Citizen Sleeper is getting turned into a tabletop RPG
Alongside a design-focused art book from Lost In Cult
One of 2022’s bestest games, tabletop-ish RPG Citizen Sleeper is now being turned into an actual tabletop game called Cycles Of The Eye, designed by series’ creator Gareth Damian Martin and long-time TTRPG smith Alfred Valley. Indie book publisher Lost In Cult have launched their latest campaign to crowdfund Cycles Of The Eye, as well as their next art book focused on the game's dystopian cyberpunk world.
Much like the original game, Cycles Of The Eye puts you in the shoes of a Sleeper, the artificial bodies that have digitised human brains. In those pained shoes, you wake up on the titular space station and need to escape from a life of never-ending labour from the evil corporation who created you.
Since Citizen Sleeper was inspired by tabletop games, it should translate well to the medium, as its cycles and dice-rolling both make the transition. Every cycle (or turn) you’ll roll some die, which you’ll then assign to different actions on the station. The beautifully detailed characters make the jump too. Meanwhile, the big difference here is the 78-card tarot deck which represents the resources, characters, and challenges throughout the adventure.
These tarot cards also serve a kind of prophetic purpose. Each card is “detailed with prompts based on the card’s tarot meaning,” and any used cards will go directly into a discard pile. At the end of the game, players are encouraged to peruse the discard pile and reflect on the Sleeper’s story. The press release states that Cycles Of The Eye is also “playable as a journaling game, or simply as a reflective self-led experience.” Sounds like a calm meditative night or a horrifying existential one, depending on your mood.
You can back Lost In Cult’s crowdfunding campaign on their website to support the TTRPG and the art book. Cycles Of The Eye will cost £30 and the campaign will last until July 2nd. The team have previously released one other art book in their Design Works series, focused on the gorgeous dunes of Sable, which included deep dives into the game itself along with interviews with the devs. Here's hoping we get the same insightful discussions and jaw-dropping art spreads with the Citizen Sleeper book.