Citizen Sleeper

The game is fairly engaging for the first few hours, however there are some issues that make it really drag on. The overarching problem I have is that i expected the game to allow me to role-play, however, the skill system doesn't provide enough variety, and narratively I feel like I am stuck playing the character the writer wants me to play. 1. each story section is quite linear, dialogue options usually amount to a choice between "mildly naive/supportive" or "extremely naive/supportive". 2. you can't choose between supporting different factions - you are forced to play as some sort of neo-progressive anarchist. 3. the rpg/skill/dice/time system, though interesting at first, is shallow, and lacks flavour. in a dnd style game mage/warrior/rogue all play differently. in citizen sleeper it all feels the same, just plugging numbers into a box over and over again until your progress bar is complete. 4. the writing and character development is basic at times - like two characters suddenly end up in a relationship. it doesn't feel earned or relevant, the characters don't have much development, the reader is just told - hey, this character is non-binary and they are now in a non-heteronormative relationship. It feels like the kind of whitewashing banks and mega corporations do - superficial, a cynical marketing strategy. I don't need much, even something like "these characters were enemies because the corporation had taught them to supress their feelings, but now they're free"

I had some reservations about this game because, in my experience, dice-based systems in this style often lean too heavily on their RNG- the last one I tried was Tharsis, which laughed in my face and kicked me in the shins until I quit- but I'm very glad I gave this one a chance. The mechanics are tuned to produce moments of high tension, without ever feeling like the game is just plain out to get you; most of the time, choices have as much influence or more than dice do (although a bad set of rolls can still throw a wrench in your cycle-to-cycle plans). The best descriptor I can come up with for the tone and spirit of the game is "hope-punk." Even though you may never solve all of this dysfunctional little space station's problems, and even though not everything will go your way, you can come away with the sense that someday, somehow, things might just work out for the better- if you only choose to nudge them in the right direction, where you can. More, please. Also, I want a set of these dice; the hex-grid design is just plain cool for a d6.

I must say I don't understand why this game got such positive ratings, I even heard it compared to Disco Elysium and so I was extremely disappointed when playing it. It is true that the game looks nice and has good sound design and music, but the storytelling lacks so much in depth! All characters are entirely unidimensional — except for the player character who manages to be *zero*-dimensional by not having any personality. And the story is hopelessly linear, without any meaningful choices (they literally ask you to choose between "yes" and "ok" at some point). The game tries to pass for a role-playing game, but… where is the role-playing? Choosing to favour a specific character attribute, for instance, will have no impact on your personality (remember, you don't have one) and will not affect which actions you can take. And you can't interact with NPCs outside of linear scenes where your attitude is always compelled.

Video review: https://youtu.be/XSC-x63ETGE ________________ You are a Sleeper. The copy of a human mind in an artificial body. A body that doesn't belong to you. Tech that is slowly falling apart. Property that they want back. * Dice-based cyberpunk RPG * Memorable and relatable characters * Well-written story * Multiple endings * Interesting mechanics * Beautiful character design * Very fitting soundtrack * Slow-paced and easy