Can a considerate kiwi explain to me, a pleb that loves the original tabletop and is only familiar with the commom shitshows associated with this game, why the plot is so bad?
It's basically a rip off of Neuromancer. Copying the first two paragraphs from Wikipedia.
Henry Dorsett Case is a low-level hustler in the dystopian underworld of Chiba City, Japan. Once a talented computer hacker and "console cowboy", Case was caught stealing from his employer. As punishment, Case's central nervous system was damaged, leaving him unable to access the virtual reality dataspace called the "matrix". Case is approached by Molly Millions, an augmented "razorgirl" and mercenary on behalf of a shadowy US ex-military officer named Armitage, who offers to cure Case for his services as a hacker. Case agrees, and his nervous system is repaired, though sacs of poison are placed in his blood vessels. Armitage promises the sacs will be removed upon completing his work.
Armitage has Case and Molly steal a ROM module that contains the saved consciousness of one of Case's mentors, legendary cyber-cowboy McCoy Pauley.
Re-written for Cyberpunk.
"V" is a Streetrat/Corpo/Nomad living in the dystopian coprerate city of Night City, California. Once a talented mercenary but forced to start over, "V" teams up with Jackie Wells, who spend time together earning a reputation until they're approached by Dexter Deshawn. Dexter offers them the chance of being somebody in Night City for stealing an Arasaka chip that grants Immortality. "V" agrees but the job goes sideways. Jackie dies, they're forced to implant the damaged chip inside themselves and then Dex screw them over. They then wake up with the legendary rocker troubler maker Johnny Silverhand standing over them, as his consciousness had been saved somehow on the chip, but "V" later learns that said chip will eventually kill them.
As for characters, they're kind of all over the place. No themes for any of them and kinda forgettable.
