The tale takes place not in a past with anachronistic steam-powered gadgets, but rather in a bizarre future – the very tail end of the 21st century, to be semi-precise – filled with cybernetics, biotech, and (as the title implies) robotics. The supernatural seems to play a role in this future as well, with spirits and curses putting in appearances. Humanity has produced a steady stream of cyborg servants, discarding successive generations for the latest thing and inadvertently creating a hostile wilderness filled with murderous cast-offs ready to declare war.
Even with all of this wild technology on the loose, however, one man with a sword can make a difference. Much like Samurai Jack, Niko slices and dices his way through everything coming between him and his missions, be it supertech or supernatural, with “anime leaps” and decapitations aplenty.
This collection presents two such missions. In the first, Niko undertakes a perilous quest deep into cyborg territory to retrieve a stolen treasure: the ultimate manifestation of cybernetic technology. In the second, he guards a group of religious pilgrims on their way to pay homage to… well, something. (And yes, no good can come of that.)
He doesn’t travel alone, however. In the first, he’s joined by the Cherokee Geisha, a fiery swordswoman with the annoying practice of talking in vertical speech balloons like Japanese text. In the second, the cyber-gunslinger Bronski accompanies the pair. The volume tells a bit of their respective histories in self-contained short stories unrelated to the larger plots. The volume also includes helpful descriptions of some of the strange devices seen in the stories.
The artist’s vaguely disturbing bio-mechanical constructs and wildly kinetic freeze-frame action makes me think of a world designed by Jean “Moebius” Giraud and animated by Genndy “Samurai Jack” Tartakovsky. The effect is at once surreal and crisp – you may not know exactly what something is, but there’s never any doubt about what’s happening to it.
The setting begs for use in an RPG. The ultimate requirement would be a system cinematic enough to allow for lone swordsmen facing multiple high-tech gunmen and winning handily. Much of the truly extravagant technology – e.g., organic buildings – exists in the background and could be hand-waved, as could the majority of the supernatural elements. Rules for cybernetics would be helpful, obviously – perhaps as part of a simple effects-based system also incorporating bio-enhancements. Of the games I’ve reviewed, I can see Waste World (albeit with the Shogunate supplement) or Tomorrow Knights working fairly well. From what I’ve read of each so far, D6 Adventure or Basic Roleplaying at its more cinematic setting should handle the job as well.
Whether read for RPG inspiration or just for pleasure, however, Robotika delivers the goods for any fan of samurai action or off-kilter science fiction in the vein of Heavy Metal. With the second series on sale now, this is one to watch.
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