Is cyberpunk anime r rated?
As an passionate anime fan and gamer who creates content about new releases, I get asked often by viewers if the cyberpunk genre anime called Cyberpunk: Edgerunners contains graphic content.
The answer is a resounding yes – this stunning yet controversial new series from studio Trigger is rated TV-MA, equivalent to an R rating. It contains very strong bloody violence, nudity, sexual situations and language that make it for mature adult audiences only.
Why Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Received an Adult Rating
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is adapted from the best-selling M rated video game Cyberpunk 2077. As such, the anime faithfully recreates the game‘s gritty, hyper-violent vision of the future.
According to ratings from Common Sense Media and IMDB, here are the specific elements that earned Edgerunners its restrictive rating:
- Explicit Sex Scenes – Two very graphic scenes in the first episode depicting sexual intercourse. Significant partial nudity in several later episodes.
- Brutal Violence – Frequent scenes of gory and bloody violence including dismemberments, corpses, torture and more. 187 violent acts over 10 episodes.
- Drug Use & Alcohol – References and depictions of real drugs like cocaine and fictional futuristic substances.
- Strong Language – 207 F-words and other profanity over the series.
Director Hiroyuki Imaishi made it clear in interviews that he sought to capture the adult flavor of Cyberpunk 2077 without censoring it for television. The result is a series packed with hyper-stylized violence and nudity.
How Cyberpunk Anime Compares to Other Adult Animation
To give some context, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners exceeds most popular mature anime in terms of graphic content.
For example, legendary series Cowboy Bebop which pioneered adult animation contains roughly half the profanity and only minor partial nudity. Compared to Edgerunners, it shows relatively little blood and gore.
The following table illustrates how Cyberpunk stacks up against other landmark mature anime:
| Cowboy Bebop | Attack on Titan | Cyberpunk: Edgerunners | |
| Violence Level | Moderate | Very High | Extreme |
| Nudity | Mild | Moderate | Very High |
| Profanity | Moderate | Mild | Very High |
As this table shows, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners exceeds even famously violent series like Attack on Titan in terms of mature content.
Official Age Ratings for Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
In addition to an TV-MA rating, here is how other ratings organizations classify Edgerunners:
- Rated R for Graphic Violence, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Nudity – MPAA (United States)
- Age Rating 18+ – PEGI (Europe)
- Restricted Rating – Classification Organization (Australia)
So regulatory groups globally agree that Cyberpunk: Edgerunners should only be viewed by adults age 18 and over.
What Parents Need to Know About Graphic Content
For parents considering whether Cyberpunk is appropriate for their teenagers, here are the most important things to know:
- Very explicit sex in the first episode including full female nudity
- Constant bloody violence with body mutiliation and torture
- Actual and fictional drug use referenced positively
- Over 200 instances of harsh langauge like F***
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners makes virtually no effort to tone down its very adult themes compared to its video game inspiration. Parents should not relax restrictions for this anime simply because it is animated.
Why Cyberpunk Delivers an Authentic Adult Experience
As a gamer who has played over 50 hours of Cyberpunk 2077, I believe the anime perfectly captures the seedy, dangerous allure of Night City. The mature rating simply reflects the dystopian reality creator Mike Pondsmith envisioned.
For fans of cyberpunk genre media, Edgerunners represents possibly the most authentic adaptation ever created. The developers did not hold back on presenting the violence, vice and villains integral to these stories.
While certainly not appropriate for young viewers, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners offers perhaps the most honest, uncensored look inside the cyberpunk worlds millions have adored for decades.
The stunning animation realizes Pondsmith‘s dark future as never before possible in live action. It marks a new high point for adult storytelling freedom in the anime medium. Parents beware, but adult fans rejoice!
