The 17 Best Cyberpunk Games To Play in 2017: Page 2 of 4

Cyberpunk Games 2017
Adam Jensen at Augmented Rights Coalition's HQ


6) Shadowrun Returns

Shadowrun: Returns is the 2013 reboot of the original 1993 Shadowrun game for Super Nintendo, based on the popular 1989 tabletop roleplaying game. Funded by donations via Kickstarter, Shadowrun Returns is based on a mega-corporation owned Seattle in 2054. Magic has returned to the world, bringing along with it mystical creatures such as orcs, dwarves, and elves.

The story focuses on a mercenary group called Shadowrunners who complete dangerous deeds for the desperate and rich. In the main campaign titled Dead Man’s Switch, you play as a Shadowrunner, who receives a mysterious message from an old friend who recently died. The message states that there is a sizable fortune for whoever is able to bring justice to the party responsible for his death. The adventure begins there, but there are plenty of other player-made campaigns available for download.

Totem poles, another throwback to modern-day Washington

You are able to customize your character’s gender, appearance, race, and class. You can choose to be a human or fantasy creature: orc, elf, troll, or dwarf. Maybe you would like to be a mage, a magic class, with the ability to use spells to harm and heal, or perhaps a street samurai, a warrior with a penchant for combat. With six classes available to choose from in a classless system, there is no limit to the skill combinations you can choose from.

You can decide which attributes you’d like your character to have. Between strength, quickness, intelligence, willpower, charisma, and body, with specializations for each. Attributes affect not just combat, but conversation as well.

Public Market Center in future Seattle

A nod to the original, Shadowrun: Return features tactical turn-based combat similar to X-COM. You have an assortment of weapons and fighting styles to choose from as you go up against enemies from hellhounds to thugs.

The hand-painted gritty, neon-drenched environments makes this game visually stunning. There are even some real current-day Seattle locations like the Public Market featured. And with the exciting feature, Shadowrun Returns Editor, players are able to create their very own environments, stories, and campaigns and share them with others.

7) Shadowrun: Dragonfall

Originally premiered as an expansion to Shadowrun: Returns, Dragonfall was released as a standalone game in September 2014. Upgraded with five new missions, enhanced combat and visuals, and a redesigned interface. Add that to one of the most memorable stories of all time, it makes sense that Dragonfall has been called the definitive version of Shadowrun.

Dragonrun is based in Berlin, an anarchic city in disrepair. It spotlights a brand new team of characters, and a conspiracy:  the Great Dragon Feuerschwinge may still be alive. This story is extremely well-written with interesting conversation options, based on your character’s skills and attributes.

Face off with monsters

One  of the most noticeable changes made in Dragonrun is the perspective. Still top-down, a homage to great games like Baldur’s Gate, the view is closer and more detailed in comparison to the original.

Battle has also been improved upon since the last game. You lead a team of shadowrunners. Their specific abilities compliment one another and allows the player to have a lot of variety in their gameplay. There are over 200 combat options for you to choose from, allowing for superior tactical conflict.

Explore Berlin

Shadowrun: Dragonfall has exceedingly high ratings and has been on numerous Best of 2013 lists. If you enjoyed Shadowrun: Returns be sure to give Dragonfall a try. You won’t be disappointed.

8) Shadowrun: Hong Kong

The most recent installment of the Shadowrun series, Shadowrun Hong Kong was released in August 2015. It is based in, you guessed it! Dystopian future Hong Kong. More beautiful and vivid than previous Shadowrun games, this installment features hand-painted cutscenes as well as a brand new, vivid environment.

Similar to previous Shadowrun games, this game the game starts with your character travelling to Hong Kong from Seattle to seek out riches. You meet your foster brother, Duncan, with whom you will must find a foster father who has gone missing. This is where your adventure begins. Not only are you able to choose your portrait, the color of your skin and hair, but you are also able to choose your own backstory and relationships.

Vivid, hand-painted environments

Despite there being some voiceover work during cutscenes, the conversations are still, like previous games, text-based. You can have deep conversations with your companions, and even regular people to learn their detailed backstories.

The map itself is huge – twice as large as the original Shadowrun game, with plenty of things to do and see. Each mission is unique, with plenty of ways to decide how your character will progress through the story. The huge variety of enemies, from gang members to gargoyles, further enhances the feeling of diversity in this game. 

Explore Hong Kong slums

Shadowrun: Hong Kong is one of the best C-RPGs of its year, and includes even more tile sets for players to create their own Shadowrun stories and environments. Harebrained Schemes knows how to create an enthralling and immersive story, and they do it right with Shadowrun: Hong Kong.

9) Dreamfall Chapters

Dreamfall Chapters opens with one of three protagonists, Zoë Castillo, who is trapped in a nightmarish world called Storytime. She must find ways to release others who, in the waking world, are deep asleep. In Storytime, though, they suffer their worst fears.

Released in 2014 by Red Thread Games, Dreamfall Chapters is an emotion-driven episodic journey through two parallel worlds: Arcadia and Stark. Arcadia is a place of mystery and chaos. A world of whimsy. Where fantastic creatures roam and magic is woven into every aspect of life. Stark is a technologically advanced world where order and practicality reign. Logic and science take the place of magic. Arcadia and Stark sharply contrast one another, but they are both absolutely gorgeous and awe-inspiring.

Stark, a place of science and technological advancements

The return of The Longest Journey Saga, this profound game centers three protagonists: Zoë Castillo, Kian Alvane, and Saga. Each have a different journey, but they are all intertwined. Each character must choose their own path. As you play, you will be given difficult decisions and with each decision comes a consequence.

The choice and consequence feature is reminiscent of TellTale games like The Walking Dead remove and The Wolf Among Us, but what sets Dreamfall Chapters apart is that the game gives you time and information to consider your choices in a thoughtful way. Nothing is split-second, and you can take as much time as you need to make these difficult decisions.

As Dreamfall Chapters is the third installment after a very long hiatus, it may be difficult for newcomers to jump right in. If you haven’t played the original two games, you may want to try them first. But Red Thread does its best to ease in new players while still giving veterans to the series the conclusion they’ve been waiting for.

One of the many otherworldly creatures found in Arcadia

Dreamfall Chapters’ development was funded through a Kickstarter campaign and there has been positive feedback from gamers new to the series as well as those who have played from the beginning. This story-rich and mesmeric tale was well worth the wait.

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Part-time artist, full-time gamer
Gamer Since: 1990
Favorite Genre: RPG
Currently Playing: Overwatch
Top 3 Favorite Games:The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Fallout 4, Mass Effect 3


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