Play MMOFPS Japan style with this creative CyberPunk shooter in the tradition of CounterStrike and Ghost In The Shell.

Utilize Cyborg abilities which will help you seek out your foes and eliminate them.

Listen to the awesome soundtrack coupled with cool oriental graphics in the midst of an immersive and addictive game play.


The Source engine is one of the most robust and time tested of game engines being used for games today. For those of you unfamiliar with techie stuff like this, a game engine is sort of a master game program that can be modified or customized if you will to exhibit a certain look and feel to a game which was created using the said game engine. A very good example of this is CounterStrike which was created using the game engine that the original Half Life game used. Likewise both CounterStrike Source and CSGO used variations of the game engine used for Half Life 2. This game engine is called the Source game engine and is the same one being used by this here game, Neo Tokyo.

Modifying the game engine will change the look and feel of the game and thus Half Life2, CSGO and Neo Tokyo among others, do not exactly look and play like each other although their main program is the same. Neo Tokyo however, being a futuristic cyberpunk first person shooter, borrows a lot of its characteristics from CounterStrike like having 2 sides or teams opposing each other. In place of Counter vs Terrorist, the game has Japan’s National Defense Force (NSF) going up against the JINRAI, a rogue element of Japan’s Special Forces intent on bringing down the government and replacing it with an aggressive militaristic rule.

The game was first released as a mod (meaning it still could not function alone and needed CounterStrike Source or Half Life 2 to run) in 2009. Though it doesn’t play exactly like CounterStrike, the game combines cyberpunk elements from Ghost In The Shell and CounterStrike making it an addictive game to those who are great fans of this kind of team based game play. It was then released on Steam as a fully functional stand alone free to play game after its latest update on 2014.

On the surface, Neo Tokyo looks like your average team based FPS MMO game with some added special features. The controls are a little bit different and may take a little time to get used to. Compared to a very competitive game like CounterStrike, the game is sort of a more laid back version where you don’t have to always run around and jump frantically, Bunny Hop or use some combo moves just to evade your opponent and in turn shoot him down.

As for the added features, the game has 3 player classes for both sides and depending on the class of your character; you will have the use of one of the 3 available vision modes. These are Night Vision that lets you see in the dark, Thermal Vision which lets you see heat signatures whether friend or foe. If someone is at the opposite side of the room behind a wall, you'll still see them. The disadvantage though is that it's difficult to distinguish friend from foe and you might fire at someone on your team instead. Lastly is Motion Sensing, this works like thermal imaging except that you can only sense individuals that are moving. If they stay still, your sensor will not be able to spot them and this might end up as a blind spot especially when you are walking right into an ambush.

The game lets you choose from 3 player cyborg classes. The Support Class is the strongest but slowest cyborg class. Support has more health thus being able to withstand several hits before going down. However, the support cannot sprint which becomes a disadvantage when fighting the more speedy classes. The Assault Class is the best for combat. His skills and cyborg properties are a balance between both Recon and Support. The ability to run and move fast gives him the necessary advantage he needs. Finally, the Recon Class is the most difficult to use. Not much in terms of armor or health and can only use lighter weapons, recon is a stealth oriented cyborg type. Longer cloaking time, faster speed and the ability to jump higher than the other classes give the recon class its own special advantage.

Your weapon inventory is similar to CS where you have a main weapon, a pistol and a melee weapon (your knife). You can also carry your grenade according to class. Frag for Assault, Smoke for Support and a bomb with a timer for Recon. Note however that not all weapons will be like those in CS and will be available at the start as some require you to have a higher rank. Also, some weapons are only limited to certain classes.

As an observation, weapons perform a little differently compared to CS and other FPS games. The range is also short for regular guns resulting in not being able to hit your opponent if they are a little bit of a distance from you. A sniper rifle though could do the trick. Also, in combat, the game doesn't make use of the radar like CS does. If you are being shot at, it would be difficult to pinpoint the direction of the shots because there is no red blip to indicate the source of it. One of the best tactics in CS is using the radar, even though red blips will only appear in close proximity. Without this, you can easily get tagged by someone sniping close by.

Game modes are varied from Capture the Ghost where you have to retrieve the torso of a prototype female android to several standard Team Death Match options. The game is heavily team based oriented that those players who love going alone will find it difficult to survive the game. It is still best practice to stick and support your team in completing your immediate objectives.

The games sound effects are fine and the background music is awesome. Despite the graphics being so-so Source Engine standard, the maps is where Studio Radi-8 did such as great job. The detail of the environment is superb in line with a not so distant futuristic Japan. If you love playing MMOFPS and have spent your Tour of Duty with games like CounterStrike, Call of Duty, Battlefield and the like, check Neo Tokyo out. Go to Steam, download the game and kick some cyborg butt. Once you start playing, it’s hard to say Sayonara!