Gangs of Night City – What We Learned From Night City Wire Episode 3

As the release of Cyberpunk 2077 draws tantalizingly close, CD Projekt Red continues to give us more information about what we can expect from their new RPG. Today on episode three of Night City Wire, we got an inside look at some of the gangs that run Night City. Whether it’s the cyberware-obsessed Maelstrom, the flag-waving 6th Street, or the gorilla-sized Animals, each gang brings a unique (and sometimes terrifying) aesthetic and approach to organized crime.

Maelstrom

The first gang we were introduced to today, the Maelstrom gang want to cross the boundary between human and machine. Unpredictable and chaotic, they compete with the scavs for the highest body count in Night City. Many have replaced their eyes with cyberware, and some appear to have done away with their mouths entirely — apparently so far from human they no longer eat food like the rest of us. The type of people to kill a young child “for shits and giggles”, it’s likely that most of the player’s encounters with Maelstrom will be bloody affairs.

Valentinos

Followers of God and the Santa Madre, the Valentinos gang appears to be based out of Heywood. Their aesthetic should be familiar to anyone from California, as their overall look and feel is very similar to the Latin gangs in and around the Los Angeles area; gold crucifix necklaces, muscle cars, and dark sunglasses are the standard attire of this Night City crew.

From what we could glean from the footage of the Valentinos, they appear to be structured like real-life gangs, with loudly-dressed gangsters running operations on the streets, and suit-wearing old men in limos calling the shots. With a “punishment for every ocassion”, the Valentinos don’t seem like people you’d want to cross. It seems like our friend Jackie either knows or was involved with the Valentinos, so they may feature prominently in some of the game’s quests.

6th Street

Santo Domingo’s 6th Street gang are a patriotic group, donning American flag beanies and decorating their base with the stars and stripes. Apparently 6th street has beef with the Valentinos, though over what we don’t yet know. Despite their propensity for drunken parties, 6th Street are 2nd amendment fans who are good for the creds if you finish the job.

Voodoo Boys

Thought to be an urban legend, the Voodoo Boys are notorious netrunners who have the corps scared they’ll eventually breach the “black wall”. These mysterious runners are based out of Pacifica, a district described as “Haiti 2.0” and isolated from the rest of Night City — at least, until the Animals showed up.

Animals

Mix futuristic steroids with cyberware and you’ve got a recipe for some big, bad S.O.Bs. It’s not clear why they’ve moved into Pacifica, and it may have something to do with a corpo plot. Whatever the reason, they don’t seem like the type to leave if you ask nicely. Preposterously muscled and always ready for a fight, the Animals spend their free time punching each other in the face.

Tyger Claws

Based in Westbrook but apparently encroaching on Watson, we didn’t learn much about the Tyger Claws in the latest gangs reveal. We do know that there is an elderly woman who has some role in the gang, and we know they break the kneecaps of people who try to look into their affairs. The Moxes gang also apparently has grown tired of the Tyger Claws killing women, but how or why is still unknown. Whatever their goals are, it sounds like trying to discover more about the Tyger Claws will be a dangerous task.

Moxes

A motley crew made up of working girls, pimps, and outcasts, the Moxes sound like they formed in order to protect themselves from the dangers of Night City, and perhaps specifically to protect themselves from the Tyger Claws. The idea of sex workers banding together for protection makes perfect sense, and this gang seems the most focused on simply surviving, rather than aggressive expansion. They may be led by Suzie “Q”, or Suzie may just be one of a few leaders; it isn’t yet clear what their leadership structure is.

Wraiths

One of the Nomad groups in the Badlands. We don’t know much about this gang yet, but we do know they are rogue Nomads who aren’t likely to be too friendly if the player runs across them. We might have a chance to do some car racing with them, judging by what we saw in the new gang reveal video.

Aldecaldos

The other Nomad gang we learned about was the Aldecaldos. One of the oldest gangs around, the Aldecaldos have been at war with the Wraiths for a long time. From what we know of these Nomads, they should be more open to interactions with V, especially if the player chooses the Nomad Lifepath. The Aldecaldos stress the importance of community and loyalty, two things that can be hard to come by in Night City.

For those of you who find one or more of the gangs lifestyle choices appealing, we’re sorry to say that one of the CDPR devs confirmed that gangs would not be joinable. Since V is a merc, they can’t be trusted to place loyalty over cash. That being said, it looks like we’ll have plenty of opportunities to interact with all of Night City’s gangs, and it was also confirmed that some of their weapons and attire will be acquirable by players.

You can watch the entire gang reveal video here, and be sure to check out the whole third episode of Night City Wire while you’re at it.