With the upcoming release of the next installment of one of my favorite puzzle adventure game series, Dream Chronicles: The Book of Water, I thought I’d revisit to the original Dream Chronicles that started things off.

Dream Chronicles, as a series, is more focused on the puzzle, adventure and storyline than others where hidden object scenes are the primary predominance. The gameplay enables you to click and discover your way through Faye’s dream world, where every scene is a puzzle to be solved in order to uncover the clues needed to piece together the situation and, in this installment, rescue her husband, Fidget, who, with incredibly specific foresight, has prepared a diary for just this situation. The diary details Fidget’s upbringing as a fairy and the situations that have lead up to their current mess.

The Dream Chronicles series has become one of my favorites for it’s use of puzzles over hidden object scenes, an evolving, strong storyline throughout, and the lack of a hint button which I’ve always felt tempts the player to just bulldoze through an otherwise engaging game requiring actual thought and consideration to conquer. The gameplay and interface will be common throughout future editions, which allows the player to focus on the story and the puzzles from the get-go, even though it differs from hidden object games.

Specifically, for this, the first, edition of the Dream Chronicles series, I felt it was incredibly brief and decidedly setup to be Episode 1 of Many, which, after completion, left me unsatisfied. Thankfully, by now, there are many more “episodes” to move on to, but, be prepared: this is just the beginning. 

I’ve never really seen the need for points in games like these. Which is why I found the collection of Dream Jewels, scattered throughout every scene, burdensome. I was aware of this going in, but was still disappointed when their point was moot at the end of the current story. My impression is that game publishers think points will, in and of themselves, lead to repeat play.  But, to be honest, for these types of puzzle adventure games, it’s always going to be a one-shot deal: the stories aren’t advanced or deep enough to repeat and there’s really no motivation to do so just to get a “higher score.” Bottom line: ignore the shiny objects.

Hints

1. There’s no over-click penalty. So, if you think it’s something of interest, click away!
2. If you’re stuck, wait around for a minute. The actionable items will start to shimmer to guide your way forward.
3. Scattered throughout the game are books which, when clicked on, will reveal clues to the current scene, it’s puzzle(s) and how to solve it/them. This is an awesome replacement to a “hint” button.
4. If you have a problem outside the mansion with not enough pieces to finish the puzzle, the missing Cancer zodiac sign is under the left window sill.
5. The final puzzle is a doosey. For the needed clues, hover over the colored gems found strewn through each of the closeup views.

Final Thought: Did anyone else immediately picture Lilith from Frasier/Cheers (and apparently Wings? "I love Wings!") when the antagonist was unveiled to be a bitter, vindictive “fairy” of sleep bent on getting her way? No? OK, I’m old. Crud.