Hypnagogia: Boundless Dreams
- October 29, 2021
- sodaraptor
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"Hypnagogia: Boundless Dreams" is a solo-developed exploration game where you journey through a series of dreamlike vignettes to rescue your companion, Gogi. With 12 varied worlds, unique characters, and animated cutscenes, your choices during dialogue will shape the narrative as you travel from dreams to nightmares. Uncover the mystery of Hypnagogia and the fractured Dream Crystal in this vibrant dreamscape.
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Reviews
- The game features stunning PS1-style visuals and a captivating soundtrack that enhances the dreamlike atmosphere.
- Each dream world is unique and creatively designed, providing a variety of experiences that evoke a range of emotions from joy to horror.
- The game is filled with secrets and hidden levels, encouraging exploration and rewarding players for their curiosity.
- Some players found the platforming mechanics to be frustrating and not well-executed, detracting from the overall experience.
- The lack of a proper saving system and checkpoints can lead to frustration, especially in longer levels.
- The narrative and dialogue can feel disjointed at times, with some players finding the story less engaging than expected.
- graphics95 mentions
- 41 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Hypnagogia: Boundless Dreams" are widely praised for their stunning PS1-era aesthetic, colorful landscapes, and immersive environments that evoke nostalgia and a dream-like quality. Players appreciate the unique art style and atmospheric visuals, which enhance the overall experience, despite some critiques regarding graphical fidelity and occasional jankiness. Overall, the game's visuals are considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to its charm and appeal.
“Hypnagogia: Boundless Dreams is a personal favorite game of mine that focuses on venturing through beautiful and varied dreams in faux PS1 graphics.”
“The graphics are pleasing and tasteful in their intended jank, the music perfectly captures that otherworldly, slightly 'off' tone, and character dialogues and the story itself are very well written.”
“An absolutely stunning piece of art, from its 90's era low poly visuals to the amazing soundtrack, used to create a perfect atmosphere for every situation.”
“I honestly can't tell graphical glitches from artistic design here.”
“However, visuals alone can't sell hypnagogia and the supposed exploration and platformer elements are completely missing from the game.”
“The visuals would be creative, but in my opinion the PS2 style, pixelated, polygon graphics don't do it any favors.”
- music80 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its ability to enhance the emotional and atmospheric experience, with many reviewers praising its fittingness to the dreamlike environments and nostalgic 90s aesthetic. While the soundtrack is described as fantastic and immersive, some players noted that the looping nature of certain tracks can become repetitive over time. Overall, the combination of excellent sound design and memorable music contributes significantly to the game's unique charm and engaging atmosphere.
“The soundtrack is fantastic; ambient sounds blend with the music, melting rhythm into environments.”
“The music complements each stage wonderfully and the NPCs' dialogue felt thoughtful.”
“Music can become annoying, since it's looping endlessly - most worlds have only one track, which, great as it may be, gets stale after some time.”
“The music fits the scenes really well and connects to the moment or the world you're experiencing, but somehow differently than you'd normally expect.”
“There are times when music should play, and there are times when it shouldn't play, or it should be more quiet or something to that effect.”
- story60 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating its charm, humor, and emotional depth, while others find it simplistic and serving primarily as a backdrop for gameplay. Many reviews highlight the unique character interactions and the thematic richness of each world, though some criticize the narrative for being cliché or lacking coherence. Overall, while the story may not be the main draw, it offers enough engaging elements to enhance the overall experience.
“The story moves you, as the player, forward through the worlds of the game, until you've completed everything, and it all gets wrapped up pretty cleanly.”
“From wholesome moments to moments of deep reflection where I found myself pondering my own existence and decisions, it conveys a story so expertly crafted it's almost unfathomable to believe it belongs to an indie game.”
“What a beautiful game this is... from the diverse and interesting characters and dialogue, to the thought-provoking and touching story, the refreshing graphics and soundtrack... I absolutely loved this game.”
“The story exists, but it only exists to prop up the set pieces.”
“Story-wise, it tries to be profound and emotionally affective, but ends up being cliche and cringy.”
“This game does not have interesting characters other than those that are somewhat cute, and it's mostly pretty childish and predictable in terms of its storyline, which mostly serves as a vehicle for the fetch/put this on that type puzzles.”
- atmosphere46 mentions
- 65 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its depth and variety, evoking a range of emotions from terror to nostalgia, and creating immersive, beautifully crafted worlds. Players appreciate the strong visual and sound design, which enhances the overall experience, making exploration feel rewarding and engaging. While some critiques mention moments of detachment or frustration, the game's ability to evoke a rich atmosphere remains a standout feature, appealing to fans of atmospheric and exploratory gameplay.
“Atmosphere in this game is phenomenal.”
“This is drenched in atmosphere, and I can't help but get lost in its kaleidoscopic, nostalgic worlds.”
“An amazing game with amazing atmosphere and captivating style while also having lots of variety between each of its worlds.”
“I'm impressed that it took me 8 hours to beat because it felt like I was wandering around for ages just soaking in the atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere was strong in this game, I see that, but I couldn't feel it because I was stuck feeling detached as I played it.”
“There was even a small bit of platforming in the spooky section that just pulled me out of the atmosphere and whatever spooks I was supposed to get just passed by me due to frustration.”
- gameplay34 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by its simplicity and focus on exploration, featuring smooth platforming and interaction with NPCs, which enhances the immersive atmosphere. While some players appreciate the charm and nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic games, others feel it lacks depth and variety, with many mechanics taking a backseat to the overall experience. Overall, the game offers a laid-back adventure with hidden secrets and puzzles, appealing to those who enjoy atmospheric storytelling over complex gameplay.
“It's simple in gameplay for the most part, with you mainly exploring each world with some pretty chill platforming a good chunk of the time, and interacting with NPCs to progress stuff forward, but its strong point is in its sheer immersion, atmosphere, and to me, just pure charm.”
“However, what truly sets Hypnagogia apart in my opinion is the fact it's full of excellent puzzles, secrets, and gameplay surprises.”
“Almost every new level will have a surprising twist to the gameplay, either becoming a space level with no gravity, or a deep sea level, or a desert level where you run around on a chocobo-style bird; there's a lot of cool stuff that you end up doing through a run-through.”
“There's not much in the way of gameplay; you just walk around and talk to people.”
“It's mechanically not much more than a zero-stakes platformer with some backtracking, but for people already intrigued by just looking at its store page, you'd probably not be here for more than that anyway.”
“I think this series has a lot of potential, and while I do understand how gameplay taking a backseat makes the game accessible and allows the player to focus on the environment, I also think the gameplay itself needs a few more advancements - it seemed like the developer wanted to take it further in some parts with the bird you can ride and similar moments, but it never really had the variety it needed to stay interesting.”
- emotional20 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players report a deep emotional investment in the game, praising its rich character development, evocative music, and stunning visuals that create a profound atmosphere. Many describe experiencing a wide range of emotions, from joy to introspection, with some moments being particularly touching and memorable. However, a few critiques mention that certain story elements can feel clichéd or cringy, yet overall, the game is celebrated for its ability to evoke strong feelings and reflections on personal experiences.
“I got emotionally invested in this game; I loved every character, every small detail, the colors, sceneries, music, design, everything.”
“From wholesome moments to moments of deep reflection where I found myself pondering my own existence and decisions, it conveys a story so expertly crafted it's almost unfathomable to believe it belongs to an indie game.”
“What a beautiful game this is... from the diverse and interesting characters and dialogue, to the thought-provoking and touching story, the refreshing graphics and soundtrack... I absolutely loved this game.”
- humor15 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as a blend of funny, quirky, and at times eerie moments, contributing to a unique and engaging experience. Players appreciate the humorous dialogue and situations, such as flirting with a stone slab door, which add charm to the adventure. Overall, the game balances humor with other emotional tones, making it both entertaining and thought-provoking.
“A very personal, and at times very funny short-ish adventure.”
“The story is cute, sometimes funny, and the game is full of fun secrets to find.”
“It's a funny, thought-provoking, shiver-inducing game capable of conveying emotions beyond words.”
- character development3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers praise the character development for its unique and interesting designs, which enhance the overall experience of the game. The depth of some NPC dialogues prompts players to reflect on existential themes, adding a layer of thoughtfulness to the character interactions. Overall, the combination of captivating visuals and meaningful character lines contributes to a rich and engaging narrative experience.
“The music and visuals are fantastic, and the character designs are delightful. I have a folder full of screenshots I keep adding to as I play.”
“The soundtrack is wonderful, the character design is so interesting and unusual. The lines of some NPCs made me stop and think about existence itself a few times.”
“I am enjoying the character designs and the platforming.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is mixed; while some players find it offers significant replay value with engaging content, others feel that once all objectives are completed, there is little incentive to play again.
“This is a seriously amazing game with loads of replayability.”
“I can't say replayability is high, as once you've done everything, you've done everything.”
“After completing the game, I found little incentive to go back and play again.”
“The lack of meaningful choices and consequences makes replaying feel pointless.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, particularly criticizing the first-person platforming mechanics.
“I like the look and feel of the game, but the first-person platforming is tedious and awful.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users find it difficult to distinguish between graphical glitches and intentional artistic design, indicating potential stability issues that may affect the overall visual experience.
“I honestly can't tell graphical glitches from artistic design here.”
“The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
“I've experienced constant frame drops and stuttering during gameplay.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its excellent optimization, featuring smooth performance without issues, a distinct PS1-era graphic style, and well-paced storytelling that integrates seamlessly with its secrets.
“It is an interactive dream diary experience/horror game; everything is super well put together in regard to performance (it runs without issue), graphics (distinct PS1 era style), and the pacing (story and even secrets fit together seamlessly).”
