Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector review – a twisting road of stars and emotions

Citizen Sleeper’s sequel is a mix of tabletop and video game like the original, but the structure of each day is vastly different. This time, your Sleeper is in charge of a rig and free of the life-saving drug Stablizer. Instead of being stuck at the Eye, you can travel to different communities and cultures across the Starward Belt, taking part in contracted missions to help out different citizens. As you travel you’ll recruit crew members, opening up storylines and the rewards and trials that come with them. Not only are there more activities to take part in, but there are more ways to fail, which accounts for my increased stress.

It’s a mix of choices that matter for the narrative and resource management, where what you do with the hand you’re dealt leads to the next part of your story, whether you earn a positive or negative outcome. You learn to work with what you have, even if it’s a fist full of snake eyes. The new exploration mechanics further break up the daily structure, though your in-game and real stress will rise as you take on time-limited contracts and subside soon after.

In my last preview, I reached a low point. Everything felt so out of control that I was strongly considering resetting my first four hours. Citizen Sleeper creator Gareth Damian Martin told me to embrace failure, and so I stuck with my regretful decision-making as much as it pained me. After the credits rolled I did regret a few of those initial decisions, but just like with the original game, everything eventually worked out for better or worse. It left me curious as to what could have been, but that’s just a part of my story.

Starward Vector expands on the Citizen Sleeper formula not just with gameplay features, but how they connect to the narrative. You’ll experience higher highs and lower lows in ways that will surprise even aficionados of the original. When I finished Citizen Sleeper’s multiple endings, I felt a sense of ease, as if I’d seen all that the game had to offer. The opposite is true of Starward Vector. Your decisions, actions, successes and failures all feel as if they have stark outcomes on story beats going forward. If you want a great story, I urge you to play Starward Vector, even though your experience won’t be the same as mine.

Score: 8/10

Version tested: PC (Steam Deck)