How do I create a great cyberpunk setting?

1. High tech, low life.
2. People are assholes.
3. Megacorps rule. Their heads are the biggest assholes.
4. Add some philosophy around what's humanity, what's life, what's freedom. Just a little bit of philosophy.
5. Life sucks. If it doesn't suck, you're either a rich asshole, or doing the cyberpunk wrong.

Cyber as in, direct real time gene mods that fundamentally alter dna within seconds, simulated reality, real time augmented reality, heat weaponry all whilst keeping the tone fairly grounded in it's own reality

Punk as in, multiple popular anti establishment movements gaining little political success but significant success through clandestine attitudes, gene mods fundamentally change what it means to be human "fuck you Dad it's my right to be a lizard!"

thanks user, good points that every cyberpunk fiction needs to keep in mind

Then I'd think of a way that the power controls its people especially the middle class and lower cause without control over the people a power system can't stand for two lone

You don't.

woops wrong image, let me know if there's anything you guys want to see in my setting that hasn't be done before or hasn't done right/ to your liking

Make a near-future science fiction setting and then when people tell you it's not cyberpunk throw a tantrum until they get sick of putting up with you.

you'll see m8, you'll see

You can't, because you're just going to parse them through your wildly privileged cultural lens and pick all the wrong parts to emulate.

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The middle class is largely more focused on their own life then petty class politics, saving up for the new dopamine direct brain wire™ is generally more important than that violent riot going on in front of Megacorp#4723

Alright I'll just get addicted to crack and not be productive then

Describe a cyberpunk city in your setting. What makes it stand out from others in your setting and other people's?

If you don't have one yet, how would cyberpunk New Delhi or Singapore?

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Not even just the middle class, perfect example being Count Zero's mother. They are very low class of the low class area and she's perfectly fine watching sensestars with her implants after working x hours.

This.

I personally prefer all out dystopia. Emphasis on pollution; acid rain, dust storms, junk towns, artificial and highly addictive food and drugs. Only the very wealthy can afford natural things and the corporations are all battling for resources.

The world is shit and people turn to technology to distract themselves. VR, implants, the latest phone. Sometimes (often) people's minds get fractured. They realize technology is not going to save them and they lash out. Cyber gangs, terrorists, killer cyborgs are formed with a total disregard for human live. What's the point of living if you're a trash sucking slave your whole life?

And then there are the salarymen. Look up "The Banality of Evil". They're doing what they can to make their lives worth living at the expense of anyone below them.

I also like insane AIs. Man vs intelligent machine vs nature vs class warfare is my favorite cyberpunk four-way.

If possible, when you are done with that, spend five years clawing your way to the top of the corporate ladder, destroying countless hopes and dreams along the way.

This will give you a very good research base for all parts of a good dystopia.

GOD IS DEAD. PLEASE GIVE MY LIFE MEANING, SONY

Hmm, if you're basing it around genemodding and anti-establishment sentiment it might be interesting to have anti-tech gene-purist religious fundamentalist faction bent on returning to the old ways to serve as a contrast and foil to the more progressive movements in the setting.

2058, World war 3 was 2 decades ago, the big break, the cultural and administrative overthrow of the old world governments directly succeeded the war, massive sprawling bureaucracies have been superseded by technocracy hungry megacorps that are eager to rebuild a devastated and frankly chaotic world. Already the neo cities have far surpassed their old world counterparts in both form and function, begrudging wagies use the habsubs to go to and from their work, personal vehicles being the enviable choice of transport for the top 20% of society, further down in society, quite literally exist the undahabbrs,.crawling and ducking through maintenance and sewer tunnels scavenging or killing each other over valuable undetonated explosives from the war, to be sold onto eco terrorists at a later date. You sorta get the picture. still tryna get the gist of cities

Cyberboner

two big factions are going to be anti gene pro augmentations and anti augmentation pro gene groups. The pro gene groups see themselves as the next step in human evolution whilst the pro augmentation group sees physical technology as a better endeavour with less on the line if humanity fucks up

Genemods, biosplicing, psionics are all fun to throw in.

This is awesome

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Don't.

why be negative brah?

How big should my settings population be?

everyones gone....

5 million

All that remains in the Islands of South East Asia after the Pandemic

Paul Bonner's art is the shit.