is a

cyberpunk Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting said to focus on a combination of "low-life and high tech". It features futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyberwa ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out ...

with a long history in Japan. It is in its fourth edition: ''Tokyo NOVA The Detonation''. It supports stories in the

, hardboiled

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...

, and contemporary fantasy genres. The setting is an alternate near-future Tokyo called "Tokyo NOVA", after a pole shift. Tokyo NOVA is a dangerous and attractive city. Playing cards are used instead of dice in the ''Tokyo NOVA'' system. The suits of cards correspond to four abilities: Spade (♠) is reason, club (♣) is passion, heart (♥) is life, and diamond (♦) is mundaneness. This system is similar to that used by '' Castle Falkenstein'', which ''Tokyo NOVA'' predates by a year. The game features a "style" system, which somewhat corresponds to a character class system but represents not only the abilities and occupations of the characters but also ways of life. For example, the ''Kugutsu'' (Japanese for "

puppet A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or Legendary creature, mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. Puppetry is an ancient form of theatre which dates back to the 5th century BC in anci ...

") style represents not only the job of a megacorp's employee but also the character's unshakable loyalty to the company.

References

Japanese role-playing games Cyberpunk role-playing games Role-playing games introduced in 1993 Kadokawa Corporation franchises {{Rpg-stub

See also

References