Comic Book Review - Cyberpunk 2077: You Have My Word #1

Rob reviews Cyberpunk 2077: You Have My Word #1...

CD Projekt Red's sci-fi Action-RPG, Cyberpunk 2077 has received quite a lot of bad press since its release. From data breaches to the game not living up to consumer expectations, you'd be forgiven to believe that we've been transported to the games hacker-centric world. 

Regardless of how you feel about the game (I think it's amazing - even with its current flaws), the Cyberpunk 2077 world is incredibly unique and has so much potential.

Much like 2000 AD's own Mega-City 1, Cyberpunk 2077's Night City is a living, breathing network of criminal gangs, corporate greed and rampant use of cybernetics. If you have the skills Night City is your playground, if your not...well...

This new tale of Night City comes from Bartosz Sztybor - CD Projekt Red's narrative manager. It's an interesting take on the Cyberpunk 2077 world that moves away from the happenings of both V and Johnny Silverhand, and the events of the game. If anything 'You Have My Word' not only adds to the greater understanding of the game but also stands on its own in that you don't need to play Cyberpunk 2077 to know what's going on. And that's what makes it such a great read. 

The story follows mercenary, Oriona as she attempts to survive Night City. What starts as your typical "being a bad guy for the right reasons" then turns into something far more as we see Oriona struggle with her responsibilities as both a parent and to her day job. The narrative also intersects with life outside the city as we're introduced to Oriona's family. 

This desert setting is a nice cut away from the hustle of the Neon metropolitan areas of Night City. It's your typical Spaghetti Western setting of dusty deserts and emptiness. There's some great character building as we see what Oriona is fighting to protect, and to the lengths 'ordinary' folk go to survive this world. 

Come to the end of the issue and we're at a different dynamic to what we started with. The ending surprised me and to be fair - I didn't see it coming. While I have my suspicions that all isn't as it seems it still made me utter "oh sh#%". For once I can honestly say that I don't know what comes next, and in Night City that could be anything...

Bartosz Sztybor isn't a stranger to this world and it's great to see his understanding of Night City work through this opening issue. There's plenty of twists and turns as both Oriona and her family get caught up in something far bigger than what we're originally told. Jesus Hervas compliments this with some gorgeous artwork that brings the world to life. The landscapes feel lived in, as do the characters feel real.

All in all, Cyberpunk 2077: You Have My Word #1 is the beginnings of a dark, beautiful tale that's going to have you guessing right up to its inevitable conclusion. 

Rating 9/10

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev