Cyberpunk is one of science fiction's most popular genres, featuring an unmistakable aesthetic centered around corporate governments, neon lights, cybernetics, and dystopian futures. Cyberpunk as a setting is the perfect playground for interesting narratives and awe-inspiring art direction, making it a perfect fit for video games.

Although not every game on this list is a strictly narrative experience, these games all take place in cyberpunk settings to varying degrees, grabbing different elements from cyberpunk as a genre and taking it in their own unique directions. All the games on this list are made by independent developers and/or studios.

8 The Ascent – A visually stunning co-op romp

Steam User Rating: 75%

Despite a few bugs in and around The Ascent's launch bringing the overall experience down, this solid top-down twin-stick shooter takes place in a cyberpunk underworld ruled by gangs, featuring a pulsing synth-wave soundtrack and a variety of awe-inspiring vistas.

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The Ascent's greatest strengths are its visuals and atmosphere, with carefully crafted and beautifully lit environments, talented voice work, and an appropriate soundtrack to score the action. Furthermore, The Ascent features local and online co-op with up to four players.

7 Cyber Shadow – An action-packed old-school platformer

Steam User Rating: 83%

This tough-as-nails action platformer, published by Yacht Club Games (the studio behind Shovel Knight), is brimming with retro style. Cyber Shadow features an old-school pixel-art aesthetic, challenging boss battles, and a classic, pulpy cyberpunk story.

Cyber Shadow is a linear game, but its stages are as varied as they are challenging. It's one of the more unforgiving games on this list, but its retro charm, attention to detail, fun upgrades, and engaging narrative make it a worthwhile experience.

Read Game ZXC's review for Cyber Shadowhere.

6 Cyber Knights: Flashpoint – A turn-based tactics game of cyberpunk heisting

Steam User Rating: 88%

Although Cyber Knights is in Early Access at the time of writing, this squad-based tactics game by indie developers Trese Brothers (developers of the sci-fi sandbox Star Traders: Frontiers) is already a promising venture packed with tense turn-based action and elements of stealth gameplay.

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On top of its XCOM-style turn-based combat and unique security system, Cyber Knights is also a deep and complex RPG that's already packed with content despite its current state as an Early Access title. Taking jobs, mastering the game's turn-based tactics, and watching a crew evolve is a rewarding cyberpunk package that makes Cyber Knights worth it, even at this early stage.

5 Cloudpunk – An atmospheric neo-noir story

Steam User Rating: 88%

This story-focused, neo-noir cyberpunk game is a relaxing experience with a brilliant, moody atmosphere facilitated by a synth-fueled soundtrack, 3D voxel-based graphics, and a gameplay loop that revolves around the player making deliveries in the rain-soaked cyberpunk city of Nivalis.

Nivalis is so evocative and fun to explore that the developers are currently working on a fully-fledged cyberpunk life simulator named after the city itself, which is set to release in 2024. Cloudpunk is primarily a narrative-driven game about exploration, but the game is so visually stunning and well-written that it's worth experiencing on those merits alone.

Read Game ZXC's review for Cloudpunkhere.

4 RUINER – A brutally bleak twin-stick shooter

Steam User Rating: 90%

This action-packed top-down twin-stick shooter features a clean-cut, striking aesthetic with a stark, limited color palette and beautifully lit environments. RUINER is a fast-paced and brutally unforgiving experience in which players can die extremely quickly, making it a game not for the faint of heart.

Although RUINER is certainly reminiscent of Hotline Miami, its cyberpunk theme, skill tree, and dodge mechanic allow it to distinguish itself from Devolver Digital's hit indie title. Despite a fairly loose narrative, RUINER is an action-packed experience that's visually stunning from beginning to end.

3 Showgunners – Turn-based action with a 1980s Sci-Fi flair

Steam User Rating: 93%

This visually stunning turn-based tactics game takes heavy influence from the late 80s science fiction film The Running Man, taking place in a fictional hyper-violent game show. In Showgunners, players explore and solve puzzles in real-time, before taking their party members into tactical turn-based combat.

Showgunners innovates with its variety of environments and absurd hazards, giving off a more comical tone than other games on this list and evoking more of a pulpy science fiction atmosphere than straightforward cyberpunk. However, Showgunners' combination of pulp 80s science fiction and a violent cyberpunk dystopian future makes for a consistently entertaining experience.

2 Citizen Sleeper – A tabletop-inspired RPG

Steam User Rating: 94%

This cyberpunk role-playing game takes heavy inspiration from tabletop RPGs, as players explore a cyberpunk space station devoid of law via dice-throwing as a core mechanic. Citizen Sleeper is a narrative-heavy game, so those looking for challenging action won't find thathere.

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Citizen Sleeper's visuals are minimal, but cleverly crafted to create moody and atmospheric environments. Furthermore, the game's detailed character portraits are evocative, doing a great job of bringing the citizens of Citizen Sleeper's space station to life.

1 Stray – A cyberpunk adventure about a cat

Steam User Rating: 97%

This exploration-heavy game takes place in a beautifully realized cyberpunk city populated by walking, talking robots, and tasks players with exploring its nooks and crannies from the perspective of a stray cat.

Stray is, first and foremost, an adventure game with little in the way of gameplay outside of platforming and exploration. Players will be spending most of their time scrambling around cyberpunk environments, interacting with friendly robots, and taking in the hand-crafted locations. Stray's clean visuals and attentive art direction, combined with its atmospheric sound design and soundtrack, make platforming around its cyberpunk city an immersive delight.

Read Game ZXC's review for Strayhere.

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