More than your average Adventure game! Dreamfall surpasses all expectations!
In the game you begin as Zoë Castillo, a young girl recently out of school, broken up with her long time boyfriend and best friend, and fallen into a slump; lacking motivation and wondering what her purpose in life is supposed to be. Her life’s ambition is null until she gets a call from her ex-boyfriend and he asks a simple favor of her. Before she knows it, Zoë’s wrapped up in a mystery involving her ex, a large corporation and the local police. She attempts to find out what’s happened to her now missing ex and travels the globe to uncover the truth; all the while falling into a dream-like state of which she is confused and foggy.
DreamFall is set in three realms, or worlds, that Zoë travels to unwittingly at first. She doesn't know whether or not these realms are dreams or real, and neither does the player. There are two other main characters that play crucial roles in the game, but aren’t as prominent and their stories fall short of Zoë’s but are also an integral part of her journey. Their stories and worlds are intertwined; one chapter in the game even being called "Convergence" when the three characters meet. The other two characters are April Ryan, the protagonist from the first Longest Journey and Kian, a religious man devoted to his beliefs, both stubborn and warm hearted.
The story is so well-written and the chapters divided up so perfectly you can’t help but be completed drawn in by it, waiting in anticipation to see what is going to happen next. I found Zoë and Kian’s stories to be immersive, Kian’s was too short for my liking as he seemed like a great character that could have done so much more and April’s was a little too predictable for my tastes.
Unlike most adventure games, in DreamFall you play in third person view and interact more realistically with the environment; no pointing and clicking but actually physically turning a wheel or picking up an item. Interestingly enough, there is a small amount of combat, in most instances you can avoid it completely, that is very easy to do. Zoë fights with Karate; April and Kian fight with swords. Kian’s story involves a great deal more combat then the others; Zoë can avoid almost every single fight by sneaking, quickly getting past an enemy or averting their attention.
Graphically, DreamFall is breathtaking. The three different realms are painstakingly detailed; even one realm that consists of almost all black, white and grey is so defined you feel like you’re there in person. The characters, while sometimes stiff in facial movements, have a unique eye-movement that brings more dimension to their characters than any game I’ve seen before.
For an 18-hour game, the only downside I found with DreamFall is the endings and length. The only ending I felt was close to complete was Zoë’s ending whereas April and Kian’s were very short and left you wanting more and wondering what happened after the last screen you see of them. Overall the game could have been a few more hours long; that’s how enthralled you are with the story and characters; you just want more. There were a lot of open endings and questions that make me think the developers are planning a third game and left the player hanging for a reason.
DreamFall is an incredibly amazing game that surpasses what I believe a game categorized as Adventure should be. I would recommend this for anyone, young or old, given the only stipulation is that there is a lot of dialogue and not a lot of combat. Some have referred to DreamFall as an animated movie or an animated novel, and I can see why it would be referred to as such… either way it’s an outstanding game.