Cyberpunk 2077 was certainly one of the most anticipated games of the last decade. And it still is, seeing as it hasn't come out yet after numerous delays. A glut of marketing material has been released to promote the game over the years, from songs and videos to artwork. Recently it was announced that it's getting a comic book tie-in called Cyberpunk 2077: Trauma Team, and it was also confirmed that an anime spin-off is in production.
Called Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, the series will be set in the same Night City featured in the game but it'll focus on different characters and its own story. A press release describes the series as:
"A standalone, 10-episode story about a street kid trying to survive in a technology and body modification-obsessed city of the future. Having everything to lose, he chooses to stay alive by becoming an edgerunner—a mercenary outlaw also known as a cyberpunk."
If you're hyped so far, just wait until you hear who's involved. CD Projekt Red are producing the series while Studio Trigger are handling animation. Hiroyuki Imaishi (Gurren Lagann, Kill La Kill, Promare) is directing and the soundtrack will be composed by Akira Yamaoka of Silent HIll fame. Speaking of Silent Hill, I haven't been this hyped since Hideo Kojima, Guillermo del Toro and Junji Ito were confirmed to be collaborating on an ill-fated reboot of the series. I have a feeling Edgerunners will eventually see the light of day at least.
Cyberpunk 2077 game director Adam Badowski said:
"We are so excited to finally reveal that we are working on an anime in the Cyberpunk world. We’ve devoured just about all the cyberpunk fiction there is to watch, read, and play; it’s a genre that leaves so much room for creativity, and has had such a strong influence on us. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is our love letter to cyberpunk as a whole, and to stories told in animated form.”
Studio Trigger CEO's Masahiko Otsuka added:
“We at Trigger are thrilled to work with CD Projekt Red to create a brand-new story set in the world of the highly anticipated Cyberpunk 2077. It’s a huge challenge to adapt this universe into an anime, but we are eager to face it head-on. I’ve always loved cyberpunk as a genre, but always found it difficult to create as an original work. This is why I’m very excited to be working with CD Projekt Red on this project. It won’t be easy to please both game and anime fans, but I love a challenge, and I’m looking forward to the production. We’ll do our best to meet and exceed expectations.”
I've mentioned in the past that I'm a huge fan of the cyberpunk genre, particularly old school anime like Bubblegum Crisis, Ghost in the Shell and Armitage III. We haven't had a lot of recent cyberpunk anime other than Psycho-Pass so you bet I'll be looking forward to this. The plot even sounds kinda like some stuff I've been writing! Check out the announcement video for more info:
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners will be coming to Netflix in 2022. Are you as excited as I am? Could Keanu Reeves make an appearance? Will there be custom cyberdongs? Let us know what you think!
