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| This is as upbeat and un-creepy as it gets. Just FYI. |
This is another one of those games I knew by reputation before I ever played it. The product of twisting a RPG maker system until it screams, this game plays like the sick, bastard offspring of Earthbound and the more screwed up parts of the Silent Hill series. It takes place in the dreams of a young, isolated girl. She will not leave her apartment, instead drifting in to dreams, and from there through a series of doors in to...well...it goes downhill fast.
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| Did I not just say things go downhill? |
First, you should know that, beside the odd visual style, this game is VERY different. There's no directly stated goal, no real "bad guys", none of a lot of things that make up modern games. This all seems to help give you a oddly dislocated feeling. It always feels like you're just one degree off from true, which leaves you always wondering when things are going to kind of snap back to normal. Hint: not happening.
The dreamlands are amazing. Running from the hard-core creepy to the mearly odd, they all carry that odd dream-logic with them, where things that normally would set of alarm bells or be impossible are just accepted. What makes this even more amazing is remembering that this is being done with SNES-era graphics.
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| Silent Hill? Got your polygons right here, sucker. |
What is also amazing is there always seems to be more. No matter how much you look, there's always some little thing you missed. What's more, over time the girl can collect talents and such that allow her to access new areas or even interact with some of the inhabitants. (Note: do NOT google "yume nikki", "fan art" and "knife" at the same time.)
You can leave the dreamland any time, with a simple pinch on the cheek, but just like real nightmares, this really isn't overly comforting. You still feel compelled to keep going, to wander down that bloody road, to follow that sewer pipe, to explore that shattered slum. You're dragged along the dream-road, trying to always latch on to some small scrap of something sane, and always missing it.
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| What is...what...I...what? |
Yume Nikki is a WEIRD game, and really isn't for everyone. However, if you like creepy/odd games at all, you'll love this. If you happen to be a old-school game nut as well, then bonus points. Hop over
here to grab a copy of it and get some much-needed hints. Play in the dark for maximum effect.
Sweet dreams.
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| Oh, yeah, this shit won't haunt me at all. |
Just letting you know, yume nikki does make sense but on a subconscious level. For me the whole concept was that somehow I felt that there was logical sense in there, somehow, but I was soehow missing something in my percption.
ReplyDeleteIf you liked yume nikki I'd suggest .flow, a yume nikki fangame that can actually rival the original in its atmosphere. It takes a largely darker twist and is still being made but it's already got multiple endings and a mind-screw like no other. I think you'd like it, you can always check uboachan for the download links or contact me on SCP-Foundation as Soulless. Enjoy!
P.S. Didja get uboaaaaaaあああああああ-