Basebuilding, mechs, and a giant frog
Head to space on a tactical campaign of revenge and deceit
Five years ago, Cyberrats launched on Kickstarter. Inspired by XCOM, it promised a 12-session campaign of an alien invasion that players were meant to lose. It delivered on that promise with brilliant black-and-white art, simple X-or-Y progression charts in four careers, and a load of jokes ranging from raunchy to dumb. Even the game's harshest critics praised the campaign and cheat sheets for being easy to run.
Three years later, it got an expansion, Rise of the Briny Bastards. A full-color book, ROTBB showed off artist Patrick Sinnot's vibrant colors, as it added lieutenants, drones, and relationships to the mix. Briny Bastards was billed as the book that completed the Cyberrats experience.
Now, in 2026, Cyberrats is back for one final time. Cyberrats in Space is a standalone sequel to the original game, CIS presents a world where the original campaign was lost, the way it was intended to. Now, years later, you awake on a generation ship with a mech that was outdated when this whole thing started.
Cyberrats in Space maintains the XCOM inspiration with quick, zone-based combat, ample enemies with unique triggers and powers, and tactical options that are as legible as they are fast — even when it's not your turn.
There are 10 mechs to choose from (including fan-favorite "Frog") as you embark on over 20 unique mission types. No longer are tactical games limited to "run in and kill all of the enemies until they're dead." Now you can outrace, outgun, defend, steal, and distract your enemies. Sneak into a highbrow Masquerade Party to steal a custom mech. Or, battle over a fragile vase in a scene out of a Jackie Chan movie.
This new campaign is one that players aren't meant to lose as much as they are expected to rebel against. They are the oppressors, reigniting a war that has been over for generations. And with their upgradeable mechs, they have the upper hand. They can sweep into these missions, growing ever-more powerful until their thirst for revenge is sated... but at some point they'll have to ask when that is.
The campaign presents a number of moments designed to trigger engaging discussions about what is just and what is correct. RPGs have a long history of introducing violence as a first resort without question. With the final entry to the Cyberrats trilogy, that question is brought to its head.
