Night City

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Night City
The City on the Edge of Tomorrow The City of Dreams
The City on the Edge of Tomorrow The City of Dreams
Information
Variation(s)	NC
Type	Free City
Leader(s)	Government of Night City
Country	USA (formerly)
State	North California (formerly)
Region	Greater Night City Area
Location	Del Coronado Bay area
Population	≈5,000,000 (2020) Unknown (2045) ≈6,964,425 (2077)
Demonym	Night Citizens Night People
Affiliation	Pacifica Confed. (formerly) Free States of NA (formerly)
Appearance(s)
Game(s)	Cyberpunk 2013 Cyberpunk 2020 Cyberpunk RED Cyberpunk 2077
Book(s)	Cyberpunk 2013: Welcome to Night City Night City Sourcebook Firestorm Shockwave Cyberpunk RED Jumpstart Kit Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Mission Kit A Visitor's Guide to Night City The World of Cyberpunk 2077
Other	Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Nobody ever leaves Night City. Except in a body bag.

 — Bes Isis, N54 newscaster, Cyberpunk 2020

The Free City of Night City (NC) is an autonomous city-state found on the shores of Del Coronado Bay, located on the border between North and South California, on the Pacific Coast of North America. Established in 1994 by Richard Night, it was originally known as Coronado City before its renaming in 1998. It is the main setting for the Cyberpunk franchise.

Overview

Night City is considered a modern multicultural metropolis of the 21st-century, overrun by corporations, corruption, organized crime and gang violence.

Night City has wide streets and dense urban skyscrapers which are home to millions of residents. By 2077, it operates as a city-state, officially owning the title of Free City, with the Arasaka Corporation keeping a heavy influence over it. The metropolis is considered a thrilling and exciting location to visit, as well as an interesting and vibrant place to live for those of means, and a hellscape to the city's disenfranchised. Its world famous slogan is "The City of Dreams," originally changed from "City on the Edge of Tomorrow."

History

Inception (1990 - 1992)

Richard Night, a successful businessman who during the early 1990s was concerned by the violence and disruption of the impending Collapse, saw himself in an unique position to deal with the forthcoming issue. Working mainly on corporate-funded projects under a notorious company known as Halsey, Ferris and Night, Richard was dreaming to create his own ideal city. For that reason, he decided to depart and start his own development firm, Night International, and began to plan an exemplary metropolis — an environment that would be controlled and ultimately be safe from the ravages tearing the world apart. His new city was to be completely planned, self-sufficient, and capable of holding off even the most determined criminals. It would boast planned neighborhoods dedicated to preserving the feel of different types of nationalities and cultures, as well as a super-modern corporate center that would stand as a shining beacon of enlightened capitalism. It was ambitious, far-reaching, and visionary in its approach.

Eventually, Night managed to secure the unheard-of amount of capital needed to finance such a large-scale project. With the Collapse, many corporations had been looking to establish their own urban areas — controlled zones free of crime, poverty or debt. A place where the government would be corporate-run, allowing optimum zoning and no anti-business elements to interfere with corporate growth. Ideally, it would be a capitalist mecca of opportunity. Night's dream city was tailor-made for their purposes and so he provided the design and construction capacities while these corporations lend in their funds. By 1992, Arasaka, EBM and Petrochem had all signed on with the project, leading to the formation of the Coronado Partnership.

Planning (1992 - 1994)

Needing lots of land for his new infrastructure development, as well as access to both sea ports and modern highways to deliver the huge amount of materials that he would need to construct it, Richard Night sent scouting teams to the East and West Coasts of the United States of America. However, by late 1992, it was a small article from the San Francisco Chronicle that caught Richard's eye — the piece described a dreadful incident that had taken place in a small seaside town called Morro Bay, along the Central Californian coast. Rather than seeing the location as where a post-holocaust horror had taken place, Night saw an opportunity to build the project of his life. With Morro Bay being a ghost town, Richard was able to purchase the land where the settlement stood for a very low price. Petrochem helped in the acquisition, as the corporation had drillings rights over a portion of the region and had already taken ownership of the town's then-abandoned Dynergy Power Plant, with plans to set up an offshore port and oil terminal site as well. A leveraged 132 million dollar purchase secured the remaining parcels — including areas of the neighboring Los Osos as well.

Bankrolled by Merrill, Asukaga & Finch — who wanted to make the new city a financial hub — Night and Petrochem employed the Arasaka Corporation to remove the gangs and make the area a safe zone for construction. Further funds came from external investors lured to the project by the promise of lucrative building contracts and possible sources of extralegal income. In order to erase the stigma of the Morro Bay incident, the Partnership renamed the region Del Coronado Bay to make way for their new project of Coronado City. However, thanks to the rather out-sized personality of its founder, it soon became colloquially known by locals as "Night's City."

By 1993, the outlining of Coronado City required more terrain than what the geology of the bay originally had. Thus, the Partnership leveled the surrounding hills and dumped them into the ocean as fill, reshaping the bay in order that the formerly narrow sand spit to the west was widened to about 10 miles. They also re-dredged the harbor, making it capable of porting the large ships needed to build the metropolis, with the remaining dirt also ending up as fill on the western edge. The location was also considered to be an ideal place to build a station for the planned intercontinental maglev.

Coronado City truly reflected its creator's eclectic vision. Instead of a huge construction of steel and glass, Night's urban plan broke the city into a series of neighborhoods, each with a different architectural style and theme. It included elements ranging from many notorious North American cities from both coasts such as Seattle, San Francisco, New York or Boston, to faux brownstones and pseudo-Victorian gingerbread homes; while the Asian-like neighborhoods reflected its individual cultural styles. Small shops, restaurants, and businesses were designed to be within easy walking distance from urban living spaces, and massive constructions in an area that came to be known as New Harbor was set to be the place of a stadium and a world-class mall. An open marina area would handle private vessels and other recreational boating activities while the main industrial port would be established north and south of the city. Night also paid homage to the small former township of Morro Bay by recreating much of its original layout in an open-air environment reminiscent of a seaside village. The city and corporate centers were going to be the glittering locations of high-rises and parks, and it was here where Night showed off his personal architectural skills in the designs of the many corporate skyscrapers, which would become the most visible sign of the city's rising affluence.

Construction & Renaming (1994 - 1998)

Construction finally began in May of 1994. Although Petrochem and MA&F were the major bankrollers for the Coronado Partnership, they weren't construction companies, and as such they needed someone who could bring in the machinery and workforce to actually dig the holes and put up the steel, an issue that eventually led to employ the mob and other similar organizations. The West Coast Mobs — such as the Mafia, Yakuza, and others — had maintained a stranglehold on heavy construction in the region for decades. They controlled the construction unions, transport unions, and most of the governmental agencies in charge of construction licenses, environmental impacts, and other building necessities. By investing a large amount of money into the Partnership through shell corporations, the organized crime mobs hoped they would not only make a huge return on lucrative construction work, but also have the inside track on future gambling, prostitution, and drug franchises in the new city. However, Night's plan required the use his own advanced building techniques and materials that Night International was capable of, but which excluded a number of established unions and construction firms controlled by his new partners. This displeased them, and Night's further insistence that his new city would be safe and crime free angered them even more.

Development and construction companies included Night International, Halsey, Ferris & Skiv (Night's renamed old partners), Burleson Construction Company (which would later bankrupt), among others. Initially, Richard proved mostly effective at keeping crime-family controlled companies out of his rapidly rising city, though during the first four years of construction, there were daily threats against Night's life, and when the threats escalated to the level of sabotage and intimidation, he called in his corporate partners, who dealt with the issue swiftly and ruthlessly. However, despite his influence and his allies promising to deal with it, Night's luck ran out. On September 20th 1998, Richard Night was shot and murdered in his penthouse suite at the top of the newly constructed Parkview Tower. Night's killer was never apprehended, and in his memory, the newly appointed City Council officially renamed Coronado City as "Night City" in his honor.

Interim (1998 - 2005)

The public outcry in response of Richard Night's assassination and opposition to the opportunistic crime syndicates kept Night City relatively stable for a small time. A year after her husband's death, Miriam Night restructured Richard's company and founded Night's Foundation, with the primary goal to protect and promote her husband's vision of the perfect city. This foundation would eventually be reorganized to become Night Corporation.

The following years were chaotic for Night City as the different powers battled for control of the metropolis while it continued to be built. The mob bosses, who were theorized to have killed the magnate, soon began to appropriate of most of the city. Night City's Combat Zone appeared sometime between 1998 and 2000, when the corporations and organized crime carved up the city's resources, resulting in the Night City Police Department becoming completely ineffective. Gangs, backed by corporate and mob sponsors, established themselves in the less developed suburbs south of Central Night City and in time, these gangs became so entrenched that the only way to remove them would be to demolish the entire area and start from scratch. There were many discussions on whether or not Night City should had walled it off, but in the end, no agency, either civil or corporate, was willing to take the initiative to began such a massive undertaking.

In time, the city became divided by corporations controlling the Corporate Center, while the mob took over much of the service-related businesses and other parts of Night City.

Mob Rule (2005 - 2009)

By 2005, the mob was the dominant force around Del Coronado Bay. They had been left alone due to the corporations having little to no interest in running Night City, and had most of their corporate strongholds in the outlying "beavervilles" and their lofty Corporate Plaza. In the meantime, the City Council was unable to lead the metropolis without corporate masters to pull the strings and provide the muscle. The organized crime organizations were great in what they did, but it wasn't the same running a whole city.

Between 2005 and 2009, much of the city's government was replaced by corrupt mob-selected puppets, and even Petrochem and MA&F found themselves shoved aside in the rush to make the quick illegal eurodollars. Between selling contracts to their colleagues, setting up drug and extortion deals, and generally inviting the worst of the Collapse into the area, the mobs managed to turn a relatively clean, modern metropolis into an embattled war zone. Crime, drugs, prostitution, random violence, and cybernetic terrorism soon became commonplace. By 2009, the name Night City had taken on a grim and deadly new meaning.

These were among the worst years for Night City, with more murders in that four-year span than there were for most cities in ten. The mob ruled the city with an iron fist, destroying anything in its way. Gang activity was at an all-time high during this period, with notorious gangs such as the Blood Razors or the Slaughterhouse making their debut. Night City soon became the closest thing to hell on earth; a war zone where someone were just as likely to have their car blown up as have their radio stolen. The number of unsolved murders documented by the Night City Police Department rose into the thousands.

Mob War (2009 - 2011)

After four years of street warfare, the corporations around the city finally began to take matters into their own hands. From 2009 to 2011, during the period of conflict known as the Mob War, the corporations battled the underworld for control over Night City. They didn't go to war to help the citizens, but because it was business. Like a rival corporation, the organized crime had its own goals, and these didn't fit into the corporate agenda. If the mob was not ready to play by the rules, the corporations would deal with them on the same level. With bands of hired mercenaries and Arasaka-trained paramilitary troops in assault vehicles, fan tanks, and combat aerodynes — a wave of bombings, assassinations, and outright street battles descended upon the organized crime's ill-prepared members. When the smoke cleared, the corporations had utterly destroyed the mob's power base in Night City. From that point onwards, any time the mob crossed one of the corps, they would make sure to do it by their rules.

At the end of the Mob War in 2011, the corporations decided they would place a puppet mayor in power during the elections of the following year, and started cleaning up the rest of Night City. The newly elected City Council — faced with the return of chaos in the city — deputized corporate security forces and allowed them full authority within city limits. Soon after, the corporate and city centers were cleaned out and restored to their pristine states. The same was done to the other neighborhoods, to varying degrees.

Corporate Rule (2011 - 2021)

After the governamental changes, the new corporate draconian policies contributed to the city's chronic homeless problem, as anyone who didn't have enough money to pay for the renovated version of the place they were living in were kicked out by force. This put hundreds on the street as affordable housing was upgraded and used to house the troops the corporations needed to maintain order. In the following years, this situation eased as fewer enforcers and security teams were needed to keep the streets safe.

In 2012, Judson Freeman (later known as Mbole Ebunike) became the new Mayor of Night City, the man the corporations wanted for the place. As negotiated in the Northern Separation Treaty of 2012 between Northern and Southern California, Night City became part of the Free State of Northern California; however, access was guaranteed to travelers from SoCal. A year later, in 2013, much of the worst excesses of Night City had been crushed under the ruthless heel of the megacorporations. The basic services such as police (NCPD), firefighters (NCFD), and support services had been reestablished. If the corporate masters were oppressive, at least to the average citizen, it was better than dodging gunfire on their way to the convenience store. In April the 13th of that same year, famous rockerboy Johnny Silverhand held a riot and concert outside Arasaka Tower in order to lead a strike team into the building to rescue his girlfriend Alt Cunningham. Many rioters and employees died in the event, including the American branch CEO Toshiro Harada, who was murdered during Johnny's assault. The tower was damaged badly, and over the following years was eventually replaced by the newly built Arasaka Towers.

In 2014 the city suffered from a notorious gang war where they fought against each other for territory. This crisis would later be known as the Metal Wars. At some point during that same year, an event known as the Homeless Riots occurred; which were quelled by the NCPD. Upon returning to Night City in 2015, Johnny Silverhand played a free benefit concert in Lake Park in order to bring attention to the brutal methods that the NCPD had used in those riots.

Around these years, a flow of mercenaries contracted by fixers while working for other benefactors (especially the megacorps) was established as a usual day-to-day business practice. Corporations publicly collaborated with each other for "the good of Night City," though in the shadows they plotted and schemed against each other. As such, these edgerunners benefited from all kinds of employment, creating a new era that would continue for years to come.

In 2016, the city was damaged from a minor but destructive earthquake that leveled several recently constructed but fragile modular buildings, causing them to stop being popular to use. At the same time, with a firm grip over Night City, the corporations made sure any laws passed benefited them. Money for municipal projects overwhelmingly flowed into districts already flush with cash, while the poorer areas deteriorated. With each passing day, the borders of the Combat Zone expanded by inches. The gangs, since they no longer were kept in check by larger criminal organizations, acted with impunity. The corps did not care as long as they didn't impact their profit margins. For the rich, Night City was a relatively safe space. For the rest, they rolled their dices every time they left home, if they had any to begin with.

By 2020, Night City was a rapidly growing urban region, still rife with urban violence and street crime, but with strong economic growth in the corporate sector. It had evolved into a busy, successful, yet perilous metropolis, but possessed an urban slick and stylish cool that made it unique. The city had all but healed from the ravages of its bleak past. The Corporate Plaza was still pristine, and the NCPD had enough power to keep the downtown streets fairly safe during the day. However, like many other American urban areas, Night City had also devolved into an armed society. It wasn't strange to see as many guns as briefcases on the crowded city streets. The city government kept the control, but when things got out of hand they depended on the corporations to step in. Deals got made, money changed hands, a few people got killed, but others managed to avoid death in turn. Night City was far from Richard Night's original dream, however it worked well enough.

Fourth Corporate War (2021 - 2023)

Like many other cities around the globe during the Fourth Corporate War, Night City was also caught up in the power struggle between Militech and Arasaka when the shadow war became hot in 2022. Due to holding corporate offices and units on both sides of the conflict, it didn't take long for the city to suffer from it. And due to its Free State status by being part of Northern California, they were in an area not controlled by any larger superpower. Over the following months since the conflict worsened, there were constant urban fights all over Night City, especially around the City & Corporate Centers, where both factions maintained substantial office complexes. Additionally, the two megacorporations started to hire local mercenaries, gang members, and nomads to fight for them. Militech had started to informally refer to Night City as "Arasakaville" due to the major influence the Japanese corp had on the metropolis.

By 2023, people were abandoning the city in droves, doing whatever they could do to avoid getting sniped by drones, crushed by tanks, or just gunned down by corporate kill squads. A large area of Night City was wrecked and people were climbing all over themselves to get to safer spots like neighboring Heywood and Pacifica. Entire gangs and nomad families had been wiped out, and the mercenary community had suffered as much. Air and maritime traffic were experiencing hardships as well, with supplies being scarce, especially since the other corporations, government and other local groups were taking everything they could for themselves just in case they were dragged into the conflict. Damage to pivotal infrastructures like hospitals and fuel storages, or the high price on some essential goods made things much worse for the local population. On the other hand, heavy weaponry became easier to find all over the metropolitan area, allowing many gangs and locals to use them.

Throughout the war, Night City and the Arasaka Towers had acted as the corporation's center of command in the North American campaign. By July of 2023, more than any other corp in the city, Arasaka had much of the metropolis under their thumb. While the city was a constant target for overt and covert Militech operations, Night City as a whole was very hostile towards the North American corporation. Gangs, mercenaries, police, or even the city government and the local mafias, they all seemed arrayed against Militech, who had withdrawn their forces from their corporate offices in downtown to the more secured proving grounds in Heywood. When Mayor Mbole Ebunike stepped down after "suffering a nervous breakdown," Assistant Mayor Garven Haakensen took the reins. Arasaka was more content with him, as Haakensen was much more compliant and obedient than Ebunike.

By August of 2023, Night City was under full control of the Arasaka Corporation, acting as their last bastion in North America, and where escaping corporate soldiers from all over the continent were gathering. CEO Kei Arasaka was commanding his forces from the Arasaka Towers, trying to negotiate some sort of settlement with Militech and the United States government in order to make Night City independent, giving the Arasaka Corporation a free city to work from. The metropolis had been placed under martial law, and a number of corporations had abandoned their premises there, leaving the Japanese corp to occupy many of their offices and facilities. In the meantime, Night City was being surrounded by forces from North California sent by Governor Denise De La Vega. US President Elizabeth Kress — former Militech CEO — had convinced him to let her send an additional division of elite special forces and air mobile troops from the U.S. Army as well as from Militech, all gathering on the highlands outside of the city and led by US General Patrick Eddington.

Arasaka was not exactly bargaining from a position of weakness, as any attack on the city would inflict massive civilian casualties and large amounts of property damage on a city that North California relied upon for a large portion of their taxes. Furthermore, there were rumors that Arasaka was planning to utilize the Soulkiller program against the population and surrounding military forces if a truce was not agreed upon. At the same time, the DataKrash was making struggles with the Net, and two major Militech shareholders and one US senator were in vegetative state after connecting to it. Some people blamed the virus destroying the Net, but many others thought it was Arasaka's Soulkiller.

Night City Holocaust & Aftermath (2023 - 2025)

Main article: Night City Holocaust

On August 20 2023, a Militech incursion team led by Morgan Blackhand and Johnny Silverhand attempted an infiltration mission into the Arasaka Towers in order to destroy the corporation's Reliquary Database Project, which had collected a lot of pre-DataKrash information from the Net, and delete any traces of the Soulkiller program. The idea was to render the project unusable for the rival corp by using a tactical nuke with the planned area, a heavily shielded complex below the structure, to absorb the impact of the blast and prevent massive destruction. However, for some reason the nuclear device prematurely detonated on the 120th floor of the eastern tower. The explosion instantly obliterated the Arasaka Towers, splitting them in half and causing both structures to collapse outward. Most of the City & Corporate Districts turned into ruins within seconds, with almost everyone in the immediate area dying. The blast instantly incinerated over 12,000 people in the vicinity of the Towers, and fatally injured upwards of half a million more. Another quarter million died in the resulting aftermath over weeks and months. This event would be known as the Night City Holocaust, or the AHQ Disaster.

Being technically an air blast detonation, it lessened the overall long-term radioactivity, and most of the remaining radiation penetrated only the huge skyscrapers surrounding the blast area. Since much of Night City and its surroundings were built on fill because the elevation was originally very low, the nuke caused a minor earthquake that liquefied parts of the fill and flooded the inner parts of the city. The huge blast turned the tons of raw concrete and steel of the buildings into particulate debris that covered the entirety of Northern California and far out to sea for many months, as well as igniting a fierce firestorm that would eventually covered thousands of acres beyond the city. The metropolis was barely habitable within 24 hours of the detonation. Lots of Night Citizens were unaffected by the initial fallout as they were mostly cybered-up or had radioactivity filters installed in their bodies already. However, the firestorm destroyed a large portion of the city's housing, forcing people to move over to either the neighboring suburbs or to the areas further out. The liquified shaking soil caused by the explosion broke gas mains, water pipes, and electrical grids, with streets becoming chunks of asphalt strewn with wrecked grounds cars and AVs. The combined dust cloud caused by the event spiraled up into the sky and turned it red with particulate matter, causing the skies at dawn and dusk to glow a lurid red.

Within hours of the disaster, then-US President Elizabeth Kress nationalized Militech through the expedience of their current CEO, General Donald Lundee, and his reserve commission, placing them under the control of the still sizable United States military. In the meantime, Night City residents fled the central city in droves, overcrowding the surrounding suburbs and other areas beyond. During the following two years, the Fourth Corporate War would finally end, with President Kress blaming the Night City attack on the Japanese corporation. However, she was able to determine that the actual weapon used in Night City had been supplied by a Militech strike team. Bringing the full force of her military and propaganda resources to bear, Kress decided to paint a lurid picture of Arasaka as an evil foreign megacorporation run by a madman who wanted only the destruction of an American city in the pursuit of personal power. Arasaka's charters to operate in North America were immediately revoked, its members and board were declared terrorists, and its assets either seized or driven off-shore, banishing Arasaka from the continent. The Big Lie pushed forward by Militech and the US was that Arasaka themselves had blown up the Corporate Center of Night City in an area denial attack to stop Militech from seizing control of the Arasaka Towers. The truth was that nobody ever formally decided who had triggered the explosion. In the public's eyes, the reasoning for the nuclear detonation was never uncovered. Some believed it was Militech's overzealous desire to crush Arasaka, while others believed it was an area denial weapon set off to protect the Arasaka Towers.

The Recovery (2025 - 2030s)

Despite all the political play, President Kress showed little to no interest in helping Night City recover. Much as previous Presidents during the Collapse had done, she wrote the city off as unrecoverable and offered sanctuary in her new United States to the surviving refugees. There were two reasons for this; first, with the resources of the USA already stretched to the breaking point, there were too few options left for her. Second, the American President saw this as the perfect way to bring the wayward Free State of Northern California back into the government's control. Night City however, resisted the rule.

Over the following years, the survivors of the nuke lived as they could by looking for shelter, clean water and food rather than recovering what they had lost. A large number left the wrecked city and began to reclaim the nearby settlements abandoned during the Collapse of the 1990s, though many more simply stayed in the metropolitan area. Roughly two million people in the greater Night City area were left homeless due to the bomb, either directly or because of the flooding from the liquefaction of the city's foundations — which were built on fill and sand. Survivors fled into overcrowded tent shanty towns in the surrounding suburbs. Even many years after the explosion, the atmospheric particles from the nuclear blast in Night City, as well as debris from orbital rock strikes, conventional explosives, and the wartime burning and annihilation of cities and agricultural areas around the world created an eerie red pall, causing skies worldwide at dawn and dusk to glow a lurid red, inspiring people who lived through that timespan to call it the Time of the Red.

Organizations in Night City such as the Police or Fire Departments had fallen into complete chaos, loosing much of their infrastructure and power. MAX-TAC, the infamous city C-SWAT squad, had gone rogue to provide justice in their own terms, while NCART had lost much of its railway system. Plans for reconstruction of any destroyed area seemed almost impossible due to the disrupted worldwide manufacturing and shipping, as well as the collapse of the Old Net, though nomad clans filled in the vacuum to help in transportation.

First Phase of the Rebuilding (2030s - 2040s)

By 2030, it was obvious that something needed to be done quickly. Spearheaded by Night Corp, the remnants of the Night City government, the various local organizations, and the citizens turned to outside resources, calling in old markers and favors from a wide variety of people — including nomad families, small corporations and edgerunners. Recovery was led by the Aldecaldos nomad clan and their allies in the StormTech Corporation. With a lot of experience in city rebuilding due to the Chicago project, StormTech and the Aldecaldos were uniquely equipped to construct extensive temporary housing from shipping containers, and afterwards formocrete modules brought in by rail and sea. Firstly though, the ground needed to be cleared to put up even these rudimentary structures. Most of the central corporate zone had been destroyed, including the government buildings. The wreckage was far too vast to dig up and cart to distant landfills, so the survivors used bulldozers and jury–rigged main battle tanks — abandoned by both sides — to shove the debris into Del Coronado Bay to be used as fill, especially the radioactive ruins from the aptly named Hot Zone. Night Corp offered generous rewards to anyone willing to help clean up the crater of radioactive rubble at ground zero. Both the corporation and the City Council claimed that casualties were kept to a minimum, while at the same time they didn't provide official statistics to substantiate said claim. Much of Night City's inner neighborhoods had already been razed to the ground in the ceaseless battles preceding the Fall of the Towers, so the wreckage was also used to fill new structures and old cityscapes to rise again, once more ready to challenge the smog-filled skies. Among the many edifices lost to the war was the notorious New Harbor Mallplex.

By 2035, rebuilding of destroyed city areas was in progress, though there was still much rubble to clean. A number of the old districts had become a part of the new Combat Zones, and the original heart of the metropolis was still completely devastated. The City Council had also struck a deal with the corporations to aid and fund the reconstruction. That project included the Glen, which was planned as the new seat of power for the central government. During the Time of the Red, an "ad hoc, loose grouping" of states known as the Pacifica Confederation was occupied restoring much of the infrastructure lost to the war. They allowed Night City to continue as an independent "city-state" of sorts, granting it the opportunity to become a free trade zone within the Confederation, as well as becoming an entry point for the rest of the world that did not want to deal with the US in any way. By 2040, most cities in the Confederation had CitiNets and Data Pools thanks to Night City's local corporation Ziggurat. Much of the ruins started to be used as the fill from which the new residential megabuildings begun construction, aimed to house much of the displaced population, with the first ones starting to rise in the Watson Development.

This ongoing rebuilding period cemented the city's relationship to the outer world, and Night City had no intention of ever going back into the failing fold of the US after their abandonment. Moreover, at that time there was a rampant speculation that they had used Arasaka as a scapegoat for the nuclear detonation, obtaining with this the opportunity to slander the corp's reputation. It was at some point of the early 2040s when the truth was finally unveiled. Trace Santiago, a young independent media, managed to obtain information about what truly went down in 2023, writing several exposes and books about the Fourth Corporate War and the Time of the Red. With this story published, the Big Lie — the deception created by President Kress to blame Arasaka for the AHQ Disaster — completely crumbled. This publication backfired spectacularly against Militech and the US, driving Night City to realign itself with Arasaka rather than the United States. Despite this, many Night Citizens still believed Arasaka was responsible for the nuke, or at the very least they were responsible for the incident as the corporation was the reason the war reached Night City, since the metropolis was Arasaka's North American center of operations. After these revelations, opinion was very divided, with many hating on Arasaka while others preferring to see the return of the Asian corporation rather than submit to the federal rule of the US government. As for the EEC and Soviet Union; Night City council considered them pleasant trading partners as long as they didn't disrupt the harmony of the city.

Second Phase of the Rebuilding (2040s - 2050s)

By 2045, much of the radiation had subsided, but it was still present to some level. Night City was still in the process of rebuilding, and even though more corporations were funding it, the city still had a large suburb overpopulation issue, with thousands if not more in the greater Night City area region being homeless. Many districts had been rearranged, renamed, or even scrapped off, though the city was essentially divided between the Rebuilding Urban Center, where most of the money and work went; the Overpacked Suburbs, filled with refugees and tent cities; the infamous Combat Zones, or the mostly untouched Hot Zone in what used to be the heart of the metropolis. There were still major supply chain problems, which slowed down many of the new developments such as the reconstruction of the NCART lines aboveground. However, things were not as bad as they had been in the previous years, and even for those who had less, if they contacts, it was possible for them to live relatively well, unless they lived in the worst areas of Night City. Since the bomb, there had not been a new mayor due to the far-too chaotic post-war, though the City Council was happy with inconvenient. The police and fire departments, though struggling, were slowly rebuilding their power. The most reliable form of transportation during this dangerous era were the nomads, especially since Night City had lost its metropolitan airport, though there were plans for a new infrastructure in Morro Rock off the central coast, which would end with the new NCX Spaceport inaugurated in 2047.

In 2052, the radioactive rubble of the Hot Zone was finally cleared, and reconstruction of a new Corporate Center finally began. With the megacorporations returning to power, the nomad families that had been instrumental in the reconstruction of the city were pushed out of the metropolis, and the corps maneuvered to keep the seat of the mayor empty for their own profit.

The Reconstruction Boom (2050s - 2060s)

In the late 2050s, a large boom in reconstruction started in Night City, which accelerated to rebuilding process. At the same time, investors funded the Pacifica district to become a wealthy touristic destination, with Militech being its major investor.

Due to the bird flue outbreaks of 2051 and 2059, which killed thousands of residents, the City Council decided to approve in May 4th 2063 the Avian Extermination Act, eliminating all birds within 18 miles of the city limits. Personal pets could be kept though. Progressively, most of the animal wildlife in the city disappeared too.

By the early-mid 2060s, Night City shone like a jewel as one of the most influential cities of the North American West Coast, with money raining in from multiple sources. With this newfound wealth, the City Council schemed with the corporations to turn Pacifica not only into a great tourist resort, but the best one in the world. Billions of eurodollars were poured in and construction was well underway when a new problem arise in the horizon, which would make investors withdraw their funding, abandoning Pacifica and leaving it to the locals.

Unification War (2069 - 2070)

At the end of 2069, the recently reelected NUSA President Rosalind Myers, ex-CEO of Militech, proposed a federal rule designed to bring the Free States to heel by federalizing them under the pretense of strengthening the nation. Most of the American fully autonomous states opposed this unification, and conflict soon followed between the NUSA and the allied Free States of North America — the Unification War.

Night City — at the time part of the Free State of Northern California — wanted to remain neutral in the conflict. NorCal had allied with the rest of Free States while SoCal had decided to back the NUSA government, thus positioning Night City in the middle of two warring states. Its citizens held their breath as they waited for federal troops to invade, though in the end they managed to barely avoid the fight. In early 2070, while a division of federal troops were advancing towards the outskirts of Night City and the Council was debating on what to do, then-Councilman Lucius Rhyne used his decade long list of contacts to beg the long-shunned Arasaka Corporation to protect them. In exchange to lift the ban that had exiled them from the metropolis, Arasaka sent a suppercarrier, which a few days after the councilman's plea, appeared in Del Coronado Bay. Mere hours later the NUSA troops retreated.

Not long after Arasaka's open intervention, the Arvin Accord was signed in June 2070, putting an end to the war. President Myers feared the increased presence of Arasaka could escalate the conflict, something the NUSA was not prepared for at the time. The treaty was unsatisfactory to all parties but was preferable rather than to continue the war and risking another global crisis.

The treaty also rededicated Night City as an international autonomous free city, without having to answer the governance and laws of North California or the NUSA, and obtaining the title of Free City. Despite its independence, however, the new constructed border wall between both Californias was extended to the Badlands south of the city, as the metropolis was considered to be inside disputed territory. Moreover, this new liberty was paid costly as it allowed the megacorporations to further increase their rule over Night City, pumping money into its revitalization in order to establish a foothold on the North American West Coast. The symbolic pinnacle of this event took place that same year when the Night City government — which included the newly elected mayor Lucius Rhyne — gave Arasaka a seat in the City Council and allowed them to build their new American headquarters in the downtown area, on the site where their previous office had been destroyed in 2023. The city felt prosperity again, but it was not enjoyed by all.

2070 - 2076

After the Unification War, Night City and a number of investors tried to restart the Pacifica project, but they were met with resistance from the local community. The NCPD attempted to clear the area but to no avail. By October 2072, in fear of a bloodbath, the authorities ordered the police withdrawal and soon afterwards the City Council shut down all city services there to force the locals to leave — this attempt prove unsuccessful however. Slowly, Pacifica had turned into a new Combat Zone within the Night City area, with its western areas controlled by the mysterious Voodoo Boys gang while the enclosed eastern section became Dogtown, home of the BARGHEST. That same year, an outbreak of zoonotic disease called the Rat Fever occurred in the city.

In the following years since their comeback, Arasaka extended its dominion over Night City. They were able to take out a number of corporate rivals, and build the impressive, yet ominous Arasaka Waterfront in Watson as well as their new regional headquarters in Corporate Plaza.

In 2074, Night City celebrated the eightieth anniversary since its founding. That same year, a cyberpsycho attack in Kabuki caused the death of three citizens. NUSA President Rosalind Myers, after hearing of said events, offered to help protect the NC citizens with forces from Militech. These words were sharply criticized by the Night City Police Commissioner at that time.

In 2076, an incident occurred in the Corporate Center of Night City which involved the megacorps of Arasaka and Militech. The event caused damage to the surrounding area, with the media putting the blame on a terrorist attack by an unknown party. Rumors circulated suggesting that in reality it had been the last stand of David Martinez, an edgerunner who had quickly risen to prominence in the previous year. By the end of 2076, studies showed that the city's birthrate had fallen by 7%, becoming the third worst decline in North America.

2077

By 2077, real animals in Night City had been more than a rarity to behold in the past decade, and while cats were said to be the last ones to disappear, it was still possible to encounter them in a precious few locations. This was a more common occurrence ever since the Night City Environmental Task Force started using stray cats to address the rat plague in Watson. Where these animals could be found it was clear that they were taken care of by the citizens, at least in terms of primary needs, though it did appear that they remained unowned due to the absurdly extortionate pet tax. Birds were also starting to be sighted around Night City.

Power outages are a very common occurrence in the city.

Mayor Rhyne was due for re-election in 2077. Councilman Jefferson Peralez, a staunch adversary of corporate influence, planned to run against him. Rhyne unexpectedly died, with the official cause of death attributed to the implants regulating his heart malfunctioning. Deputy Mayor Weldon Holt became Acting Mayor, and a new election was called in which both Holt and Peralez announced they would run, along with several other unidentified candidates. Peralez eventually prevailed over Holt and the other candidates in the election, winning either a majority or a plurality of the vote, and became the next mayor of Night City.

Database Entry (2077)

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NIGHT CITY

The City of Dreams was founded in the 1990s by visionary industrialist Richard Night. When the world of late 20th century plunged into chaos, Night envisioned a modern metropolis free from crime, poverty and corruption. Corporate partners Arasaka, EBM, and Petrochem helped him realize this vision, investing in the foundation of what would become the Free City of Night City. The city would develop into a haven for young idealists and a beacon for others who sought to fulfill their own dreams. And although Richard fell to assassins and many new generations seeking fame, fortune and freedom have suffered their own series of setbacks, the city's legendary status endures today. Night City has it all: from the monumental skyscrapers of industry-leading megacorporations, to the luxury villas of world-renowned stars, to the lawless neighborhoods where war is waged every day. You will stumble across mercenaries, gangs and famous rockers, but also junkies, bums and even cyberpsychos. You will stand in the shadows of colossal megabuildings and get lost in the maze of streets, alleys and markets. You will make your dreams come true or die trying.

Geography

Night City metropolitan area.

Night City is located on the Pacific Coast of North America, in a region known as Del Coronado Bay area in Central California. Nearby major city travel ranges from 4 to 6 hours to San Francisco and Los Angeles, depending on road gang conditions and road quality.

After the rebuild stage, the city's location remained largely the same, with slight differences it the landscape around it. Night City is surrounded by the Badlands, which is mostly unpleasant, however due to the Biotechnica protein farms, the south side is considered not as bad as the eastern part of the surrounding region.

1990s Distribution

After buying out the terrains of Morro Bay and its surroundings — including areas of Los Osos as well — Richard Night begun the construction of his city by first rearranging the terrain. Keeping with Night's vision, Coronado City was originally divided into neighborhoods — each with a different architectural style and theme. Night hoped to bring in a vibrant multi-cultural population attracted to each neighborhood.

Morro Bay (1990)

Coronado/Night City (1990-2020)

2010s - 2020s Distribution

With Richard Night's death, the then renamed Night City disintegrated into a hodgepodge of competing districts, savaged by gangs, and later controlled by domineering megacorporations. Besides the neighborhoods, the city was also surrounded by larger suburban areas known as North Oak, Westbrook, Heywood, Rancho Coronado and Pacifica, while the Central City bordered South Night City as well. The tallest hill in Central Night City was West Hill, with its peak occupied by a hotel.

In the original Cyberpunk 2020 TTRPG, the city was additionally ordered by Sections, being A through C Central Night City, D the violent crime-ridden hell known as the Combat Zone, and E through J the wider suburban areas.

• Cyberpunk RED
• Cyberpunk 2020

Locations	Districts & Areas
Central Night City	City & Corporate District (Bank Block, City Center, Corporate Center, Medical Center), Little Asia (Japantown, Little China), Little Europe (Little Italy, Marina District (East Marina, Upper Marina), Northside District), Nightlife District (Charter Hill, New Harbor, Studio City, Upper Eastside), University District (Lake Park, Night City University), Upscale Brownstones (Old Downtown, West Hill)
Suburbs	Heywood, North Oak, Pacifica, Rancho Coronado, South Night City (Combat Zone), Westbrook
Pacific Ocean	Del Coronado Bay, Morro Rock, San Morro Bay
Other Areas	Badlands

Locations	Sections	Zones
Central Night City	Section A	Little Italy (A1), Northside District (A2), City Center (A3), Upper Eastside (A4), Upper Marina (A5), East Marina (A6)
	Section B	West Hill (B1), Corporate Center (B2), Bank Block (B3), Medical Center (B4), Old Downtown (B5), New Harbor (B6)
	Section C	Night City University (C1), Lake Park (C2), Japantown (C3), Little China (C4), Studio City (C5), Charter Hill (C6)
Combat Zones	Section D	Combat Zone (D)
Suburbs	Sections E-J	South Night City (E), Westbrook (F), Pacifica (G), North Oak (H), Rancho Coronado (I), Heywood (J)
Other Areas		Del Coronado Bay, San Morro Bay

Night City in the 2010s (Cyberpunk 2013)

Night City in the 2020s (Cyberpunk 2020)

Central Night City
(Cyberpunk 2020)

Central Night City Sections
(Cyberpunk 2020)

Night City Area
(Cyberpunk 2020)

Night City Area
(Cyberpunk RED)

2030s - 2040s Distribution

Night City was devastated during the Fourth Corporate War. After the nuke, the majority of the population became homeless and the sky was red for decades — a period known as the Time of the Red. During the next decades, Night City was in the process of rebuilding. The old neighborhoods of the 2020 period had been rearranged, renamed, or even scraped off into the bay if they were still too radioactive. Many of the old districts had also become a part of the extended Combat Zone, and the original heart of the metropolis was still completely devastated. Locals began to refer to these areas based on the type of environment they were dominated by. In addition to the urban re-designation, each new area was given a "threat rating" by the City Council — a designation of how dangerous the neighborhood was.

Locations	Zones & Areas
Rebuilding Urban Zones	The Glen, Little Europe, Pacifica Playground, University District, Upper Marina, Watson Development (NorCal Military Base)
Combat Zones	Little China, Old Combat Zone, Old Japantown, South Night City
Hot Zone	Old Bank Block, Old City Center, Old Corporate Center, Old Medical Center
Overpacked Suburbs	Heywood-Santo Domingo (Heywood Industrial Zone), New Westbrook, Rancho Coronado
Del Coronado Bay	Morro Rock
Other Areas	Badlands, Executive Zone, Open Road, Reclaimed Perimeter

Night City (2020-2045)

Night City (2045)

2070s Distribution

After the Time of the Red and the Unification War, Night City was mostly rebuilt and had maintained its autonomy. By 2077, the city was overrun with crime, its rate doubling that of the NUSA. The homeless population had been a problem since the early 2000s, and in 2077 had risen by 300%. Each district was dominated by at least one powerful gang. The city was divided into six districts — each with their own environment and denizens — and 16 official sub-districts. The total size of the city was around 75.42 km².

Districts & Locations	Sub-districts & Areas	Information
City Center	Corporate Plaza, Downtown	The City Center is Night City's corporate showcase. Sleek skyscrapers form a brutalist, fortress-like skyline, presenting the unrivaled power of megacorps in all its arrogance. Since 2020, the City Center has become the most fortified and secure part of Night City.
Heywood	The Glen, Vista del Rey, Wellsprings	Heywood is a neighborhood of contrast—from modern skyscrapers and parks in the north, to dangerous, inhospitable slums in the south. It's known as "the biggest bedroom in Night City," where gangs like the Valentinos and 6th Street get down to business—legal and illegal alike.
Pacifica	Coastview, Dogtown, West Wind Estate	Pacifica could have been Night City's money-making vacation resort, but once the investment dried up it became a husk left to rot. Now, instead of tourists, the district is a Combat Zone overrun by gangs and violence, with the Voodoo Boys protecting the community forsaken by the NCPD. The walled-up Dogtown is ruled by Colonel Kurt Hansen and his BARGHEST militia.
Santo Domingo	Arroyo, Rancho Coronado	Santo Domingo is one of Night City's oldest districts. Corporations use it as a testing ground for industrial projects, destroying old factories just to build new ones, while residents scrape a desperate living in crowded megabuildings — wishing for something better.
Watson	Arasaka Waterfront, Kabuki, Little China, Northside Industrial District	Watson used to have it all - nightclubs, skyscrapers, corporate offices, a top-end medcenter — but economic disaster put an end to all that. Now, it's known as "the bad neighborhood of Night City," the kind of place that suits gangs like Maelstrom and Tyger Claws down to the ground.
Westbrook	Charter Hill, Japantown, North Oak	Westbrook is considered by many to be the best place to live and have fun in Night City. If you've got eddies, you come here to spend them. And if you don't? Well, take out a loan and pretend you're on top of the world — even for just one glorious night. The Tyger Claws own this district and operate many businesses.
Badlands	Eastern Wastelands, Laguna Bend, Northern Oilfields, Southern Desert	Sparsely populated by nomads, the Badlands are the vast plains outside of the city proper. Unchecked resource extraction, burning oil fields, rampant pollution; this region makes Night City feel like a rich oasis. But it holds golden opportunities for those in the know.
Del Coronado Bay	Morro Rock	This large bay borders the western limits of Night City, providing access to the Pacific Ocean.

Night City (2076)

Satellite map (2077)

Climate

Night City's Northern Californian location gives it one of the most pleasant climates in the Western part of the NUSA. Normal temperatures range from the mid 80°F to low 50°F (26°C to 10°C), with misty white fog blanketing the City in the early mornings and evenings. Night City receives around 21 inches of rainfall each year. Of this water that drops, around 35% contains toxic chemicals which is higher than the current government standards for the United States produced vehicles, clothing, and food. On average, if a person's vehicle and clothing are rated above SP 12, adverse effects (staining and ablation) will be negligible.

When one visits Night City, they should wear light to medium weight clothing, with an optional light armor jacket or ballistic-cloth overcoat. A filter mask and supplemental oxygen, hedges against inversion smog and acid rain fog, are highly recommended as well. That being said, acid-proof slickers, umbrellas, and air masks are readily available from the sidewalk vendors or smaller street stores during smog warning periods. The average cost of these items can range from €$20 to €$35.

Government and Politics

Main article: Government of Night City

Economy

Business Sectors

The business sectors of Night City include manufacturing industries, international trade and commerce, information services, electronic technologies, security services, and so on. While cities like Tokyo, New York or Singapore have been overrun by corporations by the 2000s, Night City was the only city in the world that was built by the corporations. Some of the biggest megacorporations in the world contributed to the construction of the city and many were located in the Corporate Center in 2020. After the war, and the subsequent reconstruction of Night City, Corporate Plaza became a symbol of the megacorps' grasp on the city.

Corporations

Night City was founded through the efforts of a partnership of five major corporations, and as of 2077 it continues to serve as a haven for numerous global corporations due to its status as a free city and pro-corporate government policies such as a 0.7% tax rate on corporate profits. Night City's biggest ally is Arasaka, which provides employment for many citizens and ensures the city remains independent by backing it with its military strength. In 2077, the five best corporations to work with were considered to be Arasaka, Militech, Biotechnica, Kang Tao and Night Corp.

Coronado Partnership

• Arasaka
• Asukaga & Finch (formerly Merrill, Asukaga & Finch)
• Euro Business Machines
• Night Corp (formerly Night International)
• Petrochem

Post-founding notable corporations

• All Foods
• Biotechnica
• Continental Brands
• Danger Gal
• Diverse Media Systems
• Dynalar Technologies
• Hydrosubsidium
• Kang Tao
• Kendachi
• Kiroshi
• Militech
• MoorE Technologies
• Network 54
• Orbital Air
• Raven Microcybernetics
• REO Meatwagon
• Rocklin Augmentics
• SovOil
• Trauma Team
• Tsunami
• World News Service
• Zetatech
• Zhirafa
• Ziggurat

Sports

By 2077, Night City has two notable sports franchises: the Night City Corsairs football team, and the Night City Blackouts basketball team. While the Corsairs recently achieved a notable victory against the San Diego Shredders due to their Night Corp sponsorship giving them access to cutting-edge cyberware designed specifically for the sport, the Blackouts are in the midst of a long losing streak.

American Football

• NC Corsairs
• NC Nighthawks (disbanded)
• NC Rangers (defunct)

Basketball

• NC Blackouts
• NC Heat

Roller Derby

• Night City Wonderland League

Miscellaneous

• NC Death Dealers - Combat-Soccer
• NC Nuke - Murderball
• NC Slammers - Baseball

Human Resources

This section requires expanding. Click here to add more.📝

Education

Higher education

• Night City University (2020, RED, 2077)
• Night City Technical College (2020)
• Night City Medical Center & School (2020)
• UFC Health Sciences Center (2020)

High Schools

• Richard Night High School (2020)
• G. Lucas High School (2020)
• South City High School (2020)
• Del Coronado High School (2020, RED)
• Rancho Coronado Public High School (2077)

Health

• City Medical Center (2020, RED)
• Crisis Medical Center (2020, RED)
• Night City Medical Center & School (2020)
• Night City Medical Center (2077)
• Trauma Team Tower (2020)
• Trauma Team Tower (RED)
• REO Meatwagon Offices (2020, RED)
• Medical Technologies Complex (2020)
• Medical Technologies (RED)
• Stuart Hospital (2020)
• Madre María Children's Hospital (2020)
• Plaza Medical Services (2020)
• The Clinic (2020)
• Uniform Group Health Building (2020)
• MacMillan Building (2020)
• UFC Health Sciences Center (2020)

Law Enforcement and Crime

Operating as an autonomous territory separate from the rest of the NUSA, Night City's borders are patrolled by Arasaka contractors. The Night City Police Department holds jurisdiction over domestic security, although the personal security detail of the mayor is handled by a team of handpicked corporate huscle (hired muscle). In 2077, there were two known prisons in the city area: Night City Prison and Los Padres Penitentiary.

Transportation

Night City hosts an extensive network of urban freeways and rapid transit networks. Getting from the city's various districts is seamless and effective except for in districts where the infrastructure has been damaged such as in Pacifica. Also, the spaceport is an aerospace center in Night City, allowing for space transportation. Private taxi companies like Delamain Corporation or Combat Cab offer their services as well.

Public Transportation

NCART provides rapid maglev transportation around the city, while NCTC provides bus services. In 2020, Ameriline offered bus services to and from the Metropolitan Airport and other cities across the United States.

Taxi Services

2020s

• Aerocab
• Combat Cabb
• ITA (Troubleshooter Cabs)
• Red Cab

2070s

• Combat Cab
• Delamain Corporation

Transcontinental Maglev

In 2020, Night City was part of the intercontinental Maglev Network. It was abandoned during the Fourth Corporate War, but there are plans to revitalizing it by the late 2070s. At least another maglev line is shown in the Phantom Liberty Cinematic Trailer, which goes through Westbrook and Santo Domingo, then south to SoCal.

Airports/Spaceports

In 2020, the Night City Metropolitan Airport was the main airfield in NC. Since 2047, the Night City International and Translunar Spaceport has been operating on Morro Rock island, west on the city center.

Freeways

Around the 2020s, Night City connected to Highways 828 (which continued east to connect with I-5), 928, 126, and the Route 16 loop. By 2077, Interstate 9 and Highway 101 were its main freeways, with the Night City Ringroad circling around its districts.

Development

Night City has gone through many changes since its creation in 1989. The city was initially made with a layout similar to San Francisco, but with the introduction of its suburbs - and later its renewed appearance in Cyberpunk RED and Cyberpunk 2077 - it has changed significantly. While the main RPG area of the game in Cyberpunk 2013 and Cyberpunk 2020 was Central Night City (mostly 2077's City Center and some areas of Heywood), during the development of both RED and 2077 it was decided to expand the city and incorporate its surroundings, and at the same time the city's geography was made to resemble that of the real Morro Bay.

I'll fill you in now; you won't be able to fit the NCART transit map over the old Night City Map because the 2077 map includes larger surrounding areas equivalent to Oakland, Berkeley, South San Francisco and San Jose. The Night City paper game maps are only of the Central City, the equivalent of San Francisco.

In addition, during all the back and forth, we (RTG and CDPR) shifted and moved some locations so that players wouldn't have HUGE transit times between regions. This is described in Cyberpunk RED, where we talk about how the Bay and surrounds were moved and partially filled in (with radioactive mud!) to a level equivalent to three or four Treasure Islands (see San Francisco Bay maps for reference). We also made the mapping match up closer to the original Morro Bay location (in the interval between the 1980's and now, I took up the study of geology and now know more about how to shape and change land forms). So in both 2077 and RED, Night City is a compromise between what was in the past and what works in the present, both in game reality and game design. Especially as we figured no one wanted to spend 45 minutes in commute traffic between Watson and Pacifica.

Location

According to Mike Pondsmith and R. Talsorian Games, Night City occupies the same area as Morro Bay and Baywood-Los Osos, two towns located on the Californian central coast. But the geography has been heavily modified in the lore and it doesn't really resemble the real location anymore. See also: Morro Bay; Los Osos.

• Night City was created on the "bones" of Morro Bay, a town I often drove through on my various road trips. I liked the place and in one of those flights of fancy young designers have, I wondered what it would take to buy the whole thing. The basic structure is still there in the Night City map, if one allows for an impressive amount of fill required to build out the upper area around the "Rock." (this is not unthinkable--a large amount of downtown Seattle and San Francisco were both built on fill: image). I actually have a map that shows how the whole thing goes together geologically; one day I'll have to post it. And no, it's NOT in Coronado in southern Cali. I used to live in San Diego, and I know the difference. ;)
• I'm surprised that this is news; I wrote this out years ago and it's no secret. I picked the location because it matched the general terrain and geology I wanted, and was at a choke point on the Cali coast that would be perfect for the Free State. The names were generally picked out of a hat from all the places I've lived in California over the years--there's no real rhyme or reason there. Here's a reconstruction of what I was doing back then in 1980-something... image Yes, the Rock is to the very north of Night City in my original design. I just didn't point it out at the time. In my personal campaigns, it's been built into a fortress/arcology kind of like a mini Gibraltar. But your mileage may vary. However, remember that Night City is a heavily fictionalized locale and there's no reason that the end result has to look like Morro Bay. I've given CDPR plenty of room to mess with stuff as they see fit. So don't take this musing about a 30 year old decision too seriously, neh?
• I never expected this to be that interesting. Night City started out as a map of Morro Bay, where I used to drive thru on occasion. The City was on the tip of the isthmus. But I realized I needed more room for the City, so I filled in part of the real bay and then cut the isthmus apart in the south to allow a lower harbor, using San Francisco as a model. So Los Osos is where Rancho Cornonado and Heywood would be. Of course, the place has been heavily fictionalized since then so that it doesn't really match any real place in California any more.
• I've spent (with Patrick at CDPR's help) an unholy number of hours tracking the evolution of Night City from the real Moro Bay (actually Moro Bay and Los Osos), through the 2020 period, to the RED period to 2077. Geologic maps and everything. Most of this will (up to 2045) will be in the upcoming Cyberpunk RED Edition. That should help settle most of your questions.

Notes

• A Cyberpunk 2077 loading screen originally stated "In the year 2076, Night City's population fell by 29.24% - the third worst decline in North America." This was changed to "In the year 2076, Night City's birthrate fell by 7% - the third worst decline in North America."

Trivia

• The street grids of Night City in Cyberpunk 2013 and 2020 draw some resemblance from the downtown street grid of San Francisco.
• Despite being located in the real world area of Morro Bay, a number of maps have placed Night City in different areas across the Cyberpunk series, albeit it has always been consistently on the Central Californian coast: Monterey Bay or slightly south of it, seen in some Cyberpunk 2013 and 2020 maps; near Ragged Point, between Monterey proper and San Luis Obispo, seen in some 2020, the non-canon V3.0, and more recently in 2077 maps; the non-canon CyberGeneration has a map which places the city southwest of King City, near Ragged Point.
• Hiroshi Sakakibara, Environment City Coordinator at CD Projekt Red, when asked about what was the main inspiration for Night City in Cyberpunk 2077 during the Tokyo Game Show 2020, mentioned how Blade Runner was one of more obvious inspirations. Sakakibara also said the team had learned from Japanese anime and manga in the genre, such as Akira and the Ghost in the Shell series.
• CD Projekt Red hired real city planners to ensure that no corners were cut when it came to the development of one of the most lived-in cities ever made for a video game.
• The name "Night City" was previously used in William Gibson's cyberpunk novel Neuromancer, in which it is a stretch of old streets between Chiba Port and either Chiba City proper or Toyko.