for them. Cyberpunk 2077 will show us what happened to the city in the aftermath of that war.
Night City
The cover of the Night City sourcebook. Click here to enlarge. If you're interested in the pen and paper RPG, you can pick up the roleplaying book for $30.
Here are some of the other cool things from the Cyberpunk tabletop game we'd love to see.
Thanks to some awesome crowd technology, the Cyberpunk 2077's Night City feels alive and bustling. It was incredible watching V walk through streets and seeing hundreds of characters walking, playing, talking, and fighting. It's not clear how dynamic this world is, however. We passed by a crime scene in one neighborhood, and I'd like to know whether that crime scene will ever get cleaned up or if it's a static landmark in this area.
The city is, by all accounts, massive. It features six districts with no loading screens between them. To help you get around, there are vehicles you can drive in either first or third person. It was hard to get a sense for how realized this part of the game is—we're not sure if there will be all the depth of simulation you see in something like Grand Theft Auto V's driving and traffic. But it did look impressive and smooth.
Speaking to VG24/7, CDPR said the autonomous function allows you to summon your car at will, instead of trying to remember where you parked. Let's hope it's better at finding its way than Geralt's horse, Roach. You'll also have access to a garage to store the cars you own, but it's unclear if you'll be able to own them all or if a cap will be set.
We've all been operating under the assumption t hat Cyberpunk 2077 would take place entirely inside the sprawling Night City, but players will also explore the city's outskirts, called the Badlands.
In an interview with VG24/7 at E3 2019, lead quest designer Pawel Sasko said the Badlands is one of the game's main districts. 'Players can leave Night City and just explore that area—an area that is mostly sort of destroyed basically after all the droughts and everything that happened in the 50 years from 2020 to '77. And you can explore that, there are specific quests prepared for that, also open world content, so that’s definitely covered. It’s not only the city that you’re visiting.'
Cyberpunk 2077 won't have a morality system, that's up to you
Speaking to GamingBolt, quest director Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz said that Cyberpunk 2077 does not have morality mechanics. V will be treated differently in the world depending on their reputation, but a hard morality system won't be part of that.
'To complete it non-lethally you have to be very good at stealth,' Tomaszkiewicz said. 'Invest in points that allow you to stealth better, use weapons that will allow you to incapacitate the enemy instead of killing them, to make the moral choices that will allow you to avoid killing people throughout the game.' This sounds similar to how The Witcher 3 left moral choices in the player's hands without making it a hard statistic.
Will there be multiplayer?
It seems likely. CD Projekt Red has partnered with a multiplayer-focused studio to provide technology for Cyberpunk 2077. That technology isn't necessarily for a multiplayer mode, but that seems like the most obvious avenue.
At E3 2018, we learned that Cyberpunk 2077 won't launch with multiplayer, but might get some form of it after release. We first heard about multiplayer features back in 2013, but CD Projekt RED clearly knew the word could agitate its fans. 'It will be a story-based RPG experience with amazing single-player playthroughs,' reassured managing director Adam Badowski in a 2013 talk with Eurogamer, 'but we're going to add multiplayer features.'
In 2017, CD Projekt CEO Adam Kiciński said that multiplayer features would ensure Cyberpunk's 'long-term success,' which caused some concerns given the recent kerfuffle over microtransactions.
CD Projekt responded to the concerns with a tweet meant to reassure fans that they'll still be getting a Witcher 3-style singleplayer story. 'Worry not,' it said. 'When thinking CP2077, think nothing less than TW3—huge single player, open world, story-driven RPG. No hidden catch, you get what you pay for—no bullshit, just honest gaming like with Wild Hunt. We leave greed to others.'
But seriously, will there be microtransactions?
CD Projekt says no. The E3 2018 trailer contains a little Easter egg which confirms that there will be no microtransactions in Cyberpunk 2077. (Enlarge the image and read the red text, in which CD Projekt responds to the question: 'In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?')
Freeze-frame of Cyberpunk 2077.. easter egg FAQ hidden behind! oooOOO pic.twitter.com/d3NgFulOIYJune 10, 2018
What about expansions?
Story expansions are an expectation for large open-world games now, especially for CD Projekt RED after the extremely well-received Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions released for The Witcher 3.
UI coordinator Alvin Liu told Prima Games 'I know when I was playing The Witcher 3 and I finished everything, I still wanted to know what everyone was up to. I think we're going to have opportunities like that as well for Cyberpunk 2077.' Liu said that CDPR is discussing expansions as a possibility for Cyberpunk.
Looking for the best cyberpunk games on PC? It’s a likely scenario, as you’ll need something to tide you over until CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077 release date, after all. From neon lights and synthwave music to political commentary and body augmentation, you can probably see why anything with the cyberpunk tag becomes a favourite in pop culture.
Philip K Dick’s novels played a hand in that, with his 1968 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? going on to influence Ridley Scott’s cult film Blade Runner. Cyberpunk is far from a Western lover affair, too, and is also present in the East, with Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira proving to be iconic in both manga and anime forms.
It’s only right, if not unsurprising, then, that Cyberpunk games have manifested as a result. From indie favourites such as Deconstructeam’s Red Strings Club to big hitters like Square Enix’s Deus Ex. Heck, there’s even a Quantic Dream developed Cyberpunk game with Davie Bowie in it.
Moving on. You should keep in mind that this isn’t an exhaustive list of every cyberpunk game, but it contains some of the most wonderful and weird cyberpunk games you could hope to get your inquisitive hands on. It’s time to dust off your decks and trenchcoats, head out into the rain and marvel at our picks of the best Cyberpunk games on PC:
The Red Strings Club
Donovan is a little bit different than the rest. The Red Strings Club is stuffed with a wonderful array of diverse and cybernetically enhanced characters, but our bartender stands out for being free of robotics. That doesn’t mean he’s not special though. Thanks to a special power, he can judge what kind of drinks can enhance parts of people’s personalities, which is pretty handy for getting information out of them. A good thing, then, that Donovan doubles as an information broker.
Donovan’s rare grasp of empathy allows The Red Strings Club to play out as part cyberpunk narrative experience, and part bartending sim. However, as you spend more time speaking with friends and patrons, it quickly becomes apparent that a professed altruistic corporation called Supercontinent Ltd is on the verge of launching Social Psyche Welfare. According to some, it’ll eradicate depression, anger, and fear creeping social anxiety. But others argue that the ability to make mistakes is how we grow, and toying with that is immoral. It’s always said that the making of a good villain is not presenting a force of evil but giving the audience someone with a strong belief that what they’re doing is right. The Red Strings Club is full of characters with conviction, and hearing each of them out will thoroughly toy with your head. It’s no surprise that this gem was one of the best games of 2018.
Shadowrun Dragonfall
Shadowrun is a curious blend. Elves, Orcs, and magic spliced with hacking, street samurai, and giant corporations – it’s Tolkien mixed with Gibson, and it’s bloody marvellous. It’s a great pen & paper game, too, if you’re here for that.
Dragonfall is an expansion to Hairbrained Schemes’ Shadowrun Returns and improves on it in almost every way. Set in New Berlin, you control a group of Shadowrunners, each with their own fleshed out backstories and rich personalities, as they attempt to… well, it’s a mystery, so you’re better off finding out for yourself.
Role model: the best RPGs on PC
What I can tell you, without spoiling things, is that you will spend most of your time infiltrating various facilities, employing firearms, magic, summoned spirits, and robots to get what you want. Oh yes, and you’ll be able to venture into cyberspace, where you’ll fight AI programs to hack into critical systems.
Syndicate Wars
Most cyberpunk games put you in the role of someone outside of the manipulative, corporate system. The original Syndicate turns this on its head by putting you in charge of a group of cyborg mercenaries working for ‘the man’.
In Syndicate Wars it’s more of the same, as you can work for both the all-controlling EuroCorp, or a group of religious zealots trying to start a revolt. Whoever you side with the result is the same: things get blown up, people get mind-controlled, and all the regular folk suffer.
It’s one of those games that deserves the accolade ‘ahead of its time’ because it offers you entirely destructive sandboxes and so many ways to tackle missions – levelling city blocks with nuclear weapons and manipulating masses of innocent people as you go. This may be one of the old games, but it’s one of the classic PC games for sure.
Gunpoint
In Gunpoint, you’re a private detective with fancy future-trousers that allow you to leap like a frog. Don’t get ahead of yourself, though, you might have fancy trousers, but you’re also down on your luck and about to get in over your head.
Tom Francis’ extremely bright game of infiltration and hacking is built around a cyberpunk story of corrupt corporations and murder. If you need a break from the stealth, though, you can fling a few chaps out some windows, which is a whole lot of fun.
As Richard Conway, you’re sort of like a vigilante electrician, sneaking into buildings and rewiring their electronics to steal disks, hack executive computers, and clear your name.
Solo act: more of the best indie games on PC
Part puzzle game, part platformer, Gunpoint can be tricky, but it also forgives and rewards experimentation and creativity, using a building’s security systems to your advantage. It’s very short but has an in-game level editor blessing it with countless new missions and even trickier challenges. Yes, you can finish the game in an afternoon, but what an afternoon it will be.
Invisible, Inc.
A squad-based, turn-based tactics game, Invisible, Inc. is a little bit like XCOM, a little bit like Shadowrun, but has no aliens and no magic. Instead, Klei’s understated roguelike hones in on tech and stealthy infiltrations. Either way, it’s one of the best strategy games on PC.
Here’s the deal: megacorps rule the world, your private intelligence firm has been compromised, and most of its agents have been “removed”. You’ve got 72 hours to prepare for a final mission to infiltrate the enemy HQ and insert Invisible, Inc’s AI into their computer or you’re done for.
It’s a slick, sneaky game with plentiful opportunities for emergent gameplay, with each mission escalating in difficulty the longer you spend in it, creating a tense risk versus reward loop as you try to decide whether or not to explore areas in their entirety or complete the mission and get the hell out.
Meant to be played more than once, completing different objectives unlocks more agents that can be used in new games, each with unique starting loadouts and quirks. It’s extremely moreish, like the popcorn of Cyberpunk games.
Technobabylon
Wadjet Eye has published (and developed) its fair share of excellent sci-fi adventure games, including the brilliant Gemini Rue and Resonance, but it’s Technobabylon that gets onto this list, not just because it’s the most cyberpunk, but because it’s the best adventure game of the lot.
Genetic engineering, oppressive AIs, the surveillance state – Technobabylon is serious business. The game jumps between three characters, two members of the secret police with divided loyalties, and an agoraphobic hacker who prefers to spend her life in cyberspace, and they all become entangled in a cracking sci-fi conspiracy.
This is one of those games that, because of it’s gorgeous pixel aesthetic, gets called “classic” or “traditional” but is absolutely a modern game that pushes the genre forward with exceptionally creative puzzles that never actually feel like puzzles.
Cyberpunk Games For Psp
Logical but inspired problems, a thick, multi-layered story, and some of the best and most believable world building you’ll have the good fortune to witness – Technobabylon is a brilliant reminder that point and click games can still reach new heights.
Anachronox
The weird blend of console-style JPRG combat and Western cyberpunk and film noir themes is a bizarre combination, and yet Anachronox makes it work against all the odds. It’s still utterly ridiculous though. You’ve got a down on his luck private investigator nicknamed “Sly Boots” living on a city-planet that’s continuously shifting where, if you look up, you’ll see people walking upside down on gravity-defying streets, and somehow this drunk, sarcastic fellow is meant to stop the galaxy from being demolished.
Shows like firebreather. Anachronox even makes the simple mouse cursor interesting. Instead of an arrow or icon that only you, the player, can see, the cursor is a tiny floating vessel containing Sly’s deceased chum in hologram form. We can’t say we’ve come across any other game where the protagonist has hilarious banter with the cursor.
While the eccentric cast and bizarre world will keep you grinning for hours, this recommendation is tinged with melancholy. Anachronox was developed with a sequel in mind, and thus the story is left incomplete and is unlikely to be picked back up again.
E.Y.E: Divine Cybermancy
If it weren’t for the next game down, EYE would easily be the loopiest game on this list. It’s mad and rarely makes any sense whatsoever, and yet it’s so strange and ambitious that it demands to be played. It’s also one of the few FPS Cyberpunk games, so gets a nod for that niche alone.
You play a cyberpunk warrior monk working for a megacorp – shooting, hacking, or doing weird things like psychically cloning yourself as you make your way through sprawling levels. You can try to play through it like a standard shooter, but you’ll want to explore the more esoteric and peculiar abilities at your disposal.
One thing you’ll undoubtedly want to experience is the hacking. While so many games relegate this to a mind-numbing but quick mini-game, EYE gives us a turn-based combat experience against deadly AIs. Lose the battle, and the AI will hack you instead, infecting you with a nasty virus.
There are too many big concepts, not much coherence and it’s immediately overwhelming. But this cyberpunk game is so bold and weird that it has to be experienced even if just for a mission or two, and you might find yourself sticking with it to the end.
Omikron: The Nomad Soul
Nomad Soul is fourth-wall-breaking cyberpunk, supernatural fantasy, an adventure game, an action game, and a game where David Bowie stars both as an NPC and in the excellent soundtrack – it’s so many things. Too many things, and that’s why we love it.
Quantic Dream is more well known for Heavy Rain, but this is where David Cage first started assaulting us with his crazy ideas. And like all Quantic Dream games, it’s very uneven and bites off more than it can chew.
It is fascinating, though. You find yourself drawn into another dimension where you possess the body of a futuristic cop in the bizarre city of Omikron. It starts as a cyberpunk detective mystery but eventually spirals into a completely barmy tale about an eternal battle between good and evil complete with powerful demons and a They Live-inspired conspiracy.
While Nomad Soul is primarily an adventure game, it dabbles in lots of other genres, interrupting traditional adventure shenanigans with shooting, brawls, and moments where you can hang out and listen to David Bowie. What more could you want from one of the best cyberpunk games?
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
With a suitably neon and retro aesthetic, Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon has enough 80’s theatrics and showmanship to make Daft Punk green with envy. It also features giant genetically altered lizards and spawned one hell of a trailer. Throw in some tight first-person shooter gameplay into the mix, and you may come to understand why we reckon it’s the best DLC Ubisoft has ever made.
Some may doubt If Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon is really cyberpunk, but the expansion is so thoroughly in love with ‘80s cinema that we’re willing to be you’ll still dig it. Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon is a parody of the period’s action films, cartoons, and video games rolled into one.
Reloaded: the best FPS games on PC
It takes place in a retro-futuristic open world island with players jumping into the boots of Sergeant Rex ‘Power’ Colt, who is a military cyborg. Where it truly succeeds, however, is in providing a smaller, tighter, more entertaining open world shooter than its predecessor and even its successor.
Deus Ex
We could expend a great deal of energy reminiscing about how Deus Ex’s dramatic narrative weaves themes of conspiracy, terrorism, and transhumanism together with intriguing characters into a believable dystopian cyberpunk future. Or, we could go on and on about the breadth of character customisation, and how it lets you hone protagonist J.C. Denton into a cybernetically enhanced soldier, expert hacker, or a ghost that lurks in the shadows, and how that makes Deus Ex one of the best stealth games on PC. But what we want to tell you about this iconic cyberpunk game is how good the level design is.
Every map represents a complex sandbox ripe for experimentation. Every combat encounter has the potential to play out in remarkably different ways; should you participate in said encounter rather than slinking past it. Secret paths, hidden caches, informants waiting to be bribed and confidential information opening up new routes and options litter levels, ensuring that when players discuss their experiences. It’s like they are talking about different games.
And it’s all so organic, too. There’s a strong temptation for developers to signpost choices that can be made, to the point where mission objectives explain precisely where you can go and what you need to do, but in Deus Ex, it’s all a surprise. You don’t know that hacking a computer and reading private emails will give you a code that lets you defeat a tough enemy without a fight. You also don’t know that there’s an item hidden within a level that will unlock a previous invisible, unimagined route to the mission objective – you need to go out and explore.
Upcoming Cyberpunk GamesCyberpunk 2077
How do you follow up something like The Witcher 3? According to CD Projekt Red, it’s by ditching the medieval tomes of the past and heading straight to a cybernetically enhanced future.
Much like how The Witcher series bases itself on Eastern Europe’s beloved fantasy book series, Cyberpunk 2077 will be adapted from the Cyberpunk 2020 pen-and-paper game. Similarities don’t end there either as CD Projekt Red’s next game will also tell an adult story that tackles themes of drugs, violence, and social politics.
Loading time: more upcoming PC games
All of this will, of course, come with a Cyberpunk spin. You’ll find yourself in Night City, in an avatar of your choosing, and you’ll be able to augment your body constantly throughout the game with everything from brain implants to giant wrist-mounted scythes. Details are slowly dripping out about CD Projekt Red’s latest game, and it should prove unmissable when it eventually comes out.
N1RV Ann-a
What is it with cyberpunk games and tending bar? Sometimes the best remedy for forgetting your problems is by listening to someone else’s. It makes the life of a bartender sound quite idyllic when you think about it – watching strangers come and go with new stories on tap. It’s something that Va11 HALL-A seems to get, too, which is why we’re looking forward to its sequel N1RV Anna-a, which should be with us in 2020.
This time around, you’ll be out of Glitch City and in a tourist paradise called Saint Alicia in an upscale bar where the game takes its name from – where better to hang out and learn the secrets of locals? And hoo boy is there information to find out, too. Despite posing as the face of extravagance, this artificial island has a seedy underbelly, and you’ll meet all its demons – from those connected with mafia extortion to others guilty of human trafficking.
You’re not entirely free of this either, as your partner, Leon, has his ties to the Yakuza. Better pour a drink, looks like there’ll be plenty of drama to sift through. We reckon this one could be one of the best anime games on PC.
Log off: the best relaxing games to chill out with on PC
And there you have it, the best Cyberpunk games on PC. There’s plenty of traits to identify them by – body augmentation, the police state, chuffing good synthwave soundtracks, and oodles of neon. Regardless, the genre has a special pull to it. If you want to mix drinks and listen to someone gab, or argue philosophy and get involved in a shoot ‘em up, there’s plenty to get stuck into.
Cyberpunk 2077 is an upcoming role-playing video game developed and published by CD Projekt, releasing for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on 16 April 2020. Adapted from the 1988 tabletop game Cyberpunk 2020, it is set fifty-seven years later in dystopian Night City, California, an open world with six distinct regions. In a first-person perspective, players assume the role of the customisable mercenary V, who can reach prominence in three character classes by applying experience points to stat upgrades. V has an arsenal of ranged weapons and options for melee combat.
Cyberpunk 2077 is being developed by CD Projekt Red, an internal studio within CD Projekt, using the REDengine 4 game engine. They launched a new division in Wrocław and partnered with Digital Scapes to assist production. Around 450 total staff members are involved with the development, exceeding the number that worked on the studio's previous game, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Cyberpunk 2020 creator Mike Pondsmith consulted on the project and actor Keanu Reeves has a starring role.
Gameplay[edit]
Cyberpunk 2077 is a role-playing video game played in a first-person perspective as V,[6][7] a mercenary whose sex, hairstyles, face, body type, body modifications, background (nomad, street kid, or corporate), and clothing are customisable. V's clothing alters how interactions fare with non-player characters (NPCs), with whom they have the potential to form romantic and sexual relationships. Stat categories—Strength, Constitution, Intelligence, Reflex, Tech, and Cool—are malleable to the character classes that players assume, which are NetRunner (hacking), Techie (machinery), and Solo (combat). The perk tree is branched into melee, blades, handguns, shotguns, rifles, sniper rifles, hacking, two-handed combat, assassination, 'cold blood', engineering, and athletics. V must consult a 'ripperdoc' to upgrade and purchase cyberware implants, at the cost of eurodollars, more so in black markets for military-grade abilities.[7][8][9][10][11] Colours signify the rarity of any given equipment, from 'uncommon' (green) to 'epic' (purple).[12] V can take cover, aim, run on the ground and walls, jump, double jump, and slide.[13][14] With arm blades, V may climb walls and, like with other close-combat weapons, deal melee strikes.[9][15] There are three types of ranged weapons—Power (standard), Tech (which penetrate walls and enemies), and Smart (with homing bullets).[16][17] These can be customised and modified.[17] Ranged weapons are equipped to ricochet bullets in a target's direction and (with a reflex booster) slow them down in bullet time. Four types of damage can be inflicted—Physical, Thermal, EMP, and Chemical (which are identified in enemies by scanning them with a bionic eye).[8][18] Weapon use increases accuracy and reloading speed, which are manifested in character animations.[19]Gunsmiths repair and upgrade weapons.[9] The game can be completed without taking a life,[20] with nonlethal options for weapons and cyberware.[21]
The open world metropolis Night City, California consists of six regions—the corporate City Center, immigrant-inhabited Watson, luxurious Westbrook, suburban Heywood, gang-infested Pacifica, and industrial Santo Domingo. Night City's surrounding area, the Badlands, can also be explored. V navigates these locations on foot and in vehicles, which are customisable and subject to either a first or third-person view. Autonomous cars allow V to focus on combat instead of driving while engaging in gunplay.[7][12][18][22][23][24] Pedestrians can be run over by vehicles.[17]Radio stations are available to listen to.[25] The full day-night cycle and dynamic weather affect the way NPCs behave.[16][26] Apartments can be bought and used as home bases, where V will fetch weapons, dress, use a computer, and bring back NPCs for sexual activity.[9] The game features non-English-speaking characters; players who do not speak the languages can buy translator implants to better comprehend them.[27] 'Braindance', a digital recording device streamed directly into the brain, allows the player character to experience the emotions, brain processes, and muscle movements of another person as though they were their own.[28][29]Branching dialogues are employed to interact with NPCs and take actions in quests.[30] Experience points are obtained from main quests and fuel the stats, while side quests yield 'street cred' and unlock skills, vendors, places, and additional quests.[12][16][17][31] Quests are acquired from characters known as Fixers.[17] Throughout the game, V is aided by various companions.[9]Consumables, like soft drinks, are used for healing, and objects can be inspected in V's inventory.[14]Minigames include hacking, boxing, auto racing,[32]martial arts, and shooting ranges.[33] 'Game over' messages only appear at the point of death; if a quest is failed, the game moves on all the same.[34] Player agency and choice lead to different endings.[29]
Setting[edit]
Night City is an American megacity in the Free State of California, controlled by corporations and unassailed by the laws of both country and state. It sees conflict from rampant gang wars and its ruling entities contending for dominance. The city is contingent on robotics for everyday aspects like waste collection, maintenance, and public transportation.[35] The Internet is managed by corporations and the army.[21] Homelessness abounds, but does not preclude cybernetic modification for the poor, giving rise to cosmetic addiction and consequent violence. These threats are dealt with by the armed force known as Psycho Squad.[6][36] Because of the constant threat of physical harm, all citizens are allowed to own and openly carry firearms in public.[37]
Development[edit]
Cyberpunk 2077 entered pre-production as soon as developer CD Projekt Red had finished The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Blood and Wine.[38] Around this time, approximately fifty staff members were involved.[39] They later devoted a team larger than that of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt,[40] and after it was released, began upgrading their REDengine 3 to complement Cyberpunk 2077.[41] The team learned early on how aspects like stream processing and global illumination would function without disturbing the central processing unit.[42] CD Projekt Red was granted subventions of US$7 million by the Polish government, whose funding application confirmed they were using REDengine 4.[43] In June 2017, early designs were stolen and threatened to be released to the public, but the developer refused to comply with the ransom demand.[44][45] The development reportedly reached a milestone in late 2017,[46] and in March 2018, a new studio was opened in Wrocław to aid the production.[47] That July, nearly 350 employees were developing it,[48] and by the following month, the story was fully realised and could facilitate a complete playthrough.[2] In October 2018, CD Projekt Red announced the establishment of a long-term partnership with Canadian studio Digital Scapes to craft additional technology for Cyberpunk 2077.[49] In early 2019, the staff exceeded 400,[50] which was around 450 by June 2019.[51] CD Projekt Red then partnered with technology company Nvidia to achieve ray tracing in real time.[52]
Originally to launch with multiplayer,[53] this was later assigned to research and development,[54] with the single-player since prioritised.[29][55] The first-person perspective was selected to immerse players more than a third-person view would allow, given the detail the developer devoted to the open world.[16]Cutscenes and gameplay were made to seamlessly blend together, also for the purpose of immersion.[56]Cyberpunk 2077 will feature full nudity, which game director Adam Badowski said encapsulates the theme of transhumanism—'the body is no longer sacrum [sacred]; it's profanum [profane]'.[57] The quest designers, who oversee the development of their own ideas, resolved to make the quest system allow players to decide the order in which quests are undertaken.[58] Side quests are often made from unused parts of the main story.[59]Animation and facial animation systems were remade to better generate lip syncing and muscle movement; motion capture was also improved. Environments are created from prefabricated designs for scalability's sake.[60] Reused models have altered colours and details.[61] Feedback from the E3 2018 demonstration influenced the decision to allow a pacifist playthrough.[62] The game's content was nearly complete in mid-2019, with the rest of development focused largely on polishing.[51]
The game draws inspiration from several cyberpunk works, including the 1982 film Blade Runner, Japanese cyberpunk manga / anime series Ghost in the Shell, and video games System Shock (1994) and Deus Ex (2000).[63] It also features a motorbike from the Akira manga / 1988 anime film.[64]Mike Pondsmith, who created the original 1988 tabletop game Cyberpunk 2020, started consulting on the project in 2012.[60][65] Pondsmith's follow-up to Cyberpunk 2020, Cyberpunk Red, influenced the lore of the game.[66]The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt composer Marcin Przybyłowicz was chosen to write the score.[67] All songs for in-game radio stations have been specially made.[25] Swedish punk rock band Refused created music for the in-game group Samurai; one song, 'Chippin' In', was released in July 2019.[68] In July 2018, actor Keanu Reeves was approached for the role of Johnny Silverhand,[69] who was codenamed 'Mr Fusion' to maintain secrecy.[70] He would lend his likeness to, voice, and do motion capture for the character.[71][72] Reeves' dialogue amount is second only to the main character,[73] having spent fifteen days recording his lines.[74] Sebastian Stępień served as head writer and creative director on the game before leaving for Blizzard Entertainment in early 2019.[75][76]
Release and marketing[edit]
Cyberpunk 2077 was announced in May 2012.[39] In January 2013, a teaser trailer was released,[77] reaching 12 million views by June 2018.[78] The game was confirmed for Microsoft Windows the same year,[79] and for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One at E3 2018,[80] where they revealed a second trailer and a media-exclusive, pre-alpha gameplay demonstration,[78][81][82] released to the public in August of that year, following its appearance at Gamescom.[83] The game will be distributed in North America by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.[84]Bilkom is publishing it in Turkey.[85]Bandai Namco Entertainment will act as publisher for twenty-four European countries and distributor for Australia and New Zealand.[86][87] At E3 2019, a third trailer revealed the release date of 16 April 2020.[88] It received more pre-orders than The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt shortly after.[73] A second gameplay demonstration was arranged to be shown first to E3 attendees, and then brought online during PAX West in August.[89][90] The standard edition provides the base game, while the collector's edition comes with a custom box, steelbook, figurine depicting a male V, hardcover artbook, metal pin set and keychain, A Visitor's Guide to Night City, embroidered patches, world compendium, Night City postcards and map, and stickers; digital items include the soundtrack, art booklet, Cyberpunk 2020sourcebook, and wallpapers. If pre-ordered, the standard edition will also contain the compendium, postcards, map, and stickers, alongside the digital soundtrack, booklet, sourcebook, and wallpapers.[91] The PC version will be free of digital rights management.[92]
Reception[edit]
The teaser trailer received the People's Choice award for Best Animation at the 2013 FITC Awards,[93] the award for Best Trailer at the 2013 Machinima Inside Gaming Awards,[94] and a nomination for Best Video Game Trailer at the 2013 Golden Trailer Awards.[95]Cyberpunk 2077 won over one hundred awards at E3 2018,[52] including Best Game, Best Xbox One Game, Best PC Game,[96] Best RPG,[97] and People's Choice at IGN,[98] Best Role-Playing Game and Game of the Show at Game Informer,[99] Best of E3 at PC Gamer,[100] and Game of the Show at GamesRadar+.[101] The second trailer was broadly considered one of the best at the expo,[102][103][104][105] although writer William Gibson, credited with pioneering the cyberpunk subgenre, said 'the trailer for Cyberpunk 2077 strikes me as GTA skinned-over with a generic 80s retro-future'.[106] That the game is played in a first-person perspective, contrary to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's third-person view, was also subject to criticism.[107][108] At the 2018 Golden Joystick Awards, it won the Most Wanted Game award.[109]Cyberpunk 2077 was the most widely discussed game of E3 2019,[110] where it was presented awards for Best of E3 at GamesRadar+, PC Gamer, Rock, Paper, Shotgun, and Ars Technica,[111][112][113][114] Best Game, People's Choice, Best PS4 Game, Best Xbox One Game, Best PC Game, and Best RPG at IGN,[115] and Special Commendations for Graphics at the Game Critics Awards.[116] The third trailer was lauded with emphasis on the Keanu Reeves reveal.[117][118]
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cyberpunk_2077&oldid=905100418'
Cyberpunk is many things: a genre, a culture, an ethos, an aesthetic. Eighties sci-fi works like the William S. Gibson novel Neuromancer and films like Blade Runner set the standard for the genre; where stories unfold in near-future urban dystopias dominated by massive wealth inequality and an oligarchy of corporations.
In the cyberpunk future, private security forces armed to the teeth with military-grade weapons quash dissent with force. But the underclass is crafty. They deploy roguish technical skills to build tools of resistance against the totalitarian ruling class.
There are some quintessential aesthetic characteristics that seem to bleed into most cyberpunk landscapes. Drawing heavily on film noire, dark, gray buildings are often juxtaposed with pink neon signs while a rich upper-class resides literally above a dilapidated underclass. Everything has under-glow in the future, and somehow it’s always raining.
A genre rife with visual potential, fans are often inspired to create art that expounds upon the dystopias conjured up in the writing of Gibson and other sci-fi authors. One space that’s become a major hub for fans is r/Cyberpunk, a subreddit where photographers, artists, and general cyberpunk enthusiasts share picturesque theories of possible futures. At time of writing, the subreddit had more than 210,000 subscribers.
Here are some of the most beautiful takes on the cyberpunk landscape posted to r/Cyberpunk:
16. “Cyber Tower” by Leon Tukker
In this image, it appears that crafty hackers have colonized the base of the Eiffel Tower. You can’t see the top, but that’s probably where the rich people live.
15. “Digital Watercolor Cyberpunk” by Paweł Latkowski
The cyberpunk aesthetic hints at the deification of tall buildings; skyscrapers take on obelisk qualities, and emphasize the diminutive status of the underclass.
14. “RoofTops” by Mohammed Saad
In the cyberpunk future, advertising is ubiquitous; this image shows the neon glow that envelopes a city built by and for corporations.
12. “Red” by Nie Huizheng
The futuristic flaneur is a mainstay of Cyberpunk fiction. Here, in what could be an ode to Blade Runner 2049, we see a hard-boiled detective type wander through the city, maybe on his way to the local cantina to interrogate a crime boss.
13. “High Tech, Low Life” by Richard Dorran
This picture perfectly captures the social hierarchy of the cyberpunk world, where the wealth trickles up.
11. “Ghost In The Shell” by Jan Urschel
This concept art for the 2016 film version of Ghost In The Shell shows the seedy underbelly of an urban center.
10. “f o r g o t t e n s o u l” by Blunt Action
This alley looks sketchy, and it’s even got the hint of misogyny that runs through mainstream cyberpunk works like Blade Runner.
9. “Toronto at Night” by Giulio Calisse
Turns out Toronto is already in the cyberpunk future.
8. “Blade Runner Paris” by Darek Zabrocki
Impoverished communities are vulnerable to spying from above, likely perpetrated by a private police force that sniffs out resistance.
7. “Purple” by jaceart
Even an escape from the city is glowing purple.
6. “6088 AD” by Cornelius Dammrich
This image really emphasizes the cyber in cyberpunk, as a creepy robot who’s clearly up to no good lurks in the shadows next to a graffiti-laden building.
5. “Bangkok at Night” by Xaiver Portela
Cities like Bangkok and Tokyo exemplify the neon advertising qualities of the Cyberpunk aesthetic.
3. “Snowstorm in Toronto” by hi-im-that-guy
Nothing says cyberpunk like a hooded person, a giant advertisement, and unrelenting precipitation.
4. “Miami Dome” by Emmanuel Favela
The flying cars we were promised still aren’t here, but they are thriving in cyberpunk worlds. (This image comes from the video game Brawlhalla.)
2. “Surveillance” by jrdsctt
Surveillance and restricted movement are key means of social control.
1. “Cyberpunk” by Alexander Dudar
Bright lights, shadowed man, tall buildings, you get the idea.
Comments are closed.
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |