Hong Kong

Lore & Background

Hong Kong in *Shadowrun: Hong Kong* is a stark contrast to the sprawls of Seattle. The city is effectively controlled directly by the corporations, with the Hong Kong Free Enterprise Zone operating as a corporate-run enclave. The Walled City was rebuilt and expanded in the 2010s by Raymond Black (born Edward Tsang) and his mother Josephine Tsang, CEO of Tsang Mechanical Services and member of Hong Kong's ruling Executive Council. They constructed an enormous qi machine dubbed 'Prosperity' around which the Walled City was recreated. The machine malfunctioned, and despite Raymond's pleas, Josephine claimed the device was too expensive to salvage. The abandoned machine caused the qi to become worse, and the Walled City devolved into a nightmarish slum. The Yellow Lotus Triad crime boss Kindly Cheng operates out of Heoi, granting protection to the player and their foster brother Duncan in exchange for their services as shadowrunners.

In Their Own Story

The rain in Heoi doesn't fall—it sweats, dripping from rusted pipes and the slick backs of neon signs. A young runner, new to the city, watches a cybered-up enforcer drag a man into an alley. The man's fingers leave red smears on the pavement. The runner's commlink buzzes—a message from a fixer named Duncan. 'Job in the Walled Market. Pay's good, but the 88s are involved.' The runner checks their pistol, feeling the city's secrets press in like humidity. In Hong Kong, every shadow hides a deal, and every deal comes with a price—usually someone else's blood.

Reader's Guide

Hong Kong is the central hub of *Shadowrun: Hong Kong*, a tactical RPG developed by Harebrained Schemes. The game is set in 2056 within the Hong Kong Free Enterprise Zone. The player's crew operates from Heoi, a small boat village on the outskirts of the Walled City. Key locations include the docks, where the player first encounters a team of Shadowrunners hired by Raymond Black; the Walled City, an overcrowded slum built around the Prosperity qi machine; and Tsang Mechanical Services headquarters, where Raymond is held captive. The game's story involves the demonic Yama King Qian Ya: The Queen of a Thousand Teeth, who attempts to break into reality through the malfunctioning Prosperity machine. The player can choose from three endings: allowing Raymond to sacrifice himself to destroy Prosperity, betraying Raymond to Qian Ya, or forcing Qian Ya to return to her realm under threat of releasing the other Yama Kings. The extended edition, *Shadows of Hong Kong*, is set some time after the main story and involves the player working with Senior Investigators Lem and Qiu to investigate the HKPF's Special Duties unit, led by Chief Inspector Krait, who is linked to Ares Macrotechnology.

Did You Know?

• The game's initial Kickstarter funding goal of US$100,000 was met in only a few hours, and the campaign ended with over $1.2 million.
• The game was developed only for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux to avoid the hardware limitations of tablets, unlike previous Shadowrun games.
• The extended edition, featuring a new campaign and developer commentary, was released for free for everybody who owned the original game.
• The player character was once an orphan on the streets of Seattle along with their foster brother Duncan before being adopted by Raymond Black.
• The demonic entity in the game is Qian Ya: The Queen of a Thousand Teeth, a Yama King who attempts to manifest in the real world through the Prosperity machine.