One of the titles I was offered at gamescom 2026 was NEO BERLIN 2087 from Elysium Game Studio. Planned for release in 2028, I was able to sit down for a short 30-minute playthrough to get a feel for the game, some of its mechanics, and a bit of combat. Even though it was just a taste, Elysium whetted my appetite enough to have me wanting more.
The first thing you notice when you look at any of the images or trailers for NEO BERLIN 2087 is how jaw-droppingly stunning it is. Everything is futuristic and incredibly detailed as far as the eye can see. Drops of water looked so lifelike. At one point, the dev moved me forward in the game, and I was in what looked like an old Victorian building. There were so many decorations and knick-knacks, with every inch of the room decorated. It was shocking.
NEO BERLIN 2087 sees you take on the role of Nolan, who suspiciously looks like the dev walking me through the game, as he attempts to uncover a conspiracy in Neo Berlin. This is a futuristic version of Berlin, with a brand-new wall, meant to keep those within it safe. The world is very high-tech (more like 3087, really), and that comes into play during your missions. Though I didn’t get a good taste of the story in my short playthrough, Steam has a pretty good description of the world we play in:
“In 2087, your origin defines your access to technology. While the ruling class started relying on the flashiest advancements, a normal person can only afford so many cyberparts. At the same time, the outcasts are plagued by malfunctioning machines roaming the land.
“The first thing you notice when you look at any of the images or trailers for NEO BERLIN 2087 is how jaw-droppingly stunning it is.”
A fault in their programming led to some robots developing a life of their own and attacking humans on sight. The city may have purged their failed experiments successfully, but the surrounding wastelands can tell another story.
The rich rule from luxurious comfort inside a new version of the Berlin walls, which shield them from both harsh dystopian environments and the rest of humanity fighting for resources. Various settlements are scattered throughout the barren lands, led by rival factions.”
The first thing I learned was to analyze a crime scene. Looking for clues, studying the area—nothing too groundbreaking. There is a scanner you use both for these scenes and for the overall world, and it is the only way to find certain clues and items. The unique part of the gameplay loop is that you can take a chip from victims and physically play through their last hours of life. This is actually how I experienced combat within the game. NEO BERLIN 2087 requires you to play through these sequences to find out what happened to the victim.
“Right now, I can confidently say that NEO BERLIN 2087 is one of the most visually ambitious games I have seen in ages, and it is coming from an indie team, not some AAA studio.”
I’ll be honest, the combat sequence felt a little empty to me, since you are just in a simulation and there are no real stakes. If you die, you just do it again. It felt like an excuse to have you fight, but in a larger slice of the game, it may become clearer. For now, I saw a few kinds of weapons, but my dev friend encouraged me to engage more in stealth attacks, taking enemies out and hiding the bodies. When I tried to run and gun, I ran out of ammo and died…fast.
NEO BERLIN 2087 really gave me memories of Detroit: Become Human. The futuristic tone, robotic characters, and crime scene analysis felt vaguely familiar. However, when I mentioned this in my preview, they seemed to disagree.
Right now, I can confidently say that NEO BERLIN 2087 is one of the most visually ambitious games I have seen in ages, and it is coming from an indie team, not some AAA studio. A lot remains to be seen for the overall gameplay loop, but what they have so far feels good. I hope they can put some weight behind the gameplay to make it feel more rewarding.
NEO BERLIN 2087 releases sometime in 2028 and is available to wishlist on Steam now.
