Dreamfall
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Dreamfall | |
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| Developer(s) | Funcom |
| Publisher(s) | Aspyr Media Micro Application Empire Interactive |
| Designer(s) | Ragnar Tørnquist |
| Engine | Shark 3D |
| Release date(s) | PC Xbox |
| Genre(s) | Action / Adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Mature (17+) PEGI: 16+ |
| Platform(s) | Windows, Xbox |
| Media | CD (6), DVD (1) |
| Input | Keyboard, Gamepad |
Dreamfall is an action-adventure video game released for the Windows and Xbox platforms on April 17, 2006. It is the sequel to Funcom's The Longest Journey and takes place ten years after the events of the first game.
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[edit] Game synopsis
In The Longest Journey, players learned that the Earth exists as two halves... both never seeing one another but existing together as parallel worlds. The world of Stark is where science and technology are the primary driving forces behind it and those that live there. As a result, the people of Stark live upon a futuristic version of our Earth. The other world, Arcadia, is one where magic continues to hold sway over a land filled with the trappings of faerie-tale inspired fantasy. April Ryan, the unwilling protagonist of The Longest Journey, was an art student living in Stark before she was swept up in the events that would make her the reluctant savior of both.
To her friends in Stark, April's apparent disappearance at the time she had gone over to Arcadia has continued to be a mystery that has troubled them. At around the same time, the world has found itself the victim of a calamity called the Collapse, when technology suddenly failed and all contact with Earth's colonies were severed. In the ten years since then, humanity managed to pick itself up from these events but the world had significantly changed. A wireless network called the Wire was created, linking anything with an electric heartbeat into one, unified whole, communicating across the world. It is illegal to destroy Wire receivers and transmitters, but the Wire is not without its critics and a black market thrives in items that can 'break' the link that devices have with it.
Enforcing the protection of the Wire and of the laws that govern the world is an omniscient organization known only as the Syndicate, formed from the chaos of the Collapse. Through the EYE, its multinational enforcement arm, the Syndicate ensures that corporations continue to work within the law. More often than not, they are a police force that operates across all nations and ruthlessly enforces the law with little compassion, partly as an attempt to ensure the prevention of another Collapse.
It is now 2219. Living in this "new" world is Zoë Castillo, a student who has left college to try and find herself. However, it hasn't been easy for her as she finds that she is wasting a lot of time doing... absolutely nothing. Although the so called Static seems to be growing worse across the Wire, disrupting communications and causing the occasional blackout of information, there is little else in her life that has brought her out from her personal malaise. That is, until things start to happen around her that she cannot easily explain.
When a close friend disappears and when she begins the search for the answers that he held, she will become involved in more than a simple investigation. As Zoë encounters new friends and foes in her struggle to understand the worlds that she will journey to, the story will also be seen from their perspectives as they try to uncover the truth behind the dark force threatening to destroy all that they know.
[edit] Characters
- In brackets are the taglines found on promotional posters for each of the three main characters.
- Zoë Castillo (Seeker, Nomad, Dreamer) is one of the main characters in the game. She lives with her father in the city of Casablanca (her mother has supposedly died before the Collapse), and has recently dropped out of university. The beginning of the game finds her in a state of malaise, lacking motivation and questioning her purpose in life.
- April Ryan (Rebel, Emissary, Chosen) is a Shifter, originally from Stark, who was pivotal in restoring the Balance ten years ago. After that success, though, she was left without a purpose, and chose to join the effort to liberate the Northlands from the occupation of the Azadi. She has turned her back on her former world of Stark and considers herself a citizen of Arcadia now.
- Kian Alvane (Soldier, Apostle, Assassin) is an Azadi soldier and skilled swordsman who resides in the holy city of Sadir. He has pledged his life to the Six and the Goddess. He is an Apostle, a special agent of the Six, much to the scorn of others in the hierarchy who look down on his common ancestry.
Kian Alvane can be seen here, on his way to speak with his master. This is the main Azadi city, Sadir.
- Olivia DeMarco is Zoë's best friend. She owns a small electronics and repair shop in Casablanca, and is an expert on the technology of the time period.
- Reza Temiz is a journalist who goes under the alias "Jericho". He was once Zoë's boyfriend, but now the two are just good friends.
- Damien Cavanaugh works for WATIcorp, a Japanese corporation. When he first appears in the game, he is involved in the development of WATIcorp's top-secret "Project Alchera".
- Benrime Salmin is the owner and proprietor of "The Journeyman Inn", an inn located in the Arcadian city of Marcuria. She made her first appearance in The Longest Journey, where she became a friend and confidante to April Ryan. In Dreamfall, she is a rebel sympathiser and often aids April and the rest of resistance movement against the Azadi occupying force.
- Roper F. Klacks is a magic shop keeper. He first appeared in The Longest Journey as an evil alchemist who lived inside an enchanted flying tower. He reappears in Dreamfall claiming to have been reformed of his evil tendencies, and crediting this to the actions of April Ryan in the first game.
[edit] Media reception
Most critics have been positive about Dreamfall, agreeing about the quality of the storyline, the graphical presentation and the voice acting. Some critics lament the shortness of the gameplay, and criticize the game's new combat and stealth elements as simplistic and unsatisfying.
[edit] Awards
GameSpy named Dreamfall "Game of the Month" for April 2006. In the same month, GameSpy gave also the "Editor's Choice" award to the game. The orchestral soundtrack composed (mainly) by Leon Willett was nominated "Best Video Game Score" at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards.
[edit] Details
GameSpy rated it as "outstanding":
"That's merely the surface plotline, though. The game covers a lot of metaphorical, political, and religious ground. It's a multi-threaded, complex affair that poses profound and troubling questions about the uses and misuses of faith, the limits of corporate, governmental, and religious power, and the significant difference between belief and fanaticism and knowledge and wisdom. More than that, though, it's also a rip-roaring adventure story filled with wonderful dialogue brought to life by a stellar cast of voice actors, clearly defined and supremely likeable characters, and graphic splendor that manages to make both worlds of super-science and bizarre magic incredibly believable." GameSpy
"It's been a long-time since The Longest Journey was released, with fans of the game wondering whether a sequel could possibly match the original. They need wonder no longer. Dreamfall is an amazing journey that propels players into a world where science, magic, art, and music combine to make a whole much greater than the sum of its parts." GameSpy
GameSpot also ranked it as great, stating "Dreamfall does not disappoint, for the most part. It exhibits the unique attention to detail and terrific presentation that made The Longest Journey so remarkable for its time."
Adventure Classic Gaming said "It is contemporary interactive fiction at its best. Its unique blend of storytelling and gameplay should appeal to a broad range of gamers beyond those who are loyal to the adventure genre."
Other critics, while not disputing the quality of the story, were disappointed that the game is primarily story-driven, and would like to have seen more gameplay. For example, IGN said:
"While playing through, it's difficult to shake the impression that intelligent design was given a back seat to painfully simplistic fighting and sneaking sequences. The combat is, for all intents and purposes, a total joke. [...] While the gameplay has been drastically simplified, the story remains as engaging as ever. Characters engage in deep conversation, revealing all sorts of nuance and helping to strengthen this game's unique mood. Be warned, if you don't like watching lengthy conversations or if you generally disregard a game's plot, you'll be absolutely dissatisfied with Dreamfall. However, if you're in the mood for one of gaming's best and most recent narratives, by all means pick this one up. Just be aware that Dreamfall's appeal lies largely in its narrative and characters, and not in the gameplay." IGN
[edit] Questions raised by the story
All cliffhangers and apparent plot holes are said to be rightful parts of the story by Ragnar Tørnquist himself. [9] Moreover, it has been stated that the game is actually a part of a duology and that each question already has an answer, all of which will be revealed in the second part.
- Brian Westhouse appears in the beginning of the story, presumably before the Dreamfall storyline (as he is visibly younger in appearance), where he is teleported to the Storytime and is engulfed by the Undreaming. It is unknown what happens to him afterwards. This moment is addressed on many occasions in both games, such as when Westhouse tells how he came to Arcadia but is reluctant to go into detail about where he got "stuck" for almost three centuries. Moreover, if one watches the credits after completing the game, a short cutscene is shown in which Westhouse climbs up a mountain path and is assisted by Cortez (a.k.a. Manny Chavez), the Red of the Draic Kin, who tells him that he "has a purpose".
- At the beginning of the game, if Westhouse listens to the conversation that the monks are whispering it is revealed that they know of the presence of the Undreaming and that their purpose is to send Westhouse to the Storytime in order to awake him/it. Since Westhouse was aided by the Red of the Draic Kin to get to this temple, it is a possibility that it was the latter's intention all along to send him to awake the Undreaming.
- The purpose of the Azadi steam technology units is unclear. Although they are supposed to be simply for generating power for tools, they are ubiqutious and appear even in deserted areas of Marcuria. April Ryan questions's what they're for, but never makes any discoveries.
- While Na'ane says that she plans to go to the ancient ruins underneath Marcuria to investigate the song magic of the strange creatures that live there, no further information is provided about her voyage there, and the next time she appears is when she is interrogated by Kian and consequentially leads him to April's location.
- When April goes underground to follow the hooded Prophet of the Azadi, he seems to be able to command the creatures that live underneath Marcuria. However, April never finds out who he is because she goes to the DreamNet channel in Arcadia, located in the "Chamber of Dreams" directly beneath the Azadi Tower.
April Ryan bartering passage aboard a Dark People vessel. A Samare can be seen in the background.
- Right before April comes to the Dark People's Library, the Dark Person will not let her on the boat because he doesn't recognize that she is a Wave. It is explained that all Dark People share the same mind, so it is inconceivable that none of the Dark People suspected anything, seeing as they would have known if he had not recognized her. But one of the Shadowpeople did say he probably was blinded.
- Kian is arrested and sent away for trial shortly after April apparently dies. However, neither the trial nor its outcome are shown in the game.
- In the part where the White of the Draic Kin is at the Dark People's Library near the end of the game, something attacks her. The game never reveals what exactly did this. This may be connected to the Dark Man (who was not part of the Dark People's brain network) or maybe to Crow, because birds flapping can be heard in that scene. It has been also speculated that the attacker could be Brian Westhouse, for he has been "engulfed" by the (apparently) hostile Undreaming and later the White Kin remarks that she feels almost afraid of Westhouse even though she doesn't know why.
- After Zoe dies, she appears in the Storytime. Her sister Faith, the one who invaded the networks throughout the story, is not there when logically she should be, because it is mentioned that she also has Zoe's abilities related to dreaming.
- Just how physical in nature is Zoe's "dream presence" in Arcadia remains open: when she returns from Arcadia to Stark for the first time with Na'ane's assistance, her clothes stay material even though her body disappears without a trace. However, towards the end of the game, when she is sent back by Chawan, her clothes dematerialize together with her. Notably, she always arrives in the same set of clothing to Arcadia, no matter what happened to it during her last visit.
- At the end of the story, when Zoe's father is looking at the dying Zoe, Reza walks into the room. Zoe says that it is not actually Reza, though it is unclear as to who it actually is, or what he/she/it is doing there.
- When Damien drugs Zoe before she uses the dreamer in his apartment the last thing he says is "I'll be here when you get back" which Zoe recognizes as unusual (the phrase is a recurring theme between Zoe and Reza, perhaps implying some deeper connection between Reza and Damien than stated).
- The significance of the tower that the Azadi were building in Marcuria is never explained. However, in the very last shot of the game before the credits, we can see it being surrounded by something that looks reminiscent of a Chaos Storm, as seen in the first game.
- Eingana, the DreamCore is apparently destroyed by Zoe but the DreamNet is still launched 3 months later. It is unclear whether Eingana was reconstructed or was somehow saved from destruction.
- Although April is apparently killed in the final chapters of the game, Faith later tells Zoe that she did save April just as she was meant to, though Faith also says she was told this by the "White Lady". Who this "White Lady" is unclear but most likely refers to the white mother (white Dragon) from the first game, as is whether this exchange occurred before or after the suspected "attack" on the White of the Draic Kin in the Dark People's Library.
This is deep inside WATIcorp. The large entity shown is the DreamCore "Eingana".
- In the earliest concept art, April is shown wearing the Talisman of the Balance. However, it was later removed, and the Talisman doesn't appear in the game at all.
- Kian's last name is the same as that of Lady Alvane, the narrator in The Longest Journey who, as some fans speculate, may be April Ryan herself recalling her journey from some point in the future. Their familial ties, however, are not clear.
- When April visits the Guardian's Realm, she finds it changed drastically since her last visit. Except the lush vegetation around the Well of Making, a disturbing new detail is the absence of the Guardian's Tower, now lying shattered all over the landscape. Unlike his predecessor, Adrian, Gordon Halloway (the Thirteenth Guardian, whom April installed in the end of TLJ) performs his duties while floating just above the Well. Although the significance of the Tower itself is never quite explained, the disk on its top seemed crucial in the Changing of the Guard ritual. Thus, its absence may be a hint at the long-foreshadowed fact that Gordon is the last Guardian.
- The relation between Faith, Helena Chang, and Zoe Castillo is unclear. Helena Chang knew her father once (at the beginning of the game, she refers to him as "a Castillo", but near the end, she states that Zoe reminds her of him), and seems to have known Zoe for a long time, as well. Thus, fans commonly theorize that she's, in fact, her biological mother, and it is also speculated that Helena Chang might be the "white lady" that Faith refers to at the end of the game. Further, Faith believes that she is Zoe's sister and that might not be so far-fetched, seeing as the players do not know anything definite about Zoe's mother, who supposedly died before the Collapse.
[edit] Soundtrack
An original soundtrack album has been released in August 2006. It contains the orchestral music composed by Leon Willett for the game, as well as several tracks by other musicians, such as Slipperhero, Octavcat, and Ingvild Hasund. The game's lead sound designer Simon Poole and the audio director Morten Sørlie are also credited for creating three out of the album's 22 compositions. This soundtrack album was nominated "Best Video Game Score" at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards.
[edit] Trivia
- Intentional or otherwise, interestingly, the two closed taverns that Zoe can see when she is first in Marcuria are "The Cock and the Puss" and "The Salty Seaman", which have possible sexual overtones. A character in the previous game, The Longest Journey, makes reference to "pubs with oddly suggestive names, like 'The Lazy Cock.'"
- Curiously, four out of the seven *.CAB file archives located on the game CDs (2, 3, 4, and 5) are 666,000 Kb large, and the total size of all files on the first CD is also very close to that number.
A screenshot from the beginning of the game. Zoë's room can be seen here with a futuristic TV in the background and her Watilla. - The Watilla "Wonkers", a stuffed purple gorilla who acts as a personal assistant and playfellow to Zoë (and looks disturbingly like the notorious spyware Bonzi Buddy), is voiced by Jack Angel, who did the voice of another talking stuffed animal, Teddy, in the Steven Spielberg film A.I..
- There are several references to Funcom's Anarchy Online series in the game. A copy of the Anarchy Online novel is visible in Zoë's apartment, there is an engineer wardroid at the street dealer in Newport, and the music that plays on the first floor of Reza's apartment is also a track from the MMORPG.
- There are various Dreamfall and The Longest Journey boxes throughout the game, such as on Reza's bathroom shelf, on Zoe's floor near the TV, behind the merchant at the crossroads, as well as many other places.
- A Limited Edition of Dreamfall is available, containing the DVD version of the game, a soundtrack EP with four songs by Magnet, and a 92 page hardcover booklet, "The Art of Dreamfall", with concept art from the game. According to an entry in Ragnar Tørnquist's blog [10], this edition is "an actual limited Limited Edition", meaning it has only been produced in small numbers.
- When Crow is telling Zoe about being a sidekick, he makes a reference to The Lord of the Rings films directed by Peter Jackson. He implies that right after he was elected the Sidekick of the Month by the League of Sidekicks, Samwise Gamgee (portrayed by Sean Astin) got the title.
- "Azadi", the name given to the occupiers of Marcuria, means "freedom" in Persian.
- Dreamfall Online: an online demo version of Dreamfall is being developed. Future online extensions to the Dreamfall universe are also planned.[11] [12]
[edit] System requirements
Minimum system requirements:
- OS: Windows XP (with Service Pack 2)
- CPU: Intel Pentium 4 1.6 GHz or AMD Sempron 2800+ or higher
- Memory: 512 MB RAM
- Hard Drive: 7 GB free disk space
- Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible
- Video Card*: 3D Hardware Accelerator Card Required 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible 128 MB with latest drivers
- Disc Drive: 8x speed CD-ROM drive or 2X DVD-ROM drive
Recommended system requirements:
- CPU: Intel Pentium 4 2.5 GHz or AMD Athlon XP 3500+
- Memory: 1 GB
- Video Card*: 256 MB 3D Hardware Accelerator Card
- Sound Card: Creative Audigy Series Sound Card
Supported video cards*:
- ATI Radeon: 9550, 9600, 9700, X300, X500, X600, X700, X800, X1300, X1600, X1800
- Nvidia Geforce: FX 5700, FX 5900, FX 5950, 6200, 6600, 6800, 7800
Note: *Intel Extreme Graphics and SIS chipsets not supported
The European and Australian PC DVD release of Dreamfall is Starforce copy-protected, requiring the installation of Starforce before allowing use of the game.
Also available for Microsoft Xbox. The Xbox 360 has backwards compatibility with Dreamfall, allowing for it to be completely playable on said system with the June 2006 update.
[edit] References
- ↑ MetaCritics (2006). Dreamfall Overview over PC Reviews.
- ↑ GameSpy (2006). Dreamfall is game of the month at GameSpy.
- ↑ GameSpy (2006). Dreamfall PC/XBOX Review.
- ↑ Adventure Classic Gaming (2006). Dreamfall PC Review.
- ↑ GameSpot (2006). Dreamfall PC/XBOX Review.
- ↑ IGN (2006). Dreamfall PC/XBOX Review.
