Dreamfall: The Longest Journey

• Platform: PC, Xbox
• Published by: Aspyr Media
• Developed by: Funcom
• Release Date: Q2 2006
• Genre: Adventure
• Multiplayer: No
• Online: No

Screenshot Gallery

Trailers and Footage

Dreamfall Feature Preview Continued..

Dreamfall controls in an intuitive manner with a third person perspective. When your character is going from location to location, for example through an alleyway or hallway, the game is likely to use a chase camera. In larger environments containing puzzles and NPCs, however, it uses a semi-fixed camera. Adventure games are, after all, largely about exploration and puzzle solving rather than running quickly from point A to point B, so the game attempts to create a cinematic atmosphere where possible. Towards that end, the game has a largely context-sensitive and transparent interface. While walking around the game world, there are no extraneous interface elements on the screen at all. To interact with items or NPCs in the world, the player brings up what's called the "focus field," a radial blue beam of light extending out from the character. This can be rotated around--with either the mouse or an analog stick--to point at the desired target, and the player can perform various actions depending on what is selected. If you've played Grim Fandango, you remember that Manny's head will turn to face interactive objects close to him, at which point the player can perform an interaction. This is similar, except the player is in direct control of where the focus field is pointing, and the visual clue is more obvious. When in a conversation with an NPC, dialogue choices are overlaid onto the screen in an actual tree, indicating the various routes you can attempt to steer the conversation. In addition to dialogue choices, there are also any various physical actions that may be performed; for example, in the receptionist scene noted above, one of Zoë's options in the dialogue tree was "Distract." I have only gotten my hands on the Xbox version of the game, but the PC version is promised to have a wide variety of control configurations. The game can be played with just the mouse, the keyboard and the mouse, or just the keyboard.

I feel the game's soundtrack, or what I've heard of it, deserves a mention. It is the product of a joint effort between composer Leon Willett and Funcom in-house music director Morten Sorlie, a collaboration that seems to be a good match. The score is frequently understated and restrained, but with the grand undertones and eventual crescendos befitting a Longest Journey game, with its themes of exploration and discovery. It's a style frequently utilized in "epic" games, but to me is realized here with more subtlety and development than one sees in most other comparable game soundtracks.

An Explanatory Note

I have deliberately attempted to steer clear of spoiling too much in the way of the game's storyline, so my apologies if this preview has left you with little information on what actually happens in Dreamfall. The game's prologue in particular should have particular resonance with players of the first game, and Tørnquist has expressed frustration on his personal blog that so many players will already know how the game begins after reading the various previews that have surfaced. As per his request, I haven't mentioned anything from that section of Dreamfall.

Xbox 360 Compatibility?

Unfortunately, Funcom does not know whether the game will have an Xbox 360 compatibility patch from Microsoft. As with all other Xbox titles, the decision to release such a patch is entirely at Microsoft's discretion. Ragnar's response: "We'd love to make it 360 compatible, but currently only Microsoft can decide whether or not that will happen. Fingers crossed."

Ragnar Tørnquist

Meeting him in person, one observes that Ragnar Tørnquist is nothing if not passionate about his work. He's one of those designers who truly invests himself in the series he created, to the point where it is fair to call Dreamfall "A Ragnar Tørnquist Game." With that in mind, I asked Tørnquist a few questions whose answers didn't necessarily fit into the fact delivery parts of a preview, but which may be of interest to some readers. And here you go:

As an adventure game designer, Tørnquist has to consider the storytelling and thematic aspects of his games on equal footing with the gameplay. When asked what he intends as the central theme of Dreamfall, he responded thusly: "With Dreamfall, the theme is faith: Having it, losing it, regaining it. Faith in yourself, your future, your religion or your personal philosopy, or in the people around you. Each of our three playable characters--Zoë, April, and Kian--is on a journey of faith, but each has a different relationship with faith. Zoë is losing faith in herself, April has completely lost faith in the world, while Kian follows his faith blindly." On the more general topic of storytelling in games, he believes there is plenty of room in the medium for games that have a strongly directed narrative, as well as games that let the player have more direct control over the experience. "Both can be equally effective; it depends on the game and on the story," he said. "I love playing open-ended games, and I love playing linear ones--and there's certainly room for both. Choice isn't necessarily the be-all or end-all of gaming, and as long as the player feels included, as long as the player is playing rather than just watching the screen, games with strong, linear narratives can work just as well as sandbox type games."

In recent years, Tørnquist has been enjoying various entries in the Grand Theft Auto series, as well as Keita Takahashi's Katamari Damacy (PS2) and its sequel. And in the future? "The thing I'm most looking forward to is the Nintendo Revolution (or whatever they end up calling it). I can't wait to make Mario jump by simply flicking my wrist. I'm all giddy with excitement."

Before that, however, Tørnquist has to ship his own game. At this point, Dreamfall is essentially done, and the team is adding the final touches and subjecting it to testing. "I think Dreamfall: The Longest Journey will surprise everyone," he said. "I can honestly say that I don't know of any game with so much variety in scenery, gameplay, or characters. There's literally something for everyone, and I don't think there's another game like it out there. Okay, so I am the director, and I am supposed to talk up my own games, but give it a try. I think you'll be hooked. I just can't wait to see it out there and to hear what people think. That's the best part of my job. The scariest, yes, but the best."

Dreamfall is currently expected to ship in April or May simultaneously for Xbox and PC.

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