Cyberpunk 2020 vs Oceania 2084
Compare Cyberpunk 2020 and Oceania 2084 side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Cyberpunk 2020 | Oceania 2084 | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Cyberpunk | Scifi, Cyberpunk |
| Play Style | Combat-Heavy, Skill-Based, Deadly, Lore-Heavy, Career-Based, Corruption, Faction Play, Crunchy, Grimdark | GM-Less, Narrative, Collaborative, Drama, Roleplay-Heavy, Solo-Friendly, Crunchy, Open Source |
| Core Mechanic | Stat + Skill + d10 against a difficulty value set by the GM (typically 15 for average tasks, scaling up to 30 for nearly impossible ones). Combat uses the same formula: REF + weapon skill + d10 against a target number modified by range. Hit location is rolled on a d10 table, and armor on each location absorbs damage separately. Cyberpsychosis tracks Humanity loss from cyberware installation, with characters losing Empathy as they augment. | Resistance characters' Acts normally succeed as narrated within a six-phase Day in Dystopia. When a Value is challenged, roll d6 against the linked Emotion: Good Values succeed on a roll above it and Bad Values on a roll below it. |
| Dice | d10 | d6 |
| Complexity | High | High |
| Accessibility | Medium | Very High |
| Runnability | Very High | Medium |
| License | Proprietary | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
| Cost | $$ | Free |
| Publisher | R. Talsorian Games | Jocher Symbolic Systems |
| Year | 1993 | 2024 |
| Best For | Groups who want a gritty, lethal cyberpunk setting with deep character roles, detailed cybernetics and gear, and a world where style matters as much as firepower. | Groups who want a politically explicit dystopian campaign about preserving private bonds under state surveillance. It suits tables comfortable sharing narrative authority with an adversarial Big Brother player, character turnover, and post-session debriefs. |
| Highlights | Nine character roles each grant a unique Special Ability, so a Solo, Netrunner, or Rockerboy plays mechanically distinct from the rest. The Lifepath system rolls out backstory, allies, enemies, and romances, tying a character into the world before play begins. Installing cyberware costs Humanity, trading raw capability for a measured slide toward cyberpsychosis. | Acts normally resolve through narration rather than task rolls, keeping attention on what resistance costs instead of whether a character can perform it. Value Tests turn public loyalty and private belief into emotional pressure: success shifts a shadow emotion, and failure causes an outburst or Stress. Physical Notes written by dead characters grant 2 Hope when another dissident finds them; a Note carried into interrogation can be confiscated as evidence. |
| Considerations | Netrunning runs on its own timescale and can sideline the rest of the table during a hack. Hit-location rolls and per-location armor add bookkeeping to every combat exchange. Lethality is high, so focused fire can drop a fully built character in a single exchange. | The campaign assumes the regime eventually breaks or vaporizes its dissidents, so it does not support a conventional revolution or heroic victory arc. The Big Brother player tracks a concealed surveillance economy and interprets its Reaction tables, making that role more demanding than a neutral facilitator. The game requires a shared willingness to portray propaganda, betrayal, and emotional distress, even though it includes safety and debrief procedures. |