Despite the negativity surrounding the videogame “Cyberpunk 2077,” Polish video game development studio CD Projekt Red kept their faith in their adaptation and continued to improve it to this day. The story is one that many have thoroughly enjoyed but that experience could have been soured by its earlier presentation which was full of game breaking glitches and bugs. Fortunately, fans won’t have to experience that with the Netflix series “Cyberpunk Edgerunners” which not only has a well crafted story without the bugs, but a rocking soundtrack and visuals that will make viewers come back to Night City for one more joyride.

The story follows 17-year-old David Martinez, a poor kid who attends Arasaka Academy on behalf of his mother. With students reinforcing the idea that he’s below them and Martinez not conforming to the academy’s high standards, his life changes after the loss of his mother, Gloria Martinez. Soon after he runs into Lucy, an edgerunner who works low level gigs with her crew, and finds himself becoming a valuable member after his ability to withstand a cybernetic augment that would quite literally fry other people’s brains proves useful to them.

Studio Trigger, the animation studio at the head of this anime adaptation, perfectly recreates the world that many fell in love with. Night City is full of life and crime and all these intricacies can be seen in that world building. Studio Trigger’s focus on aesthetics and action can also easily be recognized, and it’s the perfect fit for this series. 

One of the best ways you can see that is through Studio Trigger’s interpretation of cyberpsychosis, which is a dissociative disorder that is caused by an overload of cybernetic enhancements such as replacing most, if not all, bodily functions with cyberware. It’s a hauntingly beautiful depiction of a disorder that fans who played the game didn’t get to experience themselves but saw how other characters were affected. Animation alone isn’t enough to set a scene however, you need a good soundtrack to back up everything and Edgerunners nails that aspect too.

The music tracks blend in well with every scene, making more aesthetic scenes eye-catching and sequences with tons of action into head banging events. Not only that but the lingo, cybernetic abilities, gangs and everything else incorporated into the story well without feeling like fanservice. CDPR does well with its script writing to explain through context clues what everything means so that people who have no clue what’s happening can enjoy the show just the same.

There are so many details that the anime mirrors from “Cyberpunk 2077,” like Martinez’s use of his cybernetic Sandivistan which allows him to move at lightning speed, the hacking sequences carried out by Lucy and even the call ringtones which are the same exact sounds. There are even cameos of some characters from the videogame, but fans shouldn’t expect to see V or Jackie Wells anytime soon. One of the things that may catch your eye is David Martinez’s name, which is actually a drink that can be purchased from the club Afterlife in the videogame. Fans who have played understand the significance of this, but you’ll have to watch the anime to see what happens.

For those who still have that cybernetic itch and crave more, “Cyberpunk Edgerunners” is exactly what you’re looking for. It takes the gory and colorful spectacle of “Cyberpunk 2077” to a whole new level and with the addition of fluid animations, amazing character designs and a memorable cast of characters, it’s no wonder why people are coming back to Night City.