The Cyberpunk Glossary: Core Terms Explained
Night City isn’t just a place—it’s a complex ecosystem of technology, crime, and human ambition. To navigate it, you need to understand some of its core concepts. Here’s a friendly, easy-to-follow guide to the most essential terms that shape life in the cyberpunk world.
🦾 Cyberware
What it is: Cyberware is the “chrome” of cyberpunk culture—any technological enhancement implanted into a person’s body. From advanced optics to full mechanical limbs, cyberware boosts your abilities for combat, work, or even daily convenience.
How it works: Installed by a ripperdoc, cyberware interfaces directly with your nervous system. These enhancements range from cheap back-alley modifications to state-of-the-art corporate-grade implants.
Why it’s important: Cyberware is at the heart of Night City’s transhumanist themes. It blurs the line between human and machine, giving people immense power—but it also carries the risk of losing touch with their humanity.
💉 Ripperdoc
What it is: A ripperdoc is a black-market surgeon and tech specialist who installs, repairs, and upgrades cyberware. In a city where survival often depends on augmentation, ripperdocs are in high demand.
How it works: Using specialized tools and software, ripperdocs perform surgery and integrate cybernetics into the human body. They operate in Night City’s shadows, offering services to those who avoid—or cannot afford—official corporate channels.
Why it’s important: Ripperdocs are the gatekeepers to Night City’s chrome ecosystem. A good ripperdoc can save your life—or enhance it dramatically. A bad one can leave you permanently damaged or worse.
💻 Netrunner
What it is: A netrunner is a hacker with the rare ability to plug their consciousness directly into the Net using a device called a cyberdeck. They steal data, manipulate security systems, and can even upload malware into enemies’ minds.
How it works: Netrunners “jack in” through neural ports and navigate a three-dimensional virtual representation of cyberspace. It’s risky work: hostile security programs known as Black ICE can attack the netrunner’s mind, sometimes with fatal consequences.
Why it’s important: Netrunners are the spies and assassins of the digital age. Their power lies in intellect, code, and precision, showing that in Night City, brains can be just as lethal as brawn.
🎥 Braindance (BD)
What it is: Braindance is a fully immersive experience that allows someone to relive another person’s memories—including their emotions, thoughts, and sensations. While often used for entertainment, raw or illegal BDs can capture everything from illicit activities to extreme violence.
How it works: Recorded through a special implant, braindances are played back via a unit that stimulates all senses, making the user feel as if the memories are their own.
Why it’s important: Braindance serves as both entertainment and escapism in Night City. While addictive and potentially dangerous, it’s also a powerful tool for storytelling, blackmail, or even training.
🧠 Cyberpsychosis
What it is: Cyberpsychosis is a mental disorder caused by excessive cybernetic augmentation. Those afflicted lose empathy, experience violent psychotic episodes, and feel alienated from humanity.
How it works: Replacing too much of the organic body with machinery destabilizes the human mind. People already prone to psychological issues are especially vulnerable.
Why it’s important: Cyberpsychosis is the dark side of transhumanism in Night City. It highlights the human cost of technological enhancement. MaxTac, an elite police unit, is often dispatched to neutralize cyberpsychos before they cause widespread harm.
Night City is a place where technology is both a gift and a curse. Understanding these core terms—cyberware, ripperdocs, netrunners, braindance, and cyberpsychosis—provides a foundation for navigating the city’s dangerous streets and complex society. Whether you’re a newcomer exploring the lore or a player diving into gameplay, these concepts reveal the fragile balance between human ambition, technological power, and the cost of survival in a cyberpunk world.