Category Archives: Cyberpunk

PlayStation revealed many games that would be making their way onto the platform in the coming months ...

PlayStations State of Play is a digital event where several games and studios are spotlighted. This years proved to be full of exciting announcements, with some landing far more quickly than expected.

Final Fantasy XVI has long been in the works but very little has been seen or heard of it. Director Yoshida Naoki made a brief video appearance sharing news that the game was close to finishing development (the further info revealing that the game is playable start to finish). The trailer was then broadcast, giving gamers a bombastic look at the newest entry. The trailer shared looks at summon fights, new characters, combat, and soaring music with a release window of Summer 2023.

Capcom came out swinging for the State of Play, chief among their announcements was the Street Fighter 6 trailer being dropped. The latest entry showed off a sort of exploration mode, new characters, and a fresh spin on the art style. The video focused mostly on cinematics and environment, but did give a piece of key information that the game would be coming out next year.

The adventures of a stray kitten with a backpack traipsing around a cyberpunk-looking city charmed gamers to no end last year. This year Annapurna confirmed that the game would be releasing sooner than expected, and on PlayStation Plus. Stray will be released on PlayStation 4 and 5 on July 19. It will also be featured as a bonus game for PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium tier members.

Sure there were the likes of Marvels Spiderman getting a PC release, but that didnt mean there wasnt plenty of room for several indie titles to share the stage. Among the announcements was that adventure game with adorable fox, Tunic, would be making its PlayStation 4 and 5 debut on Sept. 27. A gorgeous and serene looking tale Season: a Letter to the Future would be making a splash this fall on PlayStation 4 and 5 (give the trailer a look above!). For fans of weaponry and rollerskates, the two are combined in Rollerdrome, slated to come out for PS4 and PS5 this August.

If gamers enjoyed Dead Space, they are sure to enjoy the upcoming Callisto Protocol from the same creator. The trailer reveals a prisoner fighting to survive against mutated creatures in a space prison. The game stirs the same terrifying imagery its spiritual predecessor is known for, but looks to have a few twists of its own. Callisto Protocol is slated for release on Dec. 2 for the PlayStation 4 and 5.

For more details on all the announcements, please see the official Playstation blog post.

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5 Things We're Excited For in PlayStation's State of Play - Nerdvana

RPG fans are familiar with the troubled production that was Cyberpunk 2077. CD Projekt Red's interactive journey through Night City, while eventually given a new lease on life thanks to a next-gen console update, was critically lambasted, leading not just to poor reception but a lawsuit settlement with investors. But this adaptation of Mike Pondsmith's influential setting did lead to some well-received tabletop game experiences including the Cyberpunk Red TTRPG and the skirmish-based miniatures game Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone. Now, CMON Entertainment has announced their latest board game project, Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of New York, will be coming to Kickstarter.

The announcement for Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City happened this afternoon on a live stream by CMON Entertainment. This stream, which is archived on their official YouTube channel, went into further detail about the game. You and up to three other players play as gang leaders in the far future metropolis of Night City as you fight for control over territory. Taking control of either the Maelstrom, Tiger Claw, the Valentinos, or Voodoo Boys gangs, each with their own unique strengths and weaknesses, you work to control the city. You will need to manage both your Street Cred as well Eurodollars in order to recruit more units to your side. Much like the TTRPG, these units are broken up into three archetypes: Solo, Netrunner, and Techie respectively.

What makes the Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City stand out is that it is an area control board game with narrative choice. While the developers didn't fully explain how this will be managed in-game, the idea is that various events will occur as the game progresses, changing the rules of engagement between players. This can lead to different endings to the game depending on how players react to these events. The developers were quick to emphasize that was not a campaign experience but a competitive experience, citing influences like Rising Sun and Blood Rage.

But with this narrative backdrop, CMON did mention that Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City is still set within the canon of the world of Cyberpunk, specifically a few years before the player-controlled cyberpunk V entered the scene. To emphasize this, the developers confirmed that in addition to hiring regular gang members, you can also invest in specialist units. Those units include named characters from Cyberpunk 2077: Viktor, Kerry Eurodyne, River Ward, Goro Takemura, Judy Alvarez, T-Bug, Jackie Welles, Nix, Rogue, and Johnny Silverhand (somehow).

The Kickstarter campaign for Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City is not live yet. However, a preview page is up which will notify you when it has gone live.

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Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City Announced - TechRaptor

While most critics focus on violence in video games, we don't tend to hear much about all of the bad language. A new study carried out by FandomSpot has explored the use of profanity in video games, putting together a list of where it appears most often. Specifically, the list looks at IMDBs most popular 18+ video games, and which titles feature the most curse words. Does Grand Theft Auto take the trophy, or is the sweariest video game something completely different?

While Grand Theft Auto appears multiple times in the top 15 games with the most swear words, it's Cyberpunk 2077 that tops the list.

Cyberpunk 2077 contains more than 720 curse words, edging out GTA 4 with 691 swear words, and sequel GTA 5 with 669.

With a total of 501 curse words, Grand Theft Auto San Andreas appears at five, below The Last of Us Part 2 with 523 swear words in fourth.

Other games in the top ten include Until Dawn, Red Dead Redemption 2, Detroit: Become Human, The Witcher 3 and the original Last of Us.

It's worth emphasising that the list is made up of IMDB's 15 most popular 18+ video games, which means other, less critically acclaimed titles may have more bad language.

Indeed, the all-time record holder is actually Scarface: The World is Yours, which launched for the PS2 and Xbox back in 2006.

The Scarface video game adaptation contains a staggering 5,688 uses of the "F word" alone, which is enough to earn it a Guinness World Record.

As for IMDB's most popular 18+ video games, you can see the full list below...

1. Cyberpunk 2077 (722)

2. Grand Theft Auto IV (691)

3. Grand Theft Auto V (669)

4. The Last of Us: Part II (523)

5. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (501)

6. Until Dawn (393)

7. Red Dead Redemption II (347)

8. Detroit: Become Human (331)

9. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (277)

10. The Last of Us (84)

11. Batman: Arkham City (26)

12. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (22)

13. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (17)

14. Borderlands 3 (14)

15. Batman: Arkham Knight (5)

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Grand Theft Auto LOSES to Cyberpunk: The sweariest modern day video games revealed - Express

As much as cyberpunk might sound like an 80s punk rock band, its not quite what you think. A marriage between the words cybernetics", the concept of replacing human functions with computerized ones, and punk", the music genre - cyberpunk is in fact a subgenre of sci-fi which has been around for the past few decades.

The Early Days

First emerging in the 1970s, the concept cyberpunk is described as a dystopian, post-apocalyptic world, which features an unsettling mix of high tech and impoverished society, often being noted as being a massive juxtaposition. Lowlife and high tech mix to create a dark future.

Although cyberpunk themes started circulating around the 1970s, The first official use of this word was used as the title of a short story novel, written by Bruce Bethke, which follows the story of a teenage gang vandalising the net", which in modern terms is equivalent to that of hacking. After this novel was later published in 1983 - the term and concept of cyberpunk grew in popularity amongst other writers including Bruce Sterling, Rudy Rucker, and Katsuhiro Otomo.

The theme of cyberpunk quickly overlapped into other industries including film and fashion, with some notable movies including Blade Runner, Mad Max, The Terminator, and of course, one of the most successful cyberpunk movie franchises of our generation - The Matrix Trilogy. As far as fashion goes, the love for cyberpunk runway looks makes a comeback every few decades it seems. From Muglers Fall Collection of 1995, to Balenciagas Terminator inspired Spring 2007 Collection and most recently, Jean Paul Gaultiers 2019 Fall Couture, the cyberpunk genre keeps on making a comeback, bigger and better each and every time.

The Merge of Cyberpunk and Gaming

It was absolutely inevitable that the theme of cyberpunk would infiltrate the booming gaming industry, where the world saw games such as Shadowrun and Blade Runner hit the shelves in the 1980s/1990s. Similarly to other industries, the cyberpunk genre isnt leaving any time soon. In fact, the popularity of cyberpunk games has been booming over the last few years. One of the most popular cyberpunk games of the last few decades, Cyberpunk, which was first published in 1998 and written by Mike Pondsmith, saw a return to the gaming market with three additional editions being released in 1990, 2005 and 2020. Cyberpunk 2077, the latest version released in 2020, saw a whopping 18 million copies being sold by April of 2022.

Where to Next?

With the main theme of cyberpunk being extremely futuristic, advanced technology, the introduction of cyberpunk themed games into the world of Web3 feels like a perfect fit. Web3 is what many believe to be the new age of the internet - fully decentralized, built on digital ledgers known as blockchains, allowing individual users have control over their own content and data - unlike large corporations having centrallized control in the age of Web2 (the internet as we know it today). Web3 gaming does just that, it gives users and players the ability to control their data and assets online, safe from the hackers that we see in many cyberpunk stories. The decentralizatoin of these games is merely one appealing aspect of the Web3 gaming world.

One of the most exciting aspects of Web3 gaming is the change to a Play-To-Earn ecosystem (P2E), through the support of NFT mechanics. This new age of gaming models gives players the opportunity to earn an income while playing games, as they progress through different levels and unlock new skills. Through NFTs, players are able to invest in different digital collectibles such as new weapons, new avatar skins and so much more. By owning an in-game NFT, that specific digital asset is owned by one person, allowing them to trade, buy and sell their NFTs as they please, with the possibility of their NFT growing in value, adding an extra layer of potential income through Web3 games.

Looking to the Future

Although Web3 gaming may sound like a foreign concept some might think is a concept of the future, many would be surprised to know that the Web3 cyberpunk gaming world already exists. Games such as Project Hive are truly bringing the world of cyberpunk and Web3 gaming to life, while still staying true to the original cyberpunk genre along with the new age of blockchain, NFTs and the revolution of P2E. Will you be taking the leap and joining the new world of cyberpunk in Web3?

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The Cyberpunk Gaming Genre: The Past, Present And Future | Mint - Mint

While the Cyberpunk gaming genre has been around for a while now, it has been given a new lease of life thanks to play-to-earn (P2E).

Cyberpunk is best described as a sort of science fiction set in a dystopian future. Blade Runner, The Matrix, and Tron are good examples of cyberpunk films and they have spawned a genre of video games that have proved immensely popular over the years. Deus Ex, System Shock, and Ruiner are considered classic Cyberpunk games.

As Cyberpunk has evolved over the decades it has spawned a new genre of what you could call cyberpunk-inspired games making it an even bigger genre. Given its massive and loyal fanbase, developers were confident they could introduce the P2E element for players to take on this new challenge and get rewarded in real life.

This monetization, in the form of cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), is one of the most exciting trends the gaming scene has seen in a while. And with the introduction of P2E into Cyberpunk games, the concept could really take off. As play-to-earn games have cryptocurrency and NFTs as an integral part of the gameplay, they add a new level of excitement and competition as the stakes are higher. With those earnings you can buy items within the game such as characters, weapons, and land. You can even trade and sell your assets to other players.

Many of the coolest games coming out this year combine both of these popular trends cyberpunk-inspired games and play-to-earn features. One such game is Reign of Terror, a unique cyberpunk P2E blockchain game on Solana developed by Red Door Digital that weaves DeFi staking mechanics and NFTs into every facet of the game including Agents who run missions in a squad, Crafting (blueprints and manufacturing), Lands and more. Players can also wage war in high stakes gameplay: NFTs can be stolen, ransomed, or burned. They can participate in escalating strategic battles risking everything in the Terror Zone for awesome rewards and form guilds and alliances with access to end-game content by staking $ROT.

Another such game is Project Hive, a third-person shooter game in which you play a survivor stranded in the destroyed mining facility Hive on the planet Proxima. This game has nine playable levels in which you gradually discover the impact of the destruction a solar storm caused to the facility. The in-game items are all NFTs which allow the players to trade, buy and sell items without limits. Players receive HGT and SOL tokens for many activities, including territory wars, PvP duels, and PVE chapters and creating or joining clans.

Also on the list of cool new Cyperpunk P2E releases is Neon District, a role-playing game where your main tasks are to collect characters and special in-game items in a dystopian world. It uses Matic and Ethereum blockchain technology, giving you a safe way to store and trade whatever NFTs you earn.

As Web 3, labeled the next phase of the internet, evolves, this should make such P2E games even more attractive as they will allow greater cross-chain NFT interoperability. A new-generation, blockchain-integrated internet, where cryptocurrencies and NFTs are built into the platforms, could see Cyberpunk-inspired games really take off, and dawn a new era for this much-loved genre.

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The Coolest Cyberpunk-Inspired P2E Games to Look Out For in 2022 - hackernoon.com

The bustling night markets in cities across Asia are the inspiration for a massive new food hall and beer garden coming to Flushing, Queens this summer.

The space, which is cyberpunk meets organic industrial, will open at Tangrama gigantic mixed-use complex in Flushing that has retail,luxury residential towers, an office tower, the Renaissance New York Flushing Hotel and a state-of-the-art 4DX movie theater from Regal Cinemas.

RECOMMENDED: Time Out Market New York has six new cocktails this season

When it opens this summer, it'll have its own international eats from Na Tart, Cruncheese, Qing Shu, Zaab Zaab, Da Wei Mei Shi and more. The hope is to recreate the nightlife seen in Netflix's docuseriesMidnight AsiaandBHDM Design principal Dan Mazzarinis extensive travels through Asia (Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Taipei), and renderings certainly suggest that will be the case.

According to a press release,Mazzariniwas "in awe of their unique, kinetic energya frenzy of people, products, sights and smellsand how the markets were physically activated with people and visually activated by lights and signs."

Entering the space will be pretty cool, too. The entry is marked bya dropped proscenium header (think theater arch) and a compressed, stalactite ceiling made of layers of pointed triangles that catch light. This piece will essentially be an optic art installation.

Thefood hall itself will be pretty dynamicin the daytime, textures likereclaimed cedar columns with metal cuffs, concrete floors, exposed ceilings, and textured metal details will be highlighted by sunlight, but at night, bright, dancing lights, TV screens and neon ceiling signs will brighten up the space.

Vendors will be along the perimeter with an "undulating" header with vendor names but also in the center as individual islands. Above the central island, vendor stalls have "cage-like" fixtures made of black metal gridded boxes. The main alley will have high black ceilings with exposed mechanicals and hidden lighting.

Tangram is also opening Hoi Polloi (the Greek term for "the people"), which is a night beer gardenwithmultiple bars, 24 beers on tap, including local beer, curated cocktails made by mixologists, a gaming alcove, and a robust sound system for live music and space for private parties.

Overhead, sphere-shaped lights, a disco ball and LED lights will color the room neon pink and teal in a circular design that repeats throughout the space. Perhaps the most attractive piece of Hoi Polloi is its main featurea wall that is meant to look like a lava lamp. It leads out to a 40-person outdoor terrace, where drinkers can see the neighborhood.

Light and color are the central characters here.

According to Tangram, Hoi Polloiwill use natural light from the west-facing windows to shine color into the space with graphics that are pasted on its windows. LEDs will animate the room and "pulse to the beat of the music" in the evenings.

"The lights are a marriage of architectural and theatrical lighting," Tangram said in its release. "The designers tapped Tirso Lighting to help create this vision. To further expand upon this design premise, simple black and white surfaces were used so light can reflect off of them to become a focal point."

Make sure to stay updated about its official opening date at @tangramnyc on Instagram.

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A cyberpunk-inspired Asian food hall and beer garden is coming to Queens - Time Out

Image: Aya Neo

Chinese firm Aya Neo has already made something of a splash in the handheld gaming arena thanks to its Windows-based portables, but they've always been held back by the fact that they're so expensive, often costing over $1000.

However, the firm is expanding its lineup to include the Aya Neo Air, which will cost just CNY 4,399 (~US$649) when it launches later this year. That's still a big chunk of change, but that price point makes this a more realistic rival for the Switch although it's worth noting that it's still more expensive than Valve's recently-released Steam Deck.

Announced alongside the more powerful Aya Neo 2 and Aya Neo Slide, the Air will serve as the company's entry-level handheld and is powered by an AMD Barcelo APU which includes RX Vega graphics architecture. This means it will have less processing muscle than its siblings, both of which boast the Ryzen 7 6800U chipset with RDNA 2 graphics but those products will also cost more.

However, the company still claims that the Air will be capable of running the likes of GTA V, Forza Horizon 5 and Cyberpunk 2077 (with low graphical settings, as seen in the video below) and the fact that it has an OLED panel means it is superior to its stablemates in that regard Aya Neo's other products all use IPS screens.

It has also been confirmed that the Air lives up to its name by weighing just 420g, which makes it lighter than the Switch OLED Model.

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The Aya Neo Air Is An OLED-Packing Handheld That Can Run Cyberpunk 2077 And GTA V - Nintendo Life

We have brought you the best Cyberpunk 2077 weapons list so that you can decide which one is the best for you and win the fight against strong enemies.

Cyberpunk 2077 is a game that has lots of actions, and you will find lots of weapons to use against enemies. There are a variety of weapons from long range to short range. In order to defeat enemies and even a few strong bosses in the game, the weapon is the key. Having the best weapon with you can increase the chances of your victory against the enemy. But which are the best Cyberpunk 2077 weapons?

To answer this question, we have a list below that will guide you to some of the best Cyberpunk 2077 weapons you can use. The list is based on our own preferences, therefore it can be different for you. You could even do well with the weapon at the bottom of our list. As a result, if you believe there is another weapon that would be better for you, you can use it. If youre still confused and want to know which weapon is the greatest, this list will undoubtedly be of assistance.

The Mantis Blades is a melee weapon that gives you power in addition to its speed. With these quick blades, you can slash enemies very easily. Although, the weapon is not recommended for long-range fights. However, if you are in short-range then this weapon will surely help you to get those cool kills. The Mantis Blades also help you to unlock an ability. This ability allows you to leap to your target and deal some serious damage.

Malorian Arm 3516 is the best power pistol you can have in Cyberpunk 2077. You will unlock this weapon during the Chippin In side mission in Act 2. It has a great headshot damage multiplier that can take down enemies very quickly if you have that accuracy. The Malorian Arm 3516 was a custom weapon made for Johnny Silverhand. If you are in the pistol category, then this is one of the best options available for you.

Assault rifles are one of the most well-known weapons in almost any shooting game. These weapons have a number of attachments as well as the ability to customize your gameplay. The assault rifle will be a powerful weapon for you. Assault rifles, on the other hand, are the best alternative if you desire incredible accuracy, little recoil, excellent mobility, and a large range.

Moron Labe is one of Cyberpunk 2077 is a great Assault Rifle under Power categories. As standard, this AR features a clip size of 30 and a damage output of 5.62 damage per second. In addition to that, as a Power weapon, Moron Labe lets its bullets bounce off surfaces, giving it a high chance of hitting multiple enemies at once.

This ARs greatest advantage is that the rate of fire can be greatly increased. You have a greater chance of dismembering enemy targets by doing so, which makes your combat more lethal.

With the 30 rounds magazine clip, Fenrir has the power to deal 6.90 damage per second Fenrirs bullets can also hit multiple enemies and gives you an upper hand in combat. If you shoot at a single enemy with the Fenrir, it will deal thermal damage, and it will later deal burn damage to that opponent.

However, if you want this ability, you will have to sacrifice your recoil. So, if you are the one who can control the recoil easily, then this is one of the best Cyberpunk 2077 weapons you can have in your arsenal. If you attach the suitable and some great attachments to this weapon, it can become deadly. If you like to go a bit slow with an SMG and stay in your position for a long time, then Fenrir will do the job for you.

Sniper weapons are extremely strong in any game that involves shooting. You wont have to worry about a lot of things here, like range or ammo. The opponent is defeated for good with just one headshot.

Overwatch is a sniper that comes equipped with a custom scope called the HPO Mk.77 Kanone MAX. The reload speed of this weapon is high, making up for the shorter magazine. Aside from those, it has two slots for attachments, which can be used to install a scope or a mod. This sniper rifle has slots for four Legendary mods if its the Legendary variant.

Cyberpunk 2077 players can acquire Overwatch by completing the Riders of the Storm side quest, which rewards the weapon from Panam Palmer. Its bullets ricochet off surfaces when fired, making it a Power weapon in the game. A target is dealt 0.28 damage per second by Overwatch, and it carries four rounds in its magazine clip. This weapon is one of the best Cyberpunk 2077 weapons that you can have. Overwatch is an easy choice for individuals who want to take down their opponents from a distance where they wont be seen.

So these were the best Cyberpunk 2077 weapons, according to us. As we said above that it can be different for you. We have covered almost all weapon types in our list. The list has the best SMG, AR, sniper, melee, and pistol. If you want a quick weapon for close range, then you can go with the Fenrir, Mantis Blades, and Malorian Arm 3516. The Moron Labe and Overwatch will help you with the long-range. Therefore, you can try them without any hesitation. Try out the above weapons and see if they suit your gameplay or not.

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Best Weapons in Cyberpunk 2077 - Media Referee

Just in time for the games seventh anniversary, the developers of The Witcher 3 announced that its long-anticipated next-gen update will release later this year. CD Projekt Red confirmed via Twitter yesterday that the update will be releasing in Q4 2022 for PS5, XBOX Series S/X, and PC. The free update will feature improved performance and graphical quality, as well as additional DLC not included in the original release.

The next-gen update for the seven-year-old game was first announced in 2021, in the immediate aftermath of Cyberpunk 2077s release in late 2020. After several shorter delays that stretched into 2022, the developer announced in mid-April that their in-house team would take the lead on the remaining work for the update, and that it would be delayed past Q2. Yesterdays announcement is the first time the updates release window has been nailed down so concretely, and also the first look into some of its added content.

In addition to beautifying the base game and increasing its performance, the free update will add DLC inspired by Netflixs Witcher series, which is now in its second season. Heavily based on the original books by Andrzej Sapkowski, the show has found critical success both within and outside the series existing community of fans. Not much is known yet about the new DLC, but given the shows wide audience, it seems to be an opportunity for CD Projekt to capitalize on potential new players familiar with the show, as well as offer longtime fans of the game another reason to return.

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CD Projekt Red Announces The Witcher 3's Next-Gen Update Will Release This Year - Paste Magazine

Unfinished Business is NMEs weekly column about the weird and wonderful world of Early Access games. This week, Rick Lane takes a chainsaw to Paradise in cyberpunk shooter Turbo Overkill.

Any game that puts a chainsaw in its protagonists leg already has my attention, but it wasnt until I picked up the arm-embedded micro-missiles that I knew Turbo Overkill was legit. Once youve grabbed these delicious bomb-babies, holding down middle-mouse button during a fight will see you can lock-on to nearby enemies before unleashing a barrage of tiny explosives thatll turn your foes into dog food.

If youve played Doom Eternal, youll already be familiar with the delights of cluster rockets, and this isnt the only thing Turbo Overkill borrows from ids beautifully revitalised shooter. Indeed, Turbo Overkill is well-versed in recent FPS developments, casting its cyborg eye across the genre and identifying all the best bits for glorious assimilation.

Youre Johnny Overkill, a cybernetically-enhanced mercenary tasked with travelling to the city of Paradise and cleansing it of Syn, a megalomaniacal computer virus whose personality can be summed up as What if SHODAN was a giant eye? This is all the setup Turbo Overkill needs to thrust you into vast, neon-drenched levels crawling with creepy cyborg foes driven to frenzy by Syns corrupted code.

Turbo Overkill. Credit: Trigger Happy Interactive.

Paradise is a pastiche of cyberpunk cityscapes, a maze of glittering skyscrapers and glowing billboards erected upon deeply rotten foundations. While it lacks the rich worldbuilding and outright weirdness of the criminally underrated G-String, it makes up for this in how it balances coherent geometry with the arena-like design of classic nineties shooters. Its locations are always identifiable as streets, subways, etc, but this never limits the potential for speedy movement and ridiculous acrobatics.

And Turbo Overkills acrobatics are, indeed, ridiculous. From the off, Johnny is equipped with a double-jump, a double-dash, and a Bulletstorm-like slide that automatically deploys his chainsaw-leg to shred enemies that get in the way. Later on, youll unlock more advanced techniques like wall-running and a grappling hook, making it one of the most comprehensive FPS movesets around. With the exception of the wall-running, which still needs refinement to make transitions feel smooth, everything flows together well.

The game encourages you to take advantage of this extensive manoeuvrability. Not only is your chainsaw-slide an effective way of killing enemies without consuming ammo, some opponents can only be killed in specific ways. Drones, for example, can only be destroyed by blasting the brain poking out of their chassis (a slight design flaw) which often requires you to shoot them while in mid-air.

(Credit: Apogee Entertainment)

Turbo Overkill clearly wants players to be as a creative as possible in their killing-sprees. This extends to the games arsenal. Your starting weapons are a pair of dual-pistols that have a lock-on alt-fire that can mince multiple enemies at once, while the next-weapon, an energy-shotgun, can pump multiple shells into the chamber to unleash an explosive electrical charge. Even the more conventional weapons are designed with pleasing little touches, such as how the chainguns bullet-belt runs through Johnnys free hand as it fires.

Its details like this that help lend Turbo Overkill a personality of its own. It could so easily feel like a hodgepodge of different influences. A little Doom here, a touch of Titanfall there. But the cyberpunk setting, alongside the smartly judged tone of the game cool without being crass help distinguish it from its various inspirations. Turbo Overkill also strikes the right balance between its retro and modern halves, taking the appropriate lessons from the past without feeling obligated to mimic it for the sake of purity. Like Doom Eternal, it uses classic elements to create something that feels fresh and exciting, a springboard for its own ideas about what a good FPS should do.

That said, there are a couple of issues that need addressing. While I love the imaginative weapon design, many weapons currently feel underpowered. The audio effects are quite tinny, which isnt too much of an issue for the energy-based weapons. But the chaingun should have a drone like a B-52 bomber, and without that it feels underwhelming to fire. In general the audio design is very good particularly the soundtrack, whose blend of synth and metal perfectly embodies the games technological dystopia.

Turbo Overkill. Credit: Trigger Happy Interactive.

My other issue is Turbo Overkills poor implementation of checkpoint saves. The game will only save once every two or three encounters, which simply isnt sufficient given how quickly or unexpectedly the game can kill you. Its not that the game is especially hard, its interpretation of normal difficult is about right. But when you do die, it tends to happen suddenly, and having to plod through fights youve already passed just to get to the one youre struggling with is an unnecessary frustration.

These issues aside, Turbo Overkill makes an impressive Early Access splash. Jumping in now will give you access to the first of a planned three episodes, which will take you around five hours to complete. If youre an FPS fan, theres probably enough here to make Turbo Overkill worth your while, and if the second and third episodes can match the quality of the first, then developer Trigger Happy Interactive could have a minor masterpiece on its hands.

Turbo Overkill launches in Early Access on April 22 and will be available on PC, with console editions planned to arrive at a later date.

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'Turbo Overkill' is a wickedly stylish cyberpunk shooter - NME