"There is this quaint antique game store my dad introduced me to when I was just 12 years old. It was in a back alley next to an old Italian restaurant we would sometimes dine at to celebrate special occasions. A newly wed Asian couple ran the place and they were always very welcoming. Anyway, I went there one day looking for a copy of Wizards And Warriors. A classic by Rare-soft that was a good ol' fashioned side-scroller action platformer with an armored knight as the main character.
There was a much older man behind the counter. I assumed he was the grand-father of the younger man or younger woman I usually dealt with.
"Excuse me sir,do you have a copy of Wizards and Warriors?" I asked shyly.
The man widened his one good eye giving me the once over then turned to face the library of games behind him.
"Just one second!" he grumbled.
While he was searching another game caught my attention. "Dream Knight" was scrawled across it in ornate silver tinted letters.
Seeing the old man was having trouble finding my request I shifted his attention to the other game.
"What's that one? I have never seen it before!"
He faced me again,a half grin turning up his thin lips.
"That is special one. It is hack n slash rogue-like beat em up with rpg-lite elements!"
My mind reeled as it tried to decipher the word salad the ancient codger just strung together.
"Cool,how much?" was all I managed to say.
His partial grin widened into a full smile rearranging all his wrinkles to the point he literally looked identical to the troll-face-meme I saw "everywhere" online!
"$1.99! For you. Very special limited offer!" He offered merrily.
I was gobsmacked. That was chump change. Initially I contemplated if that was because the game was bad. Like, "LJN" bad. But at that price what the hell? It would be no skin off my back even if it was a total clunker.
"Deal!" I retorted handing him the correct amount as he handed me the cartridge.
I had no idea at that very moment my life would be changed forever. I'm sure you have read stories of regular people getting isekai-ed into far away fantastical lands of danger,magic,beautiful maidens,and ancient unknown horrors. Even here in the west we have variations on that theme such as The Lion,the witch,and the wardrobe,The Never Ending Story,and Labyrinth. Well,it happened to me for real. As you can already guess it started with a dream from which I would not be so quick to wake up from......."
It perplexes me Dream Knight has flown so egregiously under the radar. It does a lot of what its' more famous contemporaries achieved whilst being a satisfying beat em up hack n slash action rpg of a mishmash-ed yet beautiful chimera!
Certainly it's punishing in the beginning. You build your strength at a snail's pace with each death as is typical with many rogue-likes. Not only do you upgrade yourself but you also get to determine the power level of your followers and the improved variables that trigger when you enter the dream world. Want items to spawn from broken barrels more often? Put the appropriate dream-orb-currency into it! Want your follower to give you a slight bonus to your defense when he or she accompanies you? Put the appropriate boss-essence-blood-crystals into it! Want to try a new combination of equipment? Do it at the sanctuary as once you leave there's no going back until you perish and sally forth once more!
There is "a lot" to unearth and discover from trinkets or buffs that improve the main protagonist to the desperate hope of eventually freeing the hero's other companions whom dangle just above eye level akin to macabre chandeliers as they remain imprisoned in mystic glass containers held there in place by enchanted chains.
Dream Knight wastes no time projecting a feeling of eerie wrongness. You quickly piece together that a bunch of knights went on a great crusade only to be very much outclassed. "Followers" are stone statues that can only be brought back to life by their correspondent spirit-spheres. Other mercenaries got lulled into eternal slumber by cursed charms. A few letters describe being outnumbered by monsters and how mushrooms grow so large in a particular location due to the sheer amount of buried dead just beneath the dirt. Something wicked this way came and it left everything in complete ruin.
Meanwhile you will slash through countless goblins,trolls,orcs,rogue wizards,deadly assassins and adversaries stranger still. Whomever is the "Big Bad" has amassed an army Sauron would be jealous of! These mobs are also not to be underestimated. You can get staggered by exploding bombs,unexpected rush attacks,and stray arrows. It's a blessing your knight errant is so fast and can do a graceful dodge roll as without it you are totally screwed. Yeah,certain buffs will give you increased defense or even increased walking speed at the cost of your evasive tumble but I'm going to tell you right now,forget about it! Choose something more helpful such as a poisoned blade,elemental strike,vampiric drain,or increased damage output once your health drops to a dangerously low threshold.
Some may want to compare Dream Knight to "Vampire Survivors" but in my opinion it has more in common with Death Must Die,Dead Souls,and Hades. How well you do is not just about your load out and equipment. You have to master weaving between enemies,striking at opportune times,and managing the cool-down of your specials. Imagine a game such as Knights Of The Round,King Of Dragons,Guardian Heroes,or Dungeons And Dragons: Shadow Over Mystara sped up to be almost as fast and fluid as Ninja Gaiden. Thank goodness then that the controls lend themselves to that style of gameplay. If they did not there would be countless more instances of unbridled gamer-rage!
By the way, the composers deserve some credit too as the musical scores can be downright melancholic and somber yet endearingly catchy simultaneously. It is rare when musicians can strike that chord between upbeat nostalgia and what I would only describe as Dark-Souls-Nioh-Lite-Mellow-Diablo-Goth-Opera-Doom-Metal!
Even "if" the sheer challenge of Dream Knight wears at your patience periodically and even if the meta progression happens in slow increments consider the fact you get "all of this" for $1.99! In current year! With no "season pass dlc" string alongs! Can you believe it or is this all just a "dream"?! Woah!
Pros
+Addictive gameplay
+Beautiful spritework
+Challenging in a good way
+ Old skool cool
+ Atmospheric
+Haunting melodies
+Countless rewards and unlocks for those patient enough
+Is $1.99! "$1.99"! Holy sh*t! You know what's no longer "$1.99"? Any value meal at a fast-food joint! Meanwhile I am given "gamer bliss" for less than the price of a candy bar or a medium sized soda cup! I'm dumbfounded and confused!
Neutral
+/- Because there are objects in the foreground as well as the background enemies can be sneaky and are not always seen right away. Depending on your outlook this either adds an additional layer of strategic depth to the combat or just makes things more frustrating!
Cons
-Slow overall meta progression
-Might be "Too hard" for some
-The random variables make certain runs much less rewarding than others
-Cost of certain upgrades is a bit steep
- A few text boxes have not been translated. Luckily game-play is so natural,straight-forward,and intuitive it does not offset the overall experience too much.
-Because the game is so obscure there's not much info on how to unlock other characters etc. I "assume" you do it by completing the other colored gates that go up in difficulty but don't quote me on that.
