City of Remnants reborn as Neon Gods, a fluorescent game of gang warfare set in the ‘near future’ of 2009

Gritty gang warfare game City of Remnants is making a colourful comeback in a spiritual successor Neon Gods.

Neon Gods relocates Colby Dauch and Isaac Vega’s 2013 battle over control of a sci-fi city to the ‘near future’ of an alternate-history 2009, replacing the original drab browns and greys of the original with a eye-melting palette of fluorescent pinks, greens, yellows and blues inspired by ‘70s and ‘80s movies. If the influence wasn’t obvious enough, the first player marker is a Rubik’s Cube.

Originally designed as a more straightforward reimplementation of City of Remnants’ territory-control gameplay, Neon Gods eventually ended up standing apart from its predecessor in a number of ways, including a greater reliance on dice to resolve battles, which can both deal damage and present the chance to steal money from opponents.

Players recruit gang members and move them around the board to exert control over areas and claim territory for points (or ‘blurp’, in the game’s universe). Cards are used to execute actions from moving figures and trading products via the black market to building structures to gain unique abilities.

Vega himself is behind the updated design, which is said to be a good deal more streamlined and easier to pick up than City of Remnants while preserving the game’s core.

Neon Gods is set for a launch later this year, after an early pre-release at Gen Con next month.