Gareth Damian Martin
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Gareth Damian Martin | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1987 (age 38–39) |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Video game developer |
| Years active | 2020-present |
| Notable work | In Other Waters, Citizen Sleeper, Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector |
| Website | https://jumpovertheage.com/ |
Gareth Damian Martin[a] is a British indie video game developer, writer and artist known for their[2] games In Other Waters, Citizen Sleeper and Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, all released under the single-person studio Jump Over The Age.[2]
Early life and education
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According to their personal biography, Damian Martin is the holder of a PhD in experimental literature from Royal Holloway, University of London.[2]
Career
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Early career
[edit source]From 2016 to 2019, Damian Martin contributed features to Eurogamer[3], Rock Paper Shotgun[4] and Frieze Magazine.[5] They are the creator and editor of Heterotopias, an independent zine about architecture in video games published on itch.io.[6]
They worked at 59 Studio as an animator and visual designer[7] and taught at the Bartlett School of Architecture.[5]
Jump Over The Age
[edit source]In 2018, Damian Martin founded the independent game development studio Jump Over The Age. Their first game, In Other Waters, was released in 2020 and marked the debut of Damian's collaboration with composer and sound designer Amos Roddy. It was followed by Citizen Sleeper in 2022 and its sequel Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector in 2025. For Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, Martin expanded the original game's single-station setting into a wider region known as the Belt. The sequel introduced a recruitable crew, timed contracts and a stress system through which the player's dice could become damaged or permanently impaired. He retained the series' emphasis on narrative choices and the use of dice as representations of a character's available actions.[8]
Following the success of Citizen Sleeper, Damian Martin collaborated with TTRPG designer Alfred Valley to create Cycles of the Eye, a tabletop sequel to Citizen Sleeper.
In June 2026, Damian Martin announced Signet City, "a first person fungalpunk RPG"[2] in which the player is set to control a parasitic fungus and its hosts in a costal city at a juncture due to issues of leadership, technology and environmental collapse. It is a long-time project of Damian Martin whose concept predates In Other Waters,[7] and draws inspiration from Dishonored, post-punk, 1980s Britain and weird fiction.[9][7] The reveal trailer for Signet City features the song "Abandon" by Irish post-punk band SPRINTS.[10]
Reception
[edit source]David Wildgoose of GameSpot described Damian Martin's writing for In Other Waters as "excellent [and] concise".[11] Eurogamer ranked Citizen Sleeper 5th out of its 37 best games of 2022, describing Damian Martin as "one of the most exciting indie talents around".[12] Wesley LeBlanc of Game Informer praised their writing for Citizen Sleeper: Starward Vector as "incredible sci-fi writing".[13] The Magic Rain described Damian Martin's storytelling as "deeply human".[14]
Personal life
[edit source]Damian Martin is non-binary[15] and uses they/them pronouns.[2]
Notes
[edit source]References
[edit source]- ↑ "Post by @jumpovertheage.com". Bluesky. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Jump Over The Age". Jump Over The Age. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
- ↑ "Gareth Damian Martin". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 12 February 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- ↑ "Gareth Damian Martin". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on 5 August 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- 1 2 "Gareth Damian Martin". Frieze Magazine. Archived from the original on 7 December 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- ↑ "Heterotopias". itch.io. Archived from the original on 8 March 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- 1 2 3 Benson, Julian. "Signet City is an RPG where you play a brain fungus feeding off the emotions of your host, like a mushroom-themed Monsters, Inc". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on 24 June 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- ↑ Packwood, Lewis (2025-01-30). "Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector review – we're putting together a crew". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-07-30.
- ↑ LeBlanc, Wesley. "Signet City Is A New 'Fungalpunk' RPG From The Creator Of Citizen Sleeper Where You Play As A Parasite". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 8 June 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- ↑ "SIGNET CITY - Reveal Trailer". YouTube. Archived from the original on 16 June 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
- ↑ Wildgoose, David. "In Other Waters Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
- ↑ Eurogamer Staff. "The 37 best games of 2022". Eurogamer. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
- ↑ LeBlanc, Wesley (2025-01-31). "Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector Review - It's About The Journey". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 2025-04-03. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
- ↑ "'Citizen Sleeper' Creator Gareth Damian Martin Reveals Next Game, 'Signet City'". The Magic Rain. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
- ↑ "Citizen Sleeper Dev Wants To See Cyberpunk Genre Freed From Stagnation". Kotaku. 2022-05-20. Retrieved 2022-08-19.
External links
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