Cyberpunk is an old genre, dated back to the 1980s. It is a subgenre of science fiction that takes place in a dystopian future setting in which people struggle in a high-tech world that doesn’t really care. Prominent elements in the settings are various technical and scientific advancements like AI and cybernetics (that’s the “cyber” part).
10 – Anachronox
Another Cyberpunk game from Ion Storm, Anachronox is pretty unique, featuring elements that are vastly different from the usual trope (indie-rock). You would spend the whole game traveling around with Anachronox, a shrunken planet, as your companion. About the gameplay, it is more or less a JRPG with turn-based action in a 3D map. You will be exploring space vessels, futuristic cities, and alien landscapes playing this game. While it’s rather dated, the experience is pretty much unforgettable.
9 – Beneath A Steel Sky
The Point & Click adventure Beneath A Steel Sky offered a different take to the cyberpunk setting – the protagonist gets dropped into a city that’s controlled by a sadistic omnipresent AI computer system named LINC. To save the city and your own life, you have to dig into the cyberspace for clues while avoiding all the potential dangers. Your trusty robot companion, Joey, would be with you all the way. The best part is that the game is completely free.
8 – Technobabylon
A fantastic point & click game, Technobabylon actually stands out by going against the usual cyberpunk trope. The genre is cold, more often than not, with a lot of focus on the pessimism feeling of humans living in a dystopia, along with the inhumanity of technology. The main story of the game focuses on entirely human elements like family, isolation, loss, and community. The staple genre elements remain, however, with human bombs terrorists, restaurants with cloned human flesh, and the like.
7 – Va-11 Hall-A
While most other games are about fighting the system, the scope of Vallhalla is way smaller. It is a mix of a bartending sim and visual novel sim, with you trying to mix a good drink for your customers while listening to their life story. Only by doing it correctly would you make them talk and reveal more details about the cruel world outside. Combined that with the excellent music, Vallhalla is a great game to play while chilling.
6 – EYE: Divine Cybermancy
EYE is an RPG/FPS in which your objective is just to grind through waves upon waves of enemies, with your guns and special power. The story begins with you awoke from a coma, with all your squadmates dead around you. Your quest afterward is to go on a rampage of revenge and stop the big bad from destroying the world. This game is best for people whole love the combat of Deus Ex.
5 – System Shock 2
This series is a deviation from the usual cyberpunk tropes, as it happens in a futuristic space station. However, the thing remains to be one of the most successful attempts ever made in the genre. The first game’s villain, Evil AI Shodan is back, with a lot more tricks under its sleeve. While the game ditched the cyberspace parts from the previous series, it made up for the loss by new elements of “transhumanism”, in which you would modify your own body by various enhances.
4 – Watch Dog 2
While Watch Dog 2 has way fewer Cyberpunk elements than its predecessor, it is a far better game. It has taken every good thing from the first game and fine-tuned them, such as the city hacking and weapon hacking. Overall, the sequel does not have much of a story, but it is still serviceable. The new protagonist, Marcus Holloway, is way more compelling than the previous one, as he is actually a part of something important.
3 – Blade Runner
Westwood’s adaptation of Blade Runner has definitely been pretty successful in replicating the feel of the movie, with all the locations recreated with a fully detailed background. The game is a brand new story in the same universe, which occurs at the same time as the movie. In this game, you would get to immerse yourself in the settings and do a lot of exciting things such as the Voight-Kampff test or fight replicants.
2 – Shadowrun: Dragonfall
The best Shadowrun game to date, with excellent story and gameplay. Shadowrun is a little bit different from the usual cyberpunk settings, with various new additions like magic and fantastical creatures. The twists work, as the setting is fresh to everyone, even the die-hard fans of the genre. This is a turn-based heavy RPG game, with your stats and character build affecting every decision you make inside the game. The best part of the game, however, is the story – a masterful adventure with all the twists and turns.
1 – Deus Ex Human Revolution
While the first game is great, it is too outdated, and some of its ideas are not suitable for today’s standards. Human Revolution was built around conspiracy theories, transhumanism, and its repercussions. You would step into the shoes of Adam Jensen, a super cop whose job is to unravel a conspiracy related to his employer and the future of the world. The gameplay was designed masterfully, with both stealth and combat weaved together by a unique RPG system.
Interested in more of our articles related to video games? Please check this post out for the top 10 longest RPGs.
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