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''Cyberspace'' is a near-future
cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting said to focus on a combination of "low-life and high tech". It features futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyberwa ...
role-playing game
A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out ...
published by
Iron Crown Enterprises
Iron Crown Enterprises (ICE) is a publishing company that has produced role playing, board, miniature, and collectible card games since 1980. Many of ICE's better-known products were related to J. R. R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, but the ''R ...
(I.C.E.) in 1989 using a revised set of rules from their previously published ''
Space Master'' role-playing game.
Description
''Cyberspace'' is a role-playing game that uses the cyberpunk atmosphere engendered in the science fiction novels of
William Gibson
William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as cyberpunk. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ear ...
,
Bruce Sterling
Michael Bruce Sterling (born April 14, 1954) is an American science fiction author known for his novels and short fiction and editorship of the ''Mirrorshades'' anthology. In particular, he is linked to the cyberpunk subgenre.
Sterling's first ...
and
Walter John Williams. The primary setting is a dystopian
urban sprawl
Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...
around San Francisco in the year 2090 in a world that is controlled by powerful "MegaCorps".
Players choose from a variety of occupations including:
*Jockey, primarily a pilot and of almost any aircraft or vehicle, also
jack-of-all-trades
*Killer, a combat specialist
*Net Junkie or Net Head, a computer hacker
*Sleaze, a specialist in social skills
*Tech Rat, technical wizard
Publication history
In 1985, I.C.E. published the complex science-fiction role-playing game ''Space Master'' and subsequently released several adventures for it. Tod Foley, who worked on some of the adventures, developed a cyberpunk science fiction role-playing game with the help of Terry Amthor, Kevin Barrett, Coleman Charlton, and Leo LaDell. The game, ''Cyberspace'', set in a grim and morally bankrupt future, was published as a 208-page softcover book in 1989 with cover art by Rick Vietch and interior art by Angela Bostick, Dell Harris, Rick Lowry, and Karl Martin.
I.C.E. published several adventures and supplements for the game in 1990 and 1991, and published a second edition of the game in 1992.
Reception
In Issue 55 of the French games magazine ''
Casus Belli
A (; ) is an act or an event that either provokes or is used to justify a war. A ''casus belli'' involves direct offenses or threats against the nation declaring the war, whereas a ' involves offenses or threats against its ally—usually one bou ...
'', Pierre Rosenthal thought that ''Cyberspace'' "is an almost exact copy of
he previously published R. Talsorian Games product">R._Talsorian_Games.html" ;"title="he previously published R. Talsorian Games">he previously published R. Talsorian Games product''Cyberpunk (role-playing game)">Cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting said to focus on a combination of "low-life and high tech". It features futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyberwa ...
''. Indeed, although the setting has to be similar and commonalities would be expected, certain aspects (background of the characters, presentation of the interface worlds, corporation files) seem almost plagiarized." Rosenthal did find that each chapter of this game "(history, cybernetic implants, computer interface, vehicles, corporations) is a little more in-depth [than other products]." But Rosenthal thought descriptions of computer systems were forty years out of date, calling "the vision of computing worthy of the 1950s." Rosenthal also pointed out that this game, like other American cyberpunk role-playing games, was extremely America-oriented, noting that "Europe is limited to England and a few satellite Latin countries (like Italy, Spain and France)." Rosenthal concluded, "''Cyberspace'' remains a good alternative for those who like the I.C.E. simulation system."
In his 1990 book ''
The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games
''The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games'' is a book written by Rick Swan and published by St. Martin's Press in 1990 that explains role-playing games and provides reviews of those that were on the market at the time.
Contents
''The Complete G ...
'', game critic
Rick Swan
Rick Swan is a game designer and author who worked for TSR.
His work for TSR, mostly for ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'', appeared from 1989 to 1995.
Swan also wrote '' The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games'' (1990), published by St. Martin' ...
called it an "excellent cyberpunk RPG" but he had reservations about recommending it, pointing out that, like its complex predecessor ''Space Master'', this game's rulebook was "packed with tables, numbers, and formulas. ''Cyberspace'' is clearly intended for sophisticated players who don't mind thumbing through a thick rulebook to dig out the string of modifiers necessary to resolve combat or create characters." But Swan did think that the game "features the most thoroughly developed background of any cyberpunk RPG ... Computer technology receives the best treatment I've ever seen in an RPG." Swan concluded by giving the game a rating of 3 out of 4, writing, "As a game, ''Cyberspace'' is playable for those determined enough to untangle the rules. As a sourcebook, it's an essential purchase for anyone planning a cyberpunk campaign, regardless of the game system they're using."
reviewed ''Cyberspace'' in ''
White Wolf'' #21 (June/July 1990), rating it a 3 out of 5 and stated that "If complicated mechanics don't bother you, ''Cyberspace'' is the best purely cyberpunk game for you, and even if you're happy with another cyberpunk RPG, ''Cyberspace'' is worth its cover price just for its source material."
In a 1996 reader poll to determine the 50 most popular roleplaying games conducted by the British games magazine ''Arcane'', ''Cyberspace'' was ranked 44th. The magazine's editor Paul Pettengale commented: "One of the most detailed cyberpunk rules systems, what really sets ''Cyberspace'' apart is its cybertechnology. Rather than presenting a shopping list of things your character could have implanted in his or her anatomy, ''Cyberspace'' includes full rules for designing customised cyberware. By connecting sub-systems to 3 different inputs, outputs, activation controls and power sources, players can create their own systems."
References
{{Reflist
External links
Official Page for ''Cyberspace''Listing of all ICE ''Cyberspace'' products
at RPGnet
RPGnet is a role-playing game website. It includes sections on wargaming, wargames, tabletop games and video games, as well as columns on gaming topics.
RPGnet was founded in 1996 by Emma and Sandy Antunes, Shawn Althouse ( etrigan) and Brian Dav ...
Roleplaying Games by Tod Foley
Cyberpunk role-playing games
Iron Crown Enterprises games
Role-playing games introduced in 1989