I just finished "Dreamfall Chapters" yesterday. I had time to play only on weekends so it took whole this year up till yesterday. It took me 39 hours in total, including many coffee breaks when left paused. So a full legth game. Luckily it was divided into books and chapters making it easy to stop when nexessary. Except I would not want have wanted to stop but continue instead. It was relaxing to play taking all the time you needed to solve the puzzles and go through all the conversations. The puzzles were logical, not too easy nor too hard. I liked more playing as Zoe than Kian but it was most fun to play as young Saga! I'm not so into other species in games and magicals where almost on the edge of my limit, luckily they differed only by their appearance. I fully recommend this game to everyone who has not played it yet.

Special thanks to Venus who recommended this game to me, already months or even a year ago, can't remember exactly. She recommended also other titles then and I have purchased many of them, played some already, some still waiting for their turn. Enjoyed all so far. I try to variate which types of games I play and unfortunately my play time is very limited at the moment. There's so much to do in real life.

Timo

I am very happy to hear that you enjoyed the game so much! It was interesting to read your thoughts about it.

Fantastic, TLJ, I'm so happy you enjoyed it! As it took you 39 hours (with breaks), it sounds as though you play the way I do and explore a lot. You get so much more out of the game that way. I also favored Zoe over Kian, although I did love his character in this game. I thought he was much more developed than he was in his first appearance in Dreamfall. And I enjoyed Saga's character so much, I named my cat after her. Although, I favored adult (35 year old) Saga and old Saga. (Did you explore the room thoroughly while playing as old Saga? There are a lot of interesting things to discover there! ) Little Saga was very cute as well, though, and I liked her Norwegian accent, even if it didn't make any sense for her to have it.

What did you think of the Yaga? That was one of my favorite sections in the game, as was just wandering around and exploring Propast. Did you favor Stark or Arcadia?

You're welcome for the recommendation, I'm glad I could spread the word on this game, which was one of the best gaming experiences I've ever had, personally. (In case you couldn't tell from my avatar. ) I'm always happy when someone else enjoys it, too!

Which other titles are you playing/did you play already? It's been a while, so I don't remember. Glad you have enjoyed some of them as well, and hope you enjoy the others!

Glad you liked the game TJL. The character order was the opposite for me. I preferred the Kian part over Zoe, and I did not like Saga much at all.

Saga as a baby was cute.
Saga as an adult was insufferable, with no explanation of how or why she'd turned out that way.

I have yet to receive any of the physical "rewards" I was supposed to get for donating to this game, and I regret the money I wasted donating to the Kickstarter. I was expecting a full length adventure game, not a "choice-based" episodic that deteriorated with each "chapter."

I didn't find adult Saga insufferable at all. I was quite intrigued by her character and would quite enjoy a game focused on her and how she Plus, as the game makes it pretty clear that she's I am inclined to have an attachment to her.

Jenny, which physical reward tier did you pledge for? The first batch is almost ready to ship - https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/redthread/dreamfall-chapters-the-longest-journey/posts/2132785. If you pledged at a higher level, you will also receive this box along with the larger box you pledged for.

Their communication in the end has been sporadic and not nearly as good as it could have been (which is a shame, as things started out so well,) but it does look like we are going to get our rewards, even if late. I pledged for the Dreamer edition, so I'll still be waiting for my copy for a while.

Hi Marian, venus, oldbroad and Jenny100,


I believe I may have skipped something the nearer to the end of the game It came.


I definitely liked Stark over Arcadia since one of my all time movie favourites is the original Blade Runner and those worlds have so much in common. And I liked Shitbot and Mira with her accent and vocabulary a lot.

In Arcadia my favourite character was Enu who rarely had any quiet moment.


I liked the (Baba) Yaga section which was one of the few sections where you needed to make quick decisions. it was not a big highlight for me though as I couln't avoid comparing it with "Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch" DLC of "The Rise of the Tomb Raider" with hallusinations, walking house and aerial railway which made it very special.


I had to reverse some time back in posts to find your ecomendations given as long time ago as in September 2016! I have played "Next Big Thing" and "Yesterday" of them, both from Pendulo Studios. Liked the type of humour their games often have. Recently I got "Yesterday Origins" as part of a bigger bundle with only nominal price. Haven't played it yet. Other recommended titles bought but not played yet are "The Cat Lady", "Grim Fandango Remastered" and "Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers 20th Anniversary", "The Moment of Silence" and "Gray Matter". I have no doubt they will all be excellent games that I like. We seem to share same kind of taste in games.


I'm a cat person too. I've had one or more cats most of my life but unfortunately we can't take any at the moment as my son is allergic to cats and dogs along with several different pollen. But he soon turns 18 and when he is ready to try his own wings we are planning to take a cat or two again.

Thanks for other fine recommendations given by several others as well in past years.

I have also played many dark side titles in past year or two. I liked playing horror themed games like "The Evil Within" and "Resident Evil VII" (The first and only in series I've played) in dark room using headphones. "Dishonored 2" offered much eye candy and challenging gameplay as well. Not to mention "Hitman (2016)" which offers challenging gameplay to master to finally pass every mission as 'Silent Assassin, Suit Only".

What a fine hobby we all here have!

Timo

I pledged at a level to receive a physical copy of the game.
I think it was $110.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/redthread/dreamfall-chapters-the-longest-journey

As for Saga, she acted like her role in the game was a pain in the backside -- and that made playing as Saga feel like a pain in the backside.

I'm also not a fan of Deus Ex Machina characters thrown in at the last minute to solve anything.
Maybe her story had to be cut because of lack of money, but in that case I think she should have been cut from the game entirely. Showing her as a cute baby earlier in the game did not automatically make adult Saga a character I was interested in or wanted to play. She wasn't April, and if she was supposed to be some sort of replacement for April she did a very poor job of it.

Like oldbroad I thought Kian's part of the game was the best.

You should be receiving your copy soon, then, before I receive mine for sure. Their estimated time of delivery was way off, however. This is pretty typical for Kickstarted games, it seems. Developers underestimate the time it actually takes to do all of the tasks they set for themselves. This seems to happen with all games, really. Just look at The Last Crown: Blackenrock. This is from my perspective looking at it from the outside in, however, so I can only speculate on the reason(s) why this is. Although being a creative type person myself, I have also run into this problem, so I have a bit of empathy for it. I do think their communication could be a lot better, however. At least they are fulfilling the rewards after all this time. I'm not sure if the Space Venture game will ever see the light of day, and I'm glad I only pledged the minimum on that one.

I strongly disagree on Saga being a Deux Ex Machina, although you are certainly not the only person to think so. Not that it isn't a valid opinion, and I'm not saying that it's incorrect necessarily, but prophecy has always been a part of the TLJ/Dreamfall universe. I don't agree with it as a life philosophy, but it is a part of the way things work in their world(s), so none of this bothered me in game. Also, adult Saga quotes Lady Alvane from the first game often, which I quite enjoyed. I felt that it made her character consistent with what we'd learned. I don't think of Saga as a replacement for April so much as an extension of her. Her personality reminds me quite a bit of Dreamfall April's, which was fitting. I know a lot of people didn't like April in Dreamfall, either, but I really liked where they took her character and found it believable. Maybe I just have a thing for "difficult" characters. Chloe is my favorite character from Life is Strange.

Also, I'm not sure I interpreted Saga viewing her role as a pain necessarily, so much as that she had seen so much and had a certain weariness when it came to the way things worked in her world. She could be impatient, true, but I saw that more as a pressure from time constraints than anything else. I'm pretty sure her relationship with Kian in the end was more sibling in nature, seeing as they were around the same age. The fact that was strange and didn't make a lot of sense to me, and I would have liked more explanation on how and why this worked in their world.

I actually had a much larger issue with as I thought it was too predictable and didn't fit his character from the original TLJ. I was hoping the tease from Dreamfall would be a large red herring, but no, it was exactly as it appeared. His motivation made very little sense to me as well, but that's another topic.

Although I favored Zoe, I have no arguments with those who enjoyed Kian's sections the most. He was a fantastic character, and I loved his sections as well.

There are some big differences there.
I was never asked to spend a penny on Blackenrock ahead of development.
Also we did get Midnight Horror, which is about what Blackenrock was originally described as -- just a short Halloween game. Blackenrock has grown in scope, while Dreamfall Chapters shrank from what was originally described.

Playing the game as episodes with long times in between episodes didn't do it any favors. But I'm not sure how much better it would be if it were played all together. The later chapters seemed to leave out more and more content, where they should have been the most interesting.


And we saw absolutely none of what made her what she was.
Just as we saw nothing that explained April's behavior in the first Dreamfall.
Yes we can "imagine" what might have happened.
We could also "imagine" the whole game, so the excuse that we should be able to figure out what happened without being told doesn't fly with me. I don't buy a book, movie, or game because I could "imagine" what happened in it -- or "imagine" what events might have caused significant changes in characters' personality, or fill in all the plot holes the author left behind. I don't need to be told "everything" but being told nothing but the beginning and ending, leaving out all the middle, and being left to "guess" practically the whole story doesn't work for me.


That made so little sense that I simply don't accept it.
The same with this bit...

I don't buy either one. They're both from out of nowhere.

As far as I'm concerned, The Longest Journey is a standalone game that never had a sequel. Dreamfall and Chapters are some sort of alternate universe thing.

But I still want the physical boxed game -- the "reward" what I paid for.

I was only using Blackenrock as an example of something that has been declared "done" numerous times, yet still keeps getting delayed. I'm not angry about it as many others are, although I do find it frustrating. I'm still very much looking forward to it, however, and intend to buy it when it comes out. And Midnight Horror was a lot of fun. I wasn't implying that anyone was "owed" anything, and I'm not sure I feel that way about Kickstarted games, either. It does get a lot murkier, however, especially for those who pledged for the larger rewards. I understand why people are upset about the rewards, and I don't blame anyone for this. As I've said, I'm not happy about Red Thread's communication, but I don't doubt the physical rewards are coming. I'm more concerned about never receiving Space Venture, although I'm not sure I care as much anymore.

Dreamfall Chapters is a huge game. I re-played TLJ recently, and it took me 17 hours. This includes being as thorough as possible, speaking fully with every character, looking at every hot spot, etc. Dreamfall Chapters takes me around 35 hours when I'm thorough, so it's actually much larger in scope. It's also a much larger episodic game than any Telltale game, or even Life is Strange. Even rushing through Chapters would most likely result in a 20-25 hour game.

I also disagree regarding April. She spells out why she feels as she does during the conversation with the Guardian in his realm. She feels she has no purpose. She was told by numerous people that she had all of these prophecies to fulfill, and then she was just tossed aside. Plus, I think there's enough information there in both games to see why she became the way she was. She sacrificed so much, including her potential art career and her entire life in Stark, and in the end, she was pretty much alone. She had to leave her friends behind, she believed they hated her, and Cortez wasn't there to help her anymore. True, she had Crow, but he couldn't really understand or relate to much of what she'd been through, so she pushed him away.

Also in her arguments with Zoe, I see where she's coming from and even side with her to an extent. At the very least, I can see both sides of it. Zoe was asked to find and save April, but instead of trying to do this, she keeps asking for April's help. However, Zoe is very vague as to what it is she actually wants April to do. Help her find Reza? Help her investigate Wati Corp? How is she meant to do this? She can't shift anymore. April has a lot riding on her and a rebellion she is responsible for. I don't blame her for wanting to make that her focus, whether it's "right" or not.



I don't believe I suggested this. I just have a different interpretation of Saga's behavior that I think is equally valid. I also see a lot of Lady Alvane in her, which works for me as foreshadowing. In fact, a character like her is mentioned as early as TLJ, during the end of Lady Alvane's story, when Crow asks her for the story of In the end, we know this refers to Saga. I never saw this as referring to April, even when TLJ was the only game I'd played, as it seemed too grandiose for her character. Saga is more mysterious than other characters in Chapters, it's true, particularly the other leads, so I suppose I'm just more okay with this than you are. This was Zoe and Kian's story more than it was Saga's. I do hope she gets her own game at some point, but in the meantime, I am happy they ended this game as beautifully as they did, in case this never happens.



Fair enough. I don't like this part either. It's my least favorite part of the story. I feel I have to accept it, as "it happened," but I really don't like it, and it ruins this character for me.



Yes, this part was rushed. I think what happened (and I could be wrong) was that the whole Lady Alvane origin story was supposed to be its own game. However, since at this point, they weren't sure if they were going to be able to make another game (and still aren't), they felt they had to wrap this part up. They did the best they could, but it came out strangely.

I loved the ending with old Saga, however, ruminating on all that had happened, and we got so much information if the room is explored thoroughly. There's even the nod to which I thought was a nice touch.

I don't remember Blackenrock ever being declared "done."
I remember numerous estimated release times, some of which weren't even from Mr. Boakes.
The list of games that meet their release dates is very short. I don't remember very many games of any size that were released when they said they'd be, though I do remember some that were obviously released too early and were full of bugs. But I didn't pre-pay for any of them, and I certainly didn't have to pay a whopping $110 for a physical copy of any of them.


Too much of April's life was skipped. When I played the first Dreamfall, I wanted The Longest Journey 2, further adventures of April and Crow. I didn't see the April I knew in Dreamfall, which was certainly not "The Longest Journey 2." I don't know who that woman was or if she was ever April. April's story wasn't part of the game. If something is important, it needs to be part of the game, shown or made memorable somehow. But it wasn't because Dreamfall was Zoe's story.


I didn't mean to say that you did.
It's the writer of the game that suggested it by leaving so much story out.

As I said earlier, the episodic nature did the game no favors, and I can't tell you for sure how I'd have felt about Chapters if I'd been able to play it all at once instead of piecemeal. As it was, it was one unsatisfactory, premature ending after another, each "Chapter" seeming shorter than the previous one. Not that that was always a bad thing. The first chapter had too much of Zoe wasting time running around Stark, which didn't interest me either. The very first part, where she was in some sort of Dream world, was more interesting than Stark.

I'm glad that you enjoyed Chapters, considering you probably spent more on the Kickstarter than I did. But I regret donating to it.

After I first played TLJ I immediately replayed it twice.
At the moment, I can't say I have any interest in replaying Chapters. Maybe in a few years, but no guarantee.

I remember reading it was finished and would be released last year. Really, it's not that big of a deal for me, I was just using it as an example of how long games tend to take. I'm still extremely excited for the game. It's my most anticipated game at the moment, which is why it was the first one to come to mind. Definitely not trying to pick on Jonathan Boakes, as I think he's fantastic!



This is fair. As I explained, I understood April's motivations well enough, and how she could get to that point. However, I felt that Dreamfall was the least in depth as far as its characters were concerned. Still more in depth than most games, but compared to TLJ and Chapters, it was lacking. It's still up there with my favorites, but it's not on par with the other two. Maybe it's because I'm a big fan of the King's Quest series, but I wasn't put off by the change of protagonists. April is my favorite character as well (and favorite game protagonist in general), but for me, the story is bigger than just her character.



Okay, sorry, I misinterpreted what you meant.

Hm, I could be wrong, but I think episode 3 was the shortest overall, and it was still long for an episode. Episode 5 was around 4-4 1/2 hours for me, which is still far longer than the average Telltale episode. Telltale's episodes are generally around 1 1/2 hours, occasionally 2 hours at the most. Don't get me wrong, I love Telltale's games, but they used to be better with episode lengths, and even then, they didn't come close to the length of Chapter's episodes.



I loved Propast because the city was so well realized, but I know a lot of people didn't care for this part as much. I agree that the Dreamworld was interesting. If you ever do decide you want to replay it, I hope you saved the original version. They cut the newer version too much, and I don't care for this. I was lucky, as I happened to save a couple of older GOG versions, so I can play the "correct" beginning.

I'm very sorry that your Kickstarter experience did not go well.

Yes, I don't understand why they did that -- cut the best part of the first chapter when what people were complaining about was that Propast was too large, too confusing, etc. Where's the sense in cutting the part that people liked?

It makes it more complicated to replay.
The early version doesn't have the later chapters.
I'm not even sure the saves are 100% compatible between versions.

They're not, unfortunately. I just keep saved games in both versions, and since I have "canon" choices, this works for me, even though it's awkward. Technically, they do have the original Dreamworld sequence as a "deleted scene" that you can play in the Final Cut menu. However, this version has chopped up dialogue, and some of the most interesting lines between Zoe and her alter ego, in particular those regarding Faith, were cut. If you don't mind this, playing the version in the "deleted scene" menu could be a potential workaround. That is, assuming you ever want to replay it.

They did respond to some of the criticisms regarding Propast. I know there is a map (which I never use, as I know my way around anyway and didn't mind getting lost when I didn't). Also, the street names pop up when you wander around now, which I personally find irritating, and I wish I could switch this off. They may make some people happy, but I find them immersion breaking. However, if I want to play the prettiest, most polished version with the extra background characters and the extra outfits I got through my pledge, I have to put up with them being there. This is a case of not being able to please everyone, I suppose.

Yes they made changes in Propast, though as you say having the street names pop up is something that should have been optional. That doesn't explain why they cut so much from the Dreamworld sequence, which IMO was the best part of the chapter.


Of course I'd want the Dreamworld scenes as they originally were, not chopped up or cut.
Who wouldn't? Was there some technical reason they couldn't put the Dreamworld scenes in the new game engine intact?

I'm not too surprised the saves aren't compatible, since they changed game engines to the newer version of Unity. I didn't attempt to keep saves for the game.

How would you replay? Install the original version to play the first chapter? Or only play the Dreamworld part of the first chapter before switching to the new version?

I don't blame you. This is what I prefer also.

For some reason, they think the original Storytime sequences were not well received, which is why they were cut to begin with, but I've seen the opposite opinion expressed on forums. There are some people that prefer the cut version, but I don't believe they're the majority. Really, I think they should have left this alone. As I've said, they can't please everyone, and if they change the original scenes to please some people, those of us that enjoyed them are just going to be annoyed with the change.



I have a version that includes episodes 1-4, which is the newest version before they started chopping scenes. Normally, I play the Storytime sequence and then switch to the Final Cut afterward, when Kian's first section starts. I also have places where I'll switch back and forth, when Zoe speaks to her psychiatrist and later to Baruti. These conversations were chopped up a bit, and the dialogue with Baruti even had a minor choice to make. Sure, it didn't amount to anything, but I liked having the option to make a choice there. These two conversations are not as significant as the cuts in the Storytime, however, so I would only recommend doing this if you really want all the original dialogue. They aren't as badly cut as the dialogues with the Vagbond and Zoe's alter ego in Storytime.

There is another cut section in Book 2, when Kian has to blow up the cargo shipment. I understand why they wanted to do something about this, as many didn't like the stealth sequence. However, I don't understand why they didn't just remove the stealth element from the section rather than cutting it entirely. This section can be played as a deleted scene, and there are no chopped up dialogues, so you don't need to switch back and forth between versions unless you really want to. (I do, but that's just because I'm overly picky and want the ability to approach the area myself. )

They have added some things, such as the "birthright" characters created by backers. Many of these characters are very interesting to talk/listen to. There are also extra things you can explore/hotspots to click on in the Riverwood forest, before encountering the Yaga, as well as new hotspots in other locations, particularly in Arcadia.

Also, not sure if this is important to you or not, but did you get your extra outfits for Zoe? These are included in your reward. It's been a while since I've done this, but there is a code somewhere in Humble where it can be retrieved. They only work in the Final Cut, unfortunately, but they do work. I can look up the code's location if you want me to, and if you don't have it yet.

This is the first I've heard that there was anyone at all who preferred the cut version, while I've read several complaints about the the new version missing so much of what was originally part of the Dreamworld.

Quite a lot of other changes too.
How do you "play back and forth?"
Do you have both versions installed on the same computer?
How to you skip the parts of the cut version that you're not interested in playing and switch back to the other version if the saves aren't compatible?


Cheaper to just chop it out I guess.

I don't know anything about an "extra outfits" code, so it's a pretty sure thing that I didn't get it.

They are out there. I don't understand them, but they do exist. I believe the majority feel the way we do, though.


Yes, I have both versions on the same computer. I just keep saved games, so I don't have to repeat scenes. I'll play the scene I want in one version, exit out of it upon completion and then load a saved game from the other version. The majority of my playtime is with the Final Cut, but for the chopped up scenes, I go back to the original version where those scenes were "uncut."



I figured as much, it's just a shame.



You should have them, the way to redeem them was included in a Kickstarter update. I checked my Humble account, and I'm pretty sure I used my Dreamer Forum Badge. Yours may say Journeyman Forum Badge or something similar. It doesn't matter whether or not you post on their forum. I don't post there, but I have the badge number. When you go into the game, if you go under Settings, then Redeem Key, you will be able to copy and paste the forum badge number into the space provided. The outfits will then be available when you visit Zoe's closet in Stark or the Red Thread Shop in Arcadia. Also, you want to make sure that you are listed as online in game, or the code won't work. It may ask you to enter your e-mail address, but this is not necessary and can be skipped. This is only if you want the extra outfits, of course. It's just a fun extra, not a necessary part of the game.