Critics say that the cyberpunk genre isn’t relevant any more … here is why they are wrong
Technology is progressing quicker than ever, with a new groundbreaking device seemingly being made every year. There are many genres that are relevant today, but none as relevant as cyberpunk through the 1980s and 1990s. However, recently the genre has been called into question for its relevance. Many critics believed that the thrill of cyberpunk has gone as the visions for the future set by “Bladerunner” never came true. Critics claim that because the cyberpunk genre isn’t a true depiction of the world, the cyberpunk characteristics are outdated and are now have no effect as we aren’t fantasizing of a future world that might have these elements, because it just won’t happen any time soon. But I believe that it is not enough justification to completely dismiss a genre as being irrelevant, and though the genre of cyberpunk does project an overly nihilistic and dystopian future, it is actually just an exaggeration of the problems of the modern society and so it is ignorant to jump to conclusions and say that we should move on from cyberpunk.
Answering the question; is Cyberpunk a relevant genre?
- What makes a genre relevant?
- Does cyberpunk fit this “criteria”?
- If so, then how?
- Why is cyber punk important?
- The future for cyberpunk.
What makes a genre relevant?
To answer if a genre is relevant we first need to set a criteria. What makes a genre relevant? According to vocabulary.com for something to be relevant it needs to matter to what you are doing right now. The themes have to be important right now and have to relate to the issues that are present. Additionally, the tropes in the genre need to be popular. This will mean that a genre has relevance to the real world, as well as trending in that the audience of a time actually enjoys the genre.
Is cyberpunk relevant today?
Many people discount cyberpunk as being a relevant genre because they believe that it isn’t exciting, original or interesting anymore, but I’d beg to differ. The themes relate so much to the real world and the aspects of the genre are incredibly fascinating.
Let us look at some of the main themes of cyberpunk. Some recurring themes throughout cyberpunk stories are the theme of technology, capitalism, and identity. These themes are very relevant.
Dependency on technology: In the Neuromancer trilogy, Case is heavily reliant on technology not only for practical uses (like stealing money) but also because Case needs tech to give him a “rush”. We are seeing this dependency on technology unfolding right before our eyes. We depend on the internet when we are bored to give us joy. When performing a tedious task, anytime the task gets slightly boring, one can just pull out the phone for a quick dopamine release. A quote that shows the prominence of this theme in Cyberpunk can be found inis a quote from chapter one of Neuromancer.
“But the dreams came on in the Japanese night like live wire voodoo and he’d cry for it, cry in his sleep, and wake alone in the dark, curled in his capsule in some coffin hotel, his hands clawed into the bed slab, temper foam bunched between his fingers, trying to reach the console that wasn’t there.”
The cyberpunk genre correctly predicted this aspect of life and now this theme is very relevant as this is a genuine problem.
As unchecked capitalism slowly rises, and in the US, the wealth gap grows wider, more and more people will live in poverty, and this is exactly what Cyberpunk predicts. Cyberpunk predicts an issue that is slowly being relevant in the US and certainly in other parts of the world. Cyberpunk is important in warning us about what might happen in the future. Cyberpunk provides insights on this problem. For example Neuromancer highlights the commodification of people as the people get more and more desperate for money, they will be willing to do anything to survive.
Identity and person hood is also a relevant theme to the modern world. AIs are getting more, and more powerful, more able to do complex tasks like the task that the AI “deep fake” does. Soon it is possible that someone will create a robot that has feelings. We should start thinking about the implications of powerful AI and cyberpunk encourages us to do so. In what is considered one of the greatest works of cyberpunk, “Bladerunner”, the theme of person hood is pushed in the love affair between Deckard and the replica Rachel.
This scene in the end of blade runner -demonstrates the human connection between man and robot and this is relevant as soon AIs will be indistinguishable from humans and we will have to start thinking about how AIs should be treated.
Deckard: Do you love me?
Rachael: I love you.
Deckard: Do you trust me?
Rachael: I trust you.
Deckard: Rachael?
demonstrates the human connection between man and robot and this is relevant as soon AIs will be indistinguishable from humans and we will have to start thinking about how AIs should be treated.
Now that it is clear that the themes of the cyberpunk genre are relevant, let’s talk about how the cyberpunk aesthetic is still desirable and appeals to the general modern audience.
Firstly, the high tech aspect is widely popular. it is something that is in lot of modern movies, especially movies in the MCU with iconic characters like iron man, and the solar punk like city of Wakanda. People are still fascinated with high techand it does still draw in an audience
At the same time anti hero movies like deadpool have been big hits recently with large amounts of grossing.
So if people still enjoy the cyberpunk genre and the aesthetic, why are cyberpunk movies, books and media not doing so well?
The problem with cyberpunk today:
All the themes of cyberpunk are very relevant to modern day, and it is clear that people are drawn to the specific features of cyberpunk. The genre of cyberpunk is not dead, it is just that execution recently has been poor in developing characters and making the story have a real impact. Stories like Blade runner 2049 and the ghost of the shell remake try to replicate the success of previous movies by throwing the elements of cyberpunk together, but for a story to be popular, it has to be good, regardless of the genre and the themes.
A prime example of this is the “Alita: Battle angel” remake. With stunning visual effects and an amazing iron city, the movie has all the surface level components for it to be popular, but the story is a hot mess of characters with no real motivation or growth. For example, in Alita it is quite unclear what awaits them at Zalem and the setting never gets explored, not to mention how there isn’t a sense of suspense as Alita is just so much more powerful than her enemies and that her enemies keep underestimating her.
Alita represents most cyberpunk films and media recently with a good concept, great visual effects, but not enough work done to develop characters and create a great story.
The future of cyberpunk:
Not all is doom and gloom for the cyberpunk genre though, it is clear that the cyberpunk characteristics are still popular after all these years and that all that needs to happen is for good stories to be put out. Already, putting aside the frequent glitches, to say the least, Cyberpunk 2077 racks up great reviews from critics like IGN and metacritic, it is a game that is only a few patch updates away from being one of the great RPGs released. I believe that soon, we will be witnessing the renaissance of cyberpunk and it is only a matter of time before cyberpunk takes the world by storm once again. The world should brace itself, for the Cyberpunk movement will be here again.
