Among the most enticing elements ofCyberpunk 2077is its world. Night City is a complex metropolis with cybernetic residents of all shapes and sizes. The anime spinoff–Cyberpunk: Edgerunners–only reaffirms that impression, telling a new story and letting fans experience even more of Night City.
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Despite the new narrative, theCyberpunksetting comes with several connections to the game. Most of these are objects or locations, but audiences also get the occasional familiar face. Sure, they’re essentially fan service. That said, such references ultimately help this neon world feel more expansive.
7HUD
Players access most of their tools through the heads-up display. They can select vehicles, restore health through maxdocs, and communicate with others. In the latter’s case, people in the future have their phones built into their heads.Text messages, caller ID, and video chats all appear within their field of vision. Some might pass these aspects off as quirks of video game design, but they’re apparently universal across Night City.
Whenever a character deals with personal accounts in the show, the info appears the same way. It even features the familiar ringtone. The only major difference is that verbal responses show up as text messages. Aside from that, however, the HUD elements are precisely as players remember. In a nice touch, the info holographically projects in front of characters' faces, hearkening back to the game’s first-person perspective. It’s hard to know if this is convenient or cumbersome.
6Apartment
Living standards might also be universal. As protagonist David relaxes, audiences get a good look at his apartment. They soon discover that the layout is eerily familiar.
The place has the exact same design as V’s home. It has a bed built into the left wall, an entertainment area on the right, anda window at the back overlooking the city. Those are just a few aspects players will recognize. Granted, they can’t sneak in through an air vent, but everything else is similar. One might think architects just copied this design across the city, but plenty of other apartments have different layouts. As such, the familiar look of David’s place is no accident.
5Afterlife
The montage of edgerunning exploits throws a few references back-to-back. The first comes when David and company go to Afterlife for some downtime. This is an underground bar forfixers and mercs. As expected, it’s virtually identical to the game, right down to the blue lighting. This easter egg goes beyond a simple location, though.
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The scene also sees cameos from Rogue and Claire. After the doorman refuses Rebecca entry due to her age, David uses his implant abilities to sneak her in. The action gets a laugh from the iconic fixer and bartender. Ironically, they seem happier here than they ever do in the game.
4Lizzie’s Bar
The other establishment to get some love in this montage is Lizzie’s Bar. This is where players meetEvelyn and Judybefore the Arasaka heist. David visits the place with the male members of the crew, but they’re not looking for wholesome entertainment.
This club specializes in erotic braindances, allowing patrons to experience all sorts of sexual fantasies. The show sees David and company partaking in these simulations, sitting in awe with the VR goggles on. Their BDs are clearly NSFW because of their dirty hand gestures afterward. What’s sad is that this is tame compared to some of the signs backstage.
3Delamain
While prepping for the Tanaka data heist, Maine mentions Delamain cabs. This is the transportation service that only corporate higher-ups can afford. Jackie gives the same exposition in the game.
Sure enough, Tanaka later rolls up to his personal braindance editor in a Delamain taxi. The car’s AI host is as accommodating as players remember. He thanks the passenger for his patronage and asks if he requires anything else. Tanaka promptly slams the door in his virtual face. Maybe he’s still mad at Del forhis infamous game-breaking bug.
2Wakako
After the time jump, David and crew have risen high in the mercenary world. They’re taking tougher jobs and attracting more famous fixers. One of these is Wakako of the Westbrook District. The young edgerunner finishes a contract with her when the story picks up.
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Wakako is also one of the first fixers in the game’s narrative. She tasks V and Jackie with rescuing a netrunner from Scavengers, for which they receive a generous payment anda free ripperdoc upgrade. They just have to wait for the lockdown (or tutorial) to end to collect. David deals with no such delay in the show, conducting business entirely over the phone. Besides, the first half of the season is essentially his tutorial.
1Adam Smasher
AsDavid gets more and more implants, his ripperdoc marvels at his body’s tolerance for chrome. He even likens his client to Adam Smasher, a legendary figure in theCyberpunkworld. Not only can he handle an unprecedented amount of implants without turning into a cyberpsycho, but he uses these implants to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks. Of course, David passes him off as an urban myth, but players know he’s all too real.
An oversized thug on the corporate payroll, Smasher is Arasaka’s personal attack dog against its greatest enemies. His actions result in Johnny Silverhand’s death, and David sadly meets the same fate. If it’s any consolation, V ultimately takes him down.
