The Ultimate Sabukaru Guide to Cyberpunk Games
Cyberpunk has acted as a pillar of inspiration ever since William Gibson, Father of the genre, unleashed this cybernetic Tsunami into the world. Since then, it has bred an onslaught of different takes on the vortex of neon lights and mechanical enhancements that is cyberpunk, and without it we would never have pinnacle treasures in entertainment such as Ghost in The Shell, Bladerunner, and Akira.
The beauty of cyberpunk as a genre lies within its diversity and its readiness to give every idea its own rightful spot. An incredibly immersive genre that helps to blur the lines between a farfetched fantasy and a grounded dark, future. When this subculture is merged with video games it is then that we see truly amazing results.
Sabukaru came together to collect its own selection of the most amazing entries to this phenomenon. Our implanted transmitters are turned on, our scanners are fully functional. Let us begin our exploration into the radioactive futuristic wastelands of cyberpunk video games.
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon [2013 - PC/Xbox/PlayStation]
This standalone expansion for Far Cry 3 merges the original game's setting with, as the title already suggests, the Blood Dragons [and also laser rifles, a laser bow, laser knife, etc.]
Borrowing a lot of elements from pop culture and especially 80s trash movie vibes, this game is an absolute cyberpunk nostalgia gem. The soundtrack was created by the legendary synthwave duo Power Glove and was included as a separate CD in the games package.
Ruiner [2017 - PC/PS4/Xbox One/Switch]
This isometric shoot ‘em up is set in a very dark cyberpunk setting that looks a bit like Blade Runner but with the dystopia dial set to 100. Ruiner was made by the Polish developer Reikon Games.
As with Far Cry 3, we again have a game that features a very unique and masterful soundtrack. The soundtrack was mainly produced by Natalia Zamilska, a polish DJ.
Fallout 1 [1997-PC]
Let us go back in time, back to when the Fallout series was not produced by the now-atrocious company known as Bethesda. The year is 1997 and Fallout 1 by Interplay Productions has just been released.
A point-and-click adventure set in the not-too-distant future in which the world as we know it has been bombed into a nuclear wasteland. Every action creates a new plotline and your choice in replies during conversations may let you proceed with the story… or will get you burnt to a crisp by a flamethrower attached to a defense droid.
Hell: A Cyberpunk Thriller [1994 - PC]
Most cyberpunk video games center around artificial intelligence, cyborgs, robots, etc. but Hell: A Cyberpunk Thriller adds a much darker twist to its vision of the future. In the year 2095, the USA is ruled by a fascist cult calling itself the “Hand of God” which is able to send people it deems as undesirable to literal hell.
A lot of the plot is told through full-motion video which gives this retro cyberpunk gem a more artistic feeling.
Beneath a Steel Sky [1994 - PC]
The next entry on our list has an exceptional aspect to its history. This MS-DOS point-and-click cyberpunk game was developed in collaboration with the legendary comic book artist Dave Gibbons who created such classics as Watchmen and Give Me Liberty.
Gibbons was responsible for giving the game its overall aesthetic. The game sets itself apart from most other cyberpunk games by adding a layer of humor to its plot.
Blade Runner [1997 - PC]
The video game adaptation of one of the most influential and defining cyberpunk movies ever brought to film: Blade Runner. The production of the game started with a bang when the amazing Syd Mead was hired to create the overall aesthetics.
The story follows both the movie and the original novel. It was one of the first video games using a 3D rendering engine, making it quite revolutionary for its time.
Rise of the Dragon [1990 - PC/Amiga/Sega CD]
Crime noir meets cyberpunk. A new designer drug is circulating the streets of Los Angeles in the year 2053. It has a rather awful side effect: mutation and ultimately … death. You are William ‘Blade’ Hunter, an ex-police-officer turned private detective, and you are tasked with tracking down those responsible for getting the new designer drug MTZ out on the streets.
The amazing art style of the game underlines its story and emphasizes its atmosphere. Furthermore, the plot could be influenced by the player's decisions thus making the game more complex. In addition to that, the main character only has a limited amount of time to finish the game or else you lose, making the game even more challenging.
Snatcher [1988 - PC/Sega CD/Playstation]
One of the very early gems by the truly legendary mastermind behind Metal Gear Solid: Hideo Kojima. Snatcher is set in an East Asian metropolis sometime in the future. Robots, commonly called “snatchers”, have been secretly killing humans and replacing them within society. Gillian Seed, a member of an anti-Snatcher agency, is on his mission to save society. Kojima also added a small easter egg to the game. When the main character arrives at the anti-Snatcher agency, he receives a navigator robot called “Metal Gear Mk. II”, which is an obvious reference to the original “Metal Gear Solid” game released one year prior in 1987.
Snatcher stands out from other games on this list due to its stunning manga art style and vibrant colors.
System Shock [1994 - PC]
As with many cult classics, the beginnings of this action-adventure were quite humble. Even though the developer Looking Glass sold over 170,000 copies, the studio eventually lost money on the project.
You will have to shoot your way through hordes of cyborgs in order to defeat the evil artificial intelligence trying to take over the world. A true cyberpunk gem.
Deus Ex [2000 - PC/Playstation]
An agent equipped with nanotechnology that gives him superhuman abilities fighting the Triads and the Illuminati. There couldn’t be a more amazing plot, a more cyberpunk plot than that of the first Deus Ex game. The game also emphasizes the player’s choice, which lets them decide which approach to take to each mission.
A successfully accomplished mission will grant the player skill-points which then gives the player the freedom to use these to level up the main character in whatever way possible.
Underrail [2012 - PC]
It is the far future. Earth’s surface has been uninhabitable for many years. All of humanity has gone underground. This is the setting for Stygian Software’s role-playing game Underrail. Its perspective is isometric and the turn-based game style reminds one a lot of previous games like the early Fallout series.
Freedom is a big part of Underrail, as the player starts as a new member of the underground society. It is now up to the player to decide which faction or group to join, which missions to go after, and which skill-sets to explore.
Syndicate [1993 - PC/Atari Jaguar/Sega CD]
A game that, in contrast to most on this list, does not focus on a single character. Syndicate is an isometric real-time tactical and strategic game that is based around a group of cybernetically modified agents that have the mission to take over the country.
You, as a player, control a corporation vying for global dominance. The more taxes you are able to gather from occupied territories, the more advanced weaponry you are able to acquire for your team of agents.
Omikron: The Nomad Soul [1999 - PC/Dreamcast]
Another rare gem on our list. Omikron: The Nomad Soul is a mix of cyberpunk and beat-em-up gameplay elements like that of Tekken and Street Fighter. The soundtrack was created by none other than David Bowie, together with Reeves Gabrels.
The game’s story takes place in the futuristic city of Omikron, which was created in order to protect humanity from the oncoming ice age. The player is on a mission to hunt down a mysterious serial killer who is roaming the streets of Omikron. After David Bowie’s death in 2016, the game was available for free for the duration of one week.
Observer [2017 - PC/Xbox/PlayStation/Switch]
The psychological horror game Observer stars Rutger Hauer, who played the infamous Roy Batty Nexus 6 in the cyberpunk classic Blade Runner.
The player controls Daniel Lazarski, a Polish state investigator who hacks people’s minds in order to interrogate them regarding a murder in the futuristic setting of Krakow, Poland in the year 2084. The atmosphere and music are influenced by Blade Runner, Akira, and Ghost in the Shell.
Ghost in the Shell [1997 - PlayStation]
This officially licensed Ghost in the Shell videogame was a dream come true for all early fans of the series. Being able to control Major Kusanagi and most importantly also the Fuchikoma AI spider robots is something that every fan of the manga and also the anime movies/series would die for.
The game also features a very sick soundtrack that has its own entry on the game’s Wikipedia article.
Detroit: Become Human [2018 - PC/PlayStation]
250 actors playing 513 roles and scanned in 3D. 324 Days of capturing the scenes played by the actors. Detroit: Become Human is an astounding example of how scanned actors can carry a gripping story while still being a video game and not a movie. The game has 35,000 camera shots, 74,000 unique animations, and 5.1 million lines of code. Storywise, the game explores the concept of artificial intelligence and human self-awareness.
Markus, an android service robot, accidentally bypasses his programming through a traumatic experience. This alerts the police who shoot him on the spot. Markus regains his conscience on a landfill, having survived the execution. He is now set on a mission to fight for the rights of his fellow androids.
Mirror’s Edge [2008 - PC/Xbox/PlayStation]
Another exceptional game on our list that stands out with its aesthetics and gameplay, the parkour cyberpunk classic Mirror’s Edge.
With revolutionary lighting and rendering effects for that time, the game focuses heavily on running and jumping passages which are directly inspired by the James Bond and Bourne series.
No More Heroes [2007 - Wii/Switch]
The action-adventure hack and slash cyberpunk No More Heroes is special for three reasons.
First, its crazy visual style and gameplay. Second, the fact that it was exclusively made for the Wii [and a later Switch adaptation], and third, the craziness that automatically comes with every Japanese video game.
SOMA [2015 - PC/XBOX/PLAYSTATION]
Representing the horror side of the cyberpunk genre, SOMA is set in the year 2104 after a comet hit earth and devastated the surface of our planet. The protagonist wakes up in the last human outpost when he realises that he got sent into the future after surviving a car accident in 2015. He is tossed into a world of robots with human consciousness; an Earth that turns out to be more Hell than home. This is cyberpunk meets body horror.
SOMA was developed by Frictional Games, the studio that previously released Amnesia: The Dark Descent.
Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy [2004 - PC/XBOX/PLAYSTATION]
Another absolute classic on our list, the dystopian and action-packed Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy from 2004. Nick Scryer, the main character of the game, fights against The Movement, a technocratic and oppressive terrorist organization. He slowly regains his psychic and telekinetic powers which he desperately needs as he fights his way through to freedom.
The whole game is actually available as a freeware on MajorGeeks.
SHADOWRUN [1993 - SNES]
Mercenaries, cybernetic enhancements, the underworld of grey cities in the far future; welcome to the Super NES classic Shadowrun from 1993. In a mix of magic and machines, the player starts on the streets of Seattle in the year 2050. It is then the player’s choice which direction of the game they want to head in. The most important thing is survival.
Actual game trailers from that time are hard to find, however we stumbled across another gem that opens up a new layer of trashy cyberpunk nostalgia. The 1990 promotional video for Shadowrun.
Johnny Terror is an illustrator and artist whose works are heavily influenced by science-fiction and cyberpunk which occasionally brings him to writing.
