Cyberpunk 2077 - Inside the Classic Tabletop

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Glixel have interviewed Mike Pondsmith about the origins behind the classic tabletop Cyberpunk which is the basis for Cyberpunk 2077.

...
There are twelve character classes to choose from in Cyberpunk, and they're a far cry from the druids and bards and barbarians of Dungeons & Dragons. There are mercenaries, corporate raiders, med-techs who can graft machinery onto flesh, Max Headroom-like media manipulators, Netrunners who can jack into computer systems to disrupt or delete or steal data.

Some of the character types sound lame until you read the fine print. Rockerboys, who are essentially glammed-out pop stars, have a Charismatic Leadership skill that allows them to control crowds. At Level 5, you could incite thousands of people at an arena concert to destroy a neighborhood. At level 9, you have "the same sort of mesmeric ability as an Adolph HitIer - you can raise armies, start movements, and destroy nations."

One of the most innovative features in Cyberpunk is something called Lifepath, a system for generating an elaborate backstory for your character. Several rolls of the dice could determine that you're a secretive Bulgarian who is desperately in love with a professional rival that hates your guts. Different die rolls could result in you being an arrogant and aloof Micronesian whose CEO father sold you into bondage when his fortunes crashed, and now you don't trust anyone except for your digitally enhanced doberman.

"I wanted you to be able to sculpt an interesting character," says Pondsmith. "Nowadays, it seems like everybody does that - lifepath is everywhere."

Cyberpunk also had an innovative combat system called Friday Night Firefight. "Most RPGs have really complex combat," says Appelcline. "Like, you'll play for four hours, and spend couple of those hours on a single battle. Pondsmith created a combat system that was really quick and bloody and dirty and gritty - really true to cyberpunk."

"I didn't want people to have to deal with a lot of numbers," says Pondsmith. "And I wanted to make it like a real gunfight. The average one takes place at 12 feet distance, and it's not like movies where every shot connects and guns never run out of ammo - most cops throw 30 rounds down line and hit with two of them." A bullet that actually connects in the game is very likely to be lethal. "In Cyberpunk, you hoped you didn't get into a fight, and when you did, you tried to get out of it as fast as you could," says Appelcline.

Upgrading your body for combat is a core feature of Cyberpunk and a perfect fit for the kind of games CD Projekt Red has been making for years - The Witcher series is known for its deep character development systems - but Pondsmith tried to make sure that every cyborg enhancement was a carefully considered decision for players. "That's not just because of control of play and game balance," he says. "If you wanna maim yourself so you can be Robocop, you're gonna pay the price."
[...]
More information.
 
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Not played PnP game, but life paths is where the game shines at ( from what I've seen).
How they'll handle this in open world/sandbox? No idea. In Cyberpunk you roleplay into everything, this is far cry from TES blank slate->run, kill and loot approach.
To give it a spin what it feels like, this is life path generator program, just enter a name and generate:

http://www.moosh.net/cp2020/lifepath-form.html
 
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Entered Joxer: :p

Lifepath for Joxer
Origins & Personal Style
Clothes Nude
Hairstyle Long and Ratty
Affections Earrings
Ethnicity African: Bantu
Family Background
Rank Nomad Pack.
Parents You were left with relatives for safekeeping.
Family Status Family lost everything through bad management.
Childhood In a large arcology city.
Siblings (2) Twin sister feels neutral.
Younger brother feels neutral.
Motivations
Traits Silly and fluffheaded
Person Valued Most Teacher or Mentor
Valued Most Knowledge
Valued Possession A tool
Feeling about most people I like almost everyone.
Life Events
Age 16 Friend: Old Childhood Friend
Age 17 You have angered a small, local corp.
Age 18 Nothing Happened.
Age 19 Romance: Lover kidnapped.
Age 20 Nothing Happened.
Age 21 Enemy: Female ex-lover. Cause: Deserted or betrayed the other. Feelings: They hate you. Enemy's Resources: Just himself
Age 22 Nothing Happened.
Age 23 Local booser gang likes you. You can call upon them for 1 favor/month. Equiv to Family +2.
Age 24 Friend: Met through common interest.
Age 25 You have been falsely accused of murder.
Age 26 Local nomad pack befriends you. You can call upon them for one favor per month. Equiv to Family +2
Age 27 You lost 100 Eurodollars. If you can't pay now, you have a dept to pay in cash, or blood.
Age 28 Fast Affairs and Hot Dates
 
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I've often wondered when will Mike show up...
 
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