HYBRID LIFE-SIM RPG GAME
Dream City Fugitive represents a unique approach to RPG game with pre-rendered 3D game world in top-down view perspective, open world city scale island, deep life-sim gameplay integration and tight integration of storyline. You can interact with the game world using point and click interface but there is option to use on screen direction pads or physical keyboard.
FOCUS ON SINGLE CHARACTER
You're playing as a single character throughout the game. You have the option to choose from 6 preset characters at the start of the game. Each character has their own unique abilities, skill bonuses and clothes.
MULTIPLE WAYS TO MAKE PROGRESS
The game doesn't use experience level to track progress like typical RPG game. Instead, progress in the game is tracked through several parameters - combat (street credential), career (work visa) and personality (determination and karma). This approach allows the flexibility to focus on what is more important to you. If you care about combat, improving street credential allows access to more opponents. If you care about career, improving work visa gives access to better job promotion.
Keep winning in combat to raise determination. Higher determination will allow you to earn HP bonus in combat. Do good deed to people such as donating will raise karma. Higher karma will allow you to earn bonus to roll chance in combat and many other things.
Despite of that, most of your time in the game will still be spent to improve skills. Performing action related to the skill or attending classes at schools will earn yourself experience points (XP). There are 20 skills which can be categorized into physical, tycoon, muse and analytical. Since improving skill points can take lots of time (you don't get XP from doing quests), focus on improving a few skills that's useful to you.
TIGHT STORYLINE INTEGRATION
There are a total of 28 quests in 5 separate acts (Act 1, 2A, 3A, 2B and 3B). Lots of quests revolves around combat but there are several quests which requires your deduction logic in order to solve it. The game has branching plots at early part of the game which means the full story can only be experienced through 2 separate playthroughs. A normal Path A playthrough can take between 12 to 16 hours to complete. A normal Path B playthrough can take between 6 to 8 hours to complete.
You start the game as a fugitive on the run. You have the option to either join a vigilante group or refuse to join them. If you decided to join them, you'll be working with them to find ways to solve your fugitive problem. Eventually with their help, you are able to negotiate with the authority for your freedom. You'll also investigate multiple strange events of which the source of problem can be traced to a specific location in the city.
Once you return to the city as a free person, it is your obligation to destroy the source of problem. For that, you're required to help local gangs in order to seek their assistance to destroy the source of problem. Things get complicated when a dangerous person shows up. You must find a way to find his weakness and beat him for you to have a chance to destroy the source of problem. You managed to rescue a special girl. She'll help you to figure out the dangerous person's weakness and later serves as an important ally to beat the dangerous person. Will you be able to destroy the source of problem?
On the other hand, refusing to join the vigilante group allows you the opportunity to join a cult. You'll discover the true horror of their operation as they are working with the people behind multiple strange events that took place on the island. They'll help with your fugitive problem in a wicked way. With a steep price for your freedom, you must fight with them against a determined vigilante group trying to destroy what the cult has been working for years.
OPEN WORLD CITY SCALE ISLAND
The game takes place in a city on a small island where you can have freedom to explore the whole island. The city is divided into 9 districts with more than 50 places to visit. Lots of effort have been made to create a living city.
Shopping district allows you to visit plenty of shops, cinema, art theatre and hypermarket. The hub of the city is city park where you can find night life entertainment (dance club or bar), plenty of schools and night market. Office district allows you to work at several office places such as ad agency, law firm, modelling agency or fashion firm or go to investment office to invest your cash. If you like nature, you can go to forest to forage or do some fishing.
The city changes dynamically every month in term of economy, crime and weather. Jewellery, house and company stock prices change based on economic condition. Because of the price changes, it is possible to make or lose money by taking advantage of the price changes. Crime will affect bad guys on the street. The crime can be so high that night curfew will be enforced throughout the month. Wet season means you'll see rain most of the time while going outside. When the city in plague, some places such as dance club or gym club are closed throughout the month.
There are 200+ generic characters you can talk to throughout the city. Their randomized response are based on their profile. Tourists will talk about tourist attraction, office workers will talk about office life, villagers will talk about forest and teenagers will talk about mischievous stuff. In addition to talk, it is possible to sell stuff to some of them to earn some money especially to characters on the street.
LIFE-SIM GAMEPLAY
You have to monitor energy, hunger, health, morale and hygiene bars at all time. Neglecting any of the bars could jeopardize your effectiveness in performing day to day life. Fortunately, these bars are easy to be taken care of due to close proximity of many places in the game.
There are a lot of job opportunities if you know where to look. You can take part-time jobs at the restaurants to earn side income. At some point (after fugitive problem has been solved), you have option to apply for a full-time job at several office places. You can dedicate a significant time to build the career. It is possible to get promoted all the way to the top as CEO.
There are plenty of ways to earn money without you working for people. You can buy a fishing rod from a guy and use it to fish at any 9 different fishing spots throughout the island. You can then sell the catch to the chef at sushi restaurant for some money. If you don't mind to get dirty, you can scavenge trash cans all over the island to look for scraps. You can then sell the scraps at the back of pawn shop for some money. You can walk around city park or forest to forage tree stumps for mushrooms. These mushrooms can be sold to villagers for some money.
Initially you're given a crummy place to stay but once you've dealt with the fugitive problem, you can rent to live at flat, apartment or condominium. You can buy 20 varieties of furniture or equipment and equip them at your home to unlock more activities such as sleeping, storing food, cooking and watching TV.
Even though you can buy meals from restaurants, cooking your own meals can save lots of money. You start with 22 recipes and can learn up to 66 recipes by taking part-time job at the restaurants or watching cooking show on TV. You can buy ingredients for the cooking from hypermarket, 24 hours shop, cake & pastry shop or night market stalls.
Even though the island is small, you can buy scooter and car to move faster between places. There are plenty of bus stops throughout the island to call for taxi or use bus service. Paying for taxi serves as fast travel to move between places. You can use free bus to move between districts.
At some point, you're given lots of cash. You can invest the cash to buy jewellery and company stocks. The stuff will appreciate or depreciate in value at the start of month based on economic condition. The economic condition changes every month so it is possible to make money when the stuff appreciate in value. You can then sell the stuff to earn some profit.
TURN-BASED COMBAT
Combat is resolved through turn-based format which has its own interface. For most combats, you'll only fight a single opponent but there are several situations where you have to fight multiple opponents. During these situations, other characters might join you as allies to fight these opponents.
Even though combat outcome is based on random chance, skill point can still play a heavy role to affect the outcome. As you're improving your skill points, you'll notice you'll hit opponent more often. So grinding your skill points can help to make future combats easier to handle.
There are 22 types of opponents which can be categorized based on their tier. You should be able to handle Tier 0 and 1 opponents easily. While Tier 2 opponents can provide some challenge, Tier 3 opponents have been designed to provide serious challenge.
