Cyberpunk 2077 Debut Trailer and First Details
It’s not often we get hugely excited about a new IP here at GodisaGeek, but when you start throwing around names like CD Projekt RED (developers of the incredible The Witcher titles) and Cyberpunk 2020, we generally put down our pads and turn away from our monitor screens for long enough to listen to everything you have to say.
Based on the cult pen and paper RPG by Mike Pondsmith, CD Projekt RED’s game jumps forward 57 years from its source and presents the dark, dystopian future as experienced by the not-so-fortunate inhabitants of Night City. Having been partly responsible for influencing the original Deus Ex, it’s no surprise that the two universes share some similarities – most notably that of human cybernetic augmentation and its decaying effect on civilised society. In Cyberpunk 2077‘s world, dangerous Psychos whose bodies have reacted badly to augmentation go on murderous rampages, the police struggle to maintain order and a new craze is sweeping Night City in the form of “Braindancing”, whereby you’re able to experience another person’s experiences right down to how they were feeling when they first experienced them. The positives are things like going sky-diving without leaving the house or taking a famous porn star to bed – the negatives are, say, linking to a serial killer’s Braindance and finding yourself lusting for blood the way he does…
A deep and many-splintered world, CD Projekt RED are taking Pondsmith’s vision and running with it – and this is one marketing campaign that we fully expect to be very viral. For example, take this flyer showing two sides of an argument over Braindancing and whether or not it should be encouraged. Creating small yet effective pieces like this highlights CD Projeckt RED’s respect for Mike Pondsmith’s material, and bodes well for the player’s immersion in this violent, neon-scarred world.
The gorgeous-looking trailer, stylish as it is, doesn’t reveal much about the story, but rather gives us a glimpse into the chaotic underbelly of Night City, as explained by CD Projekt RED’s studio head Adam Badowski: “Psychos (are) individuals who overuse implants and substances that boost or otherwise alter the human body. There comes a point when they overdose on these innovations, and their bodies start to rebel against their biological body parts as well as against all things organic around them. Simply put, they start killing people.”
That explains the beautiful but messed-up femme fatale, but what about the cop with the gun to her head? “The teaser shows how the Psycho Squad might acquire a new member,” Badowski explains. “When a psycho goes on the rampage, strange things can happen. There’s going to be a lot of carnage, so the psycho might be taken down by regular police, but they’re not always able to get the job done. When things spin out of control, they call in MAX-TAC (Maximum Force Tactical Division), popularly called the ‘Psycho Squad’. And these guys are exceptional, these guys are crack troops.”
The war between Psychos and the marginally less-dangerous Psycho Squad is likely to be a major theme in Cyberpunk 2077’s open world, and we can’t wait to get augmented and get stuck in. Check out the debut trailer below.
Cyberpunk 2077 will be released when it’s ready. For more information, visit the official site.
