Dreamfall Chapters Book One: Reborn (PC) Review

To start with, there is no sign of April Ryan, so The Longest Journey followers may be disappointed from the off, but there is promise of the former protagonist appearing in later sections of the five-part Dreamfall Chapters episodic adventure series, so do not fear. Instead, the focus here is on Zoë Castillo and the Azadi assassin, Kian Alvane, both from the off-shoot successor to the first outing. Series faithfuls will be aware of who these are, whilst those without the foggiest will quickly become accustomed to not being given much in the way of introduction to either for now…but it is all perfectly fine, because the air of mystery and the actual strong gameplay alleviate this to a degree, making for an enticing adventure with fascinating new characters that will undoubtedly receive more in the way of story as the series progresses.

It all starts off in a strange realm called Storytime. Zoë was left in a coma state after the events of the previous journey, and now her spirit is lodged in a sort of limbo ("where all stories begin and end"). This land is fast becoming over-populated by souls drawn in by a real world device called the Dream Machine that allows people to go into a deep sleep and share dreams with one another, with the technology reaching the point where movie-like dreams are being created by corporations to lure the public in. Zoë has spent her comatose time / spiritual entrapment helping people snap out of the trance-like state and re-enter their lives and forget the crazy machine, but only so much can be done in her near-enough ethereal state, especially with a larger, more ominous threat pending. Therefore, she ends up being jolted out of her coma (after a few puzzles) and commences her reintegration into the world, living in a modified Europe ('Europolis'), trying to get a normal job and stabilise her relationship with on-off boyfriend, Reza…oh, and hopefully recall what the mission given to her in Storytime was, or even what Storytime in fact is.

When transferring to her real life again, the gameplay takes a turn. In Storytime, Zoë is able to use other-worldly abilities, like shining a light on objects, using deep thought penetration to work through issues at hand, or even slow time. These all disappear when escaping that space, with a more traditional point-and-click approach being implemented from then onwards (actual walking is done via a controller or keyboard commands, but objects are still interacted with using the age-old, tried-and-tested mechanic). In-between Zoë's parts, there is a break where Kian is brought into the mix, in the totally different setting of Arcadia (the land from Dreamfall: The Longest Journey), with players tasked with breaking him out of captivity by finding items that can be either used directly to unlock gates to his final destination of the roof, or combining numerous objects to craft something that is eventually of use. Through this section, key decisions need to be made that adjust the story further on - put someone out of his misery quickly or not, exact revenge on a person that previously caused ill fortune to befall Kian or show mercy, and so on. This is one of the most intriguing parts of Dreamfall Chapters and will play a significant role in how events transpire further on in the series.

After the brief interlude to aid with Kian's 'liberation,' it is back to Ms. Castillo and her missions around the more futuristic surroundings of Europolis, with her clearly not remembering events that occurred in Storytime, yet getting wrapped up in unusual goings-on that others seemingly play no part in, which scratch away at the back of her mind, making her confused and wondering what is going on. Even therapy is not helping shed light on that nagging feeling. Again, as with Kian's section, there are several moments where decisions made will be remembered by specific characters (flirting with the therapist, perhaps, and then buying food for Reza that he specifically said he did not want…), and key interactions can have drastic consequences later on, with all choices saved for the next release, Book Two: Rebels.

It all makes for a gripping adventure, with thoughts wandering to how events will play out after the choices have been made. Along the way, some may find Dreamfall Chapters Book One: Reborn to be too wordy, but the depth of content for those wanting to hear all conversation avenues is pleasingly vast, with options to avoid a lot of the bumf if so desired. This is not quite the perfection some may have hoped, though, as some of Zoë's final objectives involve a little too much trekking back and forth around Europolis, with one particular task springing to mind as being a tad grating as no directions were given… The humour levels, intensely alluring storyline, and breathtaking presentation values, thankfully all help to brush any minor flaws well and truly under the carpet. This is just the beginning. Dreamfall Chapters is looking like being a dream come true.