Citizen Sleeper

Last updated

Citizen Sleeper
Citizen Sleeper cover art.jpg
Developer(s) Jump Over the Age
Publisher(s) Fellow Traveller
Designer(s) Gareth Damian Martin
Artist(s) Guillaume Singelin
Writer(s) Gareth Damian Martin
Composer(s) Amos Roddy
Platform(s)
Release
  • macOS, Windows, Switch, Xbox One, Series X/S
  • 5 May 2022
  • PS4, PS5
  • 31 March 2023
Genre(s) Role-playing
Mode(s) Single-player

Citizen Sleeper is a 2022 role-playing video game by Jump Over the Age and published by Fellow Traveller for macOS, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on 5 May 2022. It was also released for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on 31 March 2023.

Contents

A sequel, titled Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, is scheduled for release on 31 January 2025.

Plot

In Citizen Sleeper, the player character is a "Sleeper," a human whose mind has been digitized and has been put into a robot body to be controlled by the Essen-Arp corporation. [1] The player's Sleeper has escaped indentured servitude on a freighter and has arrived at a space station called the Eye, where they fight for both survival and freedom. [2] The player meets a number of different people who represent different factions and interests. [3] The game features multiple endings depending on the choices of the player. [3]

Gameplay

In order to progress the plot, survive, and escape the Eye, the player rolls a number of dice each in-game day. These dice are then placed into different tasks, where higher numbers generally indicate better outcomes. [3] Lower numbers generally are useful on the data-cloud side of the station, which allow the player to gather intelligence on the activities of the various factions. [3] Higher numbers generally lead to better outcomes throughout the rest of the game. [3] The player must constantly work in order to feed themselves and care for their degrading robot body which requires specialized materials to upkeep. [1]

Development

Citizen Sleeper was created and developed by Gareth Damian Martin, through their London-based [4] one-person game development studio Jump Over The Age. [5] Character artwork was designed by Guillaume Singelin. [6] When Martin first began their work as a developer, they conceived of two games: In Other Waters and a game about being a thief in a fantasy city trying to survive hardships and poverty while getting involved in the political situation there. [7] The latter changed to a sci-fi setting and became the basis for Citizen Sleeper. [7]

During development, Martin focused on the intimate feeling of people coming together, and their own experiences as a non-binary person struggling to make ends meet in a city through the gig economy. [4] When playing science-fiction games like the Mass Effect series, Martin found themselves drawn to the side characters. "As science fiction stories drag the narrative toward explosive quests, I want to stay with these people living ordinary lives in extraordinary settings." [7] They cited Diaries of a Spaceport Janitor as an example of the kind of story they were aiming towards, which showed how science-fiction could be a great space for slice of life gaming experiences. [7]

Contemporary experiences of Uber and other gig economy and debt experiences drove the direction of how Martin portrayed capitalism in the game. [7] Martin said, "I wanted to tell a story at capitalism's periphery, where so many of us have learned how to exist." [7] They also focused on how life can be incredibly precarious for people living at the periphery of capitalism, and they were inspired by Anna Tsing's The Mushroom at the End of the World among other works. [7] [8]

The developers announced three additional DLC packs, available for download at no additional cost. The first DLC, Flux, was released in July 2022, the second chapter, Refuge, was released in October 2022, and the final chapter was released in March 2023. [9] [10] [11]

Reception

Citizen Sleeper received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic. [12] [13] [14] At its release, Polygon named Citizen Sleeper among the best games of 2022. [20]

Reviewers praised Citizen Sleeper's writing, with a number of reviewers remarking on the well-drawn characters found in the game. [6] [3] The Guardian 's Lewis Packwood called the writing "gloriously evocative and compelling" and noted that the picture that is painted in the game feels "intriguing and unique." [6] Polygon 's Alexis Ong called the game's ability to remove the player from chasing concrete objectives as part of the plot its "greatest strength.". [20] IndieGameReviewer wrote "The dual layer of a virtual ghost world and an unfathomable wet one create a simply sublime and rare experience," giving it 3rd position on its top 10 games of 2022. [21]

Critics praised the game's streamlined mechanics. Eurogamer 's Chris Tapsell described the game's mechanics as creating a "wonderful elegance" in a positive review. [2]

The game's three free DLC chapters received positive notes from critics. Polygon's Nicole Clark noted that the first chapter, Flux, caused her to change how she played the game by encouraging her to create systems to help the community of The Eye at-large instead of just her character's friends. [9] The Gamer's Ben Sludge felt that the second chapter lacked urgency, but that the third made up for the second's more lackadaisical pacing. [10] [11]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryResultRef
2022 The Game Awards Games for ImpactNominated [22]
2023 26th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards Role-Playing Game of the Year Nominated [23]
23rd Game Developers Choice Awards Game of the Year Honorable mention [24]
Social Impact AwardWon
Best NarrativeHonorable mention
Independent Games Festival Seumas McNally Grand Prize Honorable mention [25]
Excellence in NarrativeNominated
Excellence in DesignHonorable mention
19th British Academy Games Awards British Game Nominated [26]
Game Beyond Entertainment Nominated
Narrative Nominated
Original Property Nominated

Sequel

A sequel, titled Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, was announced for Windows in June 2023. [27] A port for Xbox Series was unveiled in August the same year, [28] which was followed by a Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5 port in June 2024. [29] The sequel is set for release on 31 January 2025. [29]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frostbite (game engine)</span> Game engine developed by DICE

Frostbite is a game engine developed by DICE, designed for cross-platform use on Microsoft Windows, seventh generation game consoles PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, eighth generation game consoles PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch and ninth generation game consoles PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, in addition to usage in the now defunct cloud streaming service Google Stadia.

2017 saw the release of numerous video games as well as other developments in the video game industry. The Nintendo Switch console was released in 2017, which sold more than 14 million units by the end of the year, exceeding the under-performing Wii U lifetime sales. This has helped to revitalize Nintendo, with the "retro" Super NES Classic Edition console, the refreshed New Nintendo 2DS XL handheld and a strategy for mobile gaming. Microsoft also released the higher-powered Xbox One X targeted for 4K resolutions and virtual reality support.

Numerous video games were released in 2018. Best-selling games included Madden NFL 19, NBA 2K19, NBA Live 19, WWE 2K19, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Marvel's Spider-Man, Red Dead Redemption 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Far Cry 5, God of War, Monster Hunter: World, Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, Spyro Reignited Trilogy, and Dragon Ball FighterZ. Games highly regarded by video game critics released in 2018 included Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Marvel's Spider-Man, Forza Horizon 4, Monster Hunter: World, Dead Cells, Return of the Obra Dinn, and Celeste. The year's highest-grossing games included Fortnite, Honor of Kings/Arena of Valor, Dungeon Fighter Online, League of Legends, and Pokémon Go.

<i>Mario Kart 8</i> 2014 video game

Mario Kart 8 is a 2014 kart racing game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U. It retains the gameplay of previous Mario Kart games, with players controlling a Mario character in races around tracks. Tracks are themed around locales from the Super Mario series populated with power-ups that help players gain advantages in races. Different difficulties are selectable prior to a race; harder difficulties make gameplay faster. In the new anti-gravity sequences, players drive on walls and ceilings. Mario Kart 8 contains a variety of single-player and local and online multiplayer game modes, including Grand Prix racing and arena-based battle modes.

<i>The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt</i> 2015 video game

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt‍ is a 2015 action role-playing game developed and published by the Polish studio CD Projekt. It is the sequel to the 2011 game The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings and the third game in The Witcher video game series, played in an open world with a third-person perspective. The games follow the Witcher series of fantasy novels written by Andrzej Sapkowski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gamer Network</span> British digital media company

Gamer Network Limited is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and other video game businesses. Its flagship website, Eurogamer, was launched alongside the company. It began hosting the video game trade show EGX in 2008. ReedPop acquired Gamer Network in 2018 and sold it to IGN Entertainment in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sickhead Games</span> American video game company

Sickhead Games, LLC is an American independent game development studio founded in 2002. It is best known for its multiplatform turn-based strategy game ARMED!, its involvement with the MonoGame framework and Torque series of game engines, and the development of several PlayStation 4/5, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch ports of indie games including TowerFall Ascension, Stardew Valley, Darkest Dungeon, Octodad: Dadliest Catch, Slay the Spire, and Axiom Verge. The studio has updated classic console and PC games from the late 1990s and early 2000s, including ExZeus, Enclave, and Grandia, to run on modern gaming systems.

Super Mega Baseball is a baseball video game series developed by the independent studio Metalhead Software in Victoria, BC, Canada and published by EA Sports.

In the video game industry during 2019, both Sony and Microsoft announced their intent to reveal their next-generation consoles in 2020, while Nintendo introduced a smaller Nintendo Switch Lite, and Google announced its streaming game platform Stadia. The controversy over loot boxes as a potential gambling route continued into 2019, with some governments like Belgium and the Netherlands banning games with them under their gambling laws, while the United Kingdom acknowledging their current laws prevent enforcing these as if they were games of chance. The first video cards to support real-time ray tracing were put onto the consumer market, including the first set of games that would take advantage of the new technology. The Epic Games Store continued its growth in challenging the largest digital PC game distribution service Steam, leading to concern and debate about Epic Games' methods to seek games for its service. Dota Auto Chess, a community-created mod for Dota 2, introduced a new subgenre of strategy games called auto battlers, which saw several games in the genre released throughout the year. Blizzard Entertainment faced criticism due to their involvement in the Blitzchung controversy, which began after they had banned a Hearthstone player for making comments during a tournament regarding the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests.

In the video game industry, 2020 saw the launch of the next generation of video game consoles, with both Microsoft and Sony Interactive Entertainment having released the Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 consoles, respectively, in November 2020. The industry was heavily affected by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic which had begun in March and was characterized by COVID-19 lockdowns and remote work. While this caused numerous delays in software and hardware releases and the cancellation of live conferences and events in favor of virtual shows, it also created a boom for the industry as people turned to gaming as a means to pass the time. The industry also reacted to various political/cultural events.

In the video game industry, 2021 saw the release of many new titles. The numerous delays in software and hardware releases due to the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic heavily impacted development schedules, leading to several games being delayed into 2022 or even postponed indefinitely. Additionally, computer and console hardware were impacted by the combined effects of a semiconductor shortage and a rising growth of bitcoin mining that strained the supply of critical components.

<i>Life Is Strange: True Colors</i> 2021 graphic adventure video game

Life Is Strange: True Colors is an adventure game developed by Deck Nine and published by Square Enix. It was released on 10 September 2021 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Stadia; a Nintendo Switch version released on 7 December 2021. The plot focuses on Alex Chen, a young woman who can experience the emotions of others, as she tries to solve the mystery behind a tragedy that happened in her life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serenity Forge</span> American video game developer

Serenity Forge LLC is an American video game developer and publisher based in Boulder, Colorado. The studio was founded in 2014 by Zhenghua "Z" Yang.

<i>Wildermyth</i> 2021 video game

Wildermyth is a tactical role-playing video game developed and published by Worldwalker Games. First released in 2019, the game was released in full in June 2021 for Linux, macOS, and Windows, and is set to be released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S in October 2024. The game received generally positive reviews upon release, with praise mostly directed at the game's use of procedural generation for storytelling.

<i>Thirsty Suitors</i> 2023 video game

Thirsty Suitors is an adventure video game developed by Outerloop Games and published by Annapurna Interactive. The game is about a young woman, Jala, who returns to her hometown for her sister's wedding and must navigate her relationships with her family and former paramours. The game was released on November 2, 2023, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. Ports to Android and iOS published by Netflix is in development.

<i>Dave the Diver</i> 2023 video game

Dave the Diver is a 2023 video game developed and published by Mintrocket. The game combines both action-adventure and management gameplay styles as players explore deep sea environments to gather ingredients for a sushi restaurant. It was released for macOS and Windows in June 2023 following an early access release in October 2022. A Nintendo Switch version was released in October 2023. A version for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 was released in April 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 3 LeBlanc, Wesley (May 23, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper Review". Game Informer . GameStop Corp. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 Tapsell, Chris (May 5, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper review - a gentle, cerebral game of belonging and survival". Eurogamer . Archived from the original on June 7, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Macgregor, Jody (May 5, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper review". PC Gamer . Future plc . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  4. 1 2 "In Other Waters Limited Edition Ships Today For Nintendo Switch™️". Gamespress. August 26, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Citizen Sleeper Dev Wants To See Cyberpunk Genre Freed From Stagnation". Kotaku. May 20, 2022. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Packwood, Lewis (May 4, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper review – an evocative cyberpunk survival sim". The Guardian . Guardian Media Group plc. ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Russell, Laurence. "The Creator of 'Citizen Sleeper' Was Inspired by Our Modern Dystopia". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028 . Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  8. ↑ Valentine, Rebekah (May 14, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper Offers Hope In the Midst of a Capitalist Space Hellscape". IGN. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  9. 1 2 Clark, Nicole (July 28, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper's first DLC recontextualizes the RPG's tough decisions". Polygon. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  10. 1 2 Sledge, Ben (October 26, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper: Refuge Tells More Great Stories, But Lacks Urgency". TheGamer. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  11. 1 2 Sledge, Ben (March 30, 2023). "Citizen Sleeper Purge Review: The End". TheGamer. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  12. 1 2 "Citizen Sleeper for PC Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  13. 1 2 "Citizen Sleeper for Switch Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  14. 1 2 "Citizen Sleeper for Xbox Series X Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  15. ↑ Van Allen, Eric (May 5, 2022). "Review: Citizen Sleeper". Destructoid . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  16. ↑ Vogel, Mitch (May 9, 2022). "Mini Review: Citizen Sleeper - A Tabletop RPG-Inspired Gem You Shouldn't Sleep On". Nintendo Life . Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  17. ↑ Loades, Jordan (May 25, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper (Switch) Review". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  18. ↑ Tekaia, Pascal (August 1, 2022). "Citizen Sleeper Review". RPGamer. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  19. ↑ Musgrave, Shaun (May 10, 2022). "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring 'Citizen Sleeper' and 'As Far As The Eye', Plus New Releases and Sales". TouchArcade . Archived from the original on May 21, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  20. 1 2 Mahardy, Mike (March 2, 2022). "The best video games of 2022, so far". Polygon . Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  21. ↑ Indie-Game-Freak (December 31, 2022). "The Best Indie Games of 2022 – Our Top 10". IndieGameReviewer.com.
  22. ↑ Tyler Colp (December 9, 2022). "The Game Awards 2022 results: All the winners". PC Gamer. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  23. ↑ Kim, Matt (January 12, 2023). "26th Annual DICE Awards Game of the Year Nominees Announced". IGN . Archived from the original on January 12, 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  24. ↑ Bankhurst, Adam (February 23, 2023). "DICE Awards 2023 Winners: The Full List". IGN . Archived from the original on February 24, 2023. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  25. ↑ Mejia, Ozzie (January 24, 2023). "Independent Games Festival Awards 2023 finalists revealed". Shacknews . Archived from the original on January 28, 2023. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  26. ↑ Wood, Anthony (March 2, 2023). "BAFTA Games Awards 2023 Nominations Announced". IGN . Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  27. ↑ Wales, Matt (June 12, 2023). "Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector officially unveiled". Eurogamer . Retrieved June 12, 2023.
  28. ↑ Romano, Sal (August 24, 2023). "Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector adds Xbox Series version". Gematsu. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
  29. 1 2 Reuben, Nic (December 5, 2024). "Spacefaring RPG Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector gets a release date: January 31st 2025". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved December 5, 2024.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.