This isn't the novels tho, this is adapting a tabletop game, one of which who's very first edition was made about THE EXACT SAME TIME as those novels. Cyberpunk 2013, 2020, V3/Cybergen and now Red as a tabletop games as I quoted the guy who made it is about saving yourself more than others. 2077 is the one that breaks away from that in this franchise, which makes it stand out a LOT.
Not really, from CPRED manual:
"Second trick to running Cyberpunk: Play hard and fast. You should not be afraid to kill off Player Characters. You should constantly be getting them into fights, traps, betrayals, and other soap operas. There should be no one they can trust entirely, no place that’s absolutely safe. Never let ’em rest. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t play fair. But you should always play for keeps. If they cache weapons somewhere, steal them. If they stop for a rest, mug them. If they can’t handle the pressure, they shouldn’t be playing Cyberpunk. Send them back to that nice roleplaying game with the happy elves and the singing birds."
And for the endings, also in CPRED ruleset the different types of endings of an adventure:
▶ Antagonist Escapes
▶ Antagonist is Killed
▶ Antagonist Toppled
▶ Edgerunners Captured
▶ Edgerunners Escape
▶ Ending Cliffhanger
▶ Greater Threat
I just quote the description of the last two ones, because seem the relevant ones here:
▶ Happy Ending The Edgerunners win the day! In Cyberpunk, this could be a major victory like toppling a Corporation or minor victory like getting paid after finishing a mission. Any job you can walk away from, choomba.
▶ Pyrrhic Victory The Edgerunners won, technically. They finished the job and they killed the Antagonist, but their victory came at a hefty price. Their HQ burned to the ground or an important NPC died during the final confrontation. Whatever the case, while they’re walking away winners, the Edgerunners shouldn’t feel like it. Be careful—while this victory feels very Cyberpunk it can be a tough act to follow
In all endings except 1, V is alive.
In Star,Sun,Secret and Temperance Arasaka received a severe blow. I would say that is Pyrrhic Victory, if your mindset is V death.
It could also be seen as Happy, if your objective was to become a Legend (Sun) or find some sort of happiness with a new family/friends Star.
Wut? do androids dream of electric sheep is from 1968, Blade runner is 1983, Neuromancer is 1984 and mirror shades is 1986, CP 2013 is 1988, exact same time is a bit of a stretch, it's clearly building on those foundational texts.
And Mike Pondsmith always acknowledged that (+Hardwired by Walter Jon Williams).