The Dream Machine: The Story So Far, Chapters 1-3. [SPOILERS]
By d0rks 1 Comments
A game by two Swedish guys made with cardboard, clay and other stuff, released in 2010 and this/last week suddenly on Steam.
I don't expect this game or this blog to gather much attention, but just in case you are actually reading this, be warned of: SPOILERS.
The Spoilers will be in the Pictures, but also in the Words. So don't look at the Pictures and don't read the Words if you don't want the Spoilers. Also, Lots of Pictures.
The Dream Machine is an episodic point and click adventure game with a handcrafted look and 'feel'. That's because it is mostly handcrafted. Read more about who made it and how here. Btw, the first chapter is playable for free. Alternatively there is a demo on Steam.
So far 3 of 5 chapters have been released, the remaining two remain in the works. The following is a visual summary of these 3 episodes, mostly to help me remember what happened previously when the next chapters show up. (Chapter 3 took almost a year).
When talking about an indie game that is perhaps best or only known for its distinct art/visual style, it's easy to end up in 'discussions' about video games and art and how or if something can be both at the same time, probably using the word "pretentious" at least once. This is not the place for any of that, just for SPOILERS
Chapter 1: While You Were Sleeping - I had a pretty Weird Dream Myself
Meet Victor Neff and his pregnant wife Alicia on the first morning in their new apartment.
During their first night Victor has a strange dream where he finds himself alone on a tropical typical island, similar to the one in the painting above their bed.
It turns out that Victor wasn't the only one having weird dreams. After breakfast Alicia reluctantly shares the details of her dream.
The strangest part - perhaps - is that the caretaker of their apartment building Mr. Morton plays a prominent role in her dream.
Exploring the apartment and the building reveals that Victor may have a mild fascination with baby oil. That turns out to be useful too, actually.
After finding and piecing together a partially burnt note from the previous owner Travis, Victor finds a strange device under the floorboards in the bedroom.
Overloading the device reveals a surveillance camera hidden behind the painting above the bed.
Chapter 2: Enter the Dreamscape - Meet the Mortons
Victor decides to confront Mr. Morton and heads down to his office while Alicia calls the police. In Morton's living quarters Victor finds plenty of books on a variety of subjects: "The Dictionary of Imaginary Places", "The Interpretation of Dreams", and books about dream and sleep studies and dream symbolism.
![The Dream Machine: Dream Journal 1973 Star [5/8]](https://static.giantbomb.com/uploads/original/13/138444/2205163-thedreammachine_dreamjournal_1973star_p06_07.jpg)
Apart from the books about dreams several dream journals can be found, filled with records of strange dreams featuring recurring themes.
[A full overview of all 5 dream journals, start here. Continue to the left. NB: Entries may vary between games, since they could be are randomly generated]
Placing the dream journals in the correct order reveals a hidden passage behind another bookcase, leading further into the basement.
Behind the bookcase Victor finds Mr. Morton being attacked by some kind of machine.
Victor uses the synaptic transfer unit device helmets to enter Mr. Morton's dream.
Through several portals Victor encounters large stone statue heads, who after some pointing and clicking 'explain' that they are Felix' ,Mr. Morton's predecessors. Although they are dead, or not alive, they continue to exist in his memories as symbols.
Moving on, Victor finds Mr. Morton being attacked again. While dying Felix tells Victor more about his family's research on dreams and the "Dreamscape". The machine in the basement exists in both the real world and the dream world.
As his dying request, Mr. Morton asks Victor to destroy the dream machine, for that he has to enter the dreams of his neighbors and cut the roots of the machine.
Back in the basement Victor sees Alicia collapsing on the surveillance monitors. After some quick puzzle solving he rushes to her aid.
Alicia has fallen into a dream state, without much hesitation Victor enters Alicia's dream.
Chapter 3: Ship of Fools - Where Everybody Knows Your Name
Welcome aboard cruise ship "HMS Albatross", where Victor tries to find Alicia and shut down the evil machine.
It's not long until Victor notices something odd is going on with the ship and its crew. Every crew member he meets is called "Victor" and looks just like him.
In an effort to secure an audience with Captain Alicia, Victor learns to make cocktails, including a 'human' bloody mary, sabotages the kitchen and tries to discover the truth behind the disappearance of one of the crew members, Victor 11.
Victor uncovers a sinister conspiracy behind the disappearance of not only Victor 11, but many more crew members over the years. All traces lead to..
Alicia is being controlled by the machine and Victor is sent below via a clever trapdoor.
Victor finds the machine's tentacle feeding on piles of missing Victors, among them "Victor 11" and the Bartender, "Victor Five".
Using his knowledge of cocktail mixing and rat poisoning Victor neutralizes the tentacle and breaks the machine's hold on Alicia.
Unfortunately the reunion is only a brief one, in order to release Alicia from her dream Victor needs to shut down the machine completely by severing its hold on the other inhabitants' dreams.
Some Observations and References, still with Spoilers.
Not surprisingly Dreams, Symbolism and The Unconsciousness are among the games' main themes. Some references to things that may or may not be interesting or references to anything at all:
- While investigating the caretaker's backroom, Victor notices that "Mr Morton seems to be a consummate 'Gauloises Brunes' smoker" when examining an ashtray. Besides being a reference to a real world brand and type of cigarette, 'Gauloises Brunes' have been associated with 'the arts' and are viewed by some/many as symbol of French philosopher and writer Jean-Paul Sartre.
- The name of the Cruise ship in Chapter 3: "HMS Albatross" may refer to the a number of ships by that same name, in particular 6 in service of the (UK) Royal Navy. This is fits theme of 'multiplicity', since all crew members on the ship are all named "Victor".
- "The Dictionary of Imaginary Places" found in Mr. Morton's room may be a reference an actual book titled "The Dictionary of Imaginary Places".
- Likewise, "The Interpretation of Dreams" may be a reference to Freud's book on dream analysis.
- Figurines of Ilo and Milo from "ilomilo" can be found inside a box in Victor's apartment.
See no Evil, Hear no Evil
In Chapter 2 the statues are initially found in a 'broken' state. "Frank" has trouble hearing due to rocks blocking his ear canal. "Ainsley" can't speak properly because his 'voice box' is busted. "Eldon" doesn't see well. It's up to the player to 'repair' the statues in order to communicate with them. The puzzling involved is relative simple, although some knowledge of inner middle ear anatomy and/or Latin is useful here.
It's not a stretch to consider the three statues substitutes for the Three Wise Monkeys , representing the principle "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil".
In addition, and perhaps not entirely unrelated, in the game options 3 'accessibility' settings can be found, each related to hearing, seeing, or speaking.
Note on Reading Aid: Uses the built-in Text-to-Speech function of the OS.