Here's what we're going to do. Rather than open with a paragraph summarising the Saturn original - NiGHTS Into Dreams; a game that has been documented and dissected countless times in the past, we're instead going to simply focus on Journey of Dreams. We're not going to pass judgment on whether the new title lives up to the acclaim of the original, nor are we going to break down what the new title does differently. Nope, this review is just going to examine Journey of Dreams and whether it's worth playing. Those of you who played the original will still have a frame of reference, while those of you who didn't will have an evaluation that's – as far as possible - free from the weight of expectation.

Nights (who can be bothered with that CRaZY capitalisation?) is a game about the world of dreams – apparently a literal place filled with wise old owls and effeminate jesters that you journey to while asleep. Your dreams create the world, so the player has a choice of two almost entirely different sets of missions at the beginning of the game, when you're given an agonising choice... do you want to be a pre-pubescent boy or a pre-pubescent girl? Any other choices up your sleeve SEGA? Whether you choose Will or Helen you're immediately introduced to Nights, a somewhat fruity, gender non-specific jester character who you're able to 'dualise' with, thus becoming one and allowing you to harness his/her/its powers to fly about the place. Nights is one of the uglier mascots to grace the world of videogames, but thankfully once you're in flight such concerns melt away – it's great fun.



Rather than allowing you to fly wherever you like, the game gives the player two degrees of movement in a 3D world. Thus, you mostly soar along from side-on; on-rails but free to fly up and down, turn around and do loop the loops. The better missions have paths that loop back on themselves, chock full of ring sequences to fly through, blue orbs (known in the game as Blue Chips) to hoover up, and all manner of environmental challenges to weave through. There's something hypnotic about the experience – fluid and joyous, and backed up by basic but engaging mechanics. Loop the loops, for instance, are known as Paraloops in the game ("formed by drawing a circle with twinkle dust from NiGHTS' hands" – oh dear) and create a circular area of space that can both eliminate any enemies and suck in any Blue Chips that fall within it. The mechanic – along with arrangements of ring gates designed to be conquered using loop the loops – really helps the player enjoy the sensation of flight.

Journey of Dreams also encourages speed and accuracy through its Links, or combo, system. Once you've gone through a ring or picked up a Blue Chip, you have about a second to reach another. The more you can string together the bigger the combo and the higher your score. And in order to help you close the gap quickly between rings and Chips, Nights has a dash move. Dashing uses up power of course, but power can be recouped by going through rings so you're – again - rewarded for accurate flying. You can also twist the Wiimote or press the L/R buttons (if you're using a Classic Controller) to fly more acrobatically, but this doesn't seem to have any bearing on the gameplay. Shame.



As the game progresses, Will/Helen/Nights also gain access to other forms. Dolphin Nights, Rocket Nights and Dragon Nights are all accessed with the D-pad, and have relatively obvious uses. As Dolphin Nights you can dive into and out of water, which adds another thrilling twist to levels, while Rocket Nights can boost at great speed while losing a little control finesse. Dragon Nights, which is unlocked near the end of the game, allows Nights to fly against wind currents.

While the game isn't exactly a graphical showcase – lacking the polish and hardware expertise that's evident from titles like Mario Galaxy, there's no doubt SEGA has conjured up some engaging worlds. Rollercoasters speed about in the background, cityscapes rise up, fish swim through the air, you twirl around giant beanstalks, and neon-covered, Vegas-inspired buildings shine and pulse around you. For the most part it's just eye candy, but there are a number of nice gameplay touches tying in the visual theme with the gameplay. Nights becomes a rollercoaster at one point for instance, while Helen's aquatic world see Nights being swept up in arcs of water which jet him on his way at speed. Other touches impress too, such as an indoor section where rings and Chips only appear in the mirrored reflection of the room, forcing you to guide the Nights in the mirror while simultaneously watching the actual space.

Each world (or Nightopia) generally has two or three missions (out of five) which really capitalise on the flying mechanics and the technicolour worlds. The first mission in each Nightopia, for instance, is always a Chase objective. Nights invariably gets shitself (she/him/itself) kidnapped and locked in an entirely pregnable cage. Will or Helen simply have to climb in and dualise with Nights, then chase down the three key-keepers. With each key you collect and cage you shatter, the path through the world changes, and in each loop you have a limited period of time to catch up to the key-keeper, then return the key to the cage. These missions are definitely the highlight of the game, creating an engrossing gameplay rhythm. It's a shame that they don't seem as concerned with Links as they do with beating sections quickly, but for those interested in more technical flying, each Nightopia also has a Links-focused mission. In these you must beat a certain chain total, but they're all basically impossible to fail, which is also a real shame. We would have loved to be forced to really nail our run through the world. As it stands the only incentive for doing so is getting higher ratings.



So. Pretty positive so far, right? Sadly, while the missions we've just mentioned could certainly be better – in terms of structure and challenge – they're still well worth playing. The same can't be said for much of the rest of the game. Welcome to the 'but' component of the review.

One of the more glaring annoyances in Journey of Dreams is the simple fact that you're tied to the damn children. Not only does this mean that between every mission you must return to the murky, boring hub world – simply so you can walk through the same door again to select the next mission, but SEGA has also introduced a couple of on-foot platforming levels. Dear oh dear. These wouldn't be out of place in a third-rate of licensed platform title - hit switches, ride moving platforms, fail to target enemies properly, fall to your death. Huzzah!

Quite who SEGA is pitching this game at we have no idea but – much like the unmistakable cone of ignorance - the kids really drag down everything around them. What could have been a cool game becomes maddeningly twee, and you'll want to strangle both of the children before too long. Not that they're obnoxious or anything, just that Helen's utter personality void and Will's constant bleating about his father and issues trusting people are really meaningless when you don't care a jot for the characters. We can see what SEGA was trying to do – create an uplifting tale for small children, but honestly, will small children really be playing this? For everyone else it's just cringeworthy. Why not just base the whole game around Nights?



Don't get the wrong idea though, this game's issues are about far more than just the kids. Journey of Dreams is also uneven in terms of gameplay and pacing, and its many ideas just don't gel that well. One level takes place from a top down perspective, with Nights flying about the most bland city we've ever seen committed to a game. Apparently you must save it from the deadly Nightmarens – a.k.a. brightly coloured butterflies – who are invading the city. Snore. How this level made it into the final game we have no idea. Surely focusing on the – really entertaining – side-on levels and really maximising their gameplay would have made more sense than spinning off into half-hearted mini-mission territory?

The bosses are also a major disappointment, despite some clever ideas. The Chameleon boss for instance, hides behind a veil of blackness and you must use the Paraloop move to reveal sections of the world behind to track him down. Even here, however, it feels like a good idea that hasn't been fully fleshed out – as do most of the other bosses. And once you've worked out how to beat each boss, they're far too easy.

Oh, and did we mention that you have to face each boss twice? Yes, there's the boss encounter-proper at the end of each world, but there's also a boss encounter tacked on the end of the Chase mission at the beginning of each Nightopia. Not sure what you're meant to be doing? If you fail you'll have to play through the entire chase sequence again. Cheap.



Compounding the issues and further reducing our enjoyment of the game is the fact that SEGA has taken a 'jack of all trades, master of none' approach to control. The game supports a number of play options – you can play with just the Wiimote, the Wiimote and Nunchuck combo, or the Classic Controller. Thus, you have the option of simply pointing where you want Nights to go while flying, which is certainly smooth when it's working. Sadly, we found the controls to be quite skittish and the area within which the game registers the reticule quite small. This made doing loop the loops far less intuitive than they should have been. In the end we stuck with the Classic Controller for most of the game, which – while not as flowing - still worked well.

While many (but not all – Rescue the Nightopians we're looking in your direction) of the flying missions can definitely be beaten using any of the solutions, the same cannot be said for other missions. As Nights Boat (the crime-solving boat) for instance, it's next to impossible using the Wiimote's motion sensing to steer. Trying to traverse the level's rapids is like using a shopping trolley with four bad wheels that has been encased in cement then dropped to the bottom of the river. Use the Classic Controller, on the other hand, and it's a completely different story. Control is still a bit iffy, but at least you can beat it. Forcing players to regularly switch control solutions just isn't good game design, and we really pity the kids out there trying to beat that level with just a Wiimote. SEGA would have been far better off sticking to one solution and really making sure it worked.


Closing Comments
Nights is uneven in terms of gameplay, but it’s also uneven from a production quality standpoint. Some of the voice acting is quite good for instance (as is the vast majority of the music), but some of it is nothing short of shocking. At the top of the list is Helen, who has perhaps the most vanilla vocal delivery we’ve ever heard. It’s as if the director told her the character was a personality blackhole and she try to be as demur and boring as possible. Nights is a bit odd too – the accent is constantly slipping and skidding between British and American, which produces a really jarring effect. Is she/he/it an upper crust Brit, a street urchin or a damn yankee? Who knows! Still, we guess an amalgam of accents is appropriate for a character that’s an amalgam of genders. There’s an ever-present feeling throughout Journey of Dreams that ideas haven’t been fleshed out fully or considered long enough, that standalone challenges haven’t been polished, that controls haven’t been conquered. For a sequel that’s been awaited for nigh on 12 years, that’s really not good enough. And that’s in addition to the feeling that SEGA really isn’t sure who it’s making the game for in the first place. Worth a look – just be prepared to see plenty of missed opportunities.