News

Dream Machine the Game by GameDigits and Red Kite Games hits the Play Store

“Wait… it looks similar to Monument Valley.” Hopefully, if that is what you think when you first see the screenshots of this game, you can get past that. If you choose not to, for fear of it being another clone, you would be missing out on a really good game. Yes, it respectively nods in the direction of Monument Valley with its art direction, but that is not a bad thing.

There have been many debates about different games being a clone of Monument Valley, or other types of games being a clone of another. Everyone is entitled to their thoughts, so lets talk about this game for what it is. A good game that you should definitely try out. Dream Machine: The Game is a collaboration between GameDigits and Red Kite Games. Both companies are based in the UK. What is important to note, is that Red Kite Games has a few good games under their belt already including: God of War Remastered, Call of Duty Strike Team, NomNom Galaxy, Wipeout, Firefly Runner, Pitfall (The latest iteration of the game that is an endless runner.) and of course now, Dream Machine: The Game. Now that we know what they have produced, it makes sense to me that the gameplay of Dream Machine is highly-polished, cerebral, immersive and fun.

“Escape a cold, inhumane factory and free yourself into a mind-blowing fantasy world. Manipulate fantastical machinery and solve the many mysterious optical illusions that lie in wait. Use all your ability to survive the hazardous levels and fight epic boss battles. Guide your mechanical friend from an oppressive workplace and lead them to freedom.”GameDigits/Red Kite Games

Dream Machine stars a robot that wants to break free from the norm. Doing so sends him on an epic journey, where he will encounter unusual contraptions and even some bosses. The latter was definitely welcome in the game, and quite unexpected. In terms of presentation, each level could be a poster that you would want to frame and hang on your wall. The machines in the game are on display, and the gallery is full of quizzical images to ponder. You won’t have long to do that, as you listen to the mechanical footfalls of your robot, as he marches along the path of these unusual machines. You will have to manipulate them to get him to the exit. Slightly more nuanced but ever present, is a foreboding sense of doom, which is provided by contemplative, yet tension-filled music. Some of the puzzles are easier than others, but the presentation of each, via different chapters is marvelous.

Dream Machine: The Game Features:

  • Visually stunning and pleasant to play – Amazingly beautiful hand-crafted levels, containing 3D puzzles, impossible geometry and optical illusions. Dream Machine is easy to pick up and play but hard to put down.
  • Boss Battles – Fight against your oppressors in daring boss battles. Use all your skill and brainpower to defeat the monsters from this mechanical dream.
  • Replayability & Upgrades – Beat your best level completion times to earn Cogs. These allow you to upgrade your mechanical friend, achieve better times and climb Dream Machine’s competitive worldwide leaderboard.
  • Hazardous Levels – Exercise your intellect to solve illusion puzzles and use your expertise to stay alive.
  • 3D Touch Support – Enhanced with 3D Touch, Dream Machine allows you to control precisely the speed of your mechanical friend and gain an additional advantage.

The journey of your robot can be a perilous one. An example is in Chapter 2: The Blades of the Regime. It took me a moment to get past the simple blades that are under your control. Turning the crank rotated the blades. That in itself wasn’t too difficult, but making sure your robot stopped at just the right place, took me a bit longer than it probably should have. That was on me though, no the controls of the game, which are simple. Tap your robot to stop him and tap him again to get him going, or to change the direction he is moving in. Also, when you turn the crank that controls the different parts of the puzzle, he will stop as well.

You can replay the levels to earn more cogs, which can be used to upgrade your robot. I like the finer level of detail that has been put into this game. Even going back and forth between the pages (Levels) in the chapter, has you rotating a piece of mechanical equipment (wheel) to do so. Touches such as this, really make me appreciate the level of thought used in crafting this game. The themes are well-thought out, and translate in different ways through the game.

If you enjoy puzzle games, you should give Dream Machine a try. It will only cost you about a dollar. I am pretty sure that this is an introductory sale price, so you may want to grab it now and try it out. Where many will say that this a clone of Monument Valley, by definition they would be right. “Clone: A person or thing that duplicates, imitates, or closely resembles another in appearance, function, performance, or style.” – Dictionary.com. However, in mobile gaming, we should try to expand our definition of how we view games and what merit we base them upon. I think producing a game that is as enjoyable as Monument Valley isn’t a bad thing by my standards, but that is my opinion. Based on the definition of clone, I am sure there is probably someone walking around this planet that looks like me and is writing about games too. I would hope that wouldn’t devalue how people see him. Just a thought.

 

Share This

You Might Also Like