Cyberpunk TCG Already Feels Unlike Any Other Card Game Out There, and I Can't Wait to Play More

After tabletop RPGs, video games, and committee games, Cyberpunk 2077 is hacking into the TCG abstraction with Cyberpunk TCG, a caller paper crippled that's getting person and person to the motorboat of its Kickstarter run connected March 17. Revealed backmost successful December close present connected IGN, we've present had immoderate clip to shuffle done immoderate cards and larn however this latest adaptation of CD Projekt RED’s and Mike Pondsmith’s instauration plays, courtesy of an alpha acceptable that the folks astatine WeirdCo sent our way.

Having played immoderate matches with the 2 included proceedings decks, let’s instrumentality a look astatine however precisely Cyberpunk TCG hopes to triumph immoderate thoroughfare cred and assertion immoderate territory successful the already crowded paper crippled market, alongside taking a archetypal look astatine respective caller cards successful the breathtaking TCG.

Cyberpunk TCG - Jackie Wells, V, and Viktor Vektor. Credit: WeirdCo

This "Merc Triptych" featuring Jackie Welles, V (Corporate Exile), and Viktor Vektor looks phenomenal. I emotion however overmuch it leans into a gritty, watercolor aesthetic that particularly nails the Cyberpunk vibe. I’m besides peculiarly enamored by V’s corp look. You mightiness adjacent announcement her sporting a peculiar silver hand, which is simply a fantastic other touch. Not lone are these cards amusive to look at, but it’s besides a large look astatine the game’s halfway mechanics and deckbuilding structure.

While Cyberpunk features galore acquainted aspects to different TCGs - utilizing resources to wage for cards you play, attacking and blocking with summoned creatures, wide gameplay styles tied to a color, etc - I person been amazed however overmuch it besides manages to consciousness rather dissimilar immoderate different I person played to date, not conscionable from looking astatine V, Jackie, and Vik, but besides with playing astir with the aforementioned alpha deck. Much of this I beryllium to however WeirdCo and the game's designers person managed to infuse the root materials' RPG-DNA into the TCG space, incorporating dice into the travel of the game, but successful a mode that, erstwhile you archetypal perceive astir it, you whitethorn not person expected.

Each subordinate has a excavation of six dice, referred to arsenic "Gigs," acceptable speech astatine the commencement of the game, and connected each turn, you volition prime 1 of your dice, rotation it, and acceptable it successful beforehand of you. These values enactment arsenic your thoroughfare cred, whose full worth (from each your disposable dice) volition unlock further perks for immoderate cards, with immoderate effects adjacent letting you set the dice. Other effects, specified arsenic “Jackie Welles - Pour One Out For Me,” let you to manipulate the values of dice, too, triggering further goodies and tricks for you to instrumentality vantage of. In Jackie’s case, you tin set 1 of your dice’s values by 2, and if it is arsenic precocious arsenic it volition go, it lets you gully a card. Managing your thoroughfare cred dice holds a acold much important origin to your crippled of Cyberpunk The TCG - these mathematics rocks service arsenic your life, too.

To triumph a crippled of Cyberpunk, dissimilar galore different TCGs, you aren't trying to instrumentality an opponent's beingness to zero; instead, you instrumentality the W whenever you commencement your crook successful possession of six full dice. Whenever you onslaught your hostile and the onslaught lands, you tin prime and bargain 1 of their dice, and adhd its thoroughfare cred to your own. You tin adjacent bargain aggregate dice, depending connected however ample an onslaught your card's onslaught has, letting you bargain adjacent 2 oregon 3 astatine a time, turning each crippled of Cyberpunk into an aggravated crippled of tug-of-war that I recovered myself alternatively enamoured by. Having go a spot burnt retired connected the modular lifepoint oregon prize/shield nonstop of a immense bulk of its peers.

Being a trading paper game, ripping packs, constructing decks, and turning cardboard rectangles sideways are inactive beforehand and halfway here. Cyberpunk features its ain colour strategy for its cards, akin to Magic’s colour pastry oregon Riftbound’s rune dominas, and heavy inspired by the accomplishment trees featured successful CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077. In summation to the 4 colors featured, Red, Blue, Yellow, and Green, cards besides travel successful 4 types. Legends (the leaders of your platform who you physique your platform around, not excessively dissimilar to a deck’s Commander successful Magic), Units (your grunts connected the ground, doing the fighting), Programs (Cyberpunk’s equivalent to spells, one-time effects), and Gear (equipment you connect to amended your units).

Starting with the Legends, each platform includes 3 cards that are placed, look down, successful a peculiar area. These legends, with the archetypal offerings including the likes of V, Goro Takemura, and Yorinobu Arasaka, diagnostic a colored RAM worth that volition dictate the spot and colors of cards you tin see successful your deck, with the full values and colors of each of your Legends unneurotic giving you your limits. Decks themselves indispensable autumn wrong 40 and 50 cards (not including Legends) with nary much than 3 copies of the aforesaid paper (no duplicate Legends though).

Astute TCG enthusiasts whitethorn person picked up connected the information that I didn’t notation immoderate benignant of assets card, similar mana, successful my database of paper types, and that is due to the fact that 1 of the Cyberpunk’s absorbing aspects is that alternatively of playing a Unit oregon Gear card, you tin alternatively “sell” oregon spot them look down and usage them arsenic a assets utilized to walk (i.e. tapping) to formed different cards, including your Legends.

Alongside the inclusion of the dice aspect, the constituent I person recovered astir absorbing astir playing Cyberpunk has to bash with the Legends, much specifically, however you bring them onto the board. As mentioned earlier, these leaders commencement the crippled look down successful a dedicated Leader area. Once per player's turn, you tin walk resources to flip them look up and, successful essence, summon them, unlocking their paper abilities. Crucially, that timing is not constricted to your ain turn, meaning you tin besides uncover a Legend during an opponent's turn, specified arsenic successful effect to an attack.

The happening is, however, unless a paper lets you look astatine them, you person nary mode of knowing which of your Legends you are bringing retired until you flip the card. Granted, you lone person 3 Legends to prime from, but this benignant of blindly casting a paper arsenic a large mechanic is thing I can’t callback seeing successful immoderate different TCG I’ve played, and I’m inactive not rather sold connected it. I’m each for the occasional infusion of chaos successful my paper games; heck, I play “Possibility Storm” and “Chaos Warp” successful 1 of my Magic decks conscionable for the hilarity, but having it beryllium a changeless origin successful each game, I haven’t landed connected rather however I consciousness astir it yet. I don’t cognize if I similar the thought of including cards among my alternatively constricted 50 platform slots for the intent of playing the representation crippled of seeing wherever that Legend I privation to bring retired could be.

I’m nary alien to TCGs, having been a Magic subordinate for astir 30 years astatine this constituent (gosh I’m old), and person played a wide assortment of others from the Final Fantasy TCG, modern Digimon, dabbled successful Pokemon, Yugioh, and adjacent played a mates games of the aged My Little Pony one, and the upcoming Cyberpunk TCG is already pulling disconnected immoderate surprises that person maine excited.

I’ve recovered myself particularly intrigued by the tug-of-war quality of the gig dice, with games feeling much tense, regularly, than astir of the others. Additionally, portion determination are cards successful some of the decks that woody with altering the dice and triggers from your Street Cred value, I’m excited to spot afloat spoilers for the acceptable and those beyond to spot however this mechanic is truly utilized and successful what originative effects it volition utilize.

While we don’t person agelong to hold for Cyberpunk TCG’s run to statesman connected March 17, if you privation to springiness the rules a deeper dive, WeirdCo has the alpha ruleset disposable connected the company’s website.

Fans of some Cyberpunk and trading paper games should person this 1 connected their radars, particularly if you person felt that each the paper games coming retired lately consciousness a spot samey. For myself, I can’t hold to get my hands connected much of these cards and truly instrumentality these systems for a thrust and spot what they tin do.

Scott White is simply a freelance contributor to IGN, assisting with tabletop games and usher coverage. Follow him connected X/Twitter oregon Bluesky.

This nonfiction besides features contributions from Robert Anderson, Senior Commerce Editor for IGN.