Alright, first of all - this is just stuff I thought of off the top of my head. I have very little knowledge of the Cyberpunk world, so it was written using what little of it I gathered reading about Cyberpunk 2020 in anticipation of the Cyberpunk 2077 game, mixed with a little bit of reason (or not at times ^^). Anyway, this is a pretty long post, so let's get on with it.
Since we'll probably be able to finish the missions in many different ways, each of the classes should be able to do so by excelling in e.g. 1 of the following, and being able to improve in others by using adequate skills, as to give more flavor and options to the gameplay:
1) Stealth
2) Combat (3 branches - weapon usage, hand-to-hand combat and followers)
3) Hacking
4) Persuasion (charm / intimidate / flirt / blackmail / interrogate)
Also, I don't really have any good ideas for the Techie atm. I might write something on him later, but I'm really out of ideas right now. As they're the tech experts and repairers / medics of Night City, maybe it would be better to simply leave them as the NPC-s you go to for repairs / surgery, and leave some of the skills they would get (like repairing or even making some gadgets and treating your wounds) as something that any of the classes can get.
I will divide the 8 classes into 3 "subtypes" - one focusing largely on persuasion, one for combat, and one for hacking. Most of the classes will have one "major skill", so they are very good in one of the 4 named above, and either:
a) be mediocre in one other skill: Solo - Combat / Stealth, Corporate - Persuasion / Combat (in the form of bodyguards)
b) have a small bonus in 2 other skills: Media - Persuasion / Combat + Stealth
Of course, you should be given a choice to specialize in whatever you want by using that skill more (which brings us to the leveling system which I won't go too far into but I believe it should be skill-based, in other words you should get better at skills by using them more)
Also, about the "reinforcements / call for help" skills - this mechanic would obviously need a lot of work to be implemented since it'd be stupid if they arrive immediately, yet if it takes too long it makes no sense as you'd probably die by then. It'd also have to only be available outdoors. Maybe some strategy could be involved with it though, with you having to predict needing help and calling in advance for them to arrive in x mins.
THE ROLES:
The "Persuasion" classes.
Corporate
- better prices when selling/buying weapons, mods and information.
- has perfected the art of persuasion, and is as such much better at charming / bribing / flirting with people
- basic skills with guns, so he can only use pistols as he is not well trained in using weapons and is very poor in melee combat
- able to bribe people to get out of a fight (as mentioned earlier), as well as police officers
- able to hire bodyguards as followers
Rockerboy
- he's pretty well known throughout the city, lots of people know him so he should be able to charm and flirt since his fanboy/girl base is probably pretty large ^^
- maybe give him the ability to have followers, and give some sort of bonus to them
- basic skills using guns, though surviving in the streets of night city made him quite a proficient brawler as well (though not as good as the Solo)
- not very popular with the cops, so should be extra careful dealing with them
Media
- people consider them trustworthy, and as such they should be given a large bonus in persuasion (as people will be more willing to share information to someone they can trust will use it to a good end), maybe have a gameplay mechanic using which they'll be able to find information on certain people they know they will be having dealings with and blackmail them.
- better relations with the cops, have the ability to call the police to help them when stuck in a gunfight (a journalist shouldn't be able to go all Rambo and kill 5 night city thugs single-handedly), which ofc won't come immediately.
- can also record conversations, which can be used to blackmail
- basic weapon skills - uses guns, poor at melee
The "Combat" classes
Solo
- being a trained fighter, the Solo has experience using almost any weapon - ranging from pistols to assault rifles and energy weapons. He is also very proficient in melee combat, trained to kill quickly and efficiently, as well as a range of martial arts like Muay Thai, Savate, Ju-jitsu, etc.; whatever floats your boat ^^
- depending on how you decide to play, he could be used as a guy who runs in the room guns blazing and just kills everyone he sees using superior fire power and mods etc., or with a much more stealthily approach, avoiding enemies until he reaches his goal / main target, so as not to risk raising any alarms. (anyway this topic could raise a lot of debate imo, whether running into a room and killing everyone should even be viable or not, so as to make the game a bit more realistic and deadly)
- small bonus to stealth
- large bonus to intimidation and interrogation (for example, beating the info out of someone, or blackmailing them through people close to them etc.)
Cop
- they are the law enforcers of Night city, trained in combat to protect (or not, depending on what kind of cop you are ) its citizens, and are proficient in using standard Police weapons. Quite good in hand-to-hand combat, but not in a deadly way like the Solo, rather trying to force their opponent into submission.
- they get the ability to interrogate people in the name of the law, be it using subtle threats, beating the info out of a person, or being the good cop and promising protection to people who fear being killed for revealing information. They can also get into places normal people cannot, like apartments (here's ma badge b*tch) to look for evidence, and have access to information in police stations.
- large bonus to charm / intimidation, and depending on how you play your Cop, the adequate persuasion skill gets better.
- like the Media guy, he has the ability to call for help / reinforcements from his fellows cops when outnumbered or to raid places with suspicious activity.
Nomad
- living on the streets since he was a kid and being raised in one of the "Families", he has picked up quite a bit of combat skills. Though not proffesionally trained in the art of weapon usage, he is still able to wield a lot of guns ranging from pistols and shotguns to automatic weapon. He is also a very good street fighter, often resorting to "dirty tricks", like kicking some guy in his balls etc., doing whatever is needed to win the fight
- able to call on his Family mates to help when in trouble
- quite good at either stealth or hacking (up to you during character creation)
- not liked by people as they are considered the thugs of Night City. Harder to charm / flirt with people. Easier intimidate checks.
(Honestly, the Nomad's the biggest mistery here for me. I tried making every class as different as possible in this post, but I don't know what else I could give him that I already haven't to one of the other classes. Giving a "call for help" ability to the media/cop/nomad is already too much)
The "Hacking" classes.
Netrunners
- they are hacking experts, THE hackers of Cyberpunk 2077. There's no system in Night City (or anywhere in the world actually) which they can't get into. Large bonus to hacking.
- pretty weak in combat, only able to use pistols and basic hand-to-hand combat skills.
- basic stealth skills
- able to blackmail people through information gathered by hacking.
Fixers*
- they're the base of the information network of Night City. They know guys. Certain guys. Guys who can dig up some dirty stuff on people if they can't do it themselves. Their list of contacts mainly composes of Hackers, and as such they've picked up a thing or two about hacking themselves.
Bonus to Hacking.
- they know their way with words, and are able to get information out of anyone. Bonus to Charm / Blackmail.
- as they're often involved in illegal activities, their reputation with the cops ain't all too well. They've often been set up by cops during smuggling deals, and have learned to defend themselves during such events. They are good with weapons, though not in melee combat.
- they know how to move unnoticed, without drawing attention to themselves in public. Small bonus to stealth.
* they're pretty much the jack of all trades, master of none class.
Well, that'd be it. It's been a pretty looong post. Eventhough when I started I thought I had so many ideas which would make the classes so different, turns out you'd need a lot more of them to make them diverse.
Anyway, the other option for the class system I thought about now seems better to me than when I first started writing this. Maybe it would be better to leave the Roles as merely backgrounds, origin stories for your character to choose from and simply give you some sort of special ability (like law enforcement for cops, bonus to hacking for netrunners etc.), leaving the character as a blank sheet at the beginning of the game.
What I wrote here about though is sort of a mix of both imo. All of these "specifics" of each class are just what you start the game with. So you can, for example, make your Media guy someone who's really good in combat and stealth, though he will never get close to the Solo in this system.
Since we'll probably be able to finish the missions in many different ways, each of the classes should be able to do so by excelling in e.g. 1 of the following, and being able to improve in others by using adequate skills, as to give more flavor and options to the gameplay:
1) Stealth
2) Combat (3 branches - weapon usage, hand-to-hand combat and followers)
3) Hacking
4) Persuasion (charm / intimidate / flirt / blackmail / interrogate)
Also, I don't really have any good ideas for the Techie atm. I might write something on him later, but I'm really out of ideas right now. As they're the tech experts and repairers / medics of Night City, maybe it would be better to simply leave them as the NPC-s you go to for repairs / surgery, and leave some of the skills they would get (like repairing or even making some gadgets and treating your wounds) as something that any of the classes can get.
I will divide the 8 classes into 3 "subtypes" - one focusing largely on persuasion, one for combat, and one for hacking. Most of the classes will have one "major skill", so they are very good in one of the 4 named above, and either:
a) be mediocre in one other skill: Solo - Combat / Stealth, Corporate - Persuasion / Combat (in the form of bodyguards)
b) have a small bonus in 2 other skills: Media - Persuasion / Combat + Stealth
Of course, you should be given a choice to specialize in whatever you want by using that skill more (which brings us to the leveling system which I won't go too far into but I believe it should be skill-based, in other words you should get better at skills by using them more)
Also, about the "reinforcements / call for help" skills - this mechanic would obviously need a lot of work to be implemented since it'd be stupid if they arrive immediately, yet if it takes too long it makes no sense as you'd probably die by then. It'd also have to only be available outdoors. Maybe some strategy could be involved with it though, with you having to predict needing help and calling in advance for them to arrive in x mins.
THE ROLES:
The "Persuasion" classes.
Corporate
- better prices when selling/buying weapons, mods and information.
- has perfected the art of persuasion, and is as such much better at charming / bribing / flirting with people
- basic skills with guns, so he can only use pistols as he is not well trained in using weapons and is very poor in melee combat
- able to bribe people to get out of a fight (as mentioned earlier), as well as police officers
- able to hire bodyguards as followers
Rockerboy
- he's pretty well known throughout the city, lots of people know him so he should be able to charm and flirt since his fanboy/girl base is probably pretty large ^^
- maybe give him the ability to have followers, and give some sort of bonus to them
- basic skills using guns, though surviving in the streets of night city made him quite a proficient brawler as well (though not as good as the Solo)
- not very popular with the cops, so should be extra careful dealing with them
Media
- people consider them trustworthy, and as such they should be given a large bonus in persuasion (as people will be more willing to share information to someone they can trust will use it to a good end), maybe have a gameplay mechanic using which they'll be able to find information on certain people they know they will be having dealings with and blackmail them.
- better relations with the cops, have the ability to call the police to help them when stuck in a gunfight (a journalist shouldn't be able to go all Rambo and kill 5 night city thugs single-handedly), which ofc won't come immediately.
- can also record conversations, which can be used to blackmail
- basic weapon skills - uses guns, poor at melee
The "Combat" classes
Solo
- being a trained fighter, the Solo has experience using almost any weapon - ranging from pistols to assault rifles and energy weapons. He is also very proficient in melee combat, trained to kill quickly and efficiently, as well as a range of martial arts like Muay Thai, Savate, Ju-jitsu, etc.; whatever floats your boat ^^
- depending on how you decide to play, he could be used as a guy who runs in the room guns blazing and just kills everyone he sees using superior fire power and mods etc., or with a much more stealthily approach, avoiding enemies until he reaches his goal / main target, so as not to risk raising any alarms. (anyway this topic could raise a lot of debate imo, whether running into a room and killing everyone should even be viable or not, so as to make the game a bit more realistic and deadly)
- small bonus to stealth
- large bonus to intimidation and interrogation (for example, beating the info out of someone, or blackmailing them through people close to them etc.)
Cop
- they are the law enforcers of Night city, trained in combat to protect (or not, depending on what kind of cop you are ) its citizens, and are proficient in using standard Police weapons. Quite good in hand-to-hand combat, but not in a deadly way like the Solo, rather trying to force their opponent into submission.
- they get the ability to interrogate people in the name of the law, be it using subtle threats, beating the info out of a person, or being the good cop and promising protection to people who fear being killed for revealing information. They can also get into places normal people cannot, like apartments (here's ma badge b*tch) to look for evidence, and have access to information in police stations.
- large bonus to charm / intimidation, and depending on how you play your Cop, the adequate persuasion skill gets better.
- like the Media guy, he has the ability to call for help / reinforcements from his fellows cops when outnumbered or to raid places with suspicious activity.
Nomad
- living on the streets since he was a kid and being raised in one of the "Families", he has picked up quite a bit of combat skills. Though not proffesionally trained in the art of weapon usage, he is still able to wield a lot of guns ranging from pistols and shotguns to automatic weapon. He is also a very good street fighter, often resorting to "dirty tricks", like kicking some guy in his balls etc., doing whatever is needed to win the fight
- able to call on his Family mates to help when in trouble
- quite good at either stealth or hacking (up to you during character creation)
- not liked by people as they are considered the thugs of Night City. Harder to charm / flirt with people. Easier intimidate checks.
(Honestly, the Nomad's the biggest mistery here for me. I tried making every class as different as possible in this post, but I don't know what else I could give him that I already haven't to one of the other classes. Giving a "call for help" ability to the media/cop/nomad is already too much)
The "Hacking" classes.
Netrunners
- they are hacking experts, THE hackers of Cyberpunk 2077. There's no system in Night City (or anywhere in the world actually) which they can't get into. Large bonus to hacking.
- pretty weak in combat, only able to use pistols and basic hand-to-hand combat skills.
- basic stealth skills
- able to blackmail people through information gathered by hacking.
Fixers*
- they're the base of the information network of Night City. They know guys. Certain guys. Guys who can dig up some dirty stuff on people if they can't do it themselves. Their list of contacts mainly composes of Hackers, and as such they've picked up a thing or two about hacking themselves.
Bonus to Hacking.
- they know their way with words, and are able to get information out of anyone. Bonus to Charm / Blackmail.
- as they're often involved in illegal activities, their reputation with the cops ain't all too well. They've often been set up by cops during smuggling deals, and have learned to defend themselves during such events. They are good with weapons, though not in melee combat.
- they know how to move unnoticed, without drawing attention to themselves in public. Small bonus to stealth.
* they're pretty much the jack of all trades, master of none class.
Well, that'd be it. It's been a pretty looong post. Eventhough when I started I thought I had so many ideas which would make the classes so different, turns out you'd need a lot more of them to make them diverse.
Anyway, the other option for the class system I thought about now seems better to me than when I first started writing this. Maybe it would be better to leave the Roles as merely backgrounds, origin stories for your character to choose from and simply give you some sort of special ability (like law enforcement for cops, bonus to hacking for netrunners etc.), leaving the character as a blank sheet at the beginning of the game.
What I wrote here about though is sort of a mix of both imo. All of these "specifics" of each class are just what you start the game with. So you can, for example, make your Media guy someone who's really good in combat and stealth, though he will never get close to the Solo in this system.