Is Netflix's Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Considered Canon In The Games?

When "Cyberpunk 2077" was released in 2020, the launch was troubled due to a series of glitches and performance issues. Based on the expansive "Cyberpunk" world created by Mike Pondsmith, the game was in the making for a long time, and this paid off with its striking visuals and immersive RPG gameplay — once its technical issues were ironed out. Hardcore fans have been hoping for a "Cyberpunk 2077" sequel ever since its release, with a follow-up officially announced by CD Projekt Red. But in the midst of this news was the arrival of its anime series adaptation, "Cyberpunk: Edgerunners." The show is a dizzying and dazzling conglomeration of anime illustrations with an energetic score. The writing also stays faithful to the futuristic edge seen in Pondsmith's vision of the "Cyberpunk" universe.

Where "Cyberpunk: Edgerunners" and "Cyberpunk 2077" align can be found in many small details throughout the anime. But according to Forbes, there are also some shrouded differences between the two that will alter the perception of the "Cyberpunk 2077" story after watching "Edgerunners." This has left many wondering if the Netflix series can be considered canon in the games.

During a Night City Wire stream, the show's creators provided context on the series' status as canon to the game (via Rock Paper Shotgun). In the stream, series producer Bartosz Sztybor stated, "It's the same city. Same streets, same cars, same guns [in relation to 'Cyberpunk 2077']." But there are some liberties taken for a very good reason, as revealed during an interview with Netflix by the show's director and co-founder of Studio Trigger, Hiroyuki Imaishi (per Comicbook.com). The filmmaker stated, "Well, the game wasn't fully developed yet at the time we started production, so obviously, no one had ever played the game. Still, we received the documents on the worldbuilding and were told that CD Projekt Red would handle the basic storyline, so we assumed that we could start the production with a script in hand." 

Imaishi continued by adding, "However, as we were making it, we started to encounter differences between games and anime and felt that some parts should be changed for the anime. We were following the basic storyline provided by CD Projekt Red but we gradually started to give our opinions on how to interpret it into an anime." Although the game came out first, Studio Trigger was already hard at work molding Night City into what it would become in "Cyberpunk 2077." Evidently to great effect, too, as Engadget reported that the anime had revitalized interest in the game on Steam in September — boasting 80,000 concurrent players.