Dreamweb has a great story and amazing atmosphere that is dragged down by poor gameplay and puzzles.
By far the best part of this game is the dingy, depressing cyberpunk setting. It's always raining, you're poor as hell working as a bartender with people you hate. You get robbed of your shoes at one point in the game, so you go to the run-down apartment of your childhood friend to steal his shoes. Everywhere you go you find homeless people, prostitutes, and crime. Something is terribly wrongwith this world.
Dreamweb takes place in a city (probably London) that is overrun by consumerism and corruption. Turning on a TV shows you nothing but fast food commercials, and reading the news bulletin just tells you how the world is going to shit.
The setting is a perfect backdrop for the twisted story, which is unlike anything I've seen in a game. As Ryan, you literally play as a serial killerwho is convinced that the world is being poisoned by seven demons, masquerading as humans. Throughout the game and the manual, there is a lot of evidence which points to Ryan being crazy, but there is just as much evidence that the Dreamweb is real, and that Ryan really is cleansing the world of evil. The game doesn't confirm either possibility, and leaves it open for you to decide.
Music and dialogue match the atmosphere perfectly. The soundtrack is devoid of all hope, and goes well with the ever-present rain. The characters and writing are pretty solid. I would suggest talking to every NPC in the game.
The highlight of the game is definitely the first execution, the target being a famous actor. He's in a fancy hotel with guards at his door and a woman in his bedroom. It's amazing to see that Ryan and his friends live in such squalor while this actor, presumably a demon, can afford such luxury. Bursting into his room and shooting him in cold blood is brutal and awesome. Like something out of American Psycho or Terminator. I can only imagine what the reaction would have been playing this game in 1993.
So with all those points for style, I still have to give the game a 6. It's above average, and definitely rates well among other DOS point-and-click games that I've played, but the puzzles are annoying and the gameplay is stale. You can pickup any item you see, including duplicates, but only maybe 5% of items are necessary for progress. This wouldn't be so bad if you didn't have limited inventory.
Picking up every item and testing them systematically on every object in the world is no fun. After an hour or two, I looked up a walkthrough, and I didn't close it until I was done the game.
Furthermore, the game is very short. Given how roundabout the puzzles are, you might as well just watch a longplay of it on Youtube, which times in at just over 2 hours. The plot and atmosphere might be great, but I can't give a 10 to a game that short - call it personal preference.
All in all, great story, mediocre game. I liked it more than I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream, but less than Beneath a Steel Sky. Definitely worth a playthrough for its lasting effect, but I can't see myself playing it a second time.