📅 The Collapse (1990-2000)
“The old world died in a whimper, not a bang.”
This decade saw the unraveling of the post-Cold War order. Economic instability, ecological disasters, and the rise of megacorporations set the stage for the Dark Future.
📆 Year by Year
1990
- The first megacorporations begin to truly assert their independence from government control
- Stock market fluctuations begin destabilizing global economies
- Drug wars escalate in the Americas
1991
- Soviet Union collapses, leading to chaos in Eastern Europe
- Corporate extraterritoriality begins to be recognized by weaker nations
1992
- World stock market crash begins the Great Collapse
- First Combat Zone areas begin appearing in major American cities
- Japan becomes the world’s dominant economy
1993
- Gang of Four (NSA, CIA, FBI, DEA) attempts to seize control of the US government
- Martial law declared in several US states
- Food riots break out in major American cities
1994
- Gang of Four coup collapses
- National Guard units refuse to fire on American citizens
- Free States begin to secede from the Union
- Central American Wars begin
1995
- New United States (NUSA) government established
- Multiple states declare independence
- First Nomad families form from displaced Americans
1996
- European Economic Community begins unification
- Wasting Plague begins spreading across America
- Biotechnica develops cure, establishing its dominance
1997
- West Coast states form the Free State alliance
- Corporate Zones established in most major cities
- First generation of widespread cyberware becomes available
1998
- Texas secedes from the NUSA
- South Am conflict intensifies
- Corporate security forces begin replacing public police
1999
- World Health Organization declares multiple pandemic emergencies
- Antarctica Treaty collapses; nations begin resource exploitation
- AIs begin appearing in corporate networks
2000
- Millennium marked by civil unrest worldwide
- Net reaches near-ubiquity in developed nations
- Cyberware becomes common among middle classes
- Night City incorporated as a Free City
🔥 Key Events of the Decade
The Great Collapse (1992)
The world stock market crash that destroyed the old economic order. Millions lost their savings overnight. Traditional banks failed. Governments proved incapable of managing the crisis, paving the way for corporate dominance.
The Gang of Four Coup (1993-1994)
American intelligence agencies attempted to seize control of the US government during the crisis. Their failure led to the fracturing of the nation and the rise of the Free States.
Placeholder: Gang of Four coup visualization (pg. 239)
Rise of the Nomads (1994-1995)
As cities became uninhabitable and the economy collapsed, millions of Americans took to the roads. These displaced persons eventually organized into the Nomad families that now dominate American transport.
The Wasting Plague (1996)
A devastating disease swept across the Americas. Biotechnica developed and controlled the only cure, cementing corporate power over governments.
🏢 Corporate Rise
During this decade, corporations evolved from powerful businesses to true sovereign powers:
- Arasaka: Expanded globally as Japanese economy dominated
- Militech: Became primary US military contractor
- Biotechnica: Monopolized plague cure
- Petrochem: Controlled fuel as oil became scarce
🌐 The World in 2000
By the turn of the millennium, the world had been transformed:
- America: Fractured into NUSA and Free States
- Europe: Unifying under the EC
- Asia: Japanese economic dominance
- Corporate Power: Extraterritoriality recognized globally
- Society: Massive wealth inequality, Combat Zones, Nomad caravans
- Technology: Widespread cyberware, early NET development
🔗 Related Topics
(Source: Cyberpunk RED Core Rulebook, pgs. 233-245)