One Dreamer

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"One Dreamer" is a single-player indie game that follows a disillusioned game developer, JR, seeking to create a groundbreaking and meaningful experience. Using unique "Dreamer" abilities, players navigate a surreal game world, combining various coding mechanics with action-adventure elements. The narrative-driven gameplay delves into JR's struggle to find purpose and success while pursuing his dream project.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Reviews

89%

Audience ScoreBased on 232 reviews

story75 positive mentions

grinding7 negative mentions

The game features a deeply emotional story that resonates with players, often leading to tears and a strong connection to the characters.
The unique gameplay mechanics, which involve solving coding puzzles through visual metaphors, are engaging and accessible for beginners.
The pixel art, music, and voice acting are beautifully crafted, creating an immersive atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.

The movement mechanics can be frustrating, particularly with stairs and navigating the environment, leading to moments of confusion and annoyance.
Some players found the story to be overly dramatic or clichéd, with certain plot points feeling predictable or lacking depth.
The coding puzzles, while creative, may feel too simplified for those with programming experience, leading to a disconnect between the gameplay and actual coding concepts.

story
146 mentions
51 % positive mentions
45 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The game's story is widely praised for its emotional depth and engaging narrative, often compared to beloved titles like "To the Moon." Players appreciate its unique blend of personal themes, relatable struggles, and a heartfelt exploration of dreams and failures, enhanced by beautiful visuals and a captivating soundtrack. However, some critiques mention moments of confusion and pacing issues, suggesting that while the story is impactful, it could benefit from clearer exposition and less repetition.
- “The story is incredible, a refreshingly new concept for a game that involves coding.”
- “It shares an incredibly personal and relatable story of falling short of your dreams, the good you bring to others, and just how truly difficult it is to get back up and hope again for a better tomorrow after failing.”
- “The story is so captivating, the gameplay is so unique, the art style is simple but powerful, and the OST is gorgeous!”
- “The story could be clearer - sometimes I wasn't sure who is who or where I am in the timeline.”
- “The story and theme of this game legitimately infuriate me.”
- “The story is confusing, with lots of time jumps and most of the characters getting basically no exposition.”
graphics
48 mentions
44 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
6 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their breathtaking visuals and unique pixel art style, which enhance the overall immersion and storytelling experience. Many reviewers praised the beautiful and creative art direction, alongside a captivating soundtrack that complements the gameplay. However, some players noted challenges with depth perception and control due to the heavy reliance on pixel graphics, which could detract from the overall enjoyment.
- “The graphics and VFX are both amazing and critical for the immersion.”
- “The art style is beautiful and creative, and the soundtrack takes the story to new heights.”
- “The graphics are breathtaking, which is enough to offset the pain of wrangling your brain to cooperate.”
- “There's only one problem I want to mention to the devs: it is hard for players to distinguish between flat, stacked graphics, especially in pixel games.”
- “The visuals are barely adequate and only look okay thanks to some nice lighting.”
- “The 2D pixel art style, at least in the house, completely obscures depth.”
gameplay
42 mentions
40 % positive mentions
52 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by a unique coding mechanic that engages players through clever puzzle-solving, though opinions vary on its depth and execution. While some praise the innovative approach and integration with the story, others feel the gameplay is secondary to narrative elements, with some mechanics described as gimmicky or underdeveloped. Overall, the game offers a blend of enjoyable puzzles and beautiful visuals, but some players wish for more substantial gameplay elements.
- “The gameplay is amazing, awesome coding puzzles that gradually become harder throughout the story.”
- “There is so much heart and soul put into this game, and the gameplay is very unique and fun.”
- “The 'coding' mechanic gave me an experience that I've never had before and made me feel engaged the whole time.”
- “Too much story, not enough gameplay sadly.”
- “The gameplay is very secondary to the plot: walking about listening to dialogue and some ultra-lightweight computer puzzles.”
- “The only thing that makes it bad is the gameplay.”
emotional
42 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is widely praised, with many players reporting that it moved them to tears multiple times due to its beautiful storytelling and relatable themes, particularly for those in the game development field. The combination of heartfelt narratives, stunning visuals, and engaging gameplay creates a powerful emotional experience that resonates deeply with players, often drawing comparisons to other emotionally impactful games like "To the Moon." While some found the emotional elements to be a bit over the top, the majority appreciated the game's ability to evoke a wide range of feelings, making it a memorable and touching experience.
- “I can't tell you how many times I cried playing this; it's truly so beautiful.”
- “An emotional gripping story that I absolutely love and adore, and personally hit close to home.”
- “The story is really moving and it honestly made me emotional in all the right moments.”
music
39 mentions
54 % positive mentions
38 % neutral mentions
8 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its emotional depth and ability to enhance the storytelling experience, with many reviewers praising the soundtrack as beautiful and well-composed. The sound design complements the visuals and gameplay, creating a captivating atmosphere that resonates with players. However, a few critiques mention that some tracks can feel repetitive, but overall, the music is considered a standout feature that significantly contributes to the game's appeal.
- “The music, story, and visuals are marvelous.”
- “Everything from the music, to the art, to the storytelling, is blowing me away.”
- “To keep it short: One Dreamer features a pretty depressing story, a meticulously emotional soundtrack, consistently astonishing sprite work, a lot of walking, and clever although occasionally redundant fill-in-the-code puzzles.”
- “The visuals are well done, the music is emotional and it's very thought-provoking.”
- “The soundtrack and the art created the most breathtaking atmosphere I've ever experienced in a game.”
grinding
8 mentions
13 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
88 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly in the later stages where repetitive tasks and bug fixing become monotonous. While some appreciate the challenge and the eventual payoff, many feel that the grinding detracts from the overall enjoyment, likening it to work rather than a fun gaming experience.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The last part of the game with bug fixing was tedious.”
- “As a software dev, the game felt a lot like being at work, which makes it in some ways accurate and in other ways a bit tedious.”
- “It started out alright but then I realized it's really just replacing values of some variables which also gets quite tedious later on.”
atmosphere
6 mentions
67 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
33 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its breathtaking art and soundtrack, effectively conveying a range of emotions from despair to hope. Players appreciate how the immersive environment enhances the storytelling, creating a profound experience that resonates deeply with the protagonist's feelings. Overall, the atmosphere is considered a standout feature, making the game a remarkable experience.
- “The soundtrack and the art created the most breathtaking atmosphere I've ever experienced in a game.”
- “A game that can really manage to give you the perfect night atmosphere where you can feel the main protagonist's feelings.”
- “The atmosphere, story, and soundtracks are just perfect.”
- “The mood and atmosphere of the game are meant to inspire hope.”
- “Even if only for its atmosphere, the game would be a wonder.”
humor
3 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game effectively blends mind-bending puzzles with humor, featuring hilarious memes and cat videos that enhance the experience. Players find the humor to be both funny and heartwarming, contributing to an enjoyable and memorable gameplay experience. Overall, the comedic elements are a standout feature that adds to the game's charm.
- “One thing I love about this game is how it combines mind-bending puzzles with hilarious memes and cat videos.”
- “Loved every minute of it—one dreamer was funny, heartwarming, and heartbreaking.”
- “When you play this—and you should, because it's very good—you can spend a few moments laughing at me for not reading store page descriptions.”
character development
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
100 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The character development aspect highlights a significant contribution from an individual who created all character designs and backgrounds without compensation, suggesting a lack of recognition or support for their efforts in the game's development.
optimization
1 mentions
300 % positive mentions
-500 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Players report that the game's optimization is generally solid, with no noticeable FPS drops on capable PCs, although some issues arise at lower quality settings.
- “Optimizations: Since this is a 2D pixel art game and I am using a strong enough PC, I did not detect any FPS drops while playing this game, aside from the aforementioned low-quality setting.”
- “The game's optimization is impressive; it runs smoothly even on lower-end hardware, making it accessible to a wider audience.”
- “I appreciate the attention to optimization in this game, as it allows for a seamless experience without any lag or performance issues.”
- “Optimizations: Since this is a 2D pixel art game and I am using a strong enough PC, I did not detect any FPS drops from playing this game aside from the aforementioned low quality setting.”
- “The game suffers from severe optimization issues, causing frequent stuttering and frame rate drops even on high-end systems.”
- “Despite the charming visuals, the lack of proper optimization leads to frustrating performance problems that detract from the overall experience.”
monetization
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game is perceived as overly promotional, resembling an advertisement for Facebook's Meta, which detracts from the overall experience.
- “This feels like an advertisement for Facebook's Meta.”
- “The monetization strategy is overly aggressive and detracts from the overall experience.”
- “I feel pressured to spend money just to enjoy the game fully.”
stability
1 mentions
300 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game demonstrates excellent stability, particularly noted for its smooth performance on the Steam Deck.
- “Runs great on Steam Deck.”
- “The game maintains a steady frame rate, providing a smooth experience.”
- “I haven't encountered any crashes or bugs, which makes for a stable gameplay experience.”