Into A Dream
Over the last few years more and more games have been dealing with mental health as a primary focus. We had Rainswept, Life is Strange, Sea of Solitute and many others. There is even a mental resources pack for gamers called Checkpoint. The latest game to tackle mental health is Into a Dream, the first game from Filipe F. Thomaz, who quit his day job in order to concentrate fully on making this game. It was a brave choice so let’s see if it was worth it.
One of the strongest elements of this game is without question the story. This game takes an interesting approach where the lead character himself doesn’t have depression. Instead you play the game as Dr John Stevens. You make up in a strange place with no recollection of where you are or how you got there. Very quickly, however, you hear a recording from two other doctors who tell you that you agreed to go into the dreams of a patient named Luke Williams who is suffering from severe depression. Your objective is to find out the cause of this depression and find a way to help him before he “fades away”. It is to the developer’s enormous credit that this game never gets too bleak and remains accessible throughout the game. The subject matter is also handled extremely sensitively. None of the characters are ever judged and the depictions of what issues the characters face and how they face them are very realistic. The story itself is told as a mystery and remains engaging throughout the game. It’s obvious the developer has some writing experience as the dialogue flows naturally and the story keeps the players interest all the way through.
During the game you will get to know Luke and his family as well as other people close to him such as his business partner. When we first meet Luke things seem to be going very well for him. He is the founder of a successful company dealing with renewable energy and he has a loving wife and daughter. Therefore, you realise you will need to “trick” Luke to allow you to enter more dreams and memories to get closer to finding the truth. To do this, you will need to complete certain objectives such as finding their dog in the woods or turning on the lights in a lighthouse to provide inspiration for his wife. In another example, you need to use the environment around you to find a key which is out of reach and another time you need to get the heat of water just right. There was one moment where I got stuck due to some minor pixel hunting but overall players shouldn’t have too much trouble with them. While the puzzles were never too challenging they were also fun and never frustrating. They all fit the story very well and were never out of place or arbitrary obstacles.
The art style is also gorgeous to look at. The characters are shaped as shadows similar to the game Limbo. The use of colours is also used to serve the story. At the start the backgrounds are bright and colourful which emphasise that this is more of a positive dream. However the colours become darker the more the game goes on and the closer we get to finding the truth.
The game is a side scroller which I played using a gamepad. There are a few minor platforming elements but nothing too challenging for the dexterously challenged such as myself. Thankfully if you do miss a jump you are brought back to immediately before so it never becomes frustrating.
Finally the sound is also of an extremely high quality. Filipe himself composed the music and the main theme is on a par with To the Moon. The melody played by piano is beautiful to listen to and the rest of the soundtrack is just as beautiful. The changes in tone from peaceful to dramatic are also done extremely effectively with appropriately soothing or tense music and sound effects throughout.
The voice acting is also very professional, in particular the voices of the two main characters. These voice actors really pull off the emotional scenes and the game wouldn’t work half as well without them. The rest of the voice cast also do an excellent job portraying their characters.
The game took me about 4 hours to complete but the length for this game was just about perfect as it never felt too long or too short. The subject matter is important but it also works as a game. The story is one of the strongest I have come across in any adventure game I played this year with fascinating in depth characters who we are constantly rooting for, even when they make bad choices. The game also looks incredible and uses its art style and colours to help tell its story more effectively. To top it off the music is enchanting and beautiful with some high quality voice acting. All of this ensures that this is one of the best and most emotional games of the year and it’s a game that will stay in your memory long after playing it.
Pros
Well written story that is engaging and deals with its subject matter in a sensitive and realistic manner.
In depth characters who you root for
Well-Integrated puzzles that are varied and fit the story
High quality voice acting particularly for the two main characters
Beautiful soundtrack with enchanting main theme
Satisfying ending
Easy and intuitive controls
Game is perfect length as it doesn’t feel too long or too short
Cons
Some people might consider the puzzles to be too easy
Minor platforming elements which some people may briefly struggle with
Minor pixel hunting later in the game
Some people may prefer the game to be longer
Interview with developer Filipe. F. Thomaz here.