Dreaming Sarah

About

"Dreaming Sarah" is a surreal adventure platformer game with puzzle elements, inspired by Yume Nikki and games like Flashback. It features a young girl named Sarah exploring a dream world full of unique characters and environments. With version 1.9.1, the game offers an engaging and diverse experience for players to discover.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

89%

Audience ScoreBased on 973 reviews

music203 positive mentions

stability10 negative mentions

Dreaming Sarah features beautiful pixel art and a captivating soundtrack that enhances the dreamlike atmosphere.
The game encourages exploration and discovery, with various quirky characters and items to find, making it an engaging experience.
Despite its short length, the game offers a unique and surreal journey that leaves a lasting impression on players.

The game can be confusing and lacks clear direction, leading to aimless wandering and backtracking.
Some players experienced bugs and technical issues, such as controls locking up or the game freezing.
The story is minimal and can feel vague, leaving players wanting more depth and clarity in the narrative.

music
326 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
62%
36%
2%
The music in the game is widely praised for its beautiful, atmospheric quality, enhancing the overall experience and emotional depth of the gameplay. Many players find the soundtrack to be relaxing and evocative, with some tracks described as haunting or reminiscent of trip-hop, contributing significantly to the game's dreamlike ambiance. However, there are some criticisms regarding sound settings not saving properly and occasional issues with overlapping tracks, but overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature that many players appreciate.
- “The music adds depth and richness to the exploration, making it a memorable aspect of the game.”
- “The soundtrack is exceptional, and adds to the atmospheric quality of this game.”
- “The music is beautiful, relaxing, and ambient; a perfect fit for this game (and also for my iPod)!”
- “Sound settings don't save properly either, and while there is a music volume option, you cannot actually turn off the music completely.”
- “Literally in my final stretch and the game started glitching and playing two different music tracks at the same time.”
- “In some areas, the music can become unsettling or even stop, which makes the game a little worrying.”
story
276 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
60%
12%
The story in "Dreaming Sarah" is often described as minimalistic and abstract, requiring players to piece together its meaning through exploration and environmental cues. While some players appreciate the interpretive nature and the emotional depth it hints at, others find it confusing and lacking in engagement, with many noting that the narrative feels disjointed or underdeveloped. Overall, the game offers a unique atmosphere and artistic presentation, but opinions vary widely on the effectiveness and clarity of its storytelling.
- “The art, the interesting characters, heart-throbbing story, twists, funky areas, cool secrets, sick abilities (I love the necklace one) absolutely 10/10, it easily became one of my favorite games, and that's not an easy task.”
- “This game was an elegant experience of jaw-dropping experiences, amazingly amazing plot twists, and event 5 doors!”
- “Dreaming Sarah is a great, surreal puzzle platformer that delivers an interesting (if somewhat basic) story through a cute art style and interesting interactions with NPCs.”
- “The story is impossible to grasp, and the actual content is difficult to understand, leaving you confused multiple times.”
- “The plot is barely there and might as well not exist.”
- “There's not much story to get involved in; the bits of text that come out are largely disjointed and don't form any sort of narrative.”
graphics
160 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
47%
4%
The graphics of "Dreaming Sarah" are characterized by a charming pixel art style that evokes a dreamlike atmosphere, with vibrant colors and imaginative environments. While some players appreciate the simplicity and nostalgic appeal of the visuals, others note issues such as graphical glitches and a lack of polish. Overall, the art style is generally well-received for its creativity and ability to enhance the game's surreal experience, despite some criticisms regarding its execution.
- “Dreaming Sarah offers a mesmerizing journey through a surreal and dreamlike world, accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack and charming visuals.”
- “The handcrafted art style brings the dream world to life, with vibrant colors and imaginative landscapes.”
- “The pixel-art style is colorful and sometimes weird, which adds to the atmosphere.”
- “Awful pixel graphics made worse by surrealist filters.”
- “The visuals are mediocre at best.”
- “This is a boring game with unresponsive controls and bland graphics.”
gameplay
153 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
64%
6%
The gameplay of "Dreaming Sarah" is characterized by its simplicity and minimalistic mechanics, which some players find charming while others deem it repetitive and lacking depth. The exploration aspect is engaging, enhanced by a captivating soundtrack and unique environments, but many reviews note that the gameplay can feel confusing and frustrating at times, with limited complexity in puzzles and mechanics. Overall, while the game offers a short and atmospheric experience, it may not satisfy those seeking more challenging or varied gameplay.
- “The mechanics were relatively unique, the music created the perfect ambiance, and the environments and characters alike got my imagination going.”
- “While the game may be short, it manages to deliver an enjoyable and immersive gameplay experience.”
- “Dreaming Sarah is a delightfully offbeat and trippy exploration game that uses platformer mechanics to explore the dream world of a comatose girl.”
- “Dreaming Sarah is a confusing and boring game with repetitive gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is not engaging.”
- “There isn't much to the story and the gameplay is quite boring and simplistic.”
atmosphere
119 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
65%
33%
3%
The atmosphere of "Dreaming Sarah" is widely praised for its captivating, dreamlike quality, enhanced by a beautiful and immersive soundtrack that complements the surreal environments. Players appreciate the game's ability to evoke a range of emotions, from cozy to eerie, while exploring its imaginative landscapes, despite some critiques regarding gameplay depth and narrative clarity. Overall, the atmospheric experience is a standout feature that draws players into its enchanting and sometimes unsettling world.
- “The game's atmospheric presentation immerses players in a unique and engaging experience.”
- “The haunting melodies complement the surreal atmosphere, immersing players in a captivating audiovisual journey.”
- “I love the atmosphere of the game, especially since you have no idea what's going on, and everything that happens is entirely up to your personal interpretation.”
- “The concept is very promising, as it could easily lend itself to surreal and psychological storytelling, and the game does well at capturing a dreamlike atmosphere, but unfortunately it ends up going nowhere.”
- “Just a tad more narration could have possibly given the atmosphere and progression some purpose, but in the end, it's a rather empty experience.”
- “However, what isn't said makes the game's atmosphere dark and chaotic.”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
Overall, the game has limited replayability, primarily appealing to those who enjoy completing achievements or uncovering a few secrets. While it offers some different endings, most players find the experience linear and not conducive to multiple playthroughs. It is considered a worthwhile experience for a single run, especially for fans of the genre, but not a game that encourages repeated play.
- “I feel I am uniquely qualified to say 'Dreaming Sarah' is a lot more playable than most 'Yume Nikki'-inspired games, which offer the same style of content only more obtusely.”
- “However, the game has some replay value and different possible endings, so what it lacks in mechanics it makes up for in grind material.”
- “As with these types of games, you won’t find any replay value out of this, but in my opinion, the money is well worth the time spent on it.”
- “There isn't much replay value unless you didn't 100% the achievements in one run, but I personally hate when things get repetitive, so that isn't an issue for me.”
- “You'll only spend a few hours at most and there is zero replayability unless you missed an achievement and really want to get those for some reason.”
- “I would recommend buying this game on sale though, as a playthrough didn't take me very long and it has limited replayability as far as I can tell (I don't think there are multiple endings?).”
stability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is generally described as problematic, with numerous bugs and glitches reported, including issues with controller mapping and movement. While these problems can disrupt gameplay, they do not render the game unplayable, and some users find it enjoyable despite the instability, especially given its low price. Overall, the game appears to be in an early development stage, which contributes to its buggy nature.
- “It is ok, but it is also sadly quite buggy (I had to restart the game twice in one hour because I simply could not move anymore).”
- “The game is rather buggy, but admittedly, only once you set out to break it.”
- “Going to get the thing that might change out of the way: the game is horribly buggy.”
humor
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a mix of lightheartedness and darker themes, with NPCs delivering humorous dialogue amidst a whimsical yet eerie atmosphere. While the characters may not be central to the experience, they contribute to funny moments that contrast with the game's more disturbing elements. Overall, the game balances cute and funny elements with a surreal narrative, appealing to fans of quirky adventures.
- “Funny enough, the main reason I even came across this game was because I liked the animated avatar in the points shop and thought it matched well with the rainbow frame from Terraria.”
- “The NPCs have fairly humorous dialogue, the environment is a hazard rather than enemy AI (and taking 'damage' is much more forgiving), and everything there is to see in the dream world can be summed up in under two hours.”
- “It can go from funny to disturbing to just strange with each world and area, and the little hints as to who Sarah really is and how she ended up in a coma in the first place are very nice.”
emotional
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its ability to evoke a range of feelings, from unsettling to cozy, enhanced by a beautiful soundtrack that complements its dreamy atmosphere. While some players found the experience deeply engaging and emotionally resonant, others felt a lack of connection due to sparse character development and storytelling. Overall, the game offers a mix of touching moments and emotional depth, appealing to those seeking a profound experience.
- “I won't go too far into either of them to avoid ruining first-time experiences, but the first time I went into the watcher dimension just gave me this really strong-yet-oddly-weak and vaguely unsettling feeling that I can't really explain, and the moon did the exact opposite and made me feel really cozy in a weird way, kind of like this little mental break from all of the confusing areas I ended up exploring every little possible corner of before actually finding it.”
- “The game features a beautiful soundtrack that complements its dreamy atmosphere, enhancing the emotional resonance of the journey.”
- “A very engaging and short game, with an emotional and sweet ending.”
grinding
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
88%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, often leading to frustration and a sense of being stuck. While the puzzles and exploration are integral to the genre, many reviewers noted that the lack of direction and the slow-paced backtracking detracted from the overall experience, making it feel like a chore rather than an engaging challenge.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “I’m a huge fan of puzzles, exploration, and story-rich games, but the puzzles in this game felt tedious.”
- “The puzzles themselves are generally simple to solve, but are throttled by tedious back-tracking and slow-paced exploration.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
Character development in the game is criticized for its lack of depth, as the female protagonist remains silent and the overall narrative feels underdeveloped. While the dreamlike setting and surreal art contribute to the atmosphere, they do not compensate for the absence of meaningful character progression or story engagement.
- “Given that the game is a dream sequence, that could be forgiven; if there were more to the game itself, then the lack of story or character development wouldn't be an issue.”
- “The character development is almost non-existent, leaving players feeling disconnected from the protagonist and her journey.”
- “The lack of dialogue and depth in character interactions makes it hard to invest emotionally in the story.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
300%
The optimization for controller support is highly praised, featuring intuitive key mapping that enhances the overall user experience.
- “Controller support is well-optimized, with well-thought-out key mapping.”
- “The game suffers from severe performance issues, making it nearly unplayable on lower-end systems.”
- “I experienced frequent frame drops and stuttering, which ruined the overall experience.”
- “The optimization is lacking, leading to long loading times and crashes during gameplay.”