Cyberpunk Keanu Reeves Is In CYBERPUNK 2077

Cyberpunk 2077 is gonna be a big deal next year. It's the newest game from CD Projekt Red, whose Witcher RPG series is so popular it got a Netflix series greenlit (although, now I think of it, Netflix would greenlight a series if a fortune cookie told it to). It's a big, sprawling, open-world cyberpunk role-playing game with insane production values, so it's no surprise it's one of this year's E3 Expo's biggest titles. It might as well be designed specifically for that kind of big, attention-grabbing reveal event.

Check out the new trailer, fresh out of Microsoft's big Xbox show, and be sure to pay attention at the end for the surprise appearance of noted cyberpunk icon, Johnny Mnemonic himself, Mr. Keanu Reeves:

Now, look, I've been critical of Cyberpunk 2077 for a while. I still think it looks like an overly grim wish-fulfillment fantasy for people who see a world “where violence and oppression are the norm” as escapism. As a game, I'm sure it'll be rich and complex, as all CD Projekt Red games have been, but it looks like a slog for me - I mean, I'm one of those guys who just wants video game dogs to be pattable. After this stunt, though, I'm ashamed to admit that Keanu Reeves' appearance in the game has swayed me: I'm into it. Or at least, I'm into him.

I don't like to think I'm susceptible to brands parading celebrities around to get my attention, but it appears that when that celebrity is one of our greatest movie stars and a man into whose arms I have wept, my hardened exterior melts away. Putting Keanu Reeves on stage to announce the release date of one of next year's biggest games, amid a new and frenzied renaissance of Keanu Reeves popularity, is an act of PR dick-waggling that will likely not be topped this year. Keanu's probably only in a small portion of the game, but still: hot damn. I'm weak.

Cyberpunk 2077 launches April 16, 2020 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.