While it’s far from a failure, it was feared that the issues with Cyberpunk 2077 would reflect on Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, a companion anime based on CD Projekt Red’s interpretation of Night City. Furthermore, Netflix’s reputation has taken a turn for the worse with flops like Cowboy Bebop and Resident Evil. Even with illustrious names like Hiroyuki Imaishi and Studio Trigger, people wondered if Cyberpunk: Edgerunners would be worth watching.
Is Cyberpunk: Edgerunners any good?
TL;DR: Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is very good and definitely worth a watch for any anime, cyberpunk, or sci-fi fan.
One of the criticisms of Cyberpunk 2077 is that it doesn’t go far enough to make your character a part of Night City. The three paths you can choose from at the start of the game, Nomad, Street Kid, and Corpo, have little bearing on how the story plays out. As a result, V felt more like an avatar for the player than an actual character.
Edgerunners, on the other hand, immediately establishes that capitalism has run rampant in Night City and that a monetary-based caste system exists. The main character, David, goes to an Arakawa academy, paid for by his mother, Gloria. Although they’re poor, Gloria struggles to give him a chance to enter the corporate world and break free of poverty’s hold on them.
What David goes through in the first few episodes immediately taps into the audience’s empathy. The series is a wild ride from start to finish and is emblematic of the quality fans expect from Studio Trigger.
