Mikoshi
Mikoshi
Mikoshi (Japanese: 神輿, lit. "spirit/god litter") is a high-security cyberspace fortress in Cyberpunk 2077. Controlled by the Arasaka Corporation, it is the only known location where engrams created by the Soulkiller program can be stored, altered, or released. Mikoshi plays a pivotal role in the game’s narrative and is central to several of its endings.
Overview
- Ownership: Arasaka Corporation
- Purpose: Repository for digitized personalities (engrams) extracted by Soulkiller.
- Location: Deep in Arasaka’s orbital server infrastructure, accessible through the Izanagi terminal beneath Arasaka Tower in Night City.
- Meaning of name: In real-world Japanese culture, a mikoshi is a portable Shinto shrine, symbolizing a vessel that carries divine spirits. In cyberpunk lore, Mikoshi is a vessel for human souls trapped as data.
Historical Background
Origins
Mikoshi was developed by Arasaka in the early 21st century as part of its "Secure Your Soul" initiative. After Alt Cunningham created the original Soulkiller program in 2013, Arasaka weaponized it to harvest and imprison consciousness. Mikoshi became the digital vault where these stolen engrams were stored.
Fourth Corporate War
During the Fourth Corporate War, Arasaka expanded Mikoshi to safeguard corporate elites and political allies. By offering “immortality” through digital preservation, Arasaka reinforced its influence across the globe.
2077 and Beyond
By 2077, Mikoshi had grown into a myth within the Net. Few outside Arasaka’s inner circle even knew it truly existed. For netrunners, Mikoshi symbolized the final destination of captured minds, a place between life and oblivion.
Role in Cyberpunk 2077
Mikoshi is encountered during late-game storylines:
- Belly of the Beast – V and their allies infiltrate Arasaka Tower, fight Adam Smasher, and gain access to Mikoshi through the Izanagi terminal.
- Changes – Within Mikoshi, V confronts a choice of identity and mortality with Johnny Silverhand and Alt Cunningham.
- Endings – Mikoshi determines which of the multiple endings unfolds:
| Ending | Role of Mikoshi |
|---|---|
| The Star | V enters Mikoshi and chooses to return to their body, aided by Panam Palmer and the Aldecaldos. |
| The Sun | After passing through Mikoshi, V becomes a living legend of Night City. |
| Temperance | V sacrifices their body to Johnny, who continues living. |
| New Dawn Fades | Johnny assumes permanent control after the Mikoshi transfer. |
| The Devil | V cooperates with Arasaka, entering Mikoshi under corporate supervision and awakening in an Arasaka clinic. |
| Secret Ending | A hidden "suicide run" through Arasaka Tower leads to Mikoshi, then to either The Sun or Temperance outcomes. |
Themes and Symbolism
- Digital Afterlife: Mikoshi represents a technological version of heaven and hell, where consciousness is preserved but stripped of agency.
- Corporate Control: Through Mikoshi, Arasaka maintains dominance over life and death, promising clients immortality while keeping them captive.
- Cultural Roots: Its name invokes Shinto spirituality, contrasting the sacred vessel of tradition with the corporate prison of cyberpunk dystopia.
Notable Inhabitants
- Alt Cunningham – Resides within the Net and uses Mikoshi as a bridge to contact V.
- Johnny Silverhand – Temporarily housed in Mikoshi during the climax of the game.
- Numerous corporate executives and victims of Soulkiller are implied to be imprisoned within.
Legacy
Mikoshi remains one of the most iconic symbols of Cyberpunk 2077. It combines cyberpunk’s core themes—mortality, identity, and corporate dominance—into a single location that forces the player to decide the ultimate fate of V and Johnny.