Category Archives: Cyberpunk

Cyberpunk 2077 is the next action-RPG from CD Projekt Red and while the devs have said they are not going to talk about it, some minor details regarding the games development have been leaked.

The rumor comes from NeoGaf user, Boskkee, who claims that his sources have told him that the pre-production done for Cyberpunk 2077 till 2016 have been trashed as a new game director has been appointed.

The Game Director for Cyberpunk 2077 has changed after RED has finished Blood and Wine (screenshot below), and according to my sources please treat it as a rumor, as I wont reveal anything more the preproduction done on the game before 2016 has been binned.

CD Projekt Red has high hopes for Cyberpunk as the studio has expressed that the game will be a bigger success compared to The Witcher 3.

According to John Mamais, a lot of developers in CD Projekt Red had worked on the Witcher series for a long time and they were kind of fatigued with the whole fantasy and medieval fantasy. He added that the developers are really excited to be working on Cyberpunk 2077 as it gives them something completely different to work on.

While Cyberpunk 2077 will not launch this year but the next game to be released by CD Projekt Red is GWENT The Witcher Card Game. There is no doubt that GWENT has been extremely popular among The Witcher 3 fans, but the developers did not anticipate that this mini game would be so popular among the players.

Cyberpunk is a Sci-fi action RPG in development at CD Projekt Red for PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

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Report: Cyberpunk 2077 Pre-Production Till 2016 Has Been ... - SegmentNext

By now, most of us have had some experience gettingROMs from classic video games to run on new hardware. Whether thats just on a personal computer with the keyboard as a controller, or if its a more refined RetrioPie in a custom-built cabinet, it has become relatively mainstream. What isnt mainstream, however, is building custom hardware that can run classic video games on the original console(translated). The finished project looks amazing, but the prototype blows us away with its beauty and complexity.

[phanick]sproject is a cartridge that is able to run games on the Polish Famicon clone called the Pegasus. The games are stored on an SD card but rather than run in an emulator, an FPGA loads the ROMsand presents the data through the normal edge-connector in the cartridge slot of the console.The game is played from the retro hardware itself.It takes a few seconds to load in eachROM, but after that the Pegasus cant tell any difference between this and an original cartridge.

The original prototype shown here was built back in 2012. Since then its been through a few iterations that have reduced the size.PCBs were designed and built in-house, and the latest revision also includes a 3D-printed case that is closer to the size of the original Famicon cartridges.

Even if you dont have an interest in classic video games or emulation, the video below is worth checking out. (Be sure to turn on the subtitles if you dont speak Polish.) [phanick] has put in a huge amount of time getting all of the details exactly right, and the level of polish shows in the final product. In fact, weve featured him before for building his own Famicom clone.

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FPGA Emulates NES Cart; Prototype So Cyberpunk - Hackaday

CD Projekt REDs trademark application for the term Cyberpunk recently sparked quite a bit of controversy. It actually prompted an official response from the developer who attempted to quell fears of misuse and for the most part, fans have been understanding. However, some took their concerns toBruce Bethke, the author who is accredited with coining the term in the early 1980s.

Speaking to World Trademark Review,Bethke said that hes not an expert on the subject but doesnt believe its possible for companies to trademark certainwords to prevent their use for any other purpose elsewhere. He referenced some failed attempts by companies to do so in the past but also said that he had a few concerns about CD Projekt REDs application and wishes the studio would contact him to address those.

My understanding of American trademark law is that trademark depends on context. While you can trademark a logotype or a unique variation eg, as I recall, R. Talsorian Gamestrademark was specificallyfor a role-playing game named Cyberpunk 2020 you cant just trademark a word for all purposes everywhere. Hence when some company back in the 1980s tried to claim a trademark on the word cyberpunk because they were publishing a Cyberpunk comic book, well, tough it didnt hold up.

I do rather wish someone from CD Projekt RED would contact me, though, to clarify a few of my concerns.

Bethke went on to voice his frustration at people expecting him to guard the trademark. He wants to focus on what hes doing at the moment as opposed to something he did 37 years ago.

What do our readers think of Bethkes comments?

[Source: World Trademark Review via Reddit]

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Author Who Coined the Term "Cyberpunk" Opens Up About CD Projekt RED's Trademark - PlayStation LifeStyle

Screenshot: Cyberpunk 2077 / YouTube

Video game fans have been anticipating the latest franchise from CD Projekt Red, Cyberpunk 2077, for years. But only recently did it come to light that the makers of The Witcher franchise had trademarked the term Cyberpunk and this week some fans cried foul. Now, the developer is insisting that everything is ok and theyll never use their power for evil.

As Gamespot points out, some members of the internet commentariat fear that CD Projekt Red might become some sort of variation of the evil corporations that often serve as the antagonist in cyberpunk fiction. Afterall, cyberpunk is a genre of science fiction that goes back decades with hundreds of works falling under its umbrella. Trademarking cyberpunk is like claiming ownership of romantic comedy. Would smaller creators be crushed by the well-funded companys lawyers the minute they dip their toe into the genre? Whats more, Cyberpunk 2077 isnt even an entirely original property, its based on a pen-and-paper game from 1990 called Cyberpunk 2020.

CD Projekt Red caught word of the fans worries and released an official statement on Twitter. We want to protect our hard work and we dont plan on using the trademark offensivelyits a self-defence measure only, the statement reads. It goes on to explain that the trademark is primarily a case of protecting its own use of the name. For instance, if it wanted to make a sequel called Cyberpunk 2078 it would need the legal authority to prevent someone from snatching up that name first. It also claims that some of the trademarks were actually acquired from R. Talsorian Games, the publisher of the original game that Cyberpunk 2077 is based on. So, someone already owned the name anyway and it was never a problem.

The company went on to clarify that the trademark would only be enforced in situations that might cause confusion among consumers. If someone names their game: John Smith: Adventures Set in a Cyberpunk Dystopian Society or 20 Short Video Games Set in Cyberpunk Worlds, none of them should be treated as an infringement of our rights, the company writes.

Its a little bit ironic that the name of a genre thats so focused on the free flow of information, rejection of ownership and never trusting corporations is now a legally protected trademark of a corporation that insists, trust us. But CD Projekt Red has built up a lot of goodwill in the video game world and most likely nothing egregious will ever come out of this.

Trademark trolling isnt as high profile as patent trolling and doesnt usually become a huge problem. In 2001, the makers of the B2 stealth bomber, Northrop Grumman, paid 10 bucks to settle a suit with the owner of the trademark for the term stealth. On the other hand, Sky TV has successfully bullied Microsoft to change the name of its cloud storage service SkyDrive. Sky TV also spent three years battling the makers of the open world video game No Mans Sky. The game makers eventually settled for an undisclosed sum.

[Gamespot, Polygon, Twitter]

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Video Game Maker Sparks Outrage With Trademark of 'Cyberpunk ...

Tim Lince

There has been an outcry over trademark applications for the term CYBERPUNK filed by video game developer CD Projekt Red. While much of the negative sentiment has been put to rest after the company released an open letter expanding on the marks, some concern remains including from Bruce Bethke, who originally coined the term cyberpunk in 1980.

The furore began last week following the discovery of an EU trademark application for the term CYBERPUNK, the term used for a popular subgenre of science fiction (exemplified by classic works of fictionincluding Blade Runner, Ghost In The Shell and Neuromancer). The trademark registrant was CD Projekt Red, developer of the popular Witcher series of video games and an upcoming title in development called Cyberpunk 2077 (based on 1980s role-playing game Cyberpunk 2020, created by R. Talsorian Games). The application (which proceeded to registration earlier this month) was in two classes related to video games, while a US trademark (registered in 2011) has been secured in classes related to video games. Another US mark (which was applied for in 2012 but is not yet registered) is for more varied goods and services, including clothing and books. Outrage soon followed on social media, with claims that the marks could lead to a restriction on the entire subgenre of cyberpunk.

A comment emerged that was attributed to Bruce Bethke, the author who originally coined the term cyberpunk in in a popular short story written in 1980. He claimed that entities often try and trademark the term but they never hold up due to the enormous amount of well-documented prior art. Other commentators directed their disappointment at CD Projekt Red, with one asking: Would it be better if they went with Cyberpunk 2077 specifically? This seems like overreach. Another compared the mark to previous trademark applications that received public backlashes: This is exactly the same as oppressive trademarks such as [King.com filing for] Saga or what the Fine Bros tried to do with React, however I can guarantee that despite how [bad] this is, there will be people ... who will defend this. In their eyes CD Projekt Red can do no wrong. This trademark will probably get rejected but it's still a scumbag thing to attempt to get.

There were indeed voices that defended the move, arguing that such a move was normal procedure for a company creating a new franchise. Trademarking the name of a game is standard practice and generally just means that others can't use that name for their products, observed one commentator. Just like there won't ever be a Battlefield: Kitchen Cleanup because Battlefield is a trademark owned by EA. So if you wanted Cyberpunk: Futuristic Kitchen Cleanup that won't be possible after CD Projekt Red gets the trademark.

For its part, CD Projekt Red felt the need to respond to the outcry and posted an open letter explaining the motivation behind the application. In it, the company outlined what the trademark means in a practical sense and addressed the concern that it may prohibit anyone from creating cyberpunk-themed video games. We want to protect our hard work and we dont plan on using the trademark offensively its a self-defense measure only, the letter states, saying the registration helps protect the company from unlawful actions of unfair competitors.

Following this move, the backlash mostly subsided. One commentator was ecstatic at the response, saying man, this is how you run a company, while another added that the developer was classy as ever these guys are setting the bar for what developers should be, [with] open, honest communication and true AAA titles.

But at least one person remains sceptical about the mark. Talking to World Trademark Review, cyberpunk legend Bethke confirmed that the initial comments were accurately attributed to him and, while noting I'm not a trademark lawyer, he expressed concern over cyberpunk-related trademarks that aretoo wide-ranging: My understanding of American trademark law, as I told the fellow who apparently clipped the [original] quote from what I thought was a private exchange of messages on Facebook, is that trademark depends on context, he explained. [So] while you can trademark a logotype or a unique variation eg, as I recall, R. Talsorian Games'trademark was specificallyfor a role-playing game named Cyberpunk 2020 you can't just trademark a word for all purposes everywhere. Hence when some company back in the 1980s tried to claim a trademark on the word cyberpunk because they were publishing a Cyberpunk comic book, well, tough it didn't hold up. He further voicedfrustration at being unable to address the issues he has with the marks in question: I do rather wish someone from CD Projekt Red would contact me, though, to clarify a few of my concerns.

However, at the same time he expressed exasperation that the responsibility for guarding the 'cyberpunk' term has apparently fallen on his shoulders, adding: Most of all, I wish people all over the internet would pay a tiny percentage of their attention to what I'm doing now [referencing the digital magazine Stupefying Stories Showcase], as opposed to something I did 37 years ago. To that end, he concluded: I really wish that just once, someone would offer me an enormous f*ckingpile of money to lay hands upon them and pronounce them the one true purveyorof cyberpunk.

For now, the storm seems to have passed for CD Projekt Red. In its canny response, it clarified concerns that social media users hadand pledged not to be aggressive in its enforcement of the marks. But discontent still bubbles under the surface, and the developer must tread carefully. For other companies that face trademark-related PR issues in the future, the approach that CD Projekt Red took could bean example worth remembering.

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Cyberpunk legend expresses concern over controversial trademark: 'I wish someone from CD Projekt Red would ... - World Trademark Review (subscription)...

Beyond the gunplay and set pieces, the Ghost in the Shell anime also set itself apart by throwing you into the deep end of a world where technology is completely integrated with humans. Most people have cyberbrains -- metal cases for their organic brains that allow them to "jack in" to computers and networks. The film doesn't slow down much to explain the concept of a cyberbrain to you, but you eventually grasp it by how characters use them. At one point, you see an official's hands expand into a multitude of robotic digits, which is clearly a big help for typing faster. While the remake echoes this imagery, it doesn't do anything thoughtful with it.

Take the character of Togusa, for example. In the anime, he's established as the least augmented member of Section 9, the intelligence group led by Major Kusanagi. He uses a traditional revolver, and his lack of cybernetic implants seems like a detriment when he's surrounded by literal supersoldiers. But as he starts to question why he's even on the team, Kusanagi makes an intriguing point: A system with standardized components will inevitably fail. If every member of her team was cybernetically enhanced in the same way, that leaves them open to an attack that could take them all out.

Togusa's mere presence is a check against that design flaw. The entire exchange is something we see often in cyberpunk: Technology doesn't always mean progress. In the remake, they point out that Togusa uses an old gun and that's it.

Perhaps the biggest failure of the American version of Ghost in the Shell is that it simply doesn't do anything new. Whereas the original brought plenty of innovative ideas to the table -- it was one of the few science fiction films to actually build on the Blade Runner aesthetic -- the adaptation is perfectly content with copying surface-level style while dumbing down deeper concepts. While the film has been praised for its style, ultimately it's basically just the original Ghost in the Shell aesthetic mashed together with Blade Runner and a boatload of CGI. The remake's vision of New Port City is also oddly sterile. There's none of the lived-in sense of grit you'd find in most cyberpunk stories.

Even the villain is far less interesting. In the remake, it ends up being yet another evil corporate plot. But in the anime, the "Puppet Master" is a completely synthetic life form "born out of the sea of information." He's not inherently evil, he's just trying to figure out who he is.

"It can also be argued that DNA is nothing more than a program designed to preserve itself," the Puppet Master says when someone claims he's just a computer program. "Life has become more complex in the overwhelming sea of information. And life, when organized into species, relies upon genes to be its memory system. So, man is an individual only because of his intangible memory... and memory cannot be defined, but it defines mankind. The advent of computers, and the subsequent accumulation of incalculable data has given rise to a new system of memory and thought parallel to your own. Humanity has underestimated the consequences of computerization."

Cyberpunk stories have rarely been about easy answers, and that's yet another concept the Ghost in the Shell adaptation fails to grasp. Every conflict ends up having a distinct conclusion, be it the villain or Major's place in the world. At the end of the anime however, Major Kusanagi doesn't defeat the antagonist in the traditional sense. She joins with him to create an entirely new being -- a union of a human soul and brain together with a purely cybernetic being.

After being transplanted into a new body, she looks out over the cityscape and simply asks: "And where do I go from here? The network is vast and infinite."

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'Ghost in the Shell' is more cyberposeur than cyberpunk - Engadget

(Last Updated On: April 10, 2017)

Odd Tales and Raw Fury are working on a new game called The Last Night. Its an indie cyberpunk tale set in the future and. thats about all I know.

A teaser trailer for the game was released along with the promise of more information set to be released in the near future. You can check out the trailer below.

Thanks to a YouTube recommendation, I actually did manage to find out a bit more about the game thanks to a video from Independent Pixel, who has two and a half minutes worth of gameplay footage for the upcoming title. It appears to be a hybrid, action-adventure of sorts.

You can check out the video below.

Okay, so first of all the background graphics and city look amazing. As players walk through the environment theyll have a gun they can pull out to kill people and robots with.

It kind of reminds me a little bit of Out of this World.

Unfortunately the video above isnt really representative of what Raw Fury and Odd Tales are working on, though. That video was for a game jam from back in 2015.

I have no idea what the game will look like now, but the teaser trailer at the top seemed to hint at a mixture of pixels with 3D vector mapping. If the stages really are in 3D with pixelated characters then that would be a pretty cool art-style set within a cyberpunk universe.

They will be rolling out more info on this interesting looking game at some point throughout 2017 we just dont know when. You can keep your eyes peeled for more info by visiting the Odd Tales website.

For now Raw Fury seems to be focused on getting Kingdom New Lands up and out for the Nintendo Switch following the release of the game on iOS and Android devices.

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The Last Night Trailer Teases A Cyberpunk Action-Adventure - One Angry Gamer (blog)

By Joel Couture . April 10, 2017 . 2:00pm

Once players walk off of their shuttle inProxyndic, theyre on their own in a hostile future, left to find ways to survive and thrive in this cyberpunk world.

There is no official government in Proxyyndic, and the world is run by a series of corporations, militias, and syndicates, all battling for supremacy. Players will be left to do whatever they like in this world, having to deal with the consequences later.

Survival can mean many things in this game. Players are free to gamble, trying to raise money through high-stakes card games. They can join a faction, doing work for them, but will have to deal with the fallout from rival gangs. They can also set out to form their own syndicate, play the stock market, or get an ordinary job, finding many different ways to make the money they need.

Proxyndics vision of the future is a dangerous one, though, and players may need to defend themselves using guns or hand-to-and combat. They will steadily grow as they fight, gaining new powers and increased stats through the games RPG levelling system. They can also hire bodyguards to keep them safe, or just try to keep a low profile, staying out of sight and locking their doors at night.

Players will have to attend to more than their financial needs, making sure theyre fed and well rested. Enemies are not the only thing that can kill the player in this game.

Proxyndic has already passed through Steam Greenlight, and is expected to release in Q2 this year.

Video game stories from other sites on the web. These links leave Siliconera.

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Players Decide How To Survive In Proxyndic's Cyberpunk Future - Siliconera

What is cyberpunk?

A genre of science fiction and a lawless subculture in an oppressive society dominated by computer technology and big corporations. Hmmm...It feels like the world we live in today.

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Personal attacks, name calling, bigotry and extreme negativity are subject to removal and or banning, If you spot this use the report button or mod message to alert moderators.

If it's cyberpunk, you can post it, no matter the year or the style of the content, city pics, political articles, social discussions, latest novels, you name it, you can post it, if it's NSFW tag it and if it has gore use NSFL on the title.

No SPAM, if you want to promote your cyberpunk website, blog or forum, please contact the moderators, we will say yes more likely than not, this does not apply to our wiki tumblr section, you can add your own as long it's cyberpunk related.

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Cyberpunk - High Tech, Low Life. r/Cyberpunk

(Last Updated On: April 3, 2017)

A lot of people are interested in CD Projekt Reds upcoming Cyberpunk 2077 and want to know more about the gameplay aspects. And speaking of gameplay, what will the game have players doing and how will it let folks go about completing objectives? Well, given that many gamers are combing over every morsel and bit of detail surrounding the game, another piece of info thats not official yet regarding the games rating recently caught the eye of gamers offering a glimpse into what the game could sport.

Upon doing some more research on Cyberpunk 2077, Ive recently stumbled across a new thread talking about the title and how one particular user is concerned about the game. Upon reading the discussion it lead me to the bottom of the post where theres an ESRB listing for all of CD Projekt Reds titles: the ESRB rating at the bottom of the screen carries an M for Mature label, listing off each of the things contained within CD Projekt Reds games.

As of now, we might have an understanding as to what the game may contain when it does come around to fruition.

Although other rating sites like the ESRB do not list the game with its rating just yet, youll notice that on the official website the Mature label is listed for all of CD Projekts games. The first image comes from cdprojektred.com/forum (very bottom of the site) and details the following content.

Yes, on the official website the label lists all of the content that theyve notified the ESRB about for each of their games, this contains: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content and Use of Drugs.

Looking over to official Witcher store page (at the bottom of the site), youll see the ESRB rating where it rattles off what the game is rated for.

The image clearly reveals: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content and Use of Alcohol.

The difference between the two is that the former label sports Use of Drugs, while the latter contains Use of Alcohol. This is because in The Witcher 2s ESRB rating does contain Use of Drugs, but its interesting that its not featured on the official shop page for The Witcher . So clearly theyre compacting all of their ESRB labels into one label and have it slapped on their official website at the bottom.

Whats interesting, however, is that the only other websites showing Cyberpunk 2077s rating is a summary over on IGN and MetaCritic that both still show RP. Again, its interesting that Cyberbunk 2077s official site used to show RP, but now it just has the Mature label that seems to represent all of CD Projekt Reds games. It would seem like they would have both a Mature label and a Rating Pending label to represent The Witcher games and Cyberpunk 2077, since the latter game hasnt been rated yet.

Its almost as if they already expect the game to get an M rating for all of the things listed at the bottom of the site, so they just have the label there as a placeholder, or it could be that theyre expecting ample amounts of gore, nudity, strong sexual content, language and violence, and are giving people a heads-up before the game actually gets rated. Theres also a pretty high expectancy from those on the CDPR forums that the game will get the M for Mature rating based on the aforementioned adult subject matter.

Itll be interesting to see if the above is all true and how the game will be on release seeing that CD Projekt Reds visual effects artist, Jose Teixeira, revealed that

Cyberpunk is far bigger than anything else that CD Projekt Red has done before. Far, far bigger. Were really stepping into the unknown in terms of complexity and size and problems we encounter.

Cyberpunk 2077 is said to come out when its ready.

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Here's Why Cyberpunk 2077 Could Feature Gore And Nudity - One Angry Gamer (blog)