[UPDATE – 3 March 2026] The developers at Neon Giant have revealed that NO LAW draws inspiration from immersive simulation games. It features a fully systemic approach, allowing players to kill any character and continue the story, as well as influencing the narrative in other ways.
[ORIGINAL STORY] When NO LAW was unveiled at The Game Awards 2025, it was hard not to draw a comparison with CD Projekt RED's Cyberpunk 2077. The new project from Neon Giant, the studio behind The Ascent, is also set in a cyberpunk city, and it's a single player first-person open world shooter RPG, much like the more famous game that recently celebrated its fifth anniversary.
In the first post-reveal interview with IGN, Neon Giant Co-Founder and Creative Director Tor Frick acknowledged the comparison but also explained why NO LAW is going to be a lot different from Cyberpunk 2077.
I think obviously every day we have to do that internally as well. Because we know what Cyberpunk is and we know people will compare us. But the game is very different and the world is very different. A lot of it is, it's just the mood and the tone. Cyberpunk is a big, sprawling experience. It's a mega city. And our game is a lot more intimate both when it comes to the gameplay mechanics but also the world. I think as people see more of the game that will be more apparent. It's hard to do in a short trailer like that. I think you need to see and feel the game more. It is more of an intimate experience, like the world is deep but not so grand. And the same thing with mechanics and the same thing with the story. It is very, very personal and very, very reactive around you as a player, rather than being set in this grand backdrop.
The studio's other Co-Founder and Creative Director, Arcade Berg, added that NO LAW also features a slight tongue-in-cheek tone like The Ascent, in contrast to Cyberpunk 2077's far more serious vibe. Other inspirations include 80s-90s action movies, which were also a bit campy, as well as Hong Kong action scenes, and even manga and anime.
In NO LAW, the main character, Grey Harker, is a seasoned veteran who chooses to retire from active military service following the severe injuries sustained during his previous deployment to pursue a life of peace. He had abandoned violence in favor of caring for his plants, but eventually, trouble walked through his door all the same, a bit like in John Wick, prompting him to return and make those who had wronged him pay.
The game is in development for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S and X with no set release window. It will be published by KRAFTON, which acquired Neon Giant a few years ago.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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