Dreamfall: April 17, 2006

[edmundito]

BUT REVIEWS MUST BE ONE EXTREME OR THE OTHER. ¬¬

[Igor]

Eric, if this wouldn't be sequel to TLJ i'd agree with you.
I'd say it's similar case as with Fahrenheit- it has fantastic story/characters (at least till the second half of the game, when the whole storyline went down the toilet  ) but awkward gameplay.
True, you are mostly listening/watching/reading, but it's still interactive enough, that it gives you a feeling of being in control of the game.

In case of TLJ, i must say too complex gameplay would only bother me.. as the reason why i thought the first game was so good were characters and story.. it was more of an interactive book than a game though.

[Helm]

I didn't finish TLJ but for the little I remember from the first two or three cds, the story wasn't anything too great (imo always)... I must be really out of touch with what constitutes good adventure game stories it seems. Everybody liked Cyberia too and I found it an awful mess.

Also, loudly seconding eric's 'this is a game, not a movie. Gameplay rules' here.

[Trumgottist]

Helm: Did everybody really like Cyberia? I haven't played it, but it doesn't seem very exciting to me.

(Yes, I should stop nitpicking on people's spelling, but this one bothers me.)

[MashPotato]

(Yes, I should stop nitpicking on people's spelling, but this one bothers me.)

I actually bought the wrong game because of that homonym!  I had (literally) heard that a game named Syberia was a good adventure game, so when I encountered a used copy of Cyberia (just in a jewel case, so I couldn't see the date or what the game was about) I bought it... it was only $5 Canadian though, so it wasn't a costly mistake ^_^

In any case, while Syberia had a nice atmosphere, I agree it wasn't a particularly good game.

[Helm]

oh man Xatrix entertainment is the best name for a company ever.

[MillsJROSS]

I never finished Syberia, more because of lack of interest. The graphics were nice, but they were merely eye candy and had no depth, and the character would usually only react with one object in a room.

I'd say this should be reviewed like a book or a movie. Both a book and a movie can have a wonderful story, but be just okay movies. No matter how good the story is, if an author's writing style doesn't make the book interesting, it should be reviewed as such, and is. Which is to say, that gameplay is important while reviewing a game. And while you may argue that it's a sequel, and most everyone who played and liked the first one, will play and like this one, you have to understand that there are people who never played the original, and don't know what to expect. Which means that the reviewer should talk about gameplay. I do care about gameplay. I wasn't that annoyed by TLJ puzzles, they were fairly straight forward in my mind.  But to simplify the element that almost makes the genre, seems strange to me.  To me this seems like a movie with a mouse...which is fine, I enjoyed TLJ's narrative and characterization.

I like the fact that they tried to add some action elements, simplified or not...I don't mind meshing genres. And I'll probably buy this game, because I did enjoy most of TLJ. But I'm almost positive that the review on IGN will be my thoughts exactly. I'll enjoy the game for it's story, and nothing more. 

-MillsJROSS

[edmundito]

When I meant that games should be reviewed like movies or books, I didn't really mean that it should be a focus on the story and characters, etc. I meant it as from the old saying "never judge a book by its cover" sort of deal. Reviews tend to focus on the quality of sound, graphics, features, resolutions, control schemes, etc a little too often, followed by giving points to these qualities as well. It should really focus on both the quality of the gameplay and the quality of the story, where applicable. Obviously you can't review the story for a game like Tetris, but you can't really review the graphics and such either because they will not that fancy and are irrelevant to the experience.

---

I played and finished Dreamfall, and I'm not writing spoilers and I wouldn't recommend anyone writing spoilers in this forum. If you want to discuss the game I'd recommend going over to Adventure Gamers (with other adventure fans) or the Dreamfall forums (if you like a forum without any moderation whatsoever.)

To answer some questions, and concerns, this is a game that is focused on story... an excellent story. The combination of science fiction and fantasy is just amazing. The game is not as much as introducing different types of places and the stories in those places as much as a central story where both worlds are connected. But the game feels a bit incomplete. There are some things resolved by the end of the game, but other things that should have been explained or resolved are left open, for better or for worse. I didn't really stop playing until it was over.

The gameplay is questionable, but this is not a game about the gameplay even if they tried some noble attempts at introducing new things into an adventure like some combat and some stealth. Most of the "puzzles" to solve are rather obvious, and when they're not a character gives the answer right away. It's a bit insulting, I think. In the other end of the spectrum, it can get frustating sometimes because the action-like stuff wasn't set up properly. Some of it is very sierra-based, trial and error and you could die if you get into a fight. There are some fights you can't even win just because of the strength of your opponents, which I thought it was a rather cheap suggestion to "try something else". On top of that, there isn't enough times you actually get play. A lot of it is dialog and cutscenes and running back in forth between locations. This is another reason why the game feels incomplete, because you just fly through the very engaging story, instead of taking your time exploring each bit through some rich and challenging gameplay.

All in all, it's a mixed bag, much like TLJ was, anyway. Personally, I loved the game because although there are several things that could have been better, there are just plenty of things that are just great. If you played TLJ, you must get this game. You'll celebrate every moment where you return to a familiar location of meet a familiar character from TLJ, as well as enjoy all the new places and things that are brand new. And I would recomend anyone to check it out if you don't mind spending some money, unless you hate cliffhanger endings and mysteries. But one wise man once said: "Mystery is important. To know everything, to know the whole truth is dull. There is no magic in that. Magic is not knowing. Magic is wondering about how and where..."

And there will be a TLJ 3. Not officially confirmed to be in production, but Ragnar Tornquist has said that indeed there will be one someday.

[ManicMatt]

I'll admit Syberia wasn't a great adventure game, but it had it's charm; and it was really nice to find on the PS2 when I had no PC and was starved for adventure games. The sequel I believe didn't come out on the PS2, but the XBox, in terms of consoles. (Good thing I got one of those too  )

[Helm]

starved for adventure game

this is probably the biggest thing that keeps these companies afloat. That gamers still can't get over their favourite LEC or Sierra game and will play any sort of mediocre game just to get a fix, and to support the 'scene' because "damn it! Adventure Games are not dead! UNNNGH"