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Cyberpunk Edgerunners is an electrifying animated Netflix series that debuted in 2022 and left me gobsmacked. Across 10 episodes, we rip through Night City alongside protagonists David and Lucy as they confront the terrors of the concrete hellscape while stuck between two warring MegaCorps. This brilliant anime is full of potential and is too damn good to be forgotten. Thankfully, it's now been reanimated via cardboard and plastic, allowing players to explore some of the key moments of the series through a refined tabletop miniatures game that's as razor sharp as the Cyberpunk 2077 setting.
The setup mimics the show – one player controls Maine and his crew of merc edgerunners, and another the Arasaka paramilitary team. Players select a scenario and then craft their gang from a selection of characters based on the assigned points value for the mission. Maine’s group can include any of the main protagonists of the series, including David, Lucy, and Rebecca. Arasaka has a mixed cast of faceless grunts alongside more menacing options such as the braindance editor Jimmy Kurosaki and massive hulk Adam Smasher. You can outfit team members with various weapons and cybergear, allowing for advanced tactics and more nuanced options.
One of the strengths of this game is that the system it uses is already seasoned. The ruleset is identical to publisher Monster Fight Club’s Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone miniatures game. I’ve already written many words about this excellent tabletop skirmish game, and I am more than pleased to see it return with a fresh exoskeleton. It’s really a top-notch ruleset that hasn't received the acclaim it deserves.
The most interesting aspect is the activation system. Characters are allotted color-coded action tokens that are spent to roll matching dice. The stronger actions allow you to move farther or roll larger dice, such as a 12-sider, to perform various activities. The active player chooses one of their characters to activate, and then spends their assigned tokens to sprint across the board, attack their foe, or perform special actions such as netrunning or completing a scenario objective. There is added texture through leadership abilities allowing you to activate additional models out of order, or the option to react when wounded. This creates a dynamic flow to play with a controlled chaos that blends player agency with unpredictability.
This splendid system is interesting in that it evokes a sense of resource management for players to puzzle over. Each action is precious and needs to be spent for maximum gain. For instance, if Dario is being targeted by an Arasaka Point Man, do you spend her best action token for the opposed defensive roll, or do you go with a weaker action to save her best die for later in the turn? This decision process evokes a similar feel to tactical board games, such as some of the more inspired dungeon crawler board games. It’s more opaque than traditional miniatures games such as Kill Team or Frostgrave. This quality isn’t a total surprise, as the founders of Monster Fight Club have a long established history, having designed hit board games such as Spartacus: A Game of Blood and Treachery and Star Trek: Ascendancy.
While the system here is identical to Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone, the content is certainly not. In addition to swapping out Night City gangs for edgerunner mercs and Megacorp goons, the plastic miniatures of that previous box have been abandoned in lieu of stylish acryllic standees. This style of plastic faux 3D figure has started to become popular in the board game hobby, but it hasn’t quite been experimented with on the same scale in miniatures games. Monster Fight Club is looking to spearhead this movement as these standees are incredibly appealing for both ease of play and striking aesthetics.
One of the reasons the acrylic standees work so well in this game is that the characters' depictions are all grounded in the anime. The artistic style of the Edgerunners series is an iconic element of the property, so carrying it forward to the miniatures game is an enormous win. The sleek tone of the figures blends well with the cyberpunk terrain and battlefield, merging for an overall enhanced visual field that is fantastic.
The standees are such an enormous benefit to the game that I can’t imagine the average wargamer opting for miniatures instead. Look, all of us that play these types of games have scads of unpainted figures occupying our shelves. This switch to illustrated acrylic standees is such a breath of fresh air, as it allows you to just dive into the game with virtually no assembly or prep time. And for many, they will look better than the average paint-job we are capable of.
Still, some may instead find that desire for full-blown miniatures eating away at their soul. Fret not, for an aftermarket option does allow for a return to plastic multi-part miniatures. It’s a pricey option that will certainly increase your overall burden in entering this game, and I certainly find it entirely unnecessary, but it’s an option that’s there for collectors.
The terrain is of similar exceptional quality to the magnificent Cyerpunk Red: Combat Zone kit. Cardboard buildings, rubble, and barricades are composed of thick chipboard that slots together with ease. The surface is a sturdy mounted board similar to that found in hobby board games. There’s no paper mat needing an immediate upgrade here.
This line of Cyberpunk miniatures games are also well supported with aftermarket purchases of Monster Fight Club’s various plastic terrain options. They have crafted some of the best cargo containers in the industry, and have expanded that series of products to include walkways, crates, and various other small scatter options. It’s incredible stuff that rivals the top-notch cardboard options in the core box.
Cyberpunk Edgerunners: Combat Zone is an impressive box. It once again includes a fully featured campaign reminiscent of its peers such as Necromunda and Warcry. Players can take their gang through multiple battles and increase their characters' potency. Eventually your gang will reach the end of their story and engage in a climactic finale that wraps up their narrative. Campaign play isn't a requirement, however, as the game performs exceptionally well in one-off skirmishes. The wide range of scenario options are exciting and varied, affording for a large amount of experimentation. Couple that with full crew options allowing players to field a wide array of rosters, and this single box set feels wholly complete.
The attention to detail here is strong throughout. The characters are well realized, with abilities and play-styles that reflect the Netflix series. David, for instance, can really dig into cybergear and run wild. Adam Smasher is scary as hell. Lucy can netrun with the best of them. Owners of Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone products may be pleased to find out that you can mix content across games. Since both utilize the same core ruleset, they are fully compatible for those wanting to explore anachronistic conflicts that jump across the timeline. Regardless of Combat Zone experience, this new boxed set feels singular and expansive, offering a tailored skirmish game that is fantastic in its own right.
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