Not yet encountered the astonishing powerhouse of a comic creator that is Gustaffo Vargas? Then now’s your chance to catch up on this amazing, mind-blowing talent, by supporting a stunning collection of his more recent stories in Altiplano, a Peruvian Cyberpunk Saga.
Already fully funded, a Kickstarter “Project We Love, the Altiplano campaign smashed its initial £7000 target in just hours. It’s a project you should check out as soon as possible because, and I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again… The sheer visceral energy of Gustaffo Vargas is truly astonishing. He fully deserves our support, in my opinion – and, clearly, many others, too. (And I put my money where my mouth is on this, as I was the very first person to back this latest campaign).
Cyberpunk is a genre of dark futures. Despite the hellworld we are in, I believe in a better future for you. It’s a better future because you’ll have a collected edition of Vargas’ Peruvian Cyberpunk in it.”
Kieron Gillen, The Power Fantasy, The Wicked + The Divine
So, what’s on offer?
Altiplano, a Peruvian Cyberpunk Saga is a 152-page, full colour, graphic novel by Gustaffo Vargas, collecting the previously published, mesmerising trilogy Manu, Puno and Pilcuyo into a graphic novel format. Also included is a brand new story connected to the trilogy: Puerto Maldonado. (The tantalising tease of new work was the driver of my early support).
A story about monkeys, jaguars, cyborgs, sex and warfare with a grand finale, follow Lila and Sonia as they hide from an evil corporation that follows their steps, looking for a hidden asset connected to their past. “Peruvian Cyberpunk” is a world where robotics and biotechnology are accessible to many and where corrupt governments and criminal organisations constantly struggle over power…
This isn’t just about mechs and machetes. It’s about authorship. About flipping the cyberpunk lens inward —
toward indigenous trauma, colonial ghosts, and ecosystems choking on megacorp smog. Vargas doesn’t just write from the margins — he weaponises them.”
Anthony Pollock, My Kind of Weird
Offered in album size (close to A4 size, 28cm x 19.8cm /
11 inch x 7.8 inch) Altiplano, a Peruvian Cyberpunk Saga is offered in hardcover, softcover, and digital formats. Backers also have the option to get the full catalogue of Gustaffo’s other Peruvian Cyberpunk books – Anticucho & Other Peruvian Cyberpunk Stories and Trujillo – in physical or digital formats. Plus, grab original comic pages, art commissions and stickers, too.
“This is my way of showing and exploring my Peruvian culture,” says Gustaffo of the project, “its lush and beauty, but also its weird and dark. It’s a decolonising perspective to Cyberpunk, constantly exploring new grounds.”
If you support just one Kickstarter this year, make it this one. Enjoy the same astonishing journey, discovering – or rediscovering – Gustaffo’s work. Adventure writ large, guaranteed!
• Check out Altiplano, a Peruvian Cyberpunk Saga here on Kickstarter
Gustaffo Vargas is a Peruvian comic book artist and writer based in the UK, the creator of Peruvian Cyberpunk graphic novels Anticucho, the Altiplano saga and Trujillo comic. He’s also the co-creator and artist of the comic series Olympos: Nullhunter, written by Michael Walsh and published by Image, a kinetic cyberpunk retelling of the Labours of Hercules. Clay is a war hero who faces unspeakable tragedy after returning home. Seeking justice, he’s forced into service for his estranged father’s powerful company, Olympos. His first mission takes him to faraway N3M-3A on the trail of a hijacked shipment of war lions…l
He has worked for Marvel Comics, Image Comics, Unit 2 Games and several UK independent publishers. He also publishes SKRAWL comix magazine, with the SkrawlLordz.
• Check out Altiplano, a Peruvian Cyberpunk Saga here on Kickstarter
• Gustaffo Vargas is online at gustaffovargas.com | BlueSky | Instagram
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
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