Reboot the Future, Everyone’s a Cyberhacker

Today’s Reboot the Future preview post is around the point that in the game, Everyone’s a Cyberhacker. One of the things that grinds my gears when it comes to many cyberpunk game systems, is that only one person can do cyber-hacking in-game.

Sure, it is consistent with the literature, where the hero is usually a cyber-cowboy who can run the ‘net and prise open its secrets, but in-game, it leaves the rest of the party twiddling their thumbs.

So the first design decision that I made for the game was that everyone given the all-persuasive nature of computer use in the 23rd Century,could interact with the game’s virtual reality, known as the Datasphere. 

Each character at birth has an Avatar created for them by the Local Data Authority (LDA), which is their digital representation in the virtual world. For normal citizens, this lets them do a limited number of functions that the LDA authorises. Like online shopping and banking, taking online-training courses, reporting a crime to the local police etc. One of the first things that every cyberpunk does, almost as an initiation ceremony, is get their avatar hacked so the authorities can’t track them through the Data Sphere and the real-world, and they can do much more than Joe Citizen. Like open locked doors and take control of weapons turrets controlled by building security system. Artificial Intelligences control the digital systems of the Data Sphere and oppose illegal use of it. So there are rules for such interactions.

Running the Data Sphere becomes much more of a team effort that the whole gang
can participate in. Either as a quick pop in and pop out activity to open
locked doors, for example. Or a more involved attack on a hardened corporate AI
responsible for controlling data, managing accounts and real-world defences for
an illegal black project.

If that intrigues you go check out the kickstarter.

Oh another update that I’d like to share with you, is that we now have a cover courtesy of Dan Barker.

Dan Barker’s Cover.

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