Heads up Dreamfall:The Longest Journey hits in week!
04-11-06, 12:06 PM
#1
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Heads up Dreamfall:The Longest Journey hits in week!
This one even I barely noticed in time. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey went gold awhile back and is apparently shipping next monday! It seems to be 39.99 online, I dont see any free shipping deals to tie into that, sorry. Thought I'd pass this along as I remember quite a few adventure fans reside here.
Last edited by madara; 04-11-06 at 02:59 PM.
04-11-06, 03:35 PM
#3
The first one is one of my favorite games. Hopefully they don't go too "action" in this. There are just so many action games made these days ... and so few quality adventure games. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
04-20-06, 05:33 PM
#7
DVD Talk Legend
...and a 8.1 from gamespot
04-21-06, 06:37 AM
#10
DVD Talk Legend
I hope this gets added to the 360 BC list. I really want to play it eventually and I'm sure my laptop couldn't handle it.
04-26-06, 08:32 PM
#11
So, anyone here get this yet? The reviews at Amazon have me a bit worried. Especially for the PC version (which is the only one I'm interested in, as I don't own a console system). People are saying the game reeks of a cheap and sloppy port whose functionality for playing on the PC is compromised. Though the reviews there seem pretty split between 1/5 and 5/5 (absolutely loving it).
06-27-06, 12:41 AM
#12
DVD Talk Limited Edition
I freakin' love this game. It's a lot of fun. It reminds me of when I was younger and I got so wrapped up in King's Quest 6. Dreamfall is like watching a movie, but you feel like you're in the middle of it all.
It is Xbox 360 compatible as well.
It is Xbox 360 compatible as well.
06-27-06, 11:45 AM
#13
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I'm a longtime adventure game fan, but I hated Syberia. Mind-numbingly boring story, characters I didn't care about, and the Xbox version was so buggy that I (literally) couldn't finish the game.
How would I like The Longest Journey (the original game)? Dreamfall looks interesting to me, but I'd want to play TLJ first.
How would I like The Longest Journey (the original game)? Dreamfall looks interesting to me, but I'd want to play TLJ first.
06-27-06, 12:51 PM
#14
DVD Talk Hero
How would I like The Longest Journey (the original game)? Dreamfall looks interesting to me, but I'd want to play TLJ first.
07-26-06, 10:33 PM
#16
I just finished Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (the PC version). I played TLJ back when it came out and loved it. Granted it's not everyone's cup of tea. Hardcore adventure gamers wouldn't like it because the puzzles were relatively easy. Others who bought it just based on the reviews, not being a fan of the adventure genre to start with, might've found it too slow and talky. TLJ is all about the story and characters. There was gameplay, but it was not emphasized. Think of it like an interactive epic fantasy/sci-fi novel/mini-series. I got swept up in it (and moved by it), and thought it ended perfectly. The player really has to willing to listen to all the dialogs and storylines. If you play games "to win" and have your gaming skills challenged (and would just as soon skip past story bits) this is not the game for you. I'd never really played a game quite like before -- the closest experience I'd had of a games story and characters really sucking me in like that was Planescape:Torment.
First, I'd recommend anyone thinking of getting this who hasn't played TLJ to play the original first. It's easy to find, is cheap, and if you don't like it I think you can safely give a pass to DF. And there are parts of DF that will be more enjoyable knowing the backstory.
So, TLJ was much beloved and there was great excitement when a follow-up was announced (even though it ended things quite perfectly). But there was worry when the designers talked about putting in "action" elements and combat. I mean, there are so many action games on the market, but so few quality adventure games. Another troubling sign was that it would be designed for the XBox, with a PC version ported over.
Well, I got DF and finally got the chance to play it. A few comments:
-This is very much in the same style as TLJ, with storytelling emphasized over gameplay (to a huge extent). And the story's a great one, something that I'd expect in a top-notch novel or an acclaimed anime series. Like TLJ, voice-acting is top-notch. Even more than TLJ, this is a different kind of game. Almost not a real game, not quite an animated series -- but somewhere in between. Music, camera-movements, direction, acting, characterization -- you almost have to review this like a movie or mini-series rather than a game.
-The "action" bits: not a factor at all. There's no Tomb Raider style jumping about or anything. There's not much combat, and what there is is very easy (with some fights having a puzzle-solving alternative to get around that bit).
-Controls: I needed to do some fiddling with the defaults, but hit upon settings that worked for me. Not really an issue.
-Technical issues: No crashes or bugs. The game looked and sounded nice (just some minor clipping here and there). It ran smooth for me.
-Gameplay: Extremely easy. If your any kind of puzzle solver, there's hardly anything here to challenge you at all. Most of the game is just moving around, talking to right people or going to the right place, and triggering cut-scenes. It's much easier than TLJ, which was pretty easy itself.
My response? Well, for the most part I was sucked into the storyline and characters. I would've liked the gameplay to be at least on the level of TLJ. It's almost like the gameplay is the difficulty level of a pre-school game, with an adult story. Since gameplay is almost non-existent, I can't say much more about it. On to the story and characters -- you almost have to review this like a movie or novel. The plot is top-notch -- a mix of industrial thriller, espionage, cyberpunk, high fantasy, teen drama, ghost girl horror. It draws from a lot of things certainly, but has enough of an original world to make it its own. As you'll read in the manual and cover, you play 3 character: Zoe, April (the heroine from TLJ), and Kian. Here things break down a little. Zoe's story is the central one, and works quite well. But enjoying April's story is heavily dependent on being very familiar with the first game. As a stand-alone, it doesn't give enough depth to her character. And Kian's story is extremely minor, and there's scarcely enough time given to him and his character for you to buy the dramatic shifts in his philosophy and actions. It's certainly ambitious how the 3 storylines are threaded together, with the scene where they all "meet" being one of the games best. Like TLJ, DF would be a great game for someone that ordinarily doesn't play games. And I have a minor quibble that I share with TLJ: the "M" rating. In both games, it's for the same reason -- a minor character drops some unneccessary f-bombs. Without those, these games are easy "T"s. And I don't get why the developers wouldn't want that rating? Given their ease, I think these games would be great for early teens -- especially the largely untapped female market. But the "M" rating makes it harder for them to access it. It wouldn't be a big deal if there was consistent content worthy of an "M" rating, like extreme violence, sex, drugs. But it really just a few f-bombs from 1 character that are the whole rating difference.
So, pretty much right up to the end I would've been in line to give this a rave (despite the flaws). Then came the ending. I can't say too much staying spoiler-free: but I can't imagine anyone being happy with how this ended. And since the story is key for this game, it's like a great movie that ends badly. And even though the ending is only a small bit of the running time, it casts a pall over your enjoyment of the whole thing. Is there a sequel in the works already, that anyone knows of? And would it come faster than the wait between TLJ and DF? While one story thread is wrapped up, most is left hanging. The only comparably bad gaming ending that I can remember is for a RPG called "Anachronox". The developers had the rug pulled out from them, and the game was released with it ending right before the main character was about to go battle the "big bad". And this is a much worse ending. I can see how a sequel can directly follow-up and make for one gigantic epic story. But as it is, DF ends extremely unsatisfyingly.
First, I'd recommend anyone thinking of getting this who hasn't played TLJ to play the original first. It's easy to find, is cheap, and if you don't like it I think you can safely give a pass to DF. And there are parts of DF that will be more enjoyable knowing the backstory.
So, TLJ was much beloved and there was great excitement when a follow-up was announced (even though it ended things quite perfectly). But there was worry when the designers talked about putting in "action" elements and combat. I mean, there are so many action games on the market, but so few quality adventure games. Another troubling sign was that it would be designed for the XBox, with a PC version ported over.
Well, I got DF and finally got the chance to play it. A few comments:
-This is very much in the same style as TLJ, with storytelling emphasized over gameplay (to a huge extent). And the story's a great one, something that I'd expect in a top-notch novel or an acclaimed anime series. Like TLJ, voice-acting is top-notch. Even more than TLJ, this is a different kind of game. Almost not a real game, not quite an animated series -- but somewhere in between. Music, camera-movements, direction, acting, characterization -- you almost have to review this like a movie or mini-series rather than a game.
-The "action" bits: not a factor at all. There's no Tomb Raider style jumping about or anything. There's not much combat, and what there is is very easy (with some fights having a puzzle-solving alternative to get around that bit).
-Controls: I needed to do some fiddling with the defaults, but hit upon settings that worked for me. Not really an issue.
-Technical issues: No crashes or bugs. The game looked and sounded nice (just some minor clipping here and there). It ran smooth for me.
-Gameplay: Extremely easy. If your any kind of puzzle solver, there's hardly anything here to challenge you at all. Most of the game is just moving around, talking to right people or going to the right place, and triggering cut-scenes. It's much easier than TLJ, which was pretty easy itself.
My response? Well, for the most part I was sucked into the storyline and characters. I would've liked the gameplay to be at least on the level of TLJ. It's almost like the gameplay is the difficulty level of a pre-school game, with an adult story. Since gameplay is almost non-existent, I can't say much more about it. On to the story and characters -- you almost have to review this like a movie or novel. The plot is top-notch -- a mix of industrial thriller, espionage, cyberpunk, high fantasy, teen drama, ghost girl horror. It draws from a lot of things certainly, but has enough of an original world to make it its own. As you'll read in the manual and cover, you play 3 character: Zoe, April (the heroine from TLJ), and Kian. Here things break down a little. Zoe's story is the central one, and works quite well. But enjoying April's story is heavily dependent on being very familiar with the first game. As a stand-alone, it doesn't give enough depth to her character. And Kian's story is extremely minor, and there's scarcely enough time given to him and his character for you to buy the dramatic shifts in his philosophy and actions. It's certainly ambitious how the 3 storylines are threaded together, with the scene where they all "meet" being one of the games best. Like TLJ, DF would be a great game for someone that ordinarily doesn't play games. And I have a minor quibble that I share with TLJ: the "M" rating. In both games, it's for the same reason -- a minor character drops some unneccessary f-bombs. Without those, these games are easy "T"s. And I don't get why the developers wouldn't want that rating? Given their ease, I think these games would be great for early teens -- especially the largely untapped female market. But the "M" rating makes it harder for them to access it. It wouldn't be a big deal if there was consistent content worthy of an "M" rating, like extreme violence, sex, drugs. But it really just a few f-bombs from 1 character that are the whole rating difference.
So, pretty much right up to the end I would've been in line to give this a rave (despite the flaws). Then came the ending. I can't say too much staying spoiler-free: but I can't imagine anyone being happy with how this ended. And since the story is key for this game, it's like a great movie that ends badly. And even though the ending is only a small bit of the running time, it casts a pall over your enjoyment of the whole thing. Is there a sequel in the works already, that anyone knows of? And would it come faster than the wait between TLJ and DF? While one story thread is wrapped up, most is left hanging. The only comparably bad gaming ending that I can remember is for a RPG called "Anachronox". The developers had the rug pulled out from them, and the game was released with it ending right before the main character was about to go battle the "big bad". And this is a much worse ending. I can see how a sequel can directly follow-up and make for one gigantic epic story. But as it is, DF ends extremely unsatisfyingly.
07-27-06, 01:20 AM
#17
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Originally Posted by brainee
So, pretty much right up to the end I would've been in line to give this a rave (despite the flaws). Then came the ending. I can't say too much staying spoiler-free: but I can't imagine anyone being happy with how this ended.
But if I do have to wait that long, they better spend some of that time scrapping those lousy fight/stealth segments and creating some better puzzles.
08-20-06, 12:26 PM
#19
DVD Talk Ruler
I finished this game last night (err.. well.. perhaps it was this morning). I've never played the first dreamfall but I don't see how it really matters. There's some characters who show up that appear to know the main character but you'r e not sure what the history is but the game sort of catches you up on it all as it goes.
Let me say this. I've been playing various computer adventure/rpg games since the Commodore Pet. I've seen them all, played them all, and I must say Dreamfall: Longest Journey is probably one of the best i've ever played. Don't expect to get frustrated with complicated puzzles or do a lot of arcade-like combat (even though the game has both of these) .. but instead let yourself get lost in the story. Take the time and hear what the characters have to say and keep up on what's going on.
You won't regret this purchase, except of course that the "longest journey" doesn't seem long enough when it's over.
Let me say this. I've been playing various computer adventure/rpg games since the Commodore Pet. I've seen them all, played them all, and I must say Dreamfall: Longest Journey is probably one of the best i've ever played. Don't expect to get frustrated with complicated puzzles or do a lot of arcade-like combat (even though the game has both of these) .. but instead let yourself get lost in the story. Take the time and hear what the characters have to say and keep up on what's going on.
You won't regret this purchase, except of course that the "longest journey" doesn't seem long enough when it's over.
07-07-10, 01:42 AM
#20
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Heads up Dreamfall:The Longest Journey hits in week!
Whatever became of Dreamfall Chapters and The Longest Journey 2 (apparently Dreamfall doesn't count as TLJ2) that were both promised. Did both projects gets scrapped or is there still hope?
The Last bit of news I found was from Feb. 2009 and the game creator was insisting that both games were still coming.
The Last bit of news I found was from Feb. 2009 and the game creator was insisting that both games were still coming.
Last edited by RocShemp; 07-07-10 at 01:46 AM.
07-07-10, 10:15 AM
#23
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Heads up Dreamfall:The Longest Journey hits in week!
I don't think it's dead, I think they are waiting until The Secret World is done to start working on it.
