Dreamfall Chapters: The Final Cut

Everything is in the title. A real shame.

I wasn't really sure what to make of this game when I got it; I had played the The Longest Journey years ago, but had never touched The Longest Journey: Dreamfall or Dreamfall Chapters. After playing all three back to back, I've found myself in love with this game. To be clear, I played this game after The Final Cut was released in the summer of 2017, which, as I understand it, added a significant level of polish to the game. The music, art style and graphics are beautiful. The plot isn't afraid to deal with heavy topics, and does so in a mature and nuanced way. Despite being wildly different types of games, I compare this game to Papers Please; it's not so much about the way the game looks or even plays but about how it makes you feel. It has a superb sense of atmosphere and really made me care and empathize with the characters. The gameplay is similar to the last game in the series but thankfully without a combat element. It's got the bones of a point-and-click adventure but where game mechanics had the potential to interfere with storytelling or pacing, the game consistently prioritizes the story. This means that the game is less interactive than the average video game, but moreso than a movie, giving it a unique niche. At first I wasn't sure how I would feel about this, but it's very aware of its strengths and limitations and plays to those beautifully. This game has unexpectedly become one of my favorites; just make sure you're not expecting a classic point-and-click or adventure game and I think you'll enjoy it. The story is laden with hidden meanings and is a fun world to think about and get lost in.

Just finished Book 5, and felt this sadness that this is it. The end of a story that for me started 17 years ago. No more Stark. No more Marcuria. No more April Ryan. I loved the original The Longest Journey. And I also loved its sequel, Dreamfall. I remember tearing up at the end of Dreamfall and felt the cliffhanger was unfair to my feels. :( But Dreamfall Chapters finally continues the storyline and there is a sense of closure at the end. This is a story that makes you think. Gameplay wise it's similar to Dreamfall, not the original The Longest Journey. Plus they completely got rid of the terrible action sequences found in the previous game. Puzzles are very simple, but there are times where you're just pixel hunting for the right hotspot. I did have to rely on a walkthough at one occasion just to figure out where the hotspot was. I also want to add that I used a gamepad (a Logitech Rumblepad 2 in X-Input mode). The pad was recognized and worked perfectly. I don't usually use gamepads for PC games, but being that this is practically an interactive movie (but an amazing one at that), I just had to sit back on a couch in the dark and immerse myself in the game world. Yes, there are some unanswered questions, but it is to be expected as the world the game is set on is very complex. But I won't spoil anything. But just want to put out there that personally I felt closure. Overall, the game is truly meant for mature audiences, there is lots swearing, violence, sex, and all that good stuff. I appreciate Red Thread Games not skimping on this, because they fit perfectly in the dark setting of the game events. Overall, I absolutely recommend this game if you've played the previous game in the series. And if you haven't that, I highly recommend that game as well (followed by this one of course).

Very beautiful, atmospheric, with really great VO and nice ambient music. The quests are interesting and sometimes funny, the setting - both settings, okay - are captivating, but the story in general lacks integrity, the ending is a series of "you move through the explanation flashback scenes" and therefore is rather unfulfilling. Sometimes it seems like there are too many characters and too little time for each of them. Some quest puzzles are outright annoying and/or silly, I had to check the walkthrough like a gazzilion of times and it didn't help to immerse in the narrative (though I'm not very familiar with the genre, maybe experienced gamers have less problems with this). The controls and navigation are not so good, an the clicks lagged sometimes. Still definitely worth playing, even if you haven't tried TLJ or Dreamfall (I haven't, but it didn't affect my playthrough too much I guess).

Dreamfall Chapters is a fitting end for the series, where many questions are answered. It is a well polished game with wonderful graphics (some optimalisation issues). Each decision has an effect trough the game till the end. The soundtrack is well made fitting for the scenes and the games mood. The main story is interesting and keeps you continuing till you finis it. The puzzles are not too hard but sometimes need to bee figured out what really need to be done (not straight forward). Aside from the wonderful story and visuals the strong plot drives this game to very linear path, even with its decision system witch is unique and made well. Hence the 3 stars.