As part of my 2024 project, I tried Citizen Sleeper. Released in 2022, it wasn’t a game I thought about. I wasn’t quite into the visual novel genre, so I skipped it. But, after playing for about an hour, I saw the appeal. So, when the Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector dropped a week ago, I wanted to check it out. You don’t need to know the first game to play this. But, having that experience helps.
Be prepared for the unexpected
Like the first game, this visual novel relies on randomization. To progress through the story you have to complete tasks. But progression relies on the dice you have available. The higher the number on the dice, the better your chances are of getting a positive outcome.
Your character’s skills can either increase or decrease your chances. In Citizen Sleeper 2, a new mechanic that they introduce is glitch dice. You get one at the start of the game. As you progress, you can get more. These have a 20% positive and 80% negative chance associated with them. What’s good is that these values stay the same.
This means you don’t get an added penalty on your turn, but your boosts also don’t work. The worst part about the glitch dice is that you can get many more and they come out often. I’ve had points where I’ve had five glitch dice on a single turn. At that point, you have to hope that 20% gets lucky or punt on that cycle.
A story that’s keeping my attention
There is a lot to manage in Citizen Sleeper. You need to earn money, you need fuel for traveling, and there are other aspects to care about. This can be a bit overwhelming at first because trying to keep tabs on things is a challenge. But, it’s also intentional. The game doesn’t want you to have a perfect experience.
The story focuses on you a Sleeper and your friend Seraphin. There is a mysterious figure, named Laine, who is after you. It’s not clear the reasons at first, but you hold some significance to this universe. As I’ve been going through the story, I’ve come across a fair share of people who may be willing to help or harm you. So, making tough decisions and your success dictates how the story progresses.
From what I can gather, there is no “game over” in this game. I’ve made plenty of mistakes and failed missions, but the story continues. Failure is part of the game. It would not surprise me if one of the game’s endings revolves around complete failure.
The pacing is good but frustrations do arise. Because of the micromanaging, getting negative results can deter you from pushing forward. On the game’s default difficulty, the penalties don’t feel too bad. But, because of that, newcomers might want to stick to the easier mode.
This is very much a love-and-hate relationship
There are other aspects that I either love or dislike about Citizen Sleeper 2. One thing that stands out the most is the game’s incredible score. For a game that relies on text to tell a story, the music adds to the atmosphere of every scenario. It’s hard to explain how well the music blends into the game’s world. It works so well.
I do wish that there was more visual variety in the locations. For a visual novel, there isn’t a lot to look at. The space worlds you visit aren’t anything worth noting. The character portraits are nice, but they exist. There is very little variety. From my playthrough, only your partner Seraphin has another portrait which you get to see.
Lastly, I’m a little indifferent about the game’s Crew element. What they’ve done here is allow you to recruit and have people tag along on certain missions. When you go out on jobs, you can bring along up to two crew members. They have their perks that can assist you. Like yourself, they also can get stressed out. So, your failure to complete tasks will result in losing out on their perks. It’s another risk-vs-reward element that takes time to get used to.
This isn’t for everyone
After a few days of playing, I’ve gone through over 205 cycles. I don’t think I’m near any sort of conclusion to the story. I’ve hit a major turning point, which could mean that a conclusion is coming soon, but I can’t be certain. Yet, while I am enjoying Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, I can admit that it might not be for everyone. The randomization alone will frustrate impatient people. It’s caused me to swear aloud. But, once you get a hang of that chaos, the story does enough to push you forward.
