Cyberpunk Red gets a tabletop crossover with bartending sim VA-11 HALL-A

Attention all cyberpunk (the genre) fans: we’re about to get one of the coolest crossovers in its history. 

If you’ve somehow missed out on Cyberpunk RED or VA-11 HALL-A, then consider this your reminder to go check them out immediately. The former is a TTRPG ruleset from R. Talsorian Games that pulls double-duty as a sequel to the original tabletop games Cyberpunk and Cyberpunk 2020, and a prequel to the events of Cyberpunk 2077. The latter is a visual novel-adjacent sim game from Sudekan Games about slinging drinks in a high-tech, low-life future. 

R. Talsorian and Sudekan have partnered to released a DLC supplement that imports your favorite parts of VA-11 HALL-A into Night City. The DLC officially exists in an alternate universe from the base game, but so does just about every Cyberpunk RED game you’ve ever played with your friends.  

The 20 page DLC has everything you’d expect from a Cyberpunk RED supplement. There’s mechanical information like a map of the bar and lists of NPC stats, but there’s also a ton of flavorful additions like news stories, side character backstories, and, of course, a Drinktionary. Game Masters will be able to make great use of the included stat blocks for various lieutenants, mini-bosses, and bosses. Players, on the other hand, will want to check out the healthy supply of new tech and cyberware. The Drink Master 5000 is a must-have for any self-respecting drinking establishment, and denizens of Night City might want to pay for some Extreme Biosculpting or a Hammered Industries Cyberliver – if they have the humanity to spare. 

Just like the base Cyberpunk RED rulebook, this new DLC is a great read even if you don’t intend on using it to run a game. As an added bonus, the DLC is available as a free download from R. Talsorian’s site. It’s not necessarily a perfect translation of the visual novel – I, for one, would have loved to see VA-11 HALL-A’s many drinks get implemented in a more mechanical way – but it’s a perfect way to bring the characters you loved from Glitch City into your own personal version of Night City. Anything that gives me a reason to call up the gang for another few sessions of Cyberpunk RED is a win in my book.