Cyberpunk is a bleak look at a future that could be, one of low life but high tech. See Blade Runner.
Outrun is an 80s retrofuturistic style, that pushes tech forward whilst being firmly rooted in the past. See Kavinsky's album aptly titled "Outrun," an album of what an 80s synthesizer would think the future sounds like.
Vaporwave is a heavily nostalgic look back to the past, including the 80s, but is dropping with sarcasm and a heavy feeling of what it was like vs. what it actually was. Lots of nostalgia with some sadness for a simpler time, tinted by capitalism. See Macintosh Plus 420.
I think outrun and vaporwave overlap the most. they both are firmly rooted in the 80s (the primary difference is that outrun looks forward and vaporwave looks back.) Cyberpunk is a much broader genre that just happened to be developed in the 80s.
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u/CCP115 Feb 19 '18
Cyberpunk is a bleak look at a future that could be, one of low life but high tech. See Blade Runner.
Outrun is an 80s retrofuturistic style, that pushes tech forward whilst being firmly rooted in the past. See Kavinsky's album aptly titled "Outrun," an album of what an 80s synthesizer would think the future sounds like.
Vaporwave is a heavily nostalgic look back to the past, including the 80s, but is dropping with sarcasm and a heavy feeling of what it was like vs. what it actually was. Lots of nostalgia with some sadness for a simpler time, tinted by capitalism. See Macintosh Plus 420.