I’ve been running/playing cyberpunk RPGs, in many variations, since their inception (R. Talsorian’s “Cyberpunk 2013”). Over the years, I have experienced a lot of different ways of playing, from ad-hoc Edge-Runner teams through to Corporate Hit Squads. The part that particularly interests me is the low-end struggle-for-survival in a world of infinite possibilities!
My current go-to game is Fates Worse Than Death, by Vajra Enterprises, set on Manhattan, 2080AD. Underpopulated, and run by various street-gangs, The City is home to all manner of low-lifes, high-rollers, oddballs and primitive screwheads. Players take the part of Gang Members and, depending on the gang, may get access to Psychic Powers, Enhanced Technology, Experimental Pharmaceuticals, or little-known poisons!
Most of the USA is housed in Corporate Arcologies, Gated Estates and other luxurious accommodation. Manhattan residents live in run-down tower-blocks, ancient brownstone apartments and jerry-rigged shanty towns. The Corporations are taxed on their AI use, and that money is used to fund Welfare for the disenfranchised. Cheap Virtual Reality systems are install in all but the lowliest of homes, and a huge proportion of City residents do little other than immerse themselves in the Corporate Feed. This leaves the Mean Streets at the mercy of the Gangers.
The main theme I try to run with is that everything in The City is old, scavenged, recycled and re-purposed. New items are generally cheap knock-offs of the real thing, and soon customised (“The Street finds it’s own uses for things” – William Gibson, Burning Chrome). The phrase that seems to encapsulate this is “Dirty, Used and Broken”, often shortened to D.U.B. Everything in the City, including the People, is some combination of D. U. B.
As a theme for a game, this gives me, as the Game Master, to have a lot of leeway on what I allow into the game, without letting it get out of hand. You want a monomolecular blade, capable of cutting through steel bars? OK. But it is DUB! The blade is notched and sometimes catches on things. The handle worn and frayed. And it used to be someone else’s … maybe they want it back. Maybe they customised it, making it awkward to wield. maybe it was used in a crime, and people are hunting it’s owner. You want an ICE-Breaker, to hack corporate databases? Sure thing. But it might leave traces. It has glitches and needs constant attention. There might be back-doors and unknown commands. It could be broadcasting it’s every use back to it’s creator!
It is Dirty, Used, and Broken!
While this does give a GM a lot of opportunities to screw over the Players, how it is done will set the tone of the campaign. Remember that the NPCs, and their equipment is also DUB! People have Problems. They have irrational fears and desires, and are prepared to go to extreme lengths to satisfy them!
If the players can buy-in to the idea, then you can have lots of fun. Give them access to a high-tech device, and the Adventure becomes finding out how Dirty it is, who Used it previously, and if the Broken bits can be fixed! An NPC Quest-Giver is DUB. They have their Dirty hands in many pies, and some of those may give the PCs pause for thought. They are being Used by another, for nefarious ends. And they are Broken. This could make them unreliable, or more susceptible to being Used, or just interesting to play! It can give he PCs leverage, or get in their way!
And remember that the PCs are DUB! Unless they happen to be a Utopia Child (born and raised in a suburban paradise), they have had to grow up on the streets of the City. They have done things they are not proud of (and would probably get them sent to jail, if there was a functioning Justice system). They have taken and given favours. They have developed bad habits, and particular ways of viewing the World. (in our current game, 2 of the PCs are drug-addicts, one believes they are a Vampire, and craves blood, and the other is an escaped Experimental Super-Soldier! They are all beholden to a Blood Mage, who uses their blood to ensure compliance.) Depending on your players, you may like a system that enforces Personality Traits. make sure they have some negatives!
I like to run a game where the PCs are sparks of Hope amongst the Darkness. But it is not a Pure Light. And it casts long Shadows!
I hope this has given you some insight into our Games, and inspiration for your own!
Why not let me know how you have used similar concepts, or if you prefer a more defined Black/White, Good/Bad setting.