History Main / CyberpunkWithAChanceOfRain

* ''FinalFantasyVII'': It doesn't rain in Midgar because of the plate over the lower city(ies), but it is dark, gloomy, and polluted, to the point where even the ground and sky turn black around the city on the world map.
* There's a peripheral reference to this trope in a level of the original ''UnrealTournament''. Outside the windows of the fight compound there is constant rain, and the map description mentions the suicide-inducingly dreary weather as the reason this scientific outpost was converted into a deathmatch arena.

* In ''AMiracleOfScience'', Venus is depicted this way. WordOfGod confirmed [[hottip:*:in the commentary on [[http://project-apollo.net/ab/ab098.html this]] ''AfterlifeBlues'' page]] this as a ShoutOut to RayBradbury and others who depicted Venus in this manner. The reason for this common early picture of Venus was the full of clouds that make it impossible to see the ground. These were long assumed to be rainclouds, and thus Venus was depicted as a steaming rainforest, by Bradbury and others such as Howard's ''JohnCarterOfMars'' series.

* It is [[SunglassesAtNight always night]] in ''DeusEx''. Or sunset. This is a game mechanics thing -- ''Deus Ex's'' sneaking system requires shadows. It fits perfectly into the game's theme.
** In ''DeusExHumanRevolution'', it's ''almost'' always night, overcast or raining. There's plenty of light in Jensen's apartment, though, so it can stream through the windows [[http://www.gamingdaily.co.uk/images/DeusEx3Trailer-2010-6-5/Deckard%20Appt.png just like in]] ''BladeRunner''. In Hengsha, it's actually a perfectly sunny day, but the [[UrbanSegregation Upper City]] high above and the tall buildings block most of the light.

* In ''TheMatrix'', the weather is initially always nice inside the matrix, but outside the Matrix, the sun is permanently blocked by a nuclear winter. [[spoiler:Once Smith takes over]] the trope applies directly to the world inside the Matrix.

* Ray Bradbury's ''All Summer in a Day'' is a RaygunGothic example. It is set on Venus. It rains all the time, except for an hour every century. One of the schoolchildren in the story lived on another planet for a bit before her parents moved to Venus, and her constant tales of the sun there annoy everyone else, who are either jealous or think she's a liar. She is locked in a closet during the precious hour of the sun coming out.

[[BladeRunner http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Blade_Runner.jpg]]
[[caption-width:304:Of course it's raining, Rick. You're in a cyberpunk setting.]]

Compare CityNoir and PartlyCloudyWithAChanceOfDeath.

-->-Opening line of ''{{Neuromancer}}''[[hottip:*:Keep in mind that this refers to the static of old-school televisions, not the [[IThoughtItMeant bright blue of digital ones.]]]]

* ''{{Neuromancer}}'' by WilliamGibson. The original line was meant to invoke the gray static seen when an analog channel goes off air. Unfortunately, [[TechnologyMarchesOn in modern digital broadcast systems]], a dead channel shows up as solid bright blue. [[hottip:*:Lampshaded by NeilGaiman in ''{{Neverwhere}}''.]]

* ''{{Neuromancer}}'' by WilliamGibson. The original line was meant to invoke the gray static seen when an analog channel goes off air. Unfortunately, [[ScienceMarchesOn in modern digital broadcast systems]], a dead channel shows up as solid bright blue. [[hottip:*:Lampshaded by NeilGaiman in ''{{Neverwhere}}''.]]

-->-Opening line of ''{{Neuromancer}}''

Keep in mind that this refers to the static of old-school televisions, not the [[IThoughtItMeant bright blue of digital ones.]]

When this troper read this line for the first time a few days ago, he immediately thought of the bright blue screen of modern televisons, and that Gibson meant it was a bright sunny day. It wasn't until later in the book that he realized Gibson was writing in 1984 and thinking of old-school televisions.

Ever noticed how the weather is always lousy in CyberPunk settings? When it's not pouring down, the sky is overcast with dark, pollution-laden clouds that barely let any sunlight through.

* ''GhostInTheShell'' and ''Innocence: GhostInTheShell'', though the weather is nicer in the ''[[GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex Stand Alone Complex]]''.

* ''BladeRunner'' is probably responsible for starting the trend in films. (The endless rain was a reference to FilmNoir).
** Ridley Scott noted that having all the scenes set at night with lots of rain and smoke helped disguise the fact that he was just shooting on the backlot.
* In ''TheRunningMan,'' it's ''always'' nighttime!
** Except for the opening scene in prison. And the arrival to the city. And the whole airport scene. In fact, it's nighttime only during the game itself (which, i guess, takes place at night).
*** Which takes place ''underground.''
* In ''TheMatrix'', the weather is always nice inside the matrix [[spoiler: until Smith takes over]], and then this trope fully applies; but outside the Matrix, the sun is permanently blocked by a nuclear winter.
** At least this was [[JustifyingEdit justified]] as [[NiceJobBreakingItHero intentional]] AtmosphereAbuse.
** Of course, there's always the Matrix digital rain as well thus it is always raining in the Matrix even if you don't see it.

* ''ImmortelAdVitam'' is a French cyberpunk film taking place in New York. The skies are perpetually and dismally overcast, except in Central Park, which mysteriously has the weather conditions of Antarctica.

* ''{{Neuromancer}}'' by William Gibson. The original line was meant to invoke the gray static seen when an analog channel goes off air. Amusingly, [[ScienceMarchesOn in modern digital broadcast systems]], a dead channel shows up as solid bright blue ([[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by NeilGaiman in ''{{Neverwhere}}''.)
* RaygunGothic example - there is a short story about schoolchildren who live on a planet Venus (never clarified if it's ours). It rains all the time, except for an hour every century (or something like that). One of them lived on another planet for a bit before her parents moved to Venus, and her constant tales of the sun there annoy everyone else, who are either jealous or think she's a liar. She's locked in a closet while the sun comes out.
** That's Ray Bradbury's 'All Summer in a Day'.

* Ursula K. LeGuin's ''TheLatheOfHeaven'' is set in Portland, Oregon, whose normally cool, rainy Northwestern climate has become ''warm'' and rainy, thanks to GlobalWarming (in a 1971 book, for the record; we've seen this coming for a ''long'' time).
* Bruce Sterling's ''HeavyWeather'' (1994) turns this trope UpToEleven, as climate change has increased the violence and unpredictability of global weather patterns to such an extent that "Tornado Alley" in the GreatPlains has been rendered nearly uninhabitable.

* In the miniseries ''ColdLazarus'' it was thick smog. Like, closer to brown smoke. People wondered aloud what it must have been like when the air was clear enough to go for walks outside.

* It is [[SunglassesAtNight always night]] in ''DeusEx''. This is more of a game mechanics thing (Deus Ex's sneaking system requires shadows) though.
* The ''{{Metroid}}'' series ''loves'' its acid rain, featuring the stuff on two different incarnations of Zebes as well as the SpacePirates' home planet (where it'll kill you in seconds unless you've obtained a hazard shield). Tallon IV and Aether also feature copious amounts of regular rain (in Tallon Overworld and Torvus Bog respectively).
** Though neither Tallon Overworld nor Torvus Bog were particularly CyberPunk, being mostly trees and water.
* Don't you forget the continuous downpour of acid rain in ''{{Planetarian}}''.
* It's always night in {{Snatcher}} (which is a big Homage/Rip off of {{Blade Runner}} depending on how generous you feel). Granted, it's because the titular Snatcher's fake skin suffers horribly in direct sunlight.
* Dreamweb.
* It doesn't rain in [[FinalFantasyVII Midgar]] because of the plate over the lower city(ies), but it is dark, gloomy, and polluted, to the point where even the ground and sky turn black around the city on the world map.
* There's a peripheral reference to this trope in a level of the original UnrealTournament. Outside the windows of the fight compound there is constant rain, and the map description mentions the suicide-inducingly dreary weather as the reason this scientific outpost was converted into a deathmatch arena.

* In ''AMiracleOfScience'', Venus is depicted this way ([[strike:possibly]] [[WordOfGod confirmed]] as a ShoutOut to RayBradbury and others who depicted Venus in this manner).
** The reason for this being that Venus's atmosphere is full of dense clouds that make it impossible to see through by normal means. These were long assumed to be rainclouds, and thus Venus was depicted as a steaming rainforest, by Bradbury and others such as Howard's ''JohnCarterOfMars'' series.
** Confirmed by WordOfGod in the commentary on [[http://project-apollo.net/ab/ab098.html this]] ''AfterlifeBlues'' page.
* Paradise City in SluggyFreelance. Riff getting a clear view of the sky becomes a plot point.

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<<|WeatherAndEnvironment|>>

[[AC: {{Anime}} and {{Manga}}]]
* ''GhostInTheShell'' and ''Innocence: GhostInTheShell'', though the weather is nicer in the ''[[GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex Stand Alone Complex]]''.
* An Anime version of ''DominionTankPolice'' is set in a future where the weather is so bad even ordinary people carry gas masks with them for fear of pollution.
* There's always some clouds or weird shadows in ''SerialExperimentsLain''.
* In ''ErgoProxy'', the world is always cloudy. It's a plot point [[spoiler: because the Proxies were designed to die in the presence of sunlight]].
* ''SilentMoebius'', which was heavily influenced by ''BladeRunner'', is set in a Tokyo with near constant rain.

[[AC: Comic Books]]
* In ''{{Elephantmen}}'', it rains very frequently in 2250's Los Angeles.

* On the Planet/City of Mort in ''{{SLA Industries}}'', it rains for approximately 364 days per year. Which is perhaps fortunate, given that even Mister Slayer himself doesn't want to see what happens to the when it stops raining and all of the serial killers, hired mercenaries, gun-wielding gangsters, drug-fuelled war veterans, crazed mutants and even his own Operatives get hot and bothered....

[[AC: LiveActionTV]]
* In the miniseries ''ColdLazarus'' it was thick smog. Like, closer to brown smoke. People wondered aloud what it must have been like when the air was clear enough to go for walks outside.

[[AC: RealLife]]
* Depressingly for those that [[OrSoIHeard live there]], the description above describes northeast Ohio in spring and late fall to a T.
* The Pacific Northwest looks like this a lot, putting the "Rain" in TheOtherRainforest. May be the reason why ''{{Shadowrun}}'' was set in {{Seattle}}.
** San Francisco is likewise a common setting for cyberpunk and during the summer it is not uncommon for the sky to be solid grey for a week straight due to the fog. Not to mention the chill, the dampness, or the wind that are common year-round.
** Works set in Los Angeles or elsewhere in Southern California usually play this straight (often with some commentary about smog being responsible) or intentionally subvert it to contrast dark themes with a bright, sunny setting in a CityNoir device that's OlderThanTelevision.
* The period from late fall to early spring in The Netherlands is very dark and wet indeed. It often makes for very pretty skies though, which inspired many artists throughout the centuries.
* To quote Asterix: "Is the weather always foggy in Britain?" "Oh, my no, only when it doesn't rain!"

** Of course, there's always the Matrix digital rain as well.

Compare CityNoir.