Cyberpunk 2077 doesn’t come out until next year, but that doesn’t mean you can’t play Cyberpunk right now. In fact, the Polygon video team already did!
Well, not the video game, but the tabletop prequel, Cyberpunk Red. The fine folks at R. Talsorian Games, creators of the original Cyberpunk 2020 TTRPG, gave us early access to Cyberpunk Red in the form of a “jumpstart kit,” which gets you started role-playing and character creating with ease. You can check out our review here if you’d like to know more.
For this adventure, our own Jenna Stoeber wrote a one-shot campaign set in Night City, a megalopolis located in future California and the setting of all Cyberpunk games. While the original tabletop RPG was set in 2020 and Cyberpunk 2077 is... well, set in 2077, Cyberpunk Red takes place in 2045, not long after a series of disasters has befallen Night City. Surviving and thriving in this era takes a lot of guts, style, and maybe just a little luck.
Our role players have each created their own character for this story, complete with personalities, skills, and backstory. Burger Chainz grew up a on farm before becoming a nomad. He’s a little clueless, but extremely loyal: mess with his friends and you’re headed for the pavement.
Dapper Dasha is a fixer who knows everyone worth knowing in Night City. Though she enjoys the finer things in life, she’s run into some bad luck and is on the hunt for a lucrative job. She’s also a poser who looks just like Winona Ryder.
Vang0 Bang0 is a tech who moderates a semi-popular forum. Though his past is a mystery, his present is not, as he’s constantly vlogging, on the content grind for his subscribers.
To see our cyberpunks in action, check out the video above for the actual play session. While we do house rule a couple things to make the video more entertaining, we don’t fudge our dice roles (for better or worse). If you enjoy this video and want to see more adventures with Burger, Dapper and Vang0, make sure you subscribe to Polygon’s channel for more great videos. You can also watch previous episodes of Overboard here.
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Cyberpunk Red Jumpstart Kit
- $27
- $30
- 9% off
Prices taken at time of publishing.
Everything you need to get started playing Cyberpunk Red!