Edgerunners 2 from CD Projekt Red and Studio Trigger

Looking back at the story of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners always reminds me of how lackluster the world and stakes of 2077 could be, and how it rarely lived up to the potential of its very raw and very heavy subject matter. It showed us a hyper-corporate Earth where capitalism had taken over the world and destroyed it countless times over. Yet only a handful of missions delved deep into this, and it wasn't until its Phantom Liberty expansion that it earned the right to call its titular genre home.

Edgerunners excelled at depicting the everyday lives of normal people trying to survive in Night City, and how the tragic deaths of those closest to you, like the mother of protagonist David Martinez, only matter if money can be made from their decaying remains. Everywhere you look there's an ad trying to sell you something or a company trying to kill you, and it can be hard to trust anyone walking the streets of Night City because they also know how ruthless you have to be to survive.

Putting Cyberpunk 2077 aside, it's still one of my favorite games of the last decade. In recent years it has come into its own and offers a story and world that nothing else can.

2077 did an admirable job of presenting this fictional reality, by virtue of being an open world RPG where you can poke and prod at everything, but failed to dig into it because it had to make our character feel like a morally complicated badass that the entire universe revolved around.

But Edgerunners is simply one of many stories in a world that will continue long after its story is told. Another legend meant to be honored by wayward souls in the afterlife and nothing more. From a single teaser alone, Edgerunners 2 is positioned to carry that legacy forward in spectacular fashion.

Edgerunners 2 will be directed by Kai Ikarashi with character designs by Kanno Ichigo. As for the story, it will once again be directed by Bartosz Sztybor and Masahiko Otsuka. The dream team is back together again.

Meet The Characters Of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2

CD Projekt Red describes Edgerunners 2 as a story of “family, obsession, legacy – and how your lens reflects the stories of the people around you.” It once again seems like a story doomed to tragedy as we follow the trials and tribulations of four unique new characters who want to make their mark on Night City before it's too late, or maybe even make it a better place when all is said and done.

I've always seen Cyberpunk as a world where the bad guys have already won, and it would take anything short of total nuclear holocaust to effect any kind of real societal reform and start over. Capitalism is so entrenched that all anyone can do is find a way to make an existence within its confines, which is why the fragments of hope found in these stories are so poignant. The only way to escape is to leave everything behind, much like Lucy did in the first season.

As for the main characters, I've broken them down individually below, pulling from both the official synopsis and some of my own spitball theories. Both are equally valid, I promise.

Weak — Formerly known as 'The King' and one of the best edge runners in all of Night City, Weak now struggles to live on in the shadow of his former glory. Judging by the trailer, it seems that Weak is stuck in a state of very violent cyber psychosis, a common theme among the cast this time around.
D — An experienced Snake Nation netrunner seen flipping several vehicles and mind-murdering people in the trailer, this handsome guy will embark on a vicious revenge mission over the course of the ten episodes.
Novel – I have never seen a character more destined to die in the last episode in my life. Roman is a young boy obsessed with film and wants to bring back a version of film that has long been abandoned in favor of brain dances. But as he begins to document the truth, he soon comes to terms with how violent the real world really is.
Talia — As a former member of the Maelstrom, Talia grew up in corporate towers and is processed with countless reinforcements. She has clearly lived a hard life, but strives to remain independent in a world full of factions known for bitter betrayal.
Coming soon — The official site has a fifth slot for the cast of characters that I imagine will be filled closer to Fall 2026, indicating that we still have a lot to see when it comes to Edgerunners 2.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 is about family, legacy and revenge

From Roman's character alone, I can already see Edgerunners 2 telling a story about how the creation and consumption of art made by people and for people is important to every aspect of our existence, so that we don't succumb to endless piles of capitalist drivel designed to ensure that the will to create, critique and feel is taken away from us. With his old video camera in hand, Roman feels like a faint flame of a new generation clinging to an admirable glow of hope that the world he calls home will one day be better.

Unfortunately, he will be surrounded by characters who have already been chewed up by Night City and spat out again, and now their only desires revolve around legacy, revenge, and finding a way to leave this world behind and not be forgotten. David Martinez had his dream of becoming a legend, while Roman wants to tell the stories of these enigmatic people before unfair circumstances force them to an early grave. That said, this already sounds like it's going to be a tearjerker for all the right reasons.

I adore the brief lo-fi shots we catch from Roman's camcorder in the teaser trailer and how they present the normalized violence of Night City in such a darker, more pessimistic light. It comes from the perspective of a young mind who deserves better from the world, but it has only bloodshed and corruption to give.

Perhaps his home videos will be a harsh lesson to the masses about how far cyberpsychosis can push normal people to the edge of existence, but also a sign that with the right company and the right vision, there is a way out of the darkness. It doesn't come without huge losses, but it's this dim light at the end of the tunnel that made the original Edgerunners so instantly iconic.

It was willing to kill the characters we love because it knew that existence mattered, however fleeting. In Night City, a place that offers nothing for everyone, holding on to something worth fighting for, even if it kills you, is paramount.

I can already imagine Roman's video camera continuing to roll even as his or his friends' bodies sit lifeless on the floor, emphasizing how our presence even in death is doomed to be commercialized.

I'm spitting a lot here, but the fact that a single teaser has ignited my imagination with such ferocity is proof that CD Projekt Red and Studio Trigger are once again ready to produce another masterpiece. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 is coming to Netflix later this year.