Is Shadowrun good? Not bait or troll...

If you want to play Shadowrun, try Anarchy. It's not really great either, but it's probably easier to get into than actual Shadowrun.

What's the difference?

There are plenty of generic RPGs that could do it if you're concerned about the system. Fate, Savage Worlds, GURPS.

The newer editions have tried to keep up with real tech, so there's a lot more wireless going on in the TTRPG than the games.

Shadowrun is exactly as wacky or gritty as the GM wants. There's a lot of leeway in the fluff, so it all depends on the tone. I'm running two games, one is heavy intrigue, and the other is pink mohawk madness.

Anarchy isn't a different edition so much as a different ruleset based on the same setting. I personally find it great for one shots, but I wouldn't run a full campaign with it, I like my control over my world.

Ignore the novels, read the 2D storytime (in the /srg/ general thread's pastebin) to get a sense of how the game can play.

the world is interesting but not everyone's cup of idea because some people like pure cyberpunk (i like both flavors). the system is preeeeeeetty simulationist, so a category more complicated than D&D. you see, a modern setting like that offers more opportunities than a fantasy setting. consequentially you have subsystems for magic, hacking, vehicle combat, etc. learning this can be quite a bit of work. but once you got it, it can be quite satisfying. alternatively, you can save some work by not allowing hackers in your party.

dark heresy is easier to run, on par with D&D 5E.

so if you are not intimidated by putting up some extra-work, go shadowrun.

>alternatively, you can save some work by not allowing hackers in your party.

I think simplifying the hacking rules is a healthier decision long term. Just make them skill checks instead of the weird sub-game it is in RAW.

Shadowrun's amazing. It's got an incredible breadth of potential material to work with, it's hugely flexible from a storyline and specific theme PoV, and the system's quite robust, while remaining flexible. It's not perfect, but it hits a very useful bridge between character agency, lethality, and cinematicness.

You should play SRR: Hong Kong. It's great.

look, for example, in shadowrun 5E, much of the group's equipment can hook up via WLAN, giving extra bonuses and shit. while this is cool, it's also work because it comes with extra rules. and you have lots and lots of gear options and shit. that alone can lead to a lot of lookups in the corebook.

if that doesn't intimidate you, go for it.

Shadowrun: Anarchy is a rule-light version of 5e they just released. Haven't tried it myself because my group is firmly rooted in 4e but I've heard good things.

Anarchy is "Rules Light-er" Shadowrun. Opinions are pretty mixed on it. Most people think that if you're going to the trouble of trying to learn Anarchy it's not much of a step further to learn proper 5e.

That being said, 5e can be a lot to take in, be ready to read a lot and make rulings on the fly if you're GM. The general here is pretty helpful, as long as you've clearly tried to help yourself first. They also have a huge amount of helpful resources in the OP.